Chapter 43: Day 39

Togami hated to admit it and would never say it out loud, but the school festival was perhaps the most genuine fun he had had with the others since awakening in the school.

As he sat on the elongated bench he and Naegi managed to find, his fingers danced gracefully across the piano keys, creating the perfect ambience of beauty and elegance. He could see in his peripheral vision most of the other students standing around the massive concert hall, which had been decorated beyond recognition. Balloons, party streamers, and confetti were littered about, while two long tables equipped with all sorts of drinks, sweets, and snacks were against the far wall. Most of the activities started off with a bang, but as the hours passed and the students felt their excitement dwindling, they began to branch off into groups to eat, sit, and just chat with each other.

Togami was both part of and separate from all of it, sitting at the piano on the concert hall stage. Next to him sat Naegi, who chomped on perhaps his tenth cookie of the evening as he flipped the pages lazily for Togami, who didn't even need to look in the first place. Togami could feel Fukawa's glare being shot his way from behind the curtains; of course she wasn't participating in anything going on.

But playing the piano, sitting next to his boyfriend, sipping his cup of coffee in between songs, and chatting with the occasional passerby, Togami felt relaxed. Peaceful. He knew it was an illusion. He knew tomorrow would mark the final stretch of their time here at Hope's Peak. Their final back-up for Monokuma, on top of the discussion to be had with the others regarding their forgotten past. The bloodied room he would no doubt have to show Naegi in order to proceed with the investigation. But despite that, he still felt himself enjoying the festivities.

Naegi turned the page, and Togami offered a light nod. "Whatever happens tomorrow… We at least have tonight," he thought.

Glancing over to the others, he saw that a few were dancing to his music. Maizono and Kuwata were slow dancing, while Aoi and Ogami shook their hips and seemed to be otherwise chatting. Fujisaki and Owada were also talking cheerfully to one another, while Yamada seemed to be all but begging Celeste for a dance. He smirked and returned his attention to the piano. "Seems that Naegi and I aren't the only ones who became close during this time together," he reflected. "Though I wonder if this means that others are having dreams as well. Memories of us all together… If perhaps these relationships are coming back rather than developing anew."

As he wrapped up the song, he glanced over to Kirigiri and Taka. Taka, equipped with a microphone, gave a thumbs up to Togami before walking onto the stage. "Allllllll right, folks!" he exclaimed triumphantly. "Give a round of applause for Togami, our hard-working pianissimo!"

A few people clapped as everyone turned to look at the stage.

"It's almost midnight, and tomorrow, we have our final back-up to prepare for that dastardly Monokuma!" Taka exclaimed, his eyes blazing with passion. "Therefore, we in the leadership committee believe that we shall be wrapping up for the night! No need to worry about cleaning up; we will have that covered tomorrow afternoon!"

Togami peeked over to see Naegi shrug. "I didn't hear about it," Naegi whispered.

Togami scoffed. "He probably just now made it up."

"We thank you all for this wonderful evening and all the hard work you put into organizing this event!" Taka continued. "This was a joyous occasion, one we should consider for the future once we escape this place! Give yourselves a round of applause for putting together such an exquisite evening!"

A few more claps echoed. Togami ignored them as he closed the piano book and pulled out the piano key cover.

"Fujisaki, I'd ask that you and Owada help put the food away," Taka stated. "The rest of you, feel free to do as you see fit. Our Ultimate School Festival is officially concluded. Thank you again to everyone for putting together this amazing event!"

Togami and Naegi both stood from the bench. Looking down into the hall, he could see some of the others offering to help Fujisaki and Owada with the food and drinks. The others were setting up their event tables along the sides of the wall, as if to make it easier to clean up later. Hearing footsteps, Togami glanced over his shoulder to see Kirigiri walking up to the two. She smiled and nodded. "That music was wonderful, Togami," she stated with a sincere tone. "I must admit, I was a little hesitant about you volunteering. I thought you had some trick up your sleeve. But it was exactly what we needed for this event. Thank you."

Togami shrugged and pointed at Naegi. "Thank him, if you're going to thank anybody," he stated. "Obviously I wouldn't have done this on my own."

"Be that as it may, I highly doubt you would do anything you didn't want to," Kirigiri countered. "And speaking of, tomorrow…"

"Yes?"

"Tomorrow, I want to show the others the room we found," she finished, her eyes peeking over at Naegi. Togami nodded in understanding.

"I figured as much."

"Then, I believe it would be wise to schedule a time to tell the others. About everything."

"Fair enough."

"I just wanted to say that. As for tonight, well…" Smiling at the two, she nodded once more and said, "Enjoy yourselves. You earned it. We've earned it."

"We'll do just that," he stated.

"Thanks, Kirigiri," Naegi stated.

Kirigiri blinked in surprise. "For what?"

"Well, I mean, you've been leading this investigation since the start," Naegi muttered. "And you've done a lot for us while we've been stuck here."

"To be fair, I've done most things for my own, personal reasons," Kirigiri retorted.

"Yeah, well, we still wouldn't be as far as we are without you and your planning. So thanks."

She smirked. "I suppose it's part of my Ultimate title… But you're both welcome." Her smirk widened as she said, "Now run along before Fukawa gets any ideas. I had Taka purposely give her something to do so you two could make your escape."

Togami scoffed once again but nodded. "Much appreciated." Grabbing Naegi's hand, he pulled the other student along with him down the side steps and into the concert hall. The two fell into walking side-by-side, and as they exited, several of the others called out to Togami, thanking him for playing and for being present. Togami ignored them and sighed in relief as they exited the hall, walked down the corridor, and began descending the stairs to the third floor.

"Did you have fun?" asked Naegi as they continued their journey back to the dorms.

"It wasn't terrible," Togami nonchalantly admitted. "Though that was more than likely due to the fact that I wasn't required to participate."

"Playing the piano still counts, I'm pretty sure," Naegi jested. Togami looked down to see Naegi smiling widely, his hazel eyes radiating his happiness. Seeing him like this, Togami couldn't help but feel the smile tug at his lips, and he gave in, knowing that the two were alone.

"And what about you? Did you have fun?"

"I did. Hiro's Tarot reading was a bit odd. Can't say I believe anything he told me. And it was nice talking to Maizono about some things from middle school."

"That's right. You two attended together, didn't you?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I appreciate you assisting me with the piano music."

"Of course! And I'm so happy I got to sit next to you and hear it."

"You know I'd play for you anytime," Togami muttered. Feeling his cheeks warm at the statement, he quickly returned his attention forward. The two managed to make their way down the final set of stairs. Surrounded by the sudden quiet, they merely continued walking together. Togami wasn't sure when their fingers interlocked, but he wasn't about to question it.

Finally, they made it back to the dorms. Stopping in front of his room, Togami pulled out his set of keys and unlocked the door. Naegi quickly entered, turned the light on, and pulled off his hoodie. Togami smirked as he shut the door behind him and went to step forward.

Naegi, however, grabbed his hands and stood in front of him. Togami blinked in confusion as Naegi looked up at him with those wide, hazel eyes. "Is everything all right?" Togami slowly asked.

Naegi's smile widened. "Yeah… Yeah, it is." With surprising speed, he reached up and wrapped his arms around Togami's neck, bringing the blonde down into a passionate kiss. Togami's smirk turned into a smile as he returned it, letting his own arms wrap around Naegi in return. The two stood for a moment, the sound of their kisses filling the room, and as Togami broke away for air, he felt Naegi pull him towards the bed. Before he could question it, Togami was on top of him, leaning down and planting kisses along Naegi's jaw and neck.

"Togami…" He growled at hearing his name whispered.

He leaned up to Naegi's ear and whispered his boyfriend's name, smirking when he felt Naegi shiver and pull him in closer. Using one arm at a time, Togami fumbled out of his own jacket, then continued his assault on Naegi's lips, jaw, and neck. Naegi's hands reached up and undid his cross tie in a manner that indicated previous experience, and the sound of his tie being pulled caused Togami's whole body to react. He moaned Naegi's name before kissing the boy's open mouth, attacking Naegi's tongue with his own.

It was easy to sense that Naegi was just as aroused as him. His hands slid under Togami's shirt, and Togami felt the boy press against him. Feeling breathless, Togami broke away and looked directly into Naegi's eyes. Seeing the half-lidded expression made Togami's heart flutter, and before he could stop himself, he leaned forward and whispered, "Makoto…"

Naegi's hands stopped. His eyes widened. Togami felt his own body stiffen in fear as he realized what exactly he had just done. "We've only been back together for maybe a week…" his clouded mind quickly reminded him. "That's too short a time. You're rushing, you idiot. You're–"

"Byakuya."

The word made Togami's heart quicken. Naegi pulled his hands out from under Togami's shirt and cupped his face in his hands. He smiled brightly, warmly, his chest heaving for air. "Byakuya…"

"Makoto…" He planted a soft kiss on the boy's lips.

"Byakuya," Naegi practically moaned the name.

He broke away once more to catch his breath. He sat upright, feeling his hormones rushing through him. He knew where this was going, but… "Makoto… Are you sure… We are–"

Naegi pulled him back down with all his might, slamming their lips together. "Byakuya, please," he whispered heavily. "I… I want… I want you. I want you so badly."

"Makoto, we've…" Placing a hand on either side of Naegi's head, Togami stared down at his boyfriend. "We've only been together for a week."

Naegi shook his head no. "We've been together for longer than that," he argued. "A lot longer."

"What the hell do you mean?"

"This was a break. This whole memory thing… It was just a break. But I don't want to think that we've completely restarted from scratch. We've been together for two years, if our investigation is correct." Naegi smiled and lightly leaned up to kiss his lips. "So please… Unless you don't want this, then–"

Togami swiftly kissed his boyfriend to keep him from saying such things. "I just want to make sure you are…no, we are okay with this." Frowning, he glanced down and asked, "So how far do you…"

Shifting underneath him, Naegi waited until Togami awkwardly sat next to him before scrambling over to his pillow. To Togami's shock, he watched the brunette pull out a condom out from inside the pillow sheet. "Wait… You've had that this entire time?" Togami exclaimed, his eyes widening at Naegi's cheeky grin. "Where did you even get that?!"

"They were in my room," Naegi stated. "When I woke up and first looked around, I found a bunch of them in my nightstand."

Togami's lips parted in shock. "So then you brought them here…" He scoffed. "Someone was evidently hoping their 'ultimate luck' kicked in."

Naegi nodded before crawling back to Togami. Kissing him, he whispered, "Yeah, I've been, uh, kinda looking forward to this, to be honest."

Togami cracked a smile as Naegi moved to be on top of him. "Clearly," he whispered as his back hit the bedsheets.

"And you're okay with this?"

"I only remember us kissing at one point," Togami noted, letting his fingers trace down Naegi's cheek, then neck, then chest. Smirking, he said, "So you might have to…remind me of certain things."

"But you want to do this?"

Togami looked up into Naegi's hopeful expression. "I don't know what will happen to us," he reflected as he wrapped his hand around the back of Naegi's neck, bringing him down into a slow kiss. "I have no idea what is outside these school walls. What awaits us out in the real world. What memories we still have to unlock."

He felt Naegi's hands begin undoing the buttons of his shirt. In response, he pulled Naegi's shirt off, feeling the heat of his body overwhelming him. Their kiss deepened, tongues slowly dancing. "I don't know… I don't know anything that is happening to the corporation. Or my family. Or Makoto's family."

With his shirt open, Togami felt Naegi keenly on top of him and sighed heavily into the kiss. "But I… I-I…"

"I want this, Makoto," he whispered, stopping and looking into his eyes. "I want this."

For a second, the two merely stared at one another. Leaning forward, Naegi slowly took off Togami's glasses and set them to the side. He then kissed Togami's bottom lip and whispered, "I want this, too, Byakuya."

The words caused Togami's mind to go blank. His heart seemed to melt in his chest. All thoughts of anything else were gone as his senses overloaded from Naegi. And as hands removed remaining clothes, as breaths became heavy and their gasps and moans filled the room, as their bodies moved against each other and touches, friction, and heat pushed them over the edge, Togami knew that he meant those words.

He wanted this. He wanted Naegi Makoto.