Suddenly, Maizono hugged me and planted her face in my chest. Crying as she did so.

"Maizono…?" I gasped.

"Please… Help me…" She sobbed. Her voice was small and shaky. "Why…? Why is this happening to me? To kill, or be killed… I just can't take this anymore…!"

"Maizono…"

Finally, she raised her face up from my chest and looked at me with those big, wet eyes of hers.

"Can I…" She began. "Can I believe what you said?"

"Huh?"

"That you'll help me get out?" She continued. "No matter what it takes…?"

"A-Absolutely!" I said. If this was the way to cheer her up, then I'll see it to the end.

"Naegi…" She whimpered. "You're the only one I can trust. So please, no matter what happens, please always be there for me. I need you on my side…"

That last part completely shocked me. I didn't know anyone else in this so-called "School", so I guess this was my only option.

"O-Of course I'll be there for you!" I assured her. "No matter what, I'm always on your side. I mean, you are my assistant, after all."

Maizono was silent before she spoke again. "Thank you, Naegi." She said softly. "Hearing you say that, I feel like I can keep going. I can get through this… As long as you're here with me. Like you said, I'm you're assistant."

The smile I'd come to know so well returned to her face. It felt a little forced, but still, it was a huge improvement over how she was before. But just as things were calming down, an all-too-familiar foe appeared from the desk at the front of the classroom.

"It's standing up!" Said Monokuma. Maizono yelped in terror. "Naegi! It's standing up!"

"Wh-What's standing up?!" I yelled. Still in shock that he knew we were here.

"Do you even have to ask?" He began. "Your flagpole! Get the hell out of here! No! No! I wanna join in!"

"Damnit!" I cursed. "Well, if you won't leave, then tell us what the hell is up with those videos!"

Monokuma didn't pay attention as he was in his own little world. "Ahh…" He moaned. "It's about to come out… It's gonna come out! My pristine, pure white…"

He then laughed. "Stuffing!" He exclaimed. "My honest, innocent stuffing is about to come gushing out!"

I didn't know what came over me, but something inside me just… Snapped. I balled up my fist, took aim, and swung as hard as a could. I had never put so much energy into a single motion in my life. I leaned back, channeling all my power, and let go with everything I had…!

I missed.

"Guwah!" I yelled as my body was flung into the desk. I could hear Monokuma laughing hysterically.

"Naegi!" Gasped Maizono. "A-Are you okay!?"

"If I hadn't avoided your punch, you would have just violated school regulations." Said Monokuma after laughing. "But boy are you slow slow slow slow slow SLOW! I could've downed a thousand-dollar full-course dinner in the time it took you to finish your swing! Your speed, agility, alertness, passion, boldness, sense of despair, antagonization, it's all lacking!"

After his speech, he darted out into the hallway. Leaving us both flabbergasted.

"What the heck was that just now…?" Questioned Maizono.

"He just wanted to mess with us…" I assumed as I slowly stood back up.

"Well, for now, you wanna just head back?" She asked.

"Yeah…" I replied.

Monokuma had come along and swiftly destroyed the good mood we just created. Maizono and I headed back to our separate dorms.

"You should get some rest, Maizono." I told her as we walked back to the dorms. "You still look pretty shaken."

"I'm sorry for making you worry about me…" She said as she tilted her head down in shame. "But you're right. I'm going to lay down for a bit."

With a nod and a simple bow, she disappeared into her room. Now on my own, I headed off to tell everyone that Maizono was okay. Once that was done, I decided to go back to my room. It was hard to think after watching that deranged video. I needed some rest of my own.

"Jeez…" I sighed to myself. Seriously, what's going on here? There's just so many problems. I can't even decide what the biggest problem is…

That we're trapped here? That what I saw in that video might be real? Monokuma? What the mastermind has in store for us? Or…

Are we our biggest problem?

I want to get out of here, but I could never kill someone… Do all the others feel the same? Yeah, that's definitely the biggest problem right now.

I laid down on my bed and closed my eyes. Hoping that everything was false and that we would all escape unharmed.

But as soon as I drifted off…

Ding dong!

I awoke with a jump and immediately darted my eyes to the clock. It was almost 10 o'clock.

"Nighttime's about to start, so how come someone's here?" I asked myself. I slowly made my way to the door and opened it. Hoping that Monokuma wasn't there. Luckily it was just Maizono.

"I'm really sorry to come by so late…" She said.

"Maizono? What are you doing out so late?" I asked. That's when I noticed her body was trembling. "I-Is everything okay…?"

"Sorry to bother you, but…" She began. "Something really weird just happened."

"Something… Weird?" I repeated. She nodded.

"Just a little while ago, I was laying down in my room, and all of a sudden, my door started shaking." She explained. Her voice sounded like all the air had been squeezed out of her lungs. Just hearing her talk made me tense up. "It was like someone was trying to force the door open. My door was locked, so they couldn't get in, of course. But they started shaking the door harder and harder. I was so scared, I couldn't even move."

"S-So what happened!?" I asked in shock.

"After a while, it just… Stopped." Maizono continued. "I let some time go by, then I got up and opened the door to check outside… But there was nobody there."

"Someone tried to force their way into your room…?" I asked as I patted her back in comfort. "But who would do something like that?"

"It's not like I'm suspicious of anyone here, but still… It makes me nervous." She trembled. "What if something like that happened in the middle of the night? What would I do then…?"

"Y-You don't have to worry about that, right?" I asked her. "I mean, we can't go outside during nighttime."

"But that's just a promise we made, right?" She asked back. "If someone decided to break that promise…"

"Th-Then…" I stammered before an idea finally hit me. "Why don't you stay in my room tonight? Would that make you feel better?"

"What?" She gasped. "What do you mean by that, Naegi?"

"All it said in the school regulations was that we had to sleep in "the dorm rooms", right?" I explained. "It didn't specify which room each person had to sleep in. So…"

"B-But…" Stammered Maizono. "Two people sharing one room is… You know…"

"…Ah!" I gasped. "Oh jeez, I'm sorry! I didn't even think about that! Honestly, that didn't even cross my mind!"

"No, I know, me either." She continued. "It's not that I mind the idea, but…"

Her voice trailed off before she spoke again. "Um, if you don't mind, could we maybe switch rooms? Just for tonight?"

"Switch rooms…?" I repeated. Maizono nodded. "I-If it'll help put your mind at ease, then it's totally fine with me. But… I don't mind you staying in my room, but are you sure you're okay with me staying in yours? That doesn't like… Concern you?"

"It's fine." She giggled. "I trust you…"

"In that case then…" Was all I could get out before I was interrupted by that alarming sound.

Ding dong, bing bong!

After that, the monitor turned on and Monokuma was seen in the same monitor room as all the other announcements.

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

After it turned off, Maizono spoke up. "Oh man, it's already nighttime…"

"Okay, so it's settled. I'll head to your room right now." I said. Oh, if we're gonna trade rooms, we'd better trade keys too.

"Ah, that's right." Maizono said suddenly. "We'll have to trade keys."

"A-Again!?" I stammered. Already knowing what was coming.

"Like I said, I'm psychic." She said seriously. This time, she didn't giggle and say she was kidding.

"…Huh?" I asked in confusion. "Hey, aren't you gonna say you were just kidding?"

"What if I wasn't just kidding…?" She asked after giggling. Something resembling a smile making its way to her face. And thank goodness, too. It looks like she's already started to get back to normal.

"Okay, we'd better trade keys, then." I said as I pulled out my key.

"Yup, let's do it." Said Maizono as she did the same thing.

We exchanged keys, but when I looked back up at her again, there was another worried expression there.

"Naegi… Please be careful." She warned. "If someone comes to the door, don't open it no matter what."

"I won't." I assured her. "The same goes for you, Maizono. No matter who it is, don't open your door for anyone."

"Even if I'm sure it's you, I absolutely won't open it." She said. "Otherwise, what's the point of switching?"

"Oh, by the way…" I began as I suddenly remembered something. "Just so you know, my bathroom door tends to get stuck, and there's a little trick to opening it. You have to turn the knob, then lift up on the door while you pull it out. Just do that and the door should open no problem."

"Okay, but the showers don't work during nighttime anyway, right?" She asked.

"Oh, that's right. I totally forgot…"

"Nut I guess I might use it when I get up in the morning." She reassured me. "So thank you."

"Okay, well, I'd better get going." I said as I made my way out of the room. "See you tomorrow, Maizono."

"Oh, and about what I said before…" She began. "When I said I was psychic, it really was a joke. Honestly, I'm just very perceptive."

"Yeah, I know." I sighed. How on Earth does she do it?

"Good night, then." She said as she gave me one last parting smile. "See you in the morning."

After our conversation, I headed off to "my" room.

I looked around as soon as I got out into the hall. Everyone else's doors were closed and there was no sign of life.

"Good. There's nobody here…" I said to myself after breathing a sigh of relief.

Making sure nobody was around to spot me, I rushed into Maizono's room.

Maizono's room really didn't look any different than mine. The only differences were that the bed's sheets, the pillow, and the trashcan were all pink.

I couldn't help but notice that there was something in the trash can other than a crumpled-up piece of paper that was supposedly the note like in my room. When I peeked inside, however, there was, well, there wasn't nay doubt about it.

It was the DVD with her name on it that we'd found in the A/V room. I assumed that whatever was on there was what made her panic today. I thought that it was best to ask her the next time she brings it up.

I then yawned. It had been a long day. What with those DVDs and all. As I lowered myself onto Maizono's bed, a pleasant fragrance enveloped me. It was Maizono's scent. Maybe it'll bring me some sweet dreams for once.

Feeling a bit better than before, I fell asleep…

A/N: Wow! Over 2000 words and counting! This has to be my longest chapter that I've made for this story yet! I hope you all are enjoying it! I'll see you all in the next chapter!

Then the real mystery begins…