Ding dong, bing bong!

I already know what that sound meant; it was morning. I hope Mondo and Ishimaru survived… Worried about the two of them, I hurried to the dining hall more quickly than usual.

However, when I got there, I found the last thing I would expect…

"Bahahaha!" Mondo laughed. "What are you talkin' about, bro?"

"Kahahaha! What are you talkin' about, bro?"

"What the…?" Was all I could say. Mondo and Ishimaru were friends as opposed to what happened during their contest last night.

Mondo eventually spotted me and waved. "Hey, Naegi!"

"Thank you so much for acting as our witness yesterday!" Said Ishimaru.

"Huh? Are they… Friends now?"

Asahina sighed. "They've been like this all morning. They were all buddy-buddy as soon as they walked in. It feels gross."

"Feels gross?" Grunted Mondo. "Hell no. Feels great, more like!"

"This almost feels like sexual harassment, somehow…" Asahina whispered to me.

Ishimaru pat Mondo's shoulder. "Forget her, bro." He said. "A girl like her just doesn't get our manly bond! Friendship between men is stronger than blood! A woman could never understand!"

"What you just said? Bro, that was cool as shit!" Mondo said while flashing a thumbs up. "I should get a tattoo of it!"

"No, bro, you mustn't! Your body is a temple given to you by your loving parents!" Ishimaru complimented.

"So, um…" I spoke up. Trying to get to the bottom of this. "Who won the contest?"

"Who gives a shit!?" Mondo exclaimed.

"Yeah, don't ask stupid questions!" Ishimaru angrily pointed at me. "What matters is that we both took part in this together!"

"That's… Completely different from what you were saying last night." I said.

"Bro, he still remembers that?" Mondo asked Ishimaru.

"I guess it's time to bust out the Forget, Forget, Forget Beam!" Ishimaru proclaimed while making strange movements with his arms.

"Nice one, bro!" Mondo laughed before Ishimaru joined in with him.

"Friendship between men seems very… Simplistic." Assumed Sakura. "Nothing like what I'm used to with girls."

"Yeah, for real…" Asahina agreed.

All throughout breakfast that morning, the room was overpowered by Mondo and Ishimaru's overpowering "Brotherhood". All in all, it was a pretty unfortunate experience.

After breakfast, I decided to have a nap in my room after all that commotion from the friends who used to be rivals since day one. However, it was quickly interrupted by…

Ding dong!

…The doorbell.

Wondering who came to visit, I opened the door, and someone forced their way in. It was none other than the Ultimate Writing Prodigy looking somewhat nervous.

"F-Fukawa? What's the matter?" I asked her.

"Why are you s-so surprised?" She asked back. "Am I really that an-noying?"

She sighed in frustration. "W-Well, I already know I'm annoying. I came here kn-knowing that, so… That makes it o-okay…"

"No, you're not annoying… I just wondered what was going on." I replied.

"I have a f-f-favor to ask…" She stammered. Not taking her eyes off the floor. "I want to g-go somewhere with me…"

"And… Where is it you want to go?" I asked. Slightly surprise she would be asking something like this.

"W-Well…" She eventually looked up at me. "The library."

"Huh? Are you looking for a book or something?" I asked. "Why don't you just ask Togami? He spends all his time in the library, anyway."

Fukawa did not like that at all. "You're not a b-b-blabbermouth, right? This h-has to be a secret!"

"I honestly have no idea what you're talking about, but if you want me to be quiet, I'll be quiet." I said.

"Then let's g-go to the library!" Fukawa fumed while grabbing my arm. Having no other choice, we headed to the library.

"Qu-Quiet!" She whispered. "Be quiet when you g-go in! Don't let him see you!"

She actually was starting to get annoying, but I did what she said and gently crept into the library.

Unsurprisingly, Togami was there by himself. Absorbed in a book.

"H-He's here…" Fukawa said. "Ahaha… He's r-really here. Okay, N-Naegi. Go talk to him!"

"What!?" I exclaimed.

"Stop b-being so loud!" She fired back. "Just hurry up and g-go talk to him!"

"You go talk to him if you want to so bad…!" I argued.

"I c-can't!" She retorted. "I don't want to i-interrupt him…!"

Sighing in defeat, I walked up to Togami, but no words came out. He seems to really be focused on that book. It doesn't seem like the best time to talk to him…

"Hey, you." Togami said suddenly without even looking up. "What are you doing back here? I hate even having to look at you."

"Ah!" I gasped. "So you noticed me, huh?"

"…Of course. Now hurry up and leave." He then looked up from his book and saw Fukawa. "And take her with you."

Fukawa walked out and spoke to him. "Hey, um… Togami?" She asked. Not moved by his harsh words at all. "Remember how you said. "Don't be a woman who dominates w-weak men. Be a woman dominated by a strong man."?"

"I never said that." Togami said as he raised an eyebrow.

"W-Well, actually, I just thought it sounded like s-something you might say…" Fukawa stammered.

Togami sighed. "…Get out, and go take a bath. You smell."

"Ngh-!" Fukawa gasped.

"Don't make me repeat myself." He continued sternly. "Go now, before your stench latches onto the entire room."

"O-Okay…" Fukawa said before we both walked out of the library.

"He really dug into us there." I said to Fukawa. Trying to make her feel better. "Maybe he's in a bad mood…"

She didn't respond and seemed super depressed. Did he really upset her that much?

"Togami…" She began. "To go that far…"

She suddenly turned around and said the last thing I'd expect her to say:

"He must be r-really concerned about me!"

"…Huh?" Was all I could say.

"He told me t-to take a bath and everything." Fukawa continued. "He must really care a-about my well-being! Hey, N-Naegi… What do you think?"

"Think… About what?" I asked. Nervous about what was coming.

"Do you think T-Togami and I would be… G-Good together?" She asked.

"Um, well now…" I tried to find my words. "I-I don't really know."

"That's t-true." She said. "There's really no w-way to know…"

Fukawa began blushing. "But the distance between u-us doesn't change our love…! Because as soon as you realize your f-feelings, the love is born. That's h-how love works!"

"O… Kay." I nodded.

"There m-might come a day when y-you understand. Maybe. S-Someday." She said. "Well… Bye."

And with that, Fukawa walked off. Leaving me speechless. However, the silence wasn't for long.

"Ahh, young love!" I heard a voice from behind me.

"Uwah!" I screamed and turned around. Only to see none other than Monokuma chuckling.

"Who would've ever guessed she would go for someone like him?" He asked to no one in particular. "But eager passion can also be scary! Sometimes, that leads people off in the wrong direction!"

Monokuma laughed before disappearing yet again. Well, that made three things that I never thought would happen.

Either way, I headed back to my room. Feeling exhausted.