Aaaand we're done with this bizarre fic. This is the last chapter of the story. It's not the last chapter I'm going to upload as I plan on writing some extra stuff, but overall, it can be considered to be complete.
Kazuki's POV.
When I wake up, the first thing I notice is how stiff...well...everything feels. It's sort of like when you fall asleep on your desk or in a chair and wake up an hour later. Needless to say, this isn't a very good feeling.
"He's awake!" - I hear someone say. I turn towards whoever that was and open my e-
"THIS SHIT AGAIN?!" - I shout as I try to get away from Natsuki only to get a really nasty feeling in my arm.
"Easy there, champ!" - Natsuki says and I calm down a bit. She speaks normally. Good.
I take another look at Natsuki's face. My eyes did not deceive me. Her right "eye" is completely black aside from a dimly glowing pink ring. However, her left set of eyes is completely normal.
"...Oh, I think I know what's bothering you. Yeah, that does look kinda creepy, but they told me that I'll have to keep it like this until I fully recover so I wouldn't strain these eyes more than I should." - she explains.
"I-I see." - I say in response. What else do her spiders tell her anyway?
"Um, are you alright?" - Yuri asks. I didn't notice her before as I was too busy thinking of how to deal with a crazy Natsuki again, but now that I see her, she looks...normal. Well, as normal as she can be.
"Yes, just a little...groggy, that's all." - I reply and she heaves a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness...I couldn't bear the thought of you...well..." - Yuri says as her voice trails off, but I know what she meant.
"Hey, it's no big deal. You weren't in the right state of mind when you attacked me." - I say, but she shakes her head.
"No, I can't blame anyone for that but me. Both sides of me tried to kill you for different reasons. I'm just as guilty as...um...I was." - she says in response with a solemn look on her face...Ah, right. I almost forgot about that.
"Speaking of that...How are you feeling? I mean...The things you spoke of when we found you..." - I ask. I feel sorry for her knowing that she's going to outlive everyone she knows.
"Don't worry about that. I've already accepted my fate. However, I'm not going to just sit and wail in despair until madness takes my mind. That won't do anyone any good. Natsuki told me that." - Yuri replies, prompting Natsuki to jab her elbow into the taller girl's stomach.
"Hey, don't tell him that, you overgrown liz..." - Natsuki yells at the dragon, but she doesn't get to finish her half-hearted insult when her eyes meet Yuri's glare.
"A-Anyway, where is Monika?" - I ask, unwilling to see this mess escalate into something ugly.
"She left a few minutes ago. Said she needed her dose of caffeine or something. Do you want something from her" - Natsuki asks in response.
"Yeah, I wanted to ask her a few questions." - I reply.
"If you want her to tell you why she changed her mind or what the fuck she was talking about when we were preparing to help Yuri, then you're not going to get anything out of her. All she says is that she doesn't want to ruin everything for us by telling the truth." - Natsuki says.
"Is there...Do you think it truly matters at this point? She's been doing everything she can to help us these past four days. She really does fee-"
"Wait, four days?!" - I interrupt Yuri with a question. Has it really been four days since that day?
"Y-Yes. You've been out for that long. We've been visiting you quite frequently though." - Yuri replies...visiting?
I look around the room and finally realize that I'm not at home. The sterile look of a hospital isn't something I've seen often, but I can recognize it when I see it...Damn, I'm slow.
"Oh man, you should have seen their faces when they came to take you away! One dude passed out at the sight of us!" - Natsuki exclaims. That does sound like it would be amusing..Hm...Speaking of that...
"By the way...Do you still have problems with others, Yuri?" - I ask.
"Well, no, but I've been trying to find a way to keep it down...with mixed results. My appearance is still a problem though." - Yuri replies.
"I'm back!" - Monika announces as she closes the door behind her. She's carrying two cups of coffee and two bags of chips with her.
"Only two? But I told you to buy me a cup too." - Natsuki says.
"It's common knowledge that coffee is harmful to spiders and insects in general! That and I don't think you should drink it yet." - Monika says in response to Natsuki's complaints with a smile.
"That's bullshit! I'm just as old as you three! That's not fa-"
"Natsuki, language! Now then, are you feeling well?" - Monika asks as she interrupts Natsuki's whining by shoving a bag of chips into her mouth with enough force to split her mouth into five parts. The spider doesn't look quite as angry as I thought she would be after something like this. The club president, on the other hand, looks awfully pleased at the smaller girl's muffled grumbling.
"Don't you think that there's something else you must do?" - Yuri asks before I can answer Monika's question.
"Ah, here you go!" - Monika says as she gives Yuri her cup of coffee.
"T-That's not what I was talking about!" - Yuri protests, but she still takes the cup.
"Alright, alright...I'm sorry, Kazuki. I really shouldn't have...well...Just...Please forgive me for...sort of not really letting Natsuki take you for whatever she had in mind and...I'm not good at this, okay?" - Monika apologizes...or tries to.
"Eh, what's done is done. Nobody got really hurt in this whole mess, so, I can forgive you. I've heard you helped these two while I was absent, so, I don't have a reason to be mad at you now." - I say...Wait...what's up with...
Yuri's eyes are wide open when I look at her. In a few seconds, her whole body starts shaking like a vibrating phone.
"Y-Yuri? Are you okay?" - Natsuki asks after pulling the bag out of her mouth. Monika turns to look at the girl in question and freezes.
"YES!" - Yuri replies with a rather creepy smile.
"I...I think you broke her." - I say. Seriously, this is just wrong.
"Note to self: never let Yuri drink coffee...Now then, there's something that I must tell you. You see, the only reason I told you to keep Yuri in your house is to make sure that nothing bad happens as she already had a place she called home and unlike Natsuki, she has no problems with it. Unfortunately, now her house is sort of wrecked and so she'll have to live at your place for a while." - Monika says...Uh, really now?
"W-Well, I don't mind that, but...Alright. I can do that." - I say. It's not like it really changes anything. She's been living in my house for nearly a whole week. I can handle it.
"Good! Then...Oh, um, right, that will have to wait until you're out of this hospital. In that case, I'll let them stay at my place for a bit longer. I've got enough room there and I don't think anyone is going to say anything if I don't attend school for a few days...But don't expect my services to be free." - Monika says as her smile is replaced with a frown. The look she's giving me isn't very cheerful either.
"W...What do you want in exchange?" - I ask meekly.
"You know, if you just wanted a kiss, you could have simply asked for it." - Natsuki says.
"Then why didn't you do it? Don't tell me you didn't want it. I've seen the look on your face when Kazuki kissed Yuri." - Monika says in response to Natsuki's teasing. I can already see Yuri's skin gain a pale red tint. At least she is not shaking anymore.
"M-Monika! T-T-That's not very nice!" - Yuri shouts.
"Says the lucky girl." - Monika points out with her usual smile, making Yuri hide herself with her wings out of embarrassment.
"...Are you jealous?" - I dare to ask. The club president freezes. Her head slowly turns towards me.
"Kazuki. Don't. Or else..." - Monika threatens me. The room suddenly gets much colder. I wisely decide to drop this matter.
"...I'm sorry...That was really uncalled for." - I apologize. Her face goes back to normal.
"Oh, by the way, there's something I wanted to give you. You've earned your happy ending and so I felt like doing it. I wanted to wait until you wake up first, but now that you're awake...Well, I think it would be better if I left it as a surprise." - Monika says before leaving the room and closing the door behind her.
"...What was that all about?" - Natsuki asks, but Yuri only shakes her head in response.
"Happy ending? But...But you're still, well...How can it be a happy ending if you're still monsters? What are we even going to do about this?" - I ask.
"Honestly, I'm fine with keeping things as they are now. Sure, these hands are a pain in the ass to deal with, but that's a small price for what I've got in exchange." - Natsuki replies.
"I...I can't say that I'm happy about it. I doubt there is anything that we can do. I wish we could go back to normal, but if we are stuck like this, then we might as well get the most out of it." - Yuri replies.
"...I see..." - I mutter.
Why did it happen? Who or what is responsible for this? Is there even a way to turn them back to normal? What's up with Monika? All these questions and no answers in sight...Ah, screw it. Life goes on and dwelling on this shit isn't going to help anyone. I'll just get a horrible headache if I try to find the answers. I should just relax and take it easy. It's not like it can get any worse at this point.
When the door opens again, I expect to see Monika. Instead, I see a different girl standing in the doorway. She seems to be relieved about something, but that look is quickly replaced with confusion as she looks at Natsuki and Yuri. Judging by her clothes, she's from our school. What is she doing here? I don't think I know h...Wait...That hair...Those eyes...That red bow...
Dead eyes
Bloodstained fingers
A tight noose on a thin neck
"...Sayori?"
