Part 5: Escape
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The next week passed by in a blur for Shuichi. He ate and slept and ate and slept. He felt like his intellect was steadily dropping like a faucet dripping drops of water. He had the menu memorized. Sometimes the tests made him feel sick, but most of the time they made him feel nothing. Sometimes he watched things on YouTube; he found himself partial to those TikToks he caught Ibuki and Chihiro watching in what felt like a century ago. They were perfect for numbing your brain and just watching attractive teenagers dress up in vintage costumes from yesteryear. Sometimes he watched them with other kids and sometimes he watched them alone. Lately he had been getting closer and closer to Leon and the twins, who didn't like the TikToks and instead wanted to watch cartoons in his room.
"Can we watch Evangalion?" Kiyomi asked shyly one day.
"I want to watch Pretty Cure," Kaede crossed her arms in front of her chest and pouted that signature pout of hers.
Shuichi would always turn it onto Pretty Cure because Kaede was easier to please and console; Kiyomi ultimately just did whatever Kaede told her to do. Sometimes Leon would come and just watch the twins watching their cartoons; he never came alone.
When Shuichi visited Leon, the twins were always in his room. Leon wasn't the biggest fan of cartoons and instead enjoyed watching loud music videos of punk bands. His usual greeting to Shuichi was 'watch this one, it's cool'.
One day Shuichi was visiting him and saw Leon watching another video while Kaede was in front of the TV, jumping up and down in excitement and twirling around randomly. Kiyomi was sitting by herself, giggling at nothing and colouring random lines on her paper. Shuichi couldn't figure out what was wrong with them and just tried to ignore them, even as Kaede spun herself into a super-fast frenzy and fell down, nearly hitting her head on the TV and giggling up a storm over it. "What's wrong with them?" He eventually asked Leon, who shrugged and bit into a chocolate bar.
Kaede continued to bounce up and down in front of the TV, laughing until she stopped suddenly and threw up. Kiyomi hurled in tandem with her like they did everything, and Leon quickly got up and jumped away from it.
"Shit!"
"Doughnuts...chocolate bars...cookies..." Shuichi covered his mouth and glared at Leon. "Seriously? You're feeding them nothing but junk?"
"They wanted to try some," Leon had the good grace to look ashamed and even cleaned the mess up.
Another day, Ibuki was jumping on the trampoline and did a few flips before sitting herself down on the springy material and bursting into tears. When Shuichi hurried over and tried to console her, she rolled over and started hitting him with her fists, over and over again.
Other than watching YouTube, Shuichi used his laptop purely for chatting with Kokichi and Ibuki over the messaging system. Their conversations were brief and he never initiated them.
What's wrong with you? Ibuki asked once.
Nothing, He said back.
Why do you think we're still here in Front Half? Kokichi wondered. I mean, I'm not complaining. I'm just wondering.
Beats me, Shuichi shrugged and then signed off.
The caretakers were used to dealing with depressed children, or maybe they were just glad he wasn't fighting as much as he used to. He thought often of that image Chihiro projected to him; the crane flying out of its cage. Sometimes he had other images, purely his own, of his uncle taking him to the zoo and letting him pet a goat while his uncle took a picture and told him they didn't really chew tin cans, a plate full of small petite-fours all frosted in blue with a candle on each one, his uncle tackling him randomly after his elementary graduation into the grass and making his hat fall off; they both were laughing. Those memories stung beautifully.
He listened and remembered everything he came across, even if it was useless. The littlest thing could be useful in the long run, he figured. He got a lot of gossip, like how Miss Andoh, an acquaintance of Dr. Kimura, was one of the few workers who had a boyfriend on the 'outside' who made her a real sword because he took blacksmithing as a hobby. How Tsumugi and Miu would use the leftover tokens they had and secretly got fancy sake from the vending machine and split it between the two of them. Some of them talked about their families, or how after work they all liked to hang out a nearby karaoke bar.
He also remembered names whenever he heard them. Dr. Kimura and Dr. Munakata were Seiko Kimura and Kyosuke Munakata. Nagito Komaeda, Celestia Ludenberg, Miu Iruma, Kirumi Tojo, Hiyoko Saionji, the list went on. If he ever managed to go to court, he wanted all of them to testify and pay for what they did.
Due to how good and silent he had been, he was left alone a lot and often wandered the halls, and the worst he had ever gotten when found was a smack to the back of the neck. One time, he randomly came across the best discovery-an abandoned keycard, left in a random corner. He picked it up and looked it over, at first wondering if it even worked. After all, why would a working one randomly be lost somewhere where a kid might find it? But when Shuichi tried it in the elevator, there was a beep and soon he was staring into the fourth floor. Hiyoko caught sight of him and hurried over, and he winced as he expected a harsh slap, blinking in confusion as he felt a token being pressed into his hand.
"H-Huh?"
Hiyoko winked and he thanked her, taking another look around.
"I haven't had that test yet. Is it awful?" He finally asked, pointing to a giant tank full of water.
"No way, it's totally fun! It's like swimming, or one of those dunk tanks at carnivals," She snickered. "What are you doing here?"
"One of the caretakers was giving me a ride, but then she forgot her nametag,"
"Oh, pity you don't know her name. 'Cuz then I could report that forgetful mouse and get her in trouble!"
He could also get to the fifth level, but the sixth and seventh levels were denied to him; he knew they existed because he heard people talk about them. Oh well, at least he was learning.
After a day with no tests, Shuichi was told to report to the lounge, where a majority of the beanbags had been replaced with large tables and colourful chairs. Soft paper was spread out and thin watercolours were placed in the center.
"Are we painting?" Ibuki asked curiously.
Shuichi just shrugged. He took his seat and pulled out a brush, dipping it in the black before he idly started painting the kanji for 'fun'.
Kiyomi perked up and sat beside her sister, happily starting to paint some clouds. Kaede was painting a picture of the sun.
"This paper's super delicate," Leon commented. "Super easy to rip,"
"But you wouldn't do that, would you?" Kaede instantly asked, pouting. "That would be mean,"
Chihiro was sitting inbetween Shuichi and Ibuki, painting random squiggles. Ibuki was drawing music notes. Kokichi was there, drawing some black mass Shuichi couldn't decipher.
He knew he should've been having fun and enjoying himself, but he just couldn't. It seemed so mean and unfair to Sayaka and Mondo and Aoi that he gets to be freer than them, to take care of the younger kids, to do actual enrichment and recreational activities. Whatever they did in Back Half, Shuichi knew it was very unlikely to be water-colours and pool parties. He somehow had a feeling it was far more sinister and damaging than that.
"Look, I drew the forest!" Kaede smiled happily, showing off her drawing.
"It's very good," Shuichi praised her anyway.
"Thank you!"
"Well I drew a monster!" Kokichi placed his picture in front of his face and pretended to roar, clawing the air with his fist. "Roar, roar, I'm going to eat you!"
"I don't wanna be eaten!" Chihiro cried, trembling.
"I'm going to eat you first! I particularly love the flesh of little boys! They're soft and tender, unlike the dry and bony flesh of girls!"
"Hey! I'm not dry and bony!" Kaede pouted in offense.
"Ibuki doesn't care if you think she's dry and bony. She doesn't wanna be eaten by you anyway!" Ibuki chimed in.
"Stop making it sound like some creepy sexual thing," Leon scolded.
"There's nothing sexual about preferring boys for my next meal! I think I'll eat you, you're young and juicy!" Kokichi reached a hand out for Chihiro, who cried and leaned back in his seat, leaning back way too far. The chair tipped and spilled Chihiro into a heap on the floor. The table rattled and several cups of paint spilled over.
"My painting!" Kaede cried.
"He ruined everything!" Kiyomi pointed an angry finger at Kokichi, looking ready to cry.
"We can redo your paintings," Leon tried to console the twins when they both hugged him tightly on either side.
Chihiro had sat up, first looking bewildered before he burst into loud tears himself. "I fell out of my chair!"
Shuichi hurried over and pulled him close, letting Chihiro sob into his chest. Ibuki huffed.
"Just a bump, you'll be alright,"
He continued to cry hard, obviously wanting more comfort. Shuichi assumed he was just as upset over their friends leaving as the others were and thus let him cry into his chest.
"Geezh, I was just trying to have some fun," Kokichi huffed, and for once, Shuichi could hear the disappointment in his voice.
"It's mean to ruin people's paintings though! And make them hit their head!" Kaede scolded.
"I know, I know, fine, I'll never do it again for the whole rest of my life,"
"Let's put the paints away," Shuichi tried to suggest, but Kiyomi shook her head.
"I wanna keep painting..."
"Yeah, I want to redo mine!" Kaede nodded in agreement.
"Same here. Ibuki wants to keep painting with Fujisaki-chan!" She chimed in.
Shuichi gently helped Chihiro stand up and set his chair back up, helping him to sit down in it. His tears were mainly all gone, but he was still sniffling.
"Come on, let's keep working with Mioda-san," He tried to nudge Chihiro, who just nodded slowly.
"Okay, if you say so,"
Much to Shuichi's own surprise, Kokichi spent the remainder of the session helping the twins paint their own pictures, making them look more detailed. He also added some abstract shapes to Ibuki's and Chihiro's pictures, and even hung them all up on the wall in his bedroom.
"I like having weird things like that around," He explained. "And I promise I'll keep these things around for a long time,"
"You're lying," Shuichi rolled his eyes.
"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not," Kokichi put a finger to his lips.
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There was one particular afternoon where Dr. Kimura was giving him some more examinations when she suddenly set her materials down and promised she'd be right back, citing a need to talk to someone. Shuichi wondered if she was going to the bathroom, or truly was going to talk to someone. After she left, Shuichi walked over to the computers and briefly considered messing with them a little before finally deciding that'd be a bad idea. He then poked his head out of the doorway and saw the elevator open and Juuzou walk out, dressed in his usual heavy green coat. Shuichi wondered if he had just the one or a whole closet full of them.
Whether it was due to his new-found TP ability or just sheer gut reflex, he ducked behind the computer desk when he saw Juuzou looking around briefly, a stack of papers in his hands. He then continued walking down the hallway and after Shuichi was sure he wasn't going to come back, he sat back down in the testing chair.
Dr. Kimura came in a few minutes later, looking flustered. "I saw...Sakakura-san in the hallway. You were alone...did he say anything?"
Shuichi shook his head. "No. He didn't see me because I quickly hid,"
She nodded. "Good..." Once the tests were finished, she gave him a dozen tokens and a genuine smile in her eyes. "Our little secret."
Wait until I tell Ouma-san about this, He thought to himself as he was escorted back. I bet he'd just get a kick out of it,
Except he never got a chance to, because Kokichi had been taken away.
"Kokichi-oniichan is with the others," Chihiro whispered to Shuichi that night as they lay in bed. "Aoi-oneechan says he's crying because he's scared. That for once he's not lying. And she says that's alright because she's scared too. They're all scared,"
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Shuichi continued to learn all that he could, hanging out around the lounge on the second floor for staff, listening and learning. He pretended to be getting a drink or reading one of the posters hanging up and they'd look right through him as if he were part of the room itself. He learned there were several different tech teams who came and went, bringing back children and once July rolled around, there were definitely way more than there had been just a few weeks ago. The one used the most consisted of a man and a woman, tough like soldiers. He knew they were the ones who killed his uncle and kidnapped him that June night and tried to fish for their names, but only got one.
The tall and muscular Mukuro.
She saw him once, pretending to drink some water from the fountain, stared at him for a few moments, then continued to walk away.
Mukuro.
Yet another name to remember.
He heard a larger group talk about how they had to make a quick trip to Kyoto to pick up a new arrival, and just the next day, a bewildered fourteen-year-old girl named Angie Yonaga joined the ever-growing group in Front Half.
"This is very bad. I don't think I'm supposed to be here, I cannot hear the words of my god," She confided in Shuichi.
"None of us are meant to be here," He replied and told her how to get tokens. He wasn't sure she was really listening at first, but that didn't matter. She'd eventually catch on, just as everyone did.
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Nobody seemed to mind or even question the fact that Chihiro slept in Shuichi's bed almost every single night. He was a mailman who sent messages Shuichi's way from Aoi via telepathy. The truth of his uncle's murder was still too fresh in his mind to properly wake him up from his half-dreaming state, but he still received disturbing news all the same. In Front Half, they were punished and tested, while in Back Half, they were being put to work and used, and very slowly destroyed.
The movies they watched gave them headaches, and each time they lasted longer and grew worse. Kokichi was fine physically when he arrived, just scared, but after days and days of shots and movies and exposure to the dots, he started having bad headaches.
The movies were shown in a small room with large comfortable chairs and they started by showing all different sorts of cartoons; Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball, Pokemon, Mermaid Melody. Sometimes they were shown Western stuff like Adventure Time or Steven Universe. After that came the real show. Aoi thought the movies lasted only about half an hour at the most, but it was hard to tell for certain because she always felt dizzy and had a bad headache afterwards. They all did.
Her first two times in Back Half they got a double-feature. The first one was of a redheaded man who drove a long black car. Chihiro tried to show what the car looked like to Shuichi, but he could only vaguely see the image. He thought it might've been a limousine because Chihiro said the driver's passengers always rode in the back and he opened and closed the doors for them, helping them in and out.
"He has regulars. Aoi-oneechan says it's somewhere in America because sometimes he drives past that big stone needle and the house their President lives in," Chihiro whispered as they lay in bed together.
"The White House?" Shuichi asked, and Chihiro nodded.
At the end of the movie, they watched the redheaded man change into something casual, ride a horse, and eat ice-cream with a little girl. Then Dr. Munakata came on-screen, holding a binzasara and quietly playing it.
Then the second feature was of a man Aoi assumed was likely from the Middle East somewhere judging by his clothing. He was shown on television, making speeches, playing with a younger boy, drinking tea from a cafe. Then it ended with Dr. Munakata holding up the binzasara again.
The next morning, Aoi and the others got to watch Transformers for an hour before watching the redheaded man again. Then it was time for lunch in the Back Half cafeteria, which had free drugs and cigarettes as well as tons of junk food and sweets. Afterwards, they watched Adventure Time for fifteen minutes followed by the Middle-Eastern man. Each film ended with Dr. Munakata holding the binzasara and playing it. Then they were given lots of shots, exposed to the dots, then they watched twenty minutes of footage of car crashes, each one punctuated by the binzasara being played.
Shuichi, despite being grief-stricken, wasn't stupid and started to quickly put the pieces together.
"Aoi-oneechan says she thinks she blacked-out and had a dream while watching the car crashes. But she's not sure if it even was a dream. She says her and some of the other kids, Sayaka-oneechan, Kokichi-oniichan, Mondo-oniichan, Maki-oneechan, and a few others, were all standing in those dots in a circle, holding each other's hands and their heads together. Dr. Munakata was there too, and he loudly clapped the binzasara, which was scary, but they didn't have any headaches afterwards, especially after they kept their heads pressed together. She thinks it was a dream because she woke up in her room. The rooms in Back Half get locked at night, unlike here," Chihiro trembled a bit in the dark. "I don't want to talk about this anymore, Shuichi-oniichan,"
"Alright, go to sleep," Shuichi comforted him, staying awake for a long time.
The next day, he checked his laptop for something else other than watching Netflix or chatting with Ibuki or checking the date and time. He used the black website again and checked the New York Times website, knowing his knowledge of English wasn't the strongest yet since he had only been taking it for a year and a half, but knew he had to try. He needed to know, and knew exactly what he was looking for once he came across it. He ran his finger along the text, reading it under his breath to himself.
"Pre-preza-dential cana-diate killed in myz-terious car crash late last night of July 14th," He read to himself, slowly sounding out the longer words. "Both him and driver killed instantly," He knew the driver had red hair without even reading the remainder of the article. He also knew that Middle-Eastern guy was next to die, or maybe he was going to kill someone important.
It suddenly all made sense to him, and he started to get roused from his half-awake state. They were all being used for psychic-powered drones, yes, even little inoffensive Chihiro Fujisaki, who had to put ants outside on the playground whenever found inside and cried if he got to one too late. However, Shuichi didn't fully awaken from his sleep of grief until the horrorshow that happened with Leon Kuwata.
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That evening, about fourteen or fifteen children were hanging out around in the dining hall, eating dinner. Some were talking or laughing, while the newer ones were either silent or just cried. It was almost like being in a mental asylum in a way, where you were kept forever and just never cured.
He still sat with Ibuki and Chihiro at the small table they had always sat at, though Angie had taken to joining them at times. Shuichi didn't mind; she was silent and often brought a pen with her so she could aimlessly doodle on her napkin. They were all sitting there that night; Ibuki and Chihiro whispering with each other while Angie sat next to him, drawing. Leon hadn't shown up for dinner yet; he also wasn't at lunch. The athletic rock-star wannabe usually wasn't much interest to Shuichi, but he was hard to miss at meals because Kaede and Kiyomi always sat with him, one on either side of him in their identical outfits, watching him with shining, sparkling eyes as he talked on and on about his favourite bands and shows, his past girlfriends, his secret love of baseball, and his life in Shinjuku. If someone told him to be quiet, the twins would glare at them in response until they turned back around.
Kaede and Kiyomi were sitting by themselves that evening, wearing jean jackets and miniskirts with matching red T-shirts and flowery headbands in their loose hair. A seat was kept empty inbetween them for when Leon finally arrived, and they looked distraught over having to eat alone for once. He finally walked in, swaying a bit in his steps, trembling slightly. The girls gasped happily and jumped up, running right over to him with shouts of greeting, but for once he barely seemed to register or even notice them.
His eyes had trouble focusing on one specific thing and had a glassy look to them. Drool was running down his chin and his pants were wet. The cafeteria went silent; the newer arrivals looked confused and horrified while the older residents looked concerned and worried.
Shuichi and Ibuki looked at each other.
"He'll be okay, he'll be alright. Some kids are just weaker-" She started to say before Chihiro gently took both of her hands in his.
"No. I don't think he'll ever be okay again," He stared her down with sudden intensity.
Leon suddenly cried out and grabbed at his head with both of his hands, collapsed to his knees, then fell entirely to the floor, smashing his face on the hard tile and causing blood to pour from his lips and nose. His whole body started to spasm violently, and more drool poured from his mouth. He flopped uncontrollably back onto his back.
Kiyomi stood there in silent horror while Kaede screamed loudly. Celestia and Nagito ran in, standing in the doorway. Kiyomi slowly approached Leon, ignoring the protests of her twin, and tried to crouch down beside him and hug him. His large hand reached out and struck her on the side of the face, loudly cracking it and sending her flying. The back of her head hit a nearby wall with a thud and she slid down it listlessly. Kaede screamed loudly in horror again and raced over to her sister.
The whole room descended into madness. Shuichi and Ibuki were still sitting, silent, Ibuki wrapping her arms around Chihiro and pulling him close, though it seemed to be more for her own comfort than his, as Chihiro was sitting there in silence. Angie had covered her mouth, her skin looking flushed. A bunch of other kids tried to run over to Leon, while Celestia pushed them all away, snarling: "Get the fuck back away from here, you little insects!" No smile or faked politeness for her tonight.
Kirumi and Miu appeared next, as did Hiyoko, and several other adults Shuichi couldn't recognize. Hiyoko managed to grab him and hold him up by the arms, keeping him still while another adult zapped him in the stomach. Leon still shook and seized, so Kirumi hit him in the back of the neck with a loud electrifying crack. Leon finally went limp at that, his eyes partially closed.
"Go back to your seats, he's okay now!" Miu scolded. "All of you!"
The children responded by drawing back, indeed returning to their tables.
"I don't think he's breathing," Shuichi whispered to Ibuki, who just shrugged.
"Maybe he is," She pointed over in the direction of the twins. "Look,"
Kiyomi's eyes were glazed-over and her head hung at a broken angle, leaning limply on her shoulder. Blood was running down her cheek and dripped down her jacket and blended in with her shirt.
"Wake up! Wake up! You can't be dead, you can't be! Wake up, wake up, wake up!" Kaede screamed, shaking her. "You can't leave me alone like this, you can't, you just can't! Kuwata-kun didn't mean to hurt you, he didn't mean it!" Silverware suddenly rose from the tables and started flying crazily around the room, making everyone duck.
"How can you tell the difference?" Angie spoke up shakily, asking Ibuki.
"Kiyomi-chan is the one who's dead. Kaede-chan is the one screaming and throwing silverware," Chihiro answered instead in his eerie voice.
"She's not dead, she can't be..." Ibuki whispered, her eyes wide and staring down at the floor.
Knives, forks, and spoons all rose to the ceiling at once, then fell down with a loud clatter.
I could never do that, Shuichi suddenly thought to himself.
"But she is dead," Chihiro said in a matter-of-fact tone. "Leon-oniichan is too. I liked him even if he did push me down the first time we met. I'm not hungry anymore," He stood up and took both Shuichi's and Ibuki's hands. "You two aren't either,"
"Angie would like to remain here," She said, trembling. Shuichi nodded at her, though why anyone would want to willingly stay was beyond him, and the other two followed after Chihiro, avoiding Kaede who was still kneeling on the floor and screaming. Dr. Kimura and Miss Andoh emerged from the elevator and ran off in different directions, looking worried. He assumed they were eating dinner too prior.
"Everything is perfectly alright. Please resume either eating dinner or return to your rooms," Kirumi was announcing from the cafeteria in her usual calm and collected way.
"The dots killed him. Dr. Munakata never should've given him such tests if he's a shiro. Maybe he had an allergy, or his BDNF was too high," Chihiro continued.
"What's that?" Ibuki asked, but they both shrugged. Shuichi had thought of looking it up once but was still extremely wary about setting off an alarm.
"You've never had those big tests? The special ones?" Shuichi asked Chihiro, but he shook his head.
"I will in Back Half though. Dr. Kimura could get in trouble for what she did to Leon-oniichan. I hope she does. I'm r-really scared of the b-big shots and the lights,"
"Me too. The tests Ibuki's had are more than enough," She concurred.
Shuichi thought of telling Chihiro and Ibuki about the shots he received that made his throat close up or the ones that made him vomit, but they seemed minor compared to what happened to Leon.
"Excuse me," Kirumi gently scooted past them, holding Leon in her arms with amazing strength. Nagito was behind her, carrying Kiyomi's body. Her head lolled back and forth in his arms, her hair hanging down and her headband on the verge of falling out. The trio watched them until they disappeared in the elevator, and Shuichi wondered if the morgue was kept on one of the forbidden floors.
"She looked like a doll," He said to himself in shock. "Like her own little doll,"
Chihiro started to cry heavily, his silence actually having been shock.
"Ibuki's going to bed," She twirled around and patted Shuichi on his shoulder and kissed Chihiro's cheek and forehead. "See you tomorrow!" She flashed a peace-sign and walked away.
Except they didn't; they came for her in the middle of the night and they saw her no more.
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Chihiro urinated, brushed his teeth, and put on a pair of pajamas he always kept in Shuichi's room at that point before crawling into Shuichi's bed. Shuichi did his own routine and got in bed with Fuji-chan, turning the light out. He put his forehead against Chihiro's and whispered: "I have to get out of here,"
How?
It wasn't a spoken word but instead one that lit up in his mind then faded away. He was getting better at catching thoughts like these, but he could only really do it when Chihiro was close, and sometimes even then he couldn't. His TP was similar to his TK in the fact he didn't have very much at all.
"I don't know," He responded. All he knew was that he had been there for a long time, even longer than Ibuki, and she was gone. They would be coming for him soon.
In the middle of the night, Chihiro had shaken him awake after a bad dream about Kiyomi's lifeless, doll-like eyes that made him shiver. Fuji-chan was huddled up next to him, shivering and trembling in a ball, tears in his eyes. Shuichi quickly turned the lamp on.
"Bad dream?"
"They woke me up," He trembled more. "Aoi-oneechan and Sayaka-oneechan,"
"You can hear Maizono-san?" He asked in surprise, and Chihiro nodded.
"I couldn't at first, but after a lot of movies and shots and dots...her headache briefly went away but then it just came back shortly afterwards. It was so bad she started screaming and couldn't stop," He grabbed his own head and started crying in a high voice that sounded extremely similar to Sayaka's own. "'Oh God, make it stop, my poor head, I can't take this anymore, I just can't, make it stop, it's splitting open, I'm going to die!'"
"Be quiet! They might hear you," Shuichi scolded, shaking him.
"I wish you could see inside my head like Aoi-oneechan can. It's easier. It's hard for me to say all of this out-loud," Chihiro took a few deep breaths.
"Try,"
"Aoi-oneechan and Mondo-oniichan tried to comfort her, but she screamed again and lashed out, scratching Aoi-oneechan on the arm and nearly punching Mondo-oniichan in the face. Then Dr. Munakata came in his pajamas and ordered for more red guys to come, they were going to take her to the back half of Back Half, but then she suddenly got better. I think Aoi-oneechan helped her," He got a thoughtful expression on his features. "I think there's some way to help. Some way to..." He trailed off suddenly. "There's something really bad there,"
"Everything's bad over there. The movies, the shots, the dots..." Shuichi said.
"Yes, but there's...s-something worse. Like...I dunno..." He paused and Shuichi put his head up against Chihiro's and listened as hard as he could, soon picking up a faint buzzing sound.
"It sounds like buzzing. Or a drone," He pulled away.
"Yeah! Like a beehive. It's a hum. It comes from the back half of Back Half," Chihiro shifted around. "The headaches just get worse and worse because they're made to always look at the dots and watch the movies and get the shots.."
"And the binzasara is the trigger, so they have to look at that," Shuichi finished.
"Huh?"
"Nothing, just go to sleep."
Chihiro just shook his head. "I c-can't..."
"Try," He then wrapped his arms around Chihiro and pulled him close, looking up at the ceiling.
Shuichi was quite sure that was exactly what they were brought to the Institute to do. They were used and weaponized until they were all used up and then they went to the back half of Back Half and joined whatever the drone was. Things like that couldn't just happen, but people would also say a place like The Institute couldn't happen either, not in a place like Japan, where everyone was always up in everyone's business and trying to check on their neighbors, but there they were anyway. He thought of Leon Kuwata seizing up and drooling everywhere, of Kiyomi hitting the wall with her crooked head and eyes staring at nothing, but they were nothing compared to the thought of a mind being constantly assaulted until it was finally made part of a hive drone. According to Fuji-chan that almost happened to Sayaka that night, and it would soon happen to Mondo, heartthrob of all the girls, and wisecracking Kokichi, and Aoi.
When Shuichi finally woke up, breakfast was long over and Chihiro was nowhere to be found. In a panic, he jumped out of bed and dashed down the hallway, bursting into Chihiro's bedroom, terrified of finding everything gone, but all of the posters were still there and the Beyblade set was still on the windowsill, having moved slightly indicating he was using it earlier.
He breathed a sigh of relief and cringed when he got smacked on the back of his head, turning around to find Hiyoko Saionji glaring down at him with her hands on her hips. "Geezh, put some clothes on! I don't wanna see the penis of any guy younger than twenty-five! Not like I'd want to anyway! And nobody else wants to see yours either," She snickered.
Shuichi subtly rolled his eyes at her and headed back to his room, getting dressed. Once he was, he wandered down the hall and found an empty laundry bin painted red set out on a cart. He knew it could've belonged to Tenko or any other housekeeper wishing to help out with the large amount of residents, but he knew it was Kyoko's. He could feel her. She had come back.
He hurried over to the twins' room and stopped in his tracks, biting his lip. His first thought upon seeing Kyoko again was that she was sicker than ever. She was in the middle of cleaning out the twins' room, taking down the posters of Mimi and Licca and carefully placing them in a box. Their beds had already been stripped with the lavender sheets placed in the pile of dirty laundry.
"Where's Kiyomi-chan?" He asked instantly. He also wondered about Kaede and Leon and anyone else who died as a result of their stupid experiments. Surely they must've had a cremation area somewhere, they couldn't bury bodies anywhere.
"Go away." Kyoko responded sharply, not even looking at him. Her tone indicated she didn't want anything to do with him, but he knew that was a facade even with his low-level telepathy. Still, he left and got another apple and some candy cigarettes from the vending machine, realizing they made him feel both distant and close to Aoi. He took a peek at the playground, where eight or ten kids were outside playing, far more than when Shuichi had originally arrived. Chihiro had curled up inside one of the tunnel-slides into a ball and was fast asleep, his eyes closed. Shuichi wasn't surprised; he had a rough night.
Someone tapped his shoulder hard and made him turn around, beholding the figure of Kaito Momota, one of the newer kids. "Man, that was crazy last night, you know? That redhead and the little girl,"
"Tell me about it,"
"Then those red guys from Back Half came and took the punk-rock girl away,"
"What? Moida-san?"
"Yeah, I think so. Man, this place sucks though. I wish I could have rocket-boots. Then I'd fly myself all the way up to the stars and never look back,"
"Rocket-boots and a bomb," Shuichi said quietly.
"Huh?" Kaito looked at him.
"A bomb to blow this place up, and the boots to escape,"
"Hey, that's pretty good!" He slapped Shuichi on the back. "Say, you got any extra tokens? I'm craving some Pocky right now,"
Shuichi already had tons of tokens from his good-boy image, so he handed Kaito Momota three and told him to knock himself out.
He remembered the first time he met Aoi and in some sort of honor to her memory, he sat down next to the ice-machine and placed one of the candy cigarettes inside his mouth, already on his second one when Kyoko arrived, trembling and clenching her fists.
"How's...everything?" He asked a bit awkwardly, not sure of what was even hurting on her.
"My sides hurt badly, and I had a slight fever this morning," Kyoko ran a hand through her hair.
"Yikes,"
"I have medicine for it," She leaned over slightly, close to Shuichi.
"They took my friend, Asahina-san. Oowada-san and Ouma-san. Mioda-san too," Almost all of his friends were gone by that point, and ironically he had become the old-timer of the Institute in their stead.
"I know. I was working in Back Half when I came back," She crossed her arms in front of her chest. "We can't keep meeting like this, it'll rouse their suspicion,"
Maybe that was true, but Kirumi seemed to talk to the children a lot and was just fine.
Kyoko stood up and looked away. "Are you going to sit there all day?" She asked, no longer whispering. Shuichi finished up the candy cigarette and stood up, turning to leave before she held her hand out. "Wait. Use this for something sweet," She handed him a token from her dress pocket and he nodded, heading back to his room.
Once he reached his bed, he laid down and carefully unfolded the small paper she had slipped him alongside the token, which he squinted at. Kyoko's writing was small and neat and looped, the calligraphy of her kanji masterful. She had managed to pack the entire paper in those characters, even going side-to-side and up-and-down. Shuichi hoped that wouldn't change the meanings of any, but as he started to read, he realized Kyoko had figured that out and wrote her note out smartly. He had admiration for her even as he realized what she was and what she had been doing.
Saihara, get rid of this note once you finish reading it. You were sent to me as a final chance perhaps to atone for all of the sins I have committed in the past. I never thought I'd admit such a thing to myself ever in my life but...I managed to get into contact with my father. I set up a secret one-way video-call between us and I finally cut him out of my life. He was so happy to see how much I had grown and how much of a woman I had become. Everything is right in the family, but not with me, as I am fully convinced my cancer is starting to return. But now he will see me for myself and not a sick figure. But you, you need to leave. You're a 'shiro' and once they stop tests you will only have three days before they send you to Back Half. I have so much more to say to you and give to you, but we've used the ice-machine too much and I cannot rouse suspicion. I don't care what happens to me, but I can't let you get hurt. I wish I didn't have the sins on my mind that I do, but there's nothing for it now. We'll just have to risk it. Get rid of this note and please, please be careful. I beg you this earnestly. I do not care for my life, because I know it'll end soon, but you still have a chance. Thank you so much for giving me the courage I needed to stand up to my family and helping me out. Kirigiri Kyoko~
Kyoko was a snitch, listening to kids in supposedly safe places, getting them to spill their secrets, and then running to Enoshima or Sakakura with the information given to her. Maybe Kirumi was a snitch too; she was one of the nicer caregivers. In June, Shuichi would've been upset and betrayed, but it was July and he felt older. He went to the bathroom and dropped her note in the toilet after pulling his pants down just as he had with Aoi's note.
That felt like an eternity ago.
[][][][][]
That afternoon, Kaito Momota had rounded up a huge group of kids to play baseball, but Shuichi had declined and instead sat at a picnic table by himself, counting out Monopoly money in memory of Mondo. As he counted, his mind was working and focusing on something else entirely; Kyoko.
He hated the idea that she was a snitch, yet understood her reasons. Even if one were a decent person prior, working in a place like this destroyed one's moral compass. The only thing that mattered to him was if Kyoko truly knew a way for him to make it out or not, and to do that she'd have to give him information without arousing the suspicion of Enoshima or Sakakura; first name Juuzou. He also felt she could be trusted, not just because he helped her out in her time of need but also because her note had a sense of urgency and desperation he never expected to see from her. She was at the end of her rope and she knew it, and it's not like Shuichi had any other real choice.
Chihiro was one of the base-guarders; guarding third base, when the person up at bat accidentally swung too hard and hit him right in the face with the ball. He fell down and started to cry while Kaito Momota ran over and helped him back up. "You're not bleeding, you're alright! Why don't you go hang out with Saihara-kun?"
Chihiro sniffed."Y-You just want me out of the game b-because I'm not good at playing...I-I can still play! I-I can-"
"Fujisaki-chan!" Shuichi called out, holding up some tokens. "Want to get strawberry milk and more cheese-crackers?"
He instantly toddled over, forgetting all about the hit to his face. "Yes please!"
They went inside to the vending machines and Chihiro dropped his tokens in, leaning down to get the crackers out. As he did so, Shuichi whispered into his ear: "Want to help me get out of here?"
"Want one?" Chihiro asked instead, holding out his package of cheese-crackers. A single word lit up in Shuichi's mind: How?
"I'll just have one, I'm not very hungry," He pulled the brim of his cap down slightly, then sent back three simple words: Tell you tonight.
Two conversations going on, one out-loud and the other in their minds, and Shuichi could only hope it'd work that way with Kyoko.