I went to go find Ayaka... and of course she was in her fucking horrifying lab.

"Ahh, Eunji!" Ayaka said. "It's so good to see you! I was actually thinking about a new idea for my new horror book, wanna hear?"

I spent the past 30 minutes listening to Ayaka as she spoke about the new horrifying monster she came up with.

Much to say, I'm never going to sleep again.

Ayaka and I grew really close today!

Would you like to give Ayaka a present? Yes

What would you like to give her?

Item Gifted – Real Golden Pen

"W-Whooaaaa... Eunji, where'd you get this! Thank you so much!"

Seeing Ayaka so happy with her gift makes me really happy!

….

"Eunjiiii!" Ayaka said cheerfully.

"Yes, Aya-chan?" Eunji replied.

"So... what kind of books do you like, hmm?"

"Horror, mostly." The blue-haired idol replied.

"Ahhh! So then you must have read one of my books!" The blonde's eyes lit up with excitement.

"Ahaha, maybe. I wouldn't remember, though, I've read a lot of books."

"Hmmm..." Ayaka said. "So, out of all the horror books you've read, which one was your favorite?"

"So, there's this story about 5 friends who just wanted to dive, but they get kidnapped and get taken to a ghost ship! There, they get haunted by many freakish ghosts and stuff, but it actually turns out that there was a chemical leak in the ship that made them hallucinate the entire time! Everyone survived, which really made me happy!" Eunji said.

"Oh my gosh, that was my first ever story!" Ayaka said. "When I first started out writing, I didn't want my horror stories to be that depressing, so usually I would have everyone survive."

"You wrote it, Aya-chan? You're a great writer!" The idol said with stars in her eyes. "I-I can't believe I've actually been talking to the person who wrote my favorite book ever all this time!"

"Ah, yeah... t-thank you." Ayaka was blushing. "You remember what it was called, right?"

"Man of Medan." Eunji said. "It was the translation of the ship's name, the Ourang Medan!"

"Whoa, you must have remembered a lot about it!"

"Of course, my favorite was Brad!" Eunji fell silent. "Kinda weird you had english-named characters, though."

"Well, Resident Evil is a big deal in Japan, and everyone there has english names." Ayaka replied. "Just followed the trend, ya know... is there another story you remembered?"

"Oh, there was this one story about a tall man with body parts that were falling apart, he stalked this group of 9, and at the end, only one survived! But she was extremely tramuatised, and I remember that she got thrown into an insane aslyum because she was originally convincted of murder because she was the only survivor, so everyone had assumed she murdered everyone, but when she continued speaking crazy, they made her plead insanity..." Eunji fell silent. "Huh, depressing."

"Ah, yes, that's my recent story." Ayaka said. "The Jangly Man."

"What a huge difference from Man of Medan." The blue-haired girl said.

"But enough of my stories, heh... how about you, Eunji? Do you want to know anything about me?"

"What made you start writing horror?" Eunji asked.

"My brother." Ayaka replied. "My older brother LOVED horror. Growing up, it was all he talked about. I remember he wanted to show me some movies, but I always too scared. One day, when I was old enough, we did watch ONE movie, and my goodness I fell in love."

Ayaka fell silent, but she continued. "When he got sick, I noticed his usually upbeat attitude had disappeared, so... I wanted to cheer him up, so I wrote Man of Medan. He loved it so much. He said it was his favorite book."

"Is your brother...?"

"He's still here, of course... which is why I have to escape from here." Ayaka said. "To see him heal, and to write more stories from him, because he deserves it. Without him, I wouldn't be where I am."

"Aya-chan... to write stories for somebody you love... you're an amazing person."

Ayaka blushed. "Ah... thank you..."

The blonde fell silent, and Eunji took her hand.

"Huh...?" Ayaka was starstruck.

"I promise you, Aya-chan, I'll get you out of here!" Eunji said. "For you, and your brother!"

"E-Eunji.." Ayaka's voice broke. "R-Really...?"

"I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe, because... well... you matter a lot to me! So, yes! I'll get you out of here! And everyone else, too!"

The blonde smiled at her. "Thank you so much..."

Ayaka Suzuki... I'll keep you alive, no matter the cost! Your brother and everyone in your life needs you!

Once again, I went to find Takashi, and I found him inside the rec room.

"What an absolute bore this room is." Takashi said. "But uh... there is a book here that's in Korean, maybe you can translate it for me?"

I translated a Korean story for Takashi today.

He's mysterious, but something gives me the vibe that Takashi and I grew a little closer today.

Would you like to give Takashi a present? Yes

Item Gifted – Old Classic Film Roll.

"Huh, interesting!" Takashi said. "There's a lot you can do with this, thank you, Eunji!"

Seeing Takashi so pleased with my gift makes me happy!

"Well, it's definitely been something these past couple days." Takashi said.

"Understatement." Eunji replied.

"But I wouldn't want to bum you out." Takashi stated. "So... uh... hey, tells me a little more about yourself."

"Uh... I'm a very emotional person." The blue-haired girl replied. "But, uh... that's obvious, ain't it?"

"I think we all figured that one out." The white-haired boy replied.

"Yeah... and you? Would you consider yourself an emotional person?"

"Not really." Takashi said. "I mean, yeah, like we discussed, I occasionally like to watch emotional stuff, but I wouldn't consider myself the type of person to have... extreme reactions... if that's the right word."

"Yeah, I get you."

The white-haired boy thought of something, then spoke up.

"What are you main motiviations for wanting to get out of here, Eunji?" Takashi asked.

"Eh?" Eunji was a bit taken aback with this question. "I-I suppose... I'm an idol with a promising career, you know?"

But saying that just reminds me of what Reika said... before she got executed.

"N-Not just that... but I'm still so young, you know? I have a lot more to look forward to in life!" The blue-haired girl replied.

"Yeah, I can relate to that." Takashi replied. "I want to get out of here so I can see my family again, too, most importantly."

"Right... my family." Eunji fell silent. "To be quite honest, I'm not really on the best terms with my mom."

"Huh, why's that?"

"She didn't really agree with me wanting to become an idol. Of course, she didn't actively try to stop me, and she does talk to me... but I know she's still upset over it."

"Reminds me of my father when I wanted to start hiking."

"He didn't like that?"

"Said it was too dangerous. Of course, there's risks in everything. " Takashi said. "I took him hiking a couple months ago, and he loved that."

"Oh... do you think maybe I should like, I dunno, show my mother how it's really like being an idol, and maybe she won't be upset anymore?" Eunji asked.

"That sounds like a good idea, Eunji."

There was a couple moments of silence, but then Takashi spoke up again.

"So.. blue hair. What made you pick that?" The boy asked.

"Ahh... that's actually my natural hair color." The idol replied.

"Wait, really?"

"It's pretty strange, but yeah, it's like a very rare occurance in humans. Everyone in my family has blue hair."

"Whoa, that's pretty crazy!"

"You?"

"I just chose to dye my hair white." Takashi replied. "My hair is naturally black, but I got bored of it, so in an attempt to stand out more, I dyed my hair white."

"Looks good on you." Eunji replied.

"Thank you."

Eunji thought of something, then spoke up.

"Hey, so... do you have a girlfriend or something?" Eunji asked.

"Eh?" Takashi was a bit confused. "Why are you asking? Aren't you a lesbian?"

"Well, yes, of course, but you?"

"Ah... well, I am straight, yeah... but I haven't really gone around in terms of looking for a girlfriend." Takashi said.

"Huh, why not?"

"I'm very immersed into my studying."

"Ah, makes sense!" Eunji said. "School gets the best of ya!"

"School is very stressful, but at the end, it's worth it." Takashi said.

"Yeah, I can understand that."

Takashi just sighed. "I'm still very worried about this whole situation. It never occurred to me that... a murder would actually happen."

"I know.." Eunji fell silent. "It's so horrible..."

"But don't worry, Eunji." The white-haired boy said. "I will make sure another one doesn't happen."

"Huh?"

"Monokuma... he's sloppy. We just need to let the right circumstances happen, and he'll let the right words out, and before you know it, this whole "game" is over."

"Monokuma is sloppy, that's true... but that's such a big thing to promise."

The boy just nodded. "You'll see."

Takashi has a lot of hope...

That's right. Hope. I should keep my hope up.

"With that, I'm going to head out." Takashi said. "Bye, Eunji."

"Bye, Takashi!"

Takashi is definitely one to watch. I look forward to speaking with him again.

I searched for Kazuhiko, and to the surprise of no one, there he was, in his lab.

"Heyo, don't be a stranger, Park Eunji!" Kazuhiko said. "First time I've seen you by yourself come to me!"

I spent the next 30 minutes talking to Kazuhiko.

Kazuhiko and I grew a little closer today.

Would you like to give Kazuhiko a present? Yes

Item Gifted – Signed Keiichi Tsuchiya Autograph

"Whoa, where'd you get this?" Kazuhiko said. "The DRIFT king? Thank you!"

Seeing Kazuhiko so pleased with his gift makes me happy!

"So... racing.. how long have you been doing that for?" Eunji said.

"9 years now, I think." Kazuhiko said.

"Eh? How old are you?"

"I'm 16."

"T-That means you started at 7!"

"Well, I am THE ultimate racer, Eunji!" The racer said. "I started in little leagues, but slowly moved up as I got older!"

"Wow." The idol replied. "But isn't racing like... super dangerous?"

"Of course! And that's one of the main thrills of it!" Kazuhiko replied. "Nothing gets my blood pumping like a high speed race in a dangerous course!"

"Dangerous course? Do you do illegal racing too or something?"

"Oh... perhaps I should have kept my mouth shut." Kazuhiko replied. "Um, anyways..."

"So... what got you into racing?" Eunji asked.

"Racing movies, oh, and my parents would always take me out to race shows." Kazuhiko said. "Another added bonus is that you make hella cash when you win the big games."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I've made a fortune for my family."

"Racing is a pretty big deal, yeah..."

"But besides racing, my favorite pasttime would probably be origami."

"Ori...origami?" Eunji was a bit confused. "Whoa.. n-not to offend you or anything it's just that.."

"Yeah, I know." The racer said. "I hype up racing, and high speed and stuff, but sometimes it's nice to just sit down and do some origami."

"So... then... what's your favorite origami piece you've done?"

"Probably the T-rex I made a couple months ago."

T-REX ORIGAMI?

"Wow... that's different." Eunji replied.

"I got really bored one day, so I wanted to challenge myself, and boom! There it was, a origami t-rex!" Kazuhiko stated.

"Very interesting."

"How about you, Eunji? Ever done some origami."

"Ah, I don't really have the time to. With all my practicing and idol stuff."

"Well, we have plenty of free time now in this... school."

"Origami sounds like it'd be a fun way to.. pass time." Eunji made sure not to say "kill time".

"Trust me, it very much is!" Kazuhiko said. "I've basically spent my time here just doing origami!"

"You have?"

"Yeah, but all my origami figures are in my dorm."

"Well, perhaps I can see them another day."

"Sure! Anyways, I gotta head out! Bye, Eunji!"

"Bye!"

There's more that meets the eye with Kazuhiko. I wonder what else he has in store.

I went to look for Hirokazu, and he was... well, in his lab.

"Oh, hello!" Hirokazu said. "How are things going?"

I spent the next 20 minutes talking to Hirokazu about... astrology. How exciting...

Hirokazu and I grew a little closer today.

Would you like to give Hirokazu a gift? Yes

Item Gifted – Tarot Card

"Huh, wow! Very interesting, thanks Eunji!" Hirokazu said.

Seeing Hirokazu so pleased with his gift makes me happy!

"So how did you even get around to mastering all those board games?" Eunji asked.

"Ah, well, growing up, I was never allowed technology or anything of that sort." Hirokazu replied. "My mother was always weary of phones and stuff, so she'd only let me have books and boardgames."

"Oh. She wouldn't even let you watch T.V?"

"Just once a day for 2 hours. That's the most I've gotten."

"Wow. I'm sorry to hear that."

"Eh, I guess I grew up fine. Eventually she wisened up once I turned 13 and she allowed me a phone and stuff."

"Okay... so I can assume you always picked up Astrology during that time?"

"Actually, that was a bit more recent."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I picked up astrology a few years ago. I started a website about it, which I suppose is what Hope's Peak scouted me for."

"Wow, interesting."

There was some silence, and then Hirokazu spoke up.

"Hey, so... you're a lesbian, right?" Hirokazu asked."

"Yeah, what's up?" Eunji asked.

"So... you have a gaydar, right?"

"I should, yeah."

"Okay... um... Kaori...?"

"Hmm? Do you have a cruuush, Hirokazu?"

"I-I don't know, maybe? S-She's really funny, and we talk a lot about stuff... I was just wondering if maybe.. you could have known something?"

"I did flirt with her – but I do flirt with every girl – and she did panic a bit."

"Oh?"

Eunji pondered for a bit. "I dunno, she never really gave me gay vibes. You could always ask."

"Maybe... if it comes up."

Even in a high stress situation like this, we still get that high school drama.

There was just some awkward silence, until Hirokazu spoke up.

"This whole situation... it's so messed up." Hirokazu said. "Just two days ago Jutaro and Reika were with us, talking and laughing like things were normal... but now..."

"Reika played into Monokuma's game." Eunji said. "I know it's hard... but I'm sure we can get through this."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"I'm just scared. I don't want anyone else to do what Reika did."

"They won't, trust me."

The boy just nodded. "Okay."

"I'm going to go, take care, okay?" Eunji said.

Hirokazu nodded. "I'm just going to do some astrology things, then."

I went to look for Masahito, and I found him in the dining hall.

"Oh hey, it's you." Masahito said. "This is a surprise."

...What can we even talk about?

Somehow, I made conversation with Masahito.

I think that Masahito and I grew a little closer today.

Would you like to give Masahito a gift? Yes

Item Gifted – CG Pen

"Oh wow, thanks!" Masahito said.

Phew, he liked my gift. He's a bit unknown to me!

….

"So... CG artist, huh?" Eunji said. "How did you pick that up?"

"It was just a hobby to pass time." Masahito said. "Then I started doing it a lot more, and next thing I knew, I was a pro at it."

"That's interesting."

"I can assume it was the same for you?"

"No, not at all. I was into being an idol ever since I was young. Pretty much grew up training."

"Wow, did you even have a childhood?"

"W-Well, yeah, of course!"

Did I have a childhood?

I'd like to think I did.

"Have any childhood friends you keep in touch with?" Masahito said. "My childhood friend is named Hana, and you?"

"Her name is Saerom." Eunji said. "We went to different high schools when we got older, but I still talked to her."

"Well, of course ya want to different high schools, I don't see her here."

"R-Right."

Gah, fucking brainfart!

"She got lucky, really." Masahito remarked. "If she had gone to Hope's Peak like you, she would have to participate in this fucking cursed game."

"Yeah..." Eunji sighed.

"I plan on seeing Hana again." Masahito said. "Ayaka's been saying she wants to end this game."

"Yeah, I know."

"So whatever she has planned, I'm on board."

"Me too."

Masahito may seem rough on the edges sometimes, but he really is a fine guy.

"I still want to know a bit more, though." Eunji said. "So, ultimate CG artist, what did you work on?"

"Spike Chunsoft, Acquire... big stuff." Masahito replied.

"So, then, you must rich, huh?"

"I suppose I'm well-off."

We're all well off. That's why we assumed that we were going to be held for ransom at first.

"That's all I got for today." Masahito said. "Talk to you later."

"Bye, Masahito."

Well, I'm going to call it in for today.

Eunji arrived at her room, and just lied down in her bed.

I guess I'll find out what tomorrow has for me.