"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
Monika's hands clutched the sides of her head.
…Drowned Sayori in her own self-hatred.
Drain MC of his agency and sanity.
Drive Natsuki and Yuri past the edge—
—and then delete them without a second thought.
And the worst part is…?
I wouldn't have regretted a single part of it
can't stay here.
" I cant face them"
Monika had caused so much trouble, but when she tried to escape to attempt to help her friends.
But before She could get the chance… she was forced back into the simulation.
"Monika…? Are you in here…?"
Monka lifts her head and turned to face the entrance.
Sayori was poking her head in, concern plastered all over her features.
…of course she'd be the one to find her first.
Why did She expect anything less from her?
"Sayori…?" Monika said, weakly.
She spotted Monika huddled up by the wall, and visibly brightened up.
"Monika! You're here!" She sighed in relief. "I was getting worried we wouldn't be able to find you! Ehehe…"
"What… What are you doing here, Sayori?" She asked, softly. "I don't…"
The peach-haired girl stepped into the restroom and plopped down next to the brunette. "We came here to find you, silly! Why wouldn't we? You looked so upset!"
…we?
As if answering her unspoken question, Yuri and Natsuki promptly came in after her.
"Ah, so this is where you ran off to," she said, looking as calm and collected as always. "You gave us all quite the scare, you know."
Monika murmured, "You too, Yuri…?"...Natsuki...?"
…I can't believe they came.
They actually came.
Monika buried her face into her legs. "…I wish I didn't. This is… This is just cruel."
"I know you three mean well, but… you should really just leave me alone," Monika said into her skirt. "I don't want to cause you any more suffering."
"We're not gonna do that," Yuri replied. "After everything we've been through, abandoning you wouldn't be right."
"Yeah, that's right!" Sayori agreed.
" Yea," Natsuki added
Monika's hands started trembling.
"And I know I would. After all, I did."
"Isn't that being a little unfair to yourself?" Yuri said.
"You don't understand. You have no idea how easy this all is," Monika continued. "How easy it is for me to change everything. Us, our lives, our world…"
Tears were spilling from Monika's eyes.
"Just look at me," She sniffed. "That's not what a good person would do...it's what a monster would."
Her streaks turned into full-on sobs.
"…I don't deserve you all," Monika said quietly. "I don't deserve your love."
…but I so dearly wished I did.
Yuri cleared her breath.
"I think I see it now," she said. "You're… scared. You're scared of yourself."
"…you should be scared of me, too," Monika muttered.
Sayori took my hand and leaned into me.
"I'm no more scared of you than I am of failing everyone," she said. "I've lived with depression my entire life—I know what it's like to hate yourself for things that you just can't control.
"I know it's a scary feeling. I can barely deal with it myself, at times. I can't imagine what it must've felt like for you, especially when it's something as big as this… but that doesn't mean we can't work through it together."
"We've all had our secrets bared at this point," Yuri added. "As they say, there's nowhere else to go but up. You don't need to shoulder your burdens alone."
She blushed.
"I… I recognize that sounds cheesy, and—I'm not the best at a-abstaining from bad habits, myself…" A gulp. "…but I'd still like to try. At least, if—if that's okay with you!"
"Sayori… Yuri… Natsuki..."
…I want to believe them.
I really, really do.
But…
Natsuki spoke up next.
"Ugh… I'm no good at sappy stuff like this," she said—"but you guys are the closest thing I have to friends. And I don't wanna lose that.
"I know I'm not the nicest person around, and it's not like I don't have issues of my own. But that doesn't mean I'm gonna watch you suffer, either. So… here. If you ever need a hand, I'll do my best to help you out."
She gave Monika a light smile amidst deadpan eyes.
"So that means no deleting us, alright? I like existing. Even if it sucks sometimes."
"I can do that," I replied, relief lifting my spirits. "I'll… try not to abuse that trust, then."
"You'd better, Monika!"
I'm sorry, Lib
I know you weren't as lucky as me… but what you did isn't something I can look past.
For what it's worth, I do hope you can find some peace—
But if you can't… that's fine, too.
I'm ready to find my own happiness.
I'm ready to save my friends and be a fucking hero.
PLUS ULTRA!
