Naegi let himself sink back into the soft comfort of the bed, the warmth of Togami's hand on his cheek lulling him into a moment of peace. Something had been missing from his world, an emptiness twisting through his life and making everything he did less than it should be – but that was over now. It had ended the moment Togami had let his hand brush over Naegi's skin, gentle in a way that Naegi had feared he'd lost forever.
But that wasn't the case. Not only did Togami refuse to remove his hand, he let his fingers drift along Naegi's temple, almost petting the stray locks of hair that he could reach. The sensation soothed away the worries that never really stopped gnawing at Naegi's mind, giving him a brief respite from the horrors of life at Hope's Peak. This touch promised safety, and peace, and everything good and beautiful that was in such short supply here. He thought he might be content to lie here in this quiet, protected room and let himself fall asleep to the feeling of Togami stroking his hair.
But he couldn't do that – not yet, anyway. He couldn't let himself lie back and relax when everyone else was trying so hard to defy the mastermind's game, not when there was something he could do to help. If something horrible happened to one of the others because he decided to sleep instead of contributing… how would he be able to live under the weight of the guilt he knew he'd feel?
So Naegi forced his eyes open again, fighting off the clinging tendrils of sleep trying to tug him into their depths. His eyelids shouldn't be so heavy, not when he'd already slept most of the afternoon, but apparently all the blood loss had taken quite a toll on him. Or maybe it wasn't just today's injuries – maybe everything that had happened to him so far had just built up to the point when he couldn't ignore it any longer. He didn't like being stuck in bed when everyone else could use his help, but he knew any attempt to protest it would meet with Togami's utter scorn.
He looked over at the other boy, still sitting in the chair Ogami had been occupying at the side of the bed – and blinked at the expression on Togami's face. There was so much relief written stark across the heir's proud features, all the usual lines of stiffness and tension relaxing into softness as he looked down at Naegi. He looked like someone had unexpectedly lifted a thousand pounds of weight from his shoulders, leaving him free and light and able to breathe easily. Naegi had known how hard his injuries must have hit the other boy, but there was something different about seeing it so plainly.
He couldn't keep doing this to Togami – not if he really cared about the other boy as much as he claimed. It wasn't fair of him to enjoy all the comfort and security that Togami's presence gave him, and then not at least try to offer the same in return. Guilt burned at the back of Naegi's throat, sharp and sour. With all the fears the other boy had endured with each of Naegi's injuries, Naegi had to wonder how many of the emotions he'd caused in the other boy had been rooted in pain and unhappiness. Had he ever made Togami feel safe?
Well, he might not be able to fix the mistakes he'd made in the past, but at least he could do things differently from now on. He might not be able to do much to try to protect Togami while he was stuck here recovering in bed, but he would do everything that he could. And he would start by making sure Togami knew all the dangerous secrets that Naegi did.
"Togami," Naegi said softly, taking a moment to smile at the familiar shape of the name on his tongue. "I need to talk to you about something."
Togami's fingers went still against Naegi's temple, and a touch of wariness entered his eyes as he frowned at Naegi. "There are things we do need to discuss, but this isn't the time to begin. You have no business exerting yourself for an extended serious conversation, and I'm going to need to return to my investigation upstairs as soon as Ogami gets back."
"That's why we need to talk now," Naegi insisted. "This isn't about you and me. There are things you have to know if you're investigating the mastermind."
That final word sent a shock of electricity through the other boy, jolting him to attention and crackling like fire through his eyes. And while Naegi felt a twinge of regret at the loss of the affectionate smile, he appreciated this look of fierce intensity even more. He'd hated the thought that Togami might have had his resolve to escape weakened by his affections – but looking like this, sharp and alert like a cat poised to leap, Naegi could tell he remained as strong and confident as he'd ever been.
"What have you found out?" Togami demanded, his hand dropping from Naegi's cheek down to his shoulder so that they could have an unobstructed view of each other's faces. "Jill and Ogami didn't mention anything of the kind."
"They don't know," Naegi said. "I found out about this late last night – after you left."
A frown darkened Togami's face. "You mean when you were alone with Kirigiri."
Naegi didn't flinch from the obvious displeasure in Togami's voice as he spoke the other girl's name. Even if Togami insisted on disliking Kirigiri, Naegi wasn't going to cut her out of his life – especially not now, when she'd disappeared in the middle of a dangerous investigation. The more Naegi heard about what had happened after he'd collapsed, the more reason he had to fear that something had gone horribly wrong – and that Kirigiri might be caught in the middle of it.
"That's right," Naegi said, deciding that his best bet for avoiding another argument about whether Kirigiri had evil intentions was to stay as calm as possible. "Before we went back to the dorms, she told me some of what she's found in her investigation."
"And?" Togami prompted, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. "Does this have anything to do with where she's been hiding all day?"
"Yes, I think so," Naegi said, his worry about the girl returning full force as he realized that she'd been gone nearly a full twenty-four hours. "She wanted to follow up on a lead – but nothing she said sounded like she expected it to take this long."
"What exactly did she say?" Togami asked, his fingers stiff on Naegi's shoulder like he wanted to grip it but was restraining himself.
Naegi opened his mouth to answer – and then frowned, glancing over to the security camera in the corner of the room. Yes, Ogami had told him that it seemed like something had happened to Monokuma, and that they'd all come to the conclusion they weren't being watched any longer – but that was because they didn't know about Ikusaba. Just because Monokuma wasn't active right now, did that really mean the mastermind had stopped paying attention?
His memory flashed back to the way Kirigiri had acted in the bathhouse when she'd told him about her meeting with Ikusaba. In the only room free from the mastermind's cameras, they should have been safe from any eavesdropping – but Kirigiri had still been careful to speak softly and to hide the important parts of her communication behind the guise of bandaging the cut on his cheek. She'd never done anything like that the other times they'd needed to have private conversations – every other time, she'd apparently considered the bathhouse's lack of cameras to be secure enough. But now, something about her meeting with Ikusaba had changed Kirigiri's mind.
And with the possibility of what might have happened in spite of all her precautions, Naegi thought that maybe he ought to consider a little discretion himself. He would have preferred to try to do it in a way that would look subtle… but stuck immobile in bed, he'd just have to work with what he could manage. And if anyone really was watching, at least they wouldn't actually overhear him, even if they knew he was telling secrets.
"Can you come closer, please?" Naegi asked. "I think it's safer if I don't say this out loud."
