Chapter 32: Day 31
Togami's thoughts were slow as he awoke. His room was dark, meaning the morning announcement had yet to come on. His body still felt a little heavy, though his stomach felt better than before. And the pressure against him…
His hand twitched as he recalled who was pressed against him. "Naegi…"
Togami remained motionless as he opened his eyes and looked down at the head of brown hair cuddled against his shoulder. He could hear Naegi's even breaths, causing him to smile in the darkness. His arm was still gently draped over the other's back. He simply listened as Naegi breathed deeply in his sleep, and a feeling of contentment flooded his system.
"Well, so much for waiting out the investigation," he thought. He closed his eyes and shifted slightly. "There's no running from these feelings. That much is blatantly obvious now. It would be one thing if Naegi didn't reciprocate, but from his behavior yesterday, he's made it clear that he cares for me in a way that goes beyond friendship. He wouldn't have stayed otherwise." The idea made Togami's face warm. After all, while rationality and a clear mind now told him that his request to spend the night in his room had been beyond inappropriate, Naegi's response nevertheless confirmed what Togami had suspected.
"But then...what happens when we leave? Naegi talked about renovating this school into something, but we ourselves still need to complete high school. Would we go back to our everyday lives after this? What would that entail? And that's considering the outside world is still normal, which is doubtful at best. We've been trapped here for over a month; there's little chance the outside world is the same as before." Recalling Monokuma's taunting, he thought, "No. It's been longer than a month...much longer. And my family hasn't contacted the school or tried to free me. There have been no signs of police forces or other military efforts to enter this place. We came here to attend Hope's Peak, and for a time, we did. But why did we stay? And what about those outside?
"There's too many things you're missing, Byakuya." He sighed in frustration. "Focus on one thing at a time. You need to get that backup done today. Then, we can discuss what I found with the others. Naegi will be brought into the conversation, and we will formulate a plan of action, including writing down those damn dreams."
The thought made Togami shudder in embarrassment. "Perhaps not everything in the dreams…"
Ding dong, ding dong.
"Goooooood morning!"
Togami reopened his eyes at the sound of the morning announcement as the lights turned on in his room. He watched as Naegi stirred in his arms, and he couldn't help but be taken in by his innocent expression as his eyes slowly opened. Naegi seemed puzzled for a moment regarding his surroundings, and as he looked up, he jumped back slightly at Togami's gaze, causing the corporate heir to smirk. Naegi tried to glare, but the smile across his lips and redness in his cheeks gave away his embarrassment. Togami ran his fingers through Naegi's soft hair before letting his hand rest on his shoulder. "Morning announcement came on," he explained.
"Booo," Naegi complained in a soft voice as he cuddled closer against Togami. Togami smirked.
"Come on, we need to get up," he stated as he slowly pushed himself up, causing Naegi to shift away. "I've been in a bed long enough these past few days."
Naegi slowly stretched and groaned as he peeked over at Togami. "How are you feeling?"
"Better." He looked down at Naegi. "Did you sleep well?"
"I did." Inhaling and exhaling a large breath of air, Naegi smiled as he sat up to look directly at Togami. His hair was a bit wilder than usual, and his shirt was messed up. Togami found the sight surprisingly charming. "Did you?"
Togami slowly nodded. "I did." Before he could stop himself, he reached out to run his hand through Naegi's hair once more. Naegi's smile widened.
"No weird dreams?" he asked.
"Not that I recall."
"That's good." Blushing awkwardly, Naegi slowly broke away, stood out of bed, and stretched before grabbing and throwing on his hoodie.
Togami, meanwhile, also stood and began to walk to the bathroom. "I'm going to shower," he explained. "I'll see you in the dining hall for breakfast."
"Sounds good." The two stopped and stared at each other, neither knowing how to proceed, and Togami could only watch as Naegi nodded, grabbed his blazer, and left the dorm. Togami stood for a moment, feeling as though something had been missed, before shrugging his shoulders. He then entered the bathroom and stripped out of his clothes. He turned the hot water on and smiled. Stepping into the shower, he closed his eyes and stood still for a few moments, letting the water pour over him. The hot water and soap felt heavenly after two days without, and by the time he finished, dried off, and dressed, he felt more refreshed than he had in days.
Which was just as well. He had the backup, the discussion with Fujisaki and Kirigiri, then the talk with Naegi. It was promising to be a difficult, challenging day. Fortunately for him, Togami enjoyed a good challenge. It was with that thought in mind that he stepped out of the bathroom -
- only to see Monokuma standing next to his bed.
He stopped mid-step, startled by the bear's presence. Blinking twice, he saw the bear still standing and mentally cursed. He glanced up at the camera to find it still off, then returned his attention to the bear. "And just how long have you been here, you coward?" he all but hissed.
Monokuma seemed to take a second to turn on before the demonic bear smiled and waved. "Gooood morning!" he called out, mimicking the greeting on the morning announcement. "How's my favorite corporate heir doing? I'm sure the rest you got was good for your health, no?"
"Don't act innocent," Togami seethed. "What you did to me was barbaric. You should be fortunate I don't disassemble you right now."
"Well, you wouldn't want to do that," Monokuma warned. "Any harm to me, and Naegi will suddenly be back on the market!"
Togami growled once more. Crossing his arms over his chest, he glared down at the monochrome bear. "Just what do you want? Surely you didn't come all this way to taunt me."
"Sheesh, can't I, as a headmaster, check in on my students?" Monokuma sighed and shook his head. "I suppose you wouldn't believe me if I said I was genuinely worried about you. Which may be just as well. 'Cuz I was a little worried, but not that much. You've pulled through worse."
Togami tapped his fingers against his arm.
"But I did come with a good reason or three, and the first was an apology! Teehee!" Pulling a slip of paper out, Monokuma waved it in the air and smiled. "As a beary, beary serious show of sincerity in my apology for totally knocking you out with sleeping gas for a day despite the fact that you totally deserved it for not heeding my warning, I present to you… Well, tah-dah!" Frowning, Togami slowly stepped forward and took the piece of paper from him, only to realize it wasn't paper.
It was a photo.
Flipping the photo over, his eyes widened in shock at what he saw. Sitting in the middle of a classroom with their desks and seats pushed together were Naegi and himself, dressed in the same brown uniform and red tie combination that he had previously seen in the archive closet's photo collection. It was a rainy day, with clouds and raindrops visible outside the window. Yamada, Enoshima, and Celeste were talking in the back, while Fukawa was glaring from a far corner directly at Togami. But the picture was obviously meant for Togami and Naegi only.
Togami, for his part, was leaning back in his chair with a book in his hand, his eyes staring directly forward at the photographer. His free arm was wrapped around Naegi's shoulders, and Naegi was sitting close enough to him to make the pose look natural rather than awkward. A textbook and some notebooks were open on the two desks in front of them. Naegi was waving at whoever was photographing them.
Both were smiling. Their heads were tilted towards one another. It was a picture of a normal couple in a normal school environment.
It was further proof that Togami's dreams weren't dreams at all.
"Isn't it just the most precious thing you ever did see?" Monokuma remarked cheekily, clasping his paws together as he blushed red. "You two were so adorable together, and it's just so sweet seeing you two hook back up! Clearly love never truly dies."
A thousand questions ran through Togami's mind. Who took the photo? When was it taken? What happened to their memories of this time? Why was the school clearly running when it was shut down around them now? Why was Monokuma actually giving him the photo? What happened to the other photos?
"Is this real?" It wasn't the question he wanted to ask, but he realized it was the question that needed answered. "Did this really happen?"
"Of course it's real!" Monokuma exclaimed. "As were the photos you found, which I had to hide again, by the way! Geez, what a lousy reaction! And don't play dumb with me, Togami. I know you all are meeting up because your memories are returning. You and Kirigiri would be the first two to put two and two together, after all."
"So you admit our memories were wiped?"
"Sure they were."
It was such a quick response that it took Togami a second to process. It was one thing to hypothesize it. It was another to say he had accepted it. It was completely different hearing his kidnapper openly and honestly admit it. Togami tried not to clench the photo to avoid creasing it, but confusion was quickly giving way to rage.
"Why… Why were our memories stolen from us?! And how are you casually telling me this now?! How did you even manage to do such a thing?!"
"I mean, that might be giving away too many details now," Monokuma remarked. "Besides, why would I cut short your enjoyable, little investigation? I will say this, though." Smirking, the bear continued, "These backups weren't the original idea I had in mind. But plans change, as they always do, and here we are! And speaking of backups–"
"No, you're telling me right now!" Togami took a step forward and pointed down at the bear. "What did you do to our memories? How long have we been here?!"
"You'll figure that out on your own," Monokuma answered. "Just piece it all together. It'll come to ya, and at this point, watching you all try your best to solve this mystery is just too much fun to pass up on! I thought I'd be angry about it, but hey, you proved that the mystery genre just might have something going for it. Especially when I already know the answer! And just picturing you all figuring it out… Whoo, what a scene that'll be! Take that photo, show it around if you aren't embarrassed by it, and maybe it'll spur some more memories to return! BUT - this photo ain't the only reason I'm visiting. You should know that these backups you've made? They're definitely NOT what I had in mind!"
Togami sighed in frustration. "And what did you have in mind?"
"Not what you all are putting together! And I'm serious about this, now. Sure, you all are 'technically' creating these backups, but they aren't usable in the slightest. Hell, you still owe me a new entertainment system!" Pointing back at Togami, Monokuma flashed his red eye and stated, "If this keeps up where my backups are complete disgraces, I might need to reconsider my promise of letting you all out on your 51st day here. After all, what's the point of having you all create things I can't even use?" Shaking his head, Monokuma stated, "We'll see how this next backup goes, but consider this a fair warning. Start taking this shit seriously, kid, or else my deadline might be moving."
Watching as the bear walked away and let himself out of Togami's room, the corporate heir merely stood, photo still in hand. He had anticipated the threat at some point, but for Monokuma to suddenly become so blatant in his designs…
Togami's gaze wandered back down to the photograph. Slowly, too slowly, he set it down on the table and swallowed hard.
"A distraction," he thought to himself. "This is all a distraction… He wants us to screw up today to make his threat a reality." Togami mentally shook his head. "Focus, Byakuya. Focus. One problem at a time. You have all afternoon to discuss...well, whatever this is. Backup first, with the reality that you're a hostage firmly in mind. Missing memories won't get you out of here.
"And for all this, I need coffee."
He smirked, then chuckled at his own thoughts. "Coffee. Exactly what I need." Grabbing his dorm key, he sauntered out and locked his dorm door shut before heading towards the dining hall, focusing his mind on the tasks before him.