A Fresh Start

Disclaimer - I do not own the particular game this is about, the game in question is Doki Doki Literature Club which was created by Team Salvato.

I will now warn you that if you go looking for DDLC as the game is known according to some of its fanbase (yes I did some research since I didn't want to type out Doki Doki Literature Club all the time), this game is NOT for everyone as it touches on subjects that are DISTURBING, which I will not be putting into this short story as I imagine my other stories, once they're finished, will probably be pushing a few boundaries themselves.

Author's Note - Alright folks, looks like the second chapter is up and running if you're reading this. I hope you all enjoy the second chapter as much as the first, if not hopefully more.

Crumbling concrete halls that reeked of dry, stale air filled with the thrumming warble of air circulating through the hall. The smell was almost unbearable for Monika as it was accompanied by the heavy scent of rust and moisture. The hallway was lit by bright, but old, white fluorescent lights fit into recesses in the concrete. The floor was made of relatively new tile, and after following the hallway for what she guessed was maybe fifty meters Monika reached an intersection, with one way going right, and another left. The one going left went down, the one to the right moved up at a slight incline before disappearing into a bright speck of light after another fifty meters.

Only one thought dominated Monika's mind, and that was getting out of these old corridors of concrete and rust corrupted air, before either trying to find her beloved or else making her own happy ending once again.

The light at the end of the hallway certainly looked different from the lighting in the concrete corridors, and if she was lucky it was daylight.

She started to break into a run, section after section of concrete wall passed by her until she was only a few meters away from what she thought was the exit. It was close enough that she could see a metal grate over the exit, and what lay outside was definitely daylight. What Monika could see was a scene familiar to her in some ways, but different in others. It was clearly a waterfront exit for some kind of maintenance tunnel, but it wherever this tunnel was, it wasn't a very modern section of town. That was of course assuming that she was even in Japan, or wherever the game she discovered was her plane of existence was supposed to take place. Though she did find it this place to be distinctly more real with its lived in atmosphere compared to the same scenes day after day.

As she finally reached the grating she placed her hands upon it, feeling rust flake away under her touch. The grating however swung away from her with a painful screech of aging metal accented by the grinding of rust breaking free of the hinges and pattering to the concrete at the base of the grate. Upon stepping through the entrance to the supposed the tunnel Monika supposed that she was in a place distinctly similar to where Doki Doki Literature Club took place, and almost instantly her heart quake at the realization that she was still trapped.

She looked out over the waterfront along the side of the river that ran through town and let out a cry of sorrow filled rage as she fell to her knees. Heat began to well up in her eyes as tears formed and fell own her cheeks.

It was at that moment she heard something that stabbed at her heart more than anything she could imagine aside from the cruel betrayal her beloved had performed in response to the revelation of what she had done to Natsuki, Yuri, and Sayori.

"Hey Monika!"

It was Sayori. The protagonist's best friend, one of her beloved's love options, and deep down the embers of hope in her soul stirred as she remembered what happened once Sayori was made president of the Literature Club. As well as how this all started. She was however hoping that maybe, just maybe, this was her beloved at work.

Monika sniffed and wiped away her tears before calling back, "Hey Sayori!"

She tried to sound happy, but it was a lie just like Sayori's constant façade of joy to hide her depression.

It was a blatant lie at that solemn thought, and it was tainted with a feeling Monika couldn't quite describe.

Monika turned toward Sayori's voice, and found herself looking up at her, or at least a very detailed doppelganger.

Sayori was indeed dressed as she normally was in her school uniform with all of the usual inattention to wrinkles or proper appearances with buttoning the blazer or straightening the ribbon thin tie around her shirt collar and neck. Her hair was even windblown worse than usual. Though the differences were quite noticeable.

Sayori's face, among other things, were more detailed and full. Her skin didn't look like it had been drawn by a skilled hand, but instead looked as if it seemed far more natural. On a whim Monika took a moment to look at the back of her hand as she gave Sayori a friendly but half-hearted wave as memories pressed against her psyche.

Monika's hand was similarly more detailed than what she remembered from in the game, and a soft breeze blew her bangs into her face as Sayori stepped down halfway to Monika.

As Sayori got closer she started to look more and more concerned, it wasn't long before she was in front of Monika holding out a handkerchief made with a floral pattern.

"Monika, are you okay? We missed you at the club when I brought my friend over."

Monika didn't know how to respond to that. She had corrupted her friends' data files, deleted the game and her friends after Sayori gained the same view of the game as she did. So she didn't know how to respond to Sayori, or any of her other friends from the Literature Club asking if she was alright.

"No Sayori..."

Tears began to flow freely from the corners of Monika's emerald eyes once again.

"...I'm not..."

Sayori found herself in the unexpected position of holding Monika as she sobbed onto her shoulder with no indication of stopping anytime soon. For whatever reason, she thought that her friend and club president needed time, and for that matter she thought of a way to help cheer her up.

She thought about dragging her to her favorite restaurant or maybe even her house to find out what was wrong. Especially since nobody deserves to be sad, besides, she knows what it felt like once and it sometimes haunts her still.

Monika stood there crying on Sayori's shoulder as she thought of everything she did, everything she had done to Sayori, but that all ground to a halt as she heard Sayori speak.

"Monika... how about we get you a nice cup of tea at Seiji's?"

She backed up and looked at Sayori with tear blurred eyes and wondered what was really going on, but the tea sounded like a good idea, especially if it was from her favorite Western themed café.

She wiped her eyes again and said, "I think that would be great..."

Sayori looked at Monika and gave her a hug before grabbing her hand and dragging her off in the direction of the street before saying something that seemed oddly comforting, but still quite horrifying as it stirred memories of the game once again.

"Come on Monika! You should think of this as a fresh start!"