Ding dong, bing bong.

"Good morning, everyone! It is now 7 a.m. and nighttime is officially over! Time to rise and shine! Get ready to greet another beee-yutiful day!"

I wonder if it's raining today.

We don't have windows. We can't see or hear anything outside this school. And we don't have Internet, or TV, or anything, so there's no way to check the weather.

I feel like it's rainy, though. Like it's a gray, drizzly morning, with the occasional burst of distant thunder.

Maybe it's just me.

Naomi quickly finishes my morning room check. The era of intrusive room checks is over, it seems.

Later, when I'm dressed and ready, I leave for breakfast.

I come across Kenji as he's walking down the hall. "Hi, Kenji!" I greet.

"Oh," he says, looking nervous. "Um—hello, Koi."

"So," I say, "how are…"

But Kenji's already speeding toward the cafeteria. I sigh, and roll my eyes. Poor Kenji… someday, he'll realize that girls are just as weird and awkward as boys are.

There aren't any important updates from the Captain, so we spend breakfast just talking and laughing amongst ourselves. Hiroto and I make sure to smile at each other at least once. It's like an unspoken daily routine now.

But today, my smile is forced.

Today, I have to repress those thoughts.

They're going to kill him.

Hiroto is going to die.

I can't stop thinking about it. Ever since last night. It just… popped into my brain, and refused to leave.

He's the Ultimate Attorney. He'd be extremely useful in a class trial. Trying to frame someone would be a nightmare. Hiroto would prove their innocence every time.

Which means he has a giant target on his back.

Well… it's not just him. Killing Mizuki or Shingo would create chaos—and that'd make the murder easier to get away with. They have targets on their backs, too.

I don't know… maybe it's irrational. But I just have this strong, intuitive feeling that Hiroto is in grave danger.

There are fourteen people here, other than Hiroto and me. If even just one of them snaps… just one out of fourteen…

No—this is stupid. This is crazy. I need to stop thinking like this.

I trust these people… right?

Hiroto… will be just fine… right?

I can't just dwell on these dark thoughts all day.

I… should probably go out and do something.

-FREE TIME-

I decide to go to the laundry room.

In the middle of the room, there's a large table. Naomi's sitting there, sketching.

Here's my chance! This time, I'll get Naomi to like me for sure!

"Hi, Naomi," I say. "Do you mind if I… watch you sketch for a bit?"

"Feel free," Naomi says, not looking up.

I sit down next to her, and watch. She's sketching a man and a woman holding hands, gazing into each other's eyes.

"You write romance really well," I say.

"Thank you," Naomi replies.

I keep watching—but now my mind is racing. Girl talk! That's the solution! I mean, Naomi and I are both girls of the same age, right? If I can make her realize that… she'll totally see me as an equal!

"So," I say, smiling slyly, "do you base your romantic storylines on… you know… experience?"

Naomi glares at me. "That's my own personal business," she says harshly.

"I-I'm sorry!" I stutter, my face reddening.

Naomi goes back to sketching.

Wow, that completely backfired. A wave of self-hatred passes through me. Ugh… how do I keep messing this up?

Naomi sighs. "I'm sorry," she says. "That was rude."

"No, I get it," I say quietly, still feeling defeated. "It was… kind of a nosy question…"

Naomi shakes her head. She puts her pencil down.

"I've been thinking," she says, "about what you said earlier. That you weren't thinking of me as a person. I hate to say it, but… I might be guilty of the same sin. Too often, I've thought of you as a fan, and not as Koi." She pauses. "It's not that I dislike my fans. But they can be rather… intense, at times."

"Yeah," I say. "Um… sorry about that."

Naomi chuckles. "It's something any other artist would envy," she says. "And I'm happy about it—really. Even so… it can be scary, knowing that so many people are tracking your career. I tried to mitigate it by having many different identities, each with their own set of fans… but that couldn't last forever."

"I understand," I say. "You just… don't want millions of people prying on your private life." My voice lowers. "I'm sorry if I… crossed any lines, as a fan."

Naomi smiles at me. "Well," she says, "you're not here as a fan now, right? You're here only as Koi."

"Y-yeah…"

"So, since you're asking as Koi, I'll answer your question. When it comes to romantic plotlines, I get my inspiration from a variety of sources. Observing other couples, consuming romantic media… and, yes, I do take some inspiration from my own relationships, both past and present."

"Present?" I say, my eyes widening. "So… you have a boyfriend?"

Naomi's smile turns secretive. "What about you, Koi?" she says quietly. "You and Hiroto seem to be getting along pretty well."

"Huh?" I say, feeling my face heat up. "I mean… we're just friends, though…"

Naomi rolls her eyes. "You're going to be evasive now?" she says. "After I just opened up to you?"

"Well… Um…"

Wow, I wasn't prepared for this. What am I even supposed to say?

"Hiroto's… a really great guy," I mutter, blushing. "But we've only known each other for a few days, so… I should probably just wait, and… see how things turn out. Right?"

"I disagree," says Naomi. "Every couple has a different timeline. Sometimes they're friends for years before they start dating. Sometimes they know right away that they want to be together. If you already know how you feel, then there isn't much point in waiting."

"Really?" I say, my heart speeding up. "You don't think it's too soon?"

"Hiroto is quite a catch," Naomi says. "I'd reel him in quickly, if I were you. Otherwise, another girl surely will."

"Haha, you think so?"

We keep talking—but I can hardly believe this conversation is really happening. Naomi and I are… chatting about boys and stuff? So… Operation Girl Talk was a success after all?

Somehow, Naomi and I got a little closer today.

Dinner is no more eventful than breakfast. We've all sort of settled into a routine.

During room check, Momoka and I talk about Fruits Blanket a bit. She liked it, so I give her the second volume, and she gives me back the first.

Then Momoka leaves, and I'm alone in my room.

Ding dong, bing bong.

"Mm, ahem, this is a school announcement. It is now 10 p.m. As such, it is officially nighttime. Soon the doors to the dining hall will be locked, and entry at that point is strictly prohibited. Okay then… sweet dreams, everyone! Good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite…"

It's nighttime, and I'm alone in my room.

My locked, impenetrable room, where I'm definitely safe.

Definitely.

So… why don't I feel safe?

What is this fog of unsafety that's descended on my brain?

I just have this feeling like… if there's going to be a murder, it'll happen around now.

Maybe I've just played the Danganronpa video games a few too many times. If this were one of those killing games, the first murder would happen around now.

But… this is different. The circumstances are different. So…

…I shouldn't be thinking like that…

Even though… it's usually the protagonist's love interest who's in the most danger…

Wait, though. If Hiroto is the Ultimate Attorney… isn't he probably the protagonist?

But… I'm the one with the ahoge…

But this is Danganronpa, so the protagonist isn't safe either…

Ugh, why am I thinking like this? This is so stupid. Shut up, brain. Shut up, shut up, shut up.

Shut up. Shut up!

Why isn't my stupid brain shutting up?

Why can't I stop thinking about it?

I'm all alone in here… there's no one to protect me…

And… Hiroto…

He's all alone, too… there's no one protecting him…

And he has a target on his back.

They're going to kill him.

But who? How? It doesn't make sense. These thoughts don't make sense.

But I'm hyperventilating now. I'm pacing and pacing and pacing.

They're going to kill him.

I need to protect him.

I don't know how. I don't even know what the danger is.

But I can't leave him alone. Not now.

…And…

…I don't want to be alone, either…

I should check on him. Just in case. Yeah… that's rational. That's the sane thing.

Okay. His room's pretty close. I'll just knock, check in, and feel safe. That's all.

I open my door, and step into the hallway. It's always dimly-lit after 10 p.m.

Despite this, I get a glimpse of three people as they walk past me—to my right, toward the main hall. Jun, accompanied by Rin and Tsubasa. Following behind them are Jeff and Kenji, who both see me exiting my room.

"Koi?" Kenji says, looking confused.

Jeff just smiles and waves.

"What… what are you guys doing?" I ask.

"Shh," Jeff shushes, putting a finger to his lips. "It's a secret," he whispers.

They walk past me, and follow the other three.

Well… that's kind of sketchy. But I guess if they're all in a group, it's okay…

Anyway—it's Hiroto I'm worried about, not them. I walk down the hall, and reach Hiroto's door. I stand in front of it, shivering a bit. I knock.

There's no answer.

I knock.

No answer.

Knock, knock, knock.

Nothing, nothing, nothing.

"Hiroto?" I say, still knocking. "Hiroto? Hiroto?" My voice gets louder and louder. "Hiroto! Hiroto!" I knock harder and harder. "Hiroto! Are you in there! Hiroto!"

Still nothing.

I'm panicking now. I'm rattling the doorknob with all my might—but it's locked, of course. "Hiroto! Are you okay? Hiroto! HIROTO!"

No.

No. It can't be.

It can't be.

I…

I…

I… hear a toilet flushing.

"Just a second!" Hiroto's muffled voice calls out.

I stand motionless. I'm still tense.

A minute later, the door opens.

"Sorry," says Hiroto. "I was using the bathroom, and—"

I embrace him with all my strength.

"…It's good to see you too, Koi," he says jovially, embracing me back.

"I was so scared," I whisper, holding back tears. "I thought maybe you'd…"

"Hey—don't think like that," says Hiroto. "I'm here. I'm safe."

I don't let go. He's clearly not sure what to do, and ends up patting my head. Which feels nice. He smells nice, too…

"Um," he says, "why don't you… come inside?"

I guess I'm out of excuses now. So I let go, and let him usher me in.

Hiroto closes the door, walks to his bed, and sits down. I sit down beside him. He's wearing navy blue pajamas—I'm not used to seeing him in such casual clothes. It's kind of jarring, honestly… in a good way, though. "Nice pajamas," I tell him, smiling.

"Thanks," he mutters. "So, um…" His face is red. "Was there… something you wanted to talk about, or…?"

Suddenly, I realize how weird this whole thing is. A girl knocking on a guy's door at night, and then suddenly embracing him…

"I'm sorry," I say, gazing at my knees, trying to stifle my own blush. "I just… I got really scared. I had this… intuition… that something might have happened to you…"

Hiroto chuckles. "Well… it's good to know that someone's looking out for me," he says. "Anyway—you know I'm safe now. So, you can put those thoughts to rest."

"…Yeah…"

He hears the skepticism in my voice. "My door is locked," he points out. "You saw it yourself. These doors lock automatically—I couldn't keep it unlocked even if I wanted to."

"That's true, but…" A thought occurs to me. I look at Hiroto, feeling a sudden splash of panic. "Your e-Handbook," I say. "That's the key. If someone stole your e-Handbook, they could break into your room, and—"

"Koi," Hiroto interrupts, chuckling. "Slow down." He stands up, walks to his desk—and holds up his e-Handbook. "Think about it—if I didn't have my e-Handbook, how would I even have gotten into my room?"

"…Oh…" I mutter, feeling like an idiot.

Hiroto sits beside me again, grinning slightly. He takes my hand, and looks at me. "It's okay to be scared," he says. "We're in a scary situation. What you're feeling is completely normal. And if I seem like I'm not scared… it's only because I'm better at hiding it."

I smile sadly. "If you were as scared as I am right now," I say, "I… don't think even you would be able to hide it."

We're quiet for a moment. I stare at our interlocked hands.

"I wish I knew what to tell you," Hiroto says softly.

More silence.

"Are you going to be okay on your own?" he asks.

I imagine myself going back to my room, and leaving his side for an entire night.

"No," I answer truthfully. "I won't be." I look away. "I'm sorry," I say quietly. "I know it's stupid. But… if I go back to my room… I'm pretty sure I'll have a panic attack."

"It's okay," says Hiroto. "You can't control how you feel." His grip tightens. "You say you're worried about me, but… you're really just afraid to be alone, right?"

"Yes," I say, because it's half of the truth, and the half he'll understand best. "I'm terrified to be alone right now. Even if it's in a locked room." I look at him. "I'm sorry—I shouldn't be dumping all this out on you, but… I… don't know what to do."

Hiroto half-smiles. "Well, I'd hate for you to have a panic attack," he says. "So… if you want… you can stay the night in here."

I blush deeply. I look away. My breaths are unsteady.

"…It's not too much trouble?" I half-whisper.

"Of course not," he replies. "It's nothing. I just want you to feel safe."

I almost apologize again. But I read somewhere that people like hearing "thank you" more than they like hearing "sorry."

"Thank you," I tell him. "This means a lot to me."

We're silent for a tense moment. We can't look each other in the eye.

"I'll… lay out some pillows on the floor for myself," Hiroto says quietly. "You can sleep on the bed. You're the guest."

"No—I'm not going to kick you out of your own bed," I insist. "I feel bad enough already for imposing on you. That would just make me feel worse."

"Well…" Hiroto mutters. "…Um…"

I'm certain that the same thought crossed both our minds.

Maybe we can share the bed.

"I'll sleep on the floor," I blurt out, restraining myself. "Really—I insist."

Hiroto exhales, and chuckles anxiously. "Um. Well. If you insist…"

He stands up, walks to the closet, and opens it. "Looks like I have four spare pillows in here," he says, "and four spare bedsheets."

Using all four pillows, and two bedsheets, we set up a makeshift bed on the floor, just to the right of Hiroto's own bed.

"Will this work?" Hiroto asks.

"Yeah," I say. "I'm not a picky sleeper or anything, so—"

A booming sound from the hallway interrupts me.

This room is partly soundproof—but it's still pretty loud. A deep rumbling. It keeps going.

Hiroto and I step slowly toward the door, perplexed.

It's bass-heavy music, I realize. Even from behind this door, it's pretty loud. Which means it must be really, really loud in the hallway.

"Wait a moment," I say—speaking up, so Hiroto can hear me. "I—I recognize this song. It's slightly remixed, but… it sounds like 'Let's Start the Killing Game' from Danganronpa V3."

"That's… ominous," Hiroto replies.

Cautiously, Hiroto opens the door.

Yeah, it's loud. Really loud. If I shouted right now, I wouldn't hear myself. Hiroto and I cover our ears.

We're not the only ones. Jun walks by at a brisk pace, covering his own ears. Jeff follows behind him, doing the same. Neither of them notice us.

Tsubasa is walking by—but he's closer to the door, and he notices us. He turns and says something, but we can't hear over the music.

Finally, the music quiets down, and fades away to nothing.

"About fucking time," Rin groans, across the hall. Then she sees us, and stops. Kenji—behind Rin—has already stopped, watching us curiously.

"Jeez, that was annoying" says Tsubasa.

"What happened?" I ask.

Tsubasa sighs. "Jun summoned us for… some kind of experiment," he says. "He wanted to test the rule about not sleeping anywhere but the dorms. He, uh, wanted to see exactly how that rule would be enforced."

"He needed your help to fall asleep?" asks Hiroto.

"Our job was to protect him," Tsubasa says, "in case Monokuma attacked Jun in his sleep… I guess. No idea why he chose the four of us." He shrugs. "Anyway, he just lay down a bunch of pillows in the main hall and… fell asleep on them."

"And then Monokuma played that loud music," I say.

"Yeah," Tsubasa says, touching his spiky hair. "I guess that answers Jun's question." He looks at us curiously. "So… what're you guys up to?"

"Um, that's none of your business," Rin says loudly from across the hall. "Give them some fucking privacy."

Tsubasa and Kenji scuttle off quickly, embarrassed. Rin follows slowly behind them. "Lucky bitch," I hear her grumble. "God, I could use a good dicking…"

Now we're alone, and our face are burning red. I mean… mine is. It's too awkward to look, but I'm pretty sure Hiroto's is, too.

We step back, and Hiroto closes the door.

"…Anyway," Hiroto says, his voice a bit too high-pitched. "Um… do you need anything else from the closet?" He goes over to the closet, and looks around—just to make things less awkward, I think. "Oh—here's a blanket, if you want one."

"Thank you," I say. I take the blanket, and put it over my makeshift floor bed.

Soon, Hiroto lies down in his bed, and I lie down in my makeshift bed next to it.

"Lights on, or off?" Hiroto asks.

"A little bit of light would be nice," I admit.

"I'll keep on the desk lamp, then."

While Hiroto's fiddling with the lights, I look at the bed towering above me. It's obviously raised, but there are curtain-like flaps hanging down, hiding the space underneath. I'm in a paranoid mood, so it occurs to me that this would be a great place for a killer to hide. I lift the flap, and look under the bed.

There's nothing there. But I decide to mess with Hiroto a bit.

"Oh," I whisper, "so that's where he's hiding his porn mags."

"Don't touch those!" Hiroto orders, rushing to my side. He leans over, and looks down—and sees that I'm looking at the empty space under his bed. His face scrunches up. "Very funny," he mutters.

"Yeah," I agree, covering my smile. "Your reaction told me a lot, though." I'm stifling a laugh. "Wow. So that side of you does exist, after all."

"Shut up." He's lying down again, and I think he has his back to me. This is the grumpiest he's ever sounded. "Just forget this ever happened."

"Aw, it's okay," I say, barely concealing my amusement. "I got humiliated yesterday, so it's only fair."

Hiroto hesitates. "I guess we're even," he concedes.

"I'm sorry," I say. "It just… makes me smile. You're usually such an upstanding gentleman. It's fun to see all these different sides of you."

Hiroto doesn't respond.

"I want to see those sides," I say quietly. "I… want to learn about you from every angle."

Hiroto hesitates. "…I do too," he replies, just as quietly. "And… I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to learn about each other. I mean… it's only been a few days."

"It feels like so much longer, though."

"Yeah."

We're quiet for a while.

"Hiroto," I whisper. "Do you know… what the worst part of being the Ultimate Fangirl is?" I hesitate. My voice quiets even further. "Whenever I start liking something… from the moment I start liking it… I fall in love almost right away. Whether it's a manga series I like, or a video game I like… or… a person I like…"

Hiroto snores.

I smile. "Good night, Hiroto."

Ding dong, bing bong.

"Good morning, everyone! It is now 7 a.m. and nighttime is officially over! Time to rise and shine! Get ready to greet another beee-yutiful day!"

I yawn, and open my eyes. It takes me a moment to remember why I'm on the floor. Memories rush through my brain. I smile. "Looks like we protected each other," I quip.

The bed is behind me; I'm lying on my side, facing away from it. I close my eyes, and imagine Hiroto's face as he wakes up and realizes he let a girl spend the night in his room.

"I know I asked a lot of you," I say. "I know that my fears weren't logical or anything. But I'm still really grateful you let me do this. It calmed me down a lot."

He's not answering. I guess he's still asleep. That's fine, though.

I roll onto my back, eyes still closed. "Hiroto? Wake up, sleepyhead."

Still nothing. I guess he's a deep sleeper. That's fine, though.

"C'mon, Hiroto. Rise and shine."

Nothing. He's not even snoring. He was snoring last night, but he isn't now. Well, I guess he stopped snoring at some point. Which is fine. Everything's fine.

Something stinks. It really stinks in here. But that's probably nothing. It's probably fine. It's fine. Everything's fine.

It smells kind of like blood. But I'm probably just imagining that. It's probably fine. It's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine.

My right hand touches the floor near the bed. It feels… sticky, for some reason. That's okay, though. It's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's fine.

I don't have to look.

I don't have to look, because everything's fine.

I don't have to look, because Hiroto is sleeping peacefully.

He'll wake up any moment now.

Everything's fine.

It doesn't matter if I look.

I don't need to look.

…

…

…I open my eyes.

I turn my head, and look.

Blood.

Dry bloodstains everywhere. On the bed. On the floor. Even on my blanket.

"Hi-Hi-Hiroto?" I try to say. But my voice is squeaky and wobbly. My body is also wobbly. I'm shaking. I don't want to look. I don't have to look.

…

…

…I stand up.

I look.

He's covered in blood. So much blood. Blood, blood, blood everywhere.

Hiroto's sheets have been pulled back, revealing his bloodstained pajama shirt. He's lying on his back. His eyes are closed. He's not moving. His chest isn't rising and falling.

There's a knife sticking out of it.

I'm shaking so hard that I almost fall over. Slowly, slowly, slowly, I reach forward with my shaking arm. My shaking hand touches Hiroto's unmoving face.

It's cold.

He's dead.

I scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and scream and—