Like every other morning, Kokichi woke up staring at the dimly illuminated curtains that framed his bed. It wouldn't have been near the first time that his brain almost mistook the light for the sunlight for a brief moment. It was not actual sunlight, but, thanks to Miu, it was pretty convincing.
His head remained pretty empty as he automatically brought himself to slip out of the curtains and sit upon the top step of the ladder, looking blankly forwards. He turned to stare at the one figure in the room that was standing, his back to him as he opened his drawer of the dresser.
The man reached a hand to scratch lightly at the back of his head, running it through that silky, blue hair of his. Then, he opened his drawer, stepping back to make room for it. He simply stood there, and Kokichi watched all the while, not even thinking much of it. Truly he could just watch the man's back all day. Was it wrong to be so captivated by something that was nothing at all?
The man let out a small yawn before he stretched out his arms, the action causing him to elicit a light, drowsy groan before his arms fell back to his side. Only a second later, he pulled the desired clothes from his drawer, pushing it closed carefully.
Only when he turned to leave the room did he notice Kokichi sitting still upon the top of his ladder, gaze fixed on the man. Kokichi didn't make any effort to look away, only sharing a blank, sleepy stare with the other who only looked wordlessly back for a couple seconds before letting out a small hum as his resting frown turned to something that nearly resembled a smile. Then, the man broke their eye contact and left.
Kokichi didn't even question the interaction, instead, he turned his head to examine the rest of the room. He could still hear the light snores coming from the bunk below Shuichi's, so that meant Kaito was still fast asleep, but both the bunk below his own and the top bunk on the opposite side of the room, (Rantaro's bunk and Ryoma's bunk respectively), had opened curtains and appeared empty.
He ended up letting out a small sigh as he climbed down from his bunk. The cold stone of the floor sent a chill through him as soon as his soles made contact with it. Out of habit, he tip-toed to the dresser, pulling out a pair of ankle socks to wear for the moment. Unlike the detective who had been in the room a few minutes before, Kokichi did not feel the desire to change out of pyjamas as soon as he woke up.
He walked out into the hall, where only light chatter could be heard from the living space. When he made it to the room, he saw it was from Kaede and Maki who were making sleepy conversation. Ryoma and Kirumi were sipping on tea at the table they had been playing cards the day before, and Kokichi caught sight of Rantaro entering the dining area and kitchen.
After returning greeting glances from Kaede and Kirumi, he followed the green-haired man into the other room.
Rantaro had gone to the kitchen, so Kokichi sat at the counter that stood in the middle of the kitchen and watched as the man poured himself a cup of coffee. He quickly grew bored of watching him, so he simply looked around the room, waiting for his presence to be noticed.
A mug of coffee in hand, Rantaro turned around to sit at the counter and seemed a bit shocked. "Oh, hey, Ouma-kun," that relaxed, friendly voice of his was usual. He used it with everyone. "You want me to pour you some? Saihara-kun always prepares more than we need the night before, heh."
He put on his first childish smile of the day, somehow playing the part of someone who was easily wide awake. "Oh, no. I don't drink that disgusting stuff like you two do, Amami-chan! Plus, something tells me Iruma-chan is going to need some when she wakes up."
The man hummed, as if amused by his response, simply replying, "Alright," as he sat down on the other side of the island counter.
Kokichi looked behind him to watch the entrance for a moment, expecting Shuichi to walk in at any moment. It was only when he looked away and, out of boredom, examined the same kitchen cabinets that had remained unchanged since they were put in months ago that he heard the familiar footsteps of Shuichi's. (Not that he knew Shuichi's footsteps apart from everyone else's exactly, but, after living with the same twelve people for over a year, his brain had started differentiating everyone's footsteps.)
It was hard to explain why they sounded such a way, but Kokichi swore they sounded just like how Shuichi could: timid yet certain. Maybe he was just thinking too much about such a silly thing.
Shuichi walked past the island counter, sharing a greeting nod with Rantaro, but Kokichi avoided his eyes when he walked past. The man grabbed his mug from the cabinet, painted in a blue pattern with white spots by Angie, and set it down to fill with coffee.
For the second time that morning, Kokichi just stared at Shuichi's back as he did some mundane task, and it was somehow the most interesting thing in the world. He wouldn't act like it was anything new, though; he had done it plenty throughout their year living together, but he found him extra intriguing that morning.
Kokichi realised a smile had formed on his face when he noticed Rantaro's knowing eyes on him. He immediately dropped the dumb smile, glancing down at the table before looking back up at Shuichi, taking better effort to keep any embarrassing smile off his face.
That morning, Shuichi had dressed in a black crewneck over top a white collared shirt for the day. Kokichi would point out how he looked good in the outfit, but he found it redundant to think such a thing when he knew he'd think the same about any other outfit the man could wear.
Eventually, Shuichi had finished preparing his morning mug of coffee and, instead of just turning around and taking a seat next to Rantaro, he walked around to sit beside Kokichi.
"Good morning, Ouma-kun." He let out a light chuckle, "I'm a bit surprised to see you up so early." It was funny that he said something like that, since they had already seen each other that morning, but Kokichi supposed that didn't really count when the both of them had been so sleepy.
Kokichi grinned playfully, "Well, as a robot, I don't need sleep, duh!"
Shuichi's face looked a bit shocked for a second before he took a sip from his mug to hide the amused smile that formed on his lips. This again? Kokichi thought, I'm not that funny. But Kokichi found it a bit adorable that Shuichi tried to hide his reaction anyway.
All of a sudden, Rantaro stood up with his mug in hand. The detective questioned him and the green-haired man replied, "I said I'd go sit with Akamatsu-san after getting my coffee, I only stuck around to say good morning to you."
Kokichi gave him an odd look, but Rantaro didn't show any sign of noticing as he walked out of the room. Rantaro had been lying; he wasn't planning on leaving previously like he had said at all. Kokichi was confused by this for a moment, but then felt Shuichi's gaze fall back on him and realised Rantaro had likely been giving them space.
He didn't know whether to be irritated by the assumption that they wanted that or to be glad for the action.
"Hey, uh… about last night…" Shuichi spoke up as soon as Rantaro was gone, as if he had been waiting for that. "Sorry if that was… uncalled for, I, uh… I was really tired and… Heh, you have to know about how impulse control is only worse the later it is, right?" He seemed majorly ashamed, almost regretful, but something told Kokichi that it wasn't the latter at all.
Kokichi just shrugged. He looked at Shuichi with a blank face, "I don't really care." It wasn't the full truth, but it was closer to the truth than saying he hated it and wished it never happened. He hoped Shuichi would understand that.
Shuichi hummed in understanding, taking another sip of his coffee.
Of course, Kokichi realised, He's a detective, he would be the only one to understand what that meant, right? Or maybe Shuichi didn't really understand at all and that was just Kokichi's false hope speaking.
"You really like the chequered pattern, don't you?" The question was extremely random and surprising, yet Kokichi wondered how that was the first time someone had pointed it out in their year of being stuck with each other.
He slightly tilted his head as if confused, grinning childishly. "What would make you think that?" He asked while dressed in his completely chequered pyjamas.
Another hum left Shuichi's mouth, as if to say 'of course.' Still, he didn't look bothered at all by Kokichi's slight antics, if anything he just looked amused. Was it something new that Shuichi kept being amused by him as of late, or was Kokichi only just then starting to notice it? He couldn't figure it out.
"It suits you, anyway. It, uh…" He trailed off, muttering a small, "Nevermind," before he took a sip from his mug.
Kokichi didn't know whether to egg him to say whatever it was or not. On one hand, his curiosity was killing him as to what it was Shuichi couldn't bring himself to say, but, on the other hand, it was probably something embarrassing that would make Kokichi want to hide his face and never talk to Shuichi again.
Part of him still couldn't stop thinking about the memory of the night before, wrapped in Shuichi's arms and hearing those sleepy, but certain words of his. Part of him wanted to run off right then just so that he couldn't look over at Shuichi's face and think of all those ridiculous things he had been saying. But… Against his better judgement, he kept his spot there next to Shuichi.
He couldn't remember the last time he had sat next to him. Shuichi often had his friends to be with, and Kokichi avoided being near him since… he didn't feel he had earned that place sitting next to the beautiful man yet. Soon, but not yet.
Shuichi, for whatever reason, didn't seem to think that.
The silence that fell over them wasn't too unlike the silence when they had embraced the night before. It was comfortable somehow, and they were both clearly still a bit tired. Kokichi closed his eyes and just listened to the small, nearly inaudible sips that Shuichi took from his coffee. That was enough, and that was all he could bear to allow himself to indulge in.
He still had to earn his place.
Kokichi had to admit, he had taken the peaceful moment a bit for granted, because after a while, the quiet was rudely interrupted by, not one, but two newcomers to the kitchen that morning.
"Good morning, Shuichi!" Kaito boomed, a large smile on his face as he took a seat on Shuichi's other side.
Clearly caught off-guard by the interruption, Shuichi tensed up for a slight moment before chuckling awkwardly, "Ah, uh… Good morning to you too, Momota-kun." This was clearly a lot of energy for someone like him so early in the morning, but Kokichi supposed that the man had also made a conscious decision to sit next to him, so clearly he was alright with it.
Then, the second loud voice came in…
"Hah! Don't tell me you're drinking coffee with Shit-hara now! I thought you hated that shit!" Miu laughed her usual obnoxious laugh, but the energy didn't hide the bags under her eyes or the tired edge to her voice. As Kokichi had figured, she had likely pulled an all-nighter.
Kokichi scoffed, "Yeah, I do. I'm not drinking anything!" He looked back towards Shuichi, but was a bit disappointed he was distracted in conversation with Kaito by then. Before he could get too down about it, he reminded himself that he still needed to earn that right.
"Well, I'm getting a mug and then you're leaving your date for a second to help me, 'kay?"
He glanced to see if Shuichi heard, but it seemed he didn't notice over Kaito's loud voice. Then he glared at Miu, "Hey, watch it with that, Iruma-chan. But… sure, I'd rather be helping than sitting around doing nothing!" It was partially a lie, because doing nothing at Shuichi's side was a whole other thing entirely, but he digressed.
After Miu poured herself some coffee like she said she would, Kokichi hopped down from his stool, shooting one last look at Shuichi who met his gaze with a small smile before looking back at Kaito and saying some meaningless response to the man. How beautiful he looked from afar, almost as beautiful as he looked up close.
"Hey, Ouma–" Miu called for his attention when they were exiting the room, "Are you able to keep your dick in your pants for one second? I don't need you being distracted while we're finishing the project, hah!"
Kokichi laughed, not too bothered by the blonde's usual vulgarity once they were out of earshot of Shuichi. "I don't know, that might be a bit difficult, but I guess I can try!" He responded jokingly. Thinking about being so vulgar about Shuichi irritated him a bit, but he knew Miu only said those things to mess with him.
"Well, firstly, you should change out of those stupid pyjamas, hah! We gotta go outside again, you know that, don't 'ya?"
He rolled his eyes, "Whatever. But you have nothing to say about my pyjamas, you fell asleep in the outfit you were wearing last night! So, if I gotta change, you have to too. It's only fair, y'know."
Miu crossed her arms and looked like she wanted to argue, but she huffed in defeat. "I guess I don't wanna be wearing old clothes when he— er, when the project is finished."
So, with that note, they split up, heading down opposite halls to get changed for the day. When Kokichi returned to the bedroom, he found that all the beds were empty then, meaning even Gonta was awake then. Not that it really mattered much. He was about to leave home base again anyway.
Kokichi picked out his outfit like he would any other day, going for something practical enough to have an excuse, but still fitting his nearly punk aesthetic of wearing scrappy clothes and monochrome. Before he left the room with the outfit in hand, he stepped back to grab his chequered scarf that hung where he had left it the night before.
It was his symbol, the one piece of himself he knew he could hold onto when his head was still a mess of guilt and everything else. He nearly compared it in his head to Shuichi's hat, but that emo hat had only been a crutch for Shuichi, becoming a symbol only when it was gone from his head, revealing that odd bit of hair that he and Kaede shared.
No, Kokichi's scarf was different. It was originally his symbol as a member of the long-gone group of pranksters he had led in his fake memories, but then it only reminded him of his, likely just as fake, title. He was a leader. He was supposed to be a leader, but leading so obviously and cheerfully as someone like Kaede did just wasn't his thing.
He'd rather the group not know he was truly leading them the whole time, because… he didn't deserve that praise that Kaede and Shuichi always received for being leaders. No, he only did it because it was all he could offer, and all he was worth after who he turned out to be.
He was a selfish leader, just like Kirumi. In the end, he had held himself too highly, even if that felt like such a contradictory thing to say after the way he ended up making a pawn of himself in the end.
That was another thing the checkers stood for, he supposed. The idea that he could just play everything like a simple game of chess or, well, checkers. He had tried to abolish that childish, cruel part of him that wanted everything to work out like a game, but it was still there no matter what.
Truthfully, Kiibo was only a pawn at that point. Deep in his head, he knew that was part of the reason he felt so driven for Kiibo to join their ranks again. Yes, he missed him. He realised that often in moments where Miu was far too busy to tease and he still couldn't stand to look at Gonta. He realised Kiibo could've been something of his friend had Kokichi not made such a fool of himself in the game.
Then that little voice came in to remind him that no possible promise of friendship could solely be the reason he cared so much; he was selfish after all. Clearly, he was just using Miu and the idea of Kiibo as pawns again.
So maybe he would never truly earn any place with the rest of them. Maybe the damage was too far gone, on himself and them.
Kokichi exited the bathroom fully dressed, greeted by Miu wearing a backpack likely filled with all the mechanical junk and parts she had been preparing all night. She grinned, looking, mostly falsely, proud of herself, and Kokichi supposed she deserved what little actual pride she felt. He was just her water boy and wrench boy in the end.
"C'mon! We're finishing today no matter what! I can't wait a day longer!"
He grinned, "Yeah, yeah, I'll meet you out there once I—" He stopped mid sentence when Miu passed him a backpack.
"I decided to pack it, I didn't want to wait for your lazy ass, hah!" Kokichi examined her smile again and realised that Miu looked happier than he had seen her in a long while, even with the terrible look of fatigue on her face. Miu always was a little pissy, but she didn't look irritated at all for once. He supposed he wouldn't want her to look any other way when they were so close to victory.
He grabbed the bag, slinging it on his back. He briefly considered telling someone they were leaving, but he found he didn't care at all. Maybe he too was feeling a bit overcome with an odd happiness. So, he pushed down whatever depressing, self-deprecating thoughts had been in his head beforehand and followed Miu to the stairwell.
Their trek up the stairwell was silent for only a brief moment before Miu, of course, opened her mouth.
"So, did you two end up making out last night, or what?"
Kokichi never turned his head faster, "What the hell, Iruma-chan?!" He crossed his arms and scoffed, "That's not gonna happen. He was just being sappy and talking about being glad I returned safe for whatever reason, and you know that. So don't be saying shit like that…"
"Hah! You're just acting upset 'cause you wish he would!" It seemed that even when she was in a good mood, he couldn't get away from Miu's teasing. Well, as long as she's happy… Kokichi thought amusedly, She can laugh at me for being hopeless all she wants as long as she isn't in a pissy mood.
He wasn't going to act like she wasn't, in some facility, correct, but his secret desires and… curiosities were for him to know and him only.
So, of course, Kokichi just laughed, "Why would I want that? I respect him as a person purely, I would rather chug black coffee than get romantic advances from Saihara-chan." That was, of course, an awful lie, but it did come from a slight place of truth where he didn't know what he would do if he found out Shuichi was at all interested in him in that way.
Miu still didn't look fazed at all. She ended up just laughing again. "You're confusing as hell sometimes, but I can confidently say you're just lying about that. Or… Or you've been lying about how much you hate the taste of coffee! But either way, you're stupid obvious, ya' little shit!" She laughed for the millionth time, the sound echoing around the stairwell; it was annoying, but it wasn't quite as annoying since Kokichi knew she was in a good mood today.
He just shook his head, realising she was right and he probably wouldn't be able to change her mind. So… Since it was Miu, he let out a small sigh and said, "I'd just prefer you didn't go around shouting about these hypothetical feelings that you think I have, alright?"
She looked at him like he had just confessed or something, managing to go speechless for a brief moment. "You… You just— Wait, seriously? You're admitting I'm right? I've got you figured out, ya' lying piss-stain! The gorgeous girl genius is at it again!"
Normally, his pride wouldn't allow her to act like that, but he supposed he'd let her get her way today a bit more than he usually would, just because it was a special occasion, of course. So he rolled his eyes and acted as if Miu's response had upset him just to let her feel good about herself.
When they reached the top and opened the door to outside, they were delightfully surprised to find the weather was pretty nice that day. Of course, the top of the building always felt cold because of the wind blowing by, but it wasn't near as windy as it was the day before, and the sun was out as bright and clear as it could be with the whole issue of the atmosphere.
The hazy sunlight illuminated the building and them, making a nice glow that Kokichi hadn't seen in a few days. It was nice, and so perfect if that day turned out to be Kiibo's first day back. Kokichi really hoped that it would be Kiibo's first day back. He needed everything to work out perfectly, for Miu, for Shuichi, for himself, for everyone.
So, instead of making the long trek all the way to the streets, they made the short journey to the top of an adjacent building where Miu had the key to a trapdoor that led inside the building. They climbed down that ladder to enter a space that was nearly as cluttered and personalised as Miu's lab in the home base.
The room had all other entrances blocked off with metal plates, save for the locked trapdoor and what had likely previously been a wall of windows that was just an open space to the outside. It was perfect, because that wall of windows was on the east side of the building, so the sun illuminated the room beautifully as Miu took off her bag and looked around the space, hands proudly resting on her hips.
After a moment of appreciating her handiwork she spoke, "Alright, wrench boy, we're putting Kiibo together today! You better not be sleepy, because we got a job to do. Also, I'm only giving you two food breaks, learned my lesson last time…"
Kokichi grinned wide, easily accepting, "O-kay!"
Then started the hours of work. Kokichi was well aware that Miu was doing far more than he was, but assembling was more simple than Miu's usual work, so she had him doing more jobs than he usually did. Despite the workload, he was extremely motivated throughout the whole time, so he didn't even care when he found his arms starting to get a bit sore from tightening screws and bolts.
He wiped at the bit of sweat that had gathered on his forehead, looking over at Miu who was, at the moment, welding some metal together to connect a couple pieces of what Kokichi assumed was going to be the outer metal body of the robot. Although, Kokichi noticed that she had already done a lot of welding beforehand, it seemed she was just keeping everything as separate pieces to test and perfect them.
Miu was impressive, really. He didn't dare say such a thing to her, lest he have to deal with her even further inflated ego for the rest of time, but he acknowledged it a lot in his head over the past year. She had been the main force behind making their home base so comfortable and technologically advanced, and now she was bringing back an old friend, who Kokichi really thought was an integral piece of their group that they had been missing all year.
He looked down at the pieces he was putting together per Miu's instructions and smiled. Those pieces would be Kiibo soon. Kiibo would be back soon. Yet, he still didn't believe it, despite seeing the limbs starting to come together from where they lay carelessly on the ground.
As they continued working, he could make out all the body parts that they had completed. There were two robotic boot-like feet, full of sensors for stability, and legs built to function almost identically to a human's legs, with pieces that functioned like muscles. The framing for Kiibo's would-be hips and shoulders were coming together as well as the open skeleton of the forearm, with all the wiring and detailed assembly that allowed for hands that functioned just like a human's.
Miu really was putting care into building him, and Kokichi didn't blame her. He tried his best to be careful, he didn't dare be sloppy when such a decision could cause problems for Kiibo in the future.
It was around the time that Miu had finished making the complete base for the arms and shoulders that she called break time, looking beyond exhausted. Normally, when she looked that way, she became irritable and cranky, but that day, it didn't seem possible at all for an angry look to be on her face.
She grabbed the backpack she had had Kokichi wear in and pulled out two packed lunches and… a picnic blanket. She laid out the blanket, looking proud of herself when it was spread evenly on the ground.
Kokichi grabbed one of the packed lunches and opened the container to find it was quite nicely packed. A crustless sandwich was cut into four little triangles, propped up on their longest sides. Then there were nicely cut strawberries along with a toothpick to eat them. Finally, some oyster crackers made up the last section in the plastic lunch container.
Miu sat down across from Kokichi, then, seemingly noticing the surprise that must have been on his face, she spoke up. "I made them both last night if you were curious. A year of eating Tojo's nicely made food teaches ya' to at least be able to put something simple together like a sandwich lunch!"
He smiled. "I can tell Tojo-chan didn't make them, but… I suppose it'll do."
She laughed, a joking look of anger falling over her face as she yelled back, "Oi, shut it, ya' little shit! I don't see you making lunches or pulling all-nighters! You should be glad I didn't have you make your own, hah!" Kokichi knew that. Even if Miu had said it as a joke, he was glad for the lunch, he was glad that she pulled an all-nighter to get them just that much closer to having Kiibo back again.
. . .
After their quick lunch, it was back to work for them, which wasn't so bad. Hope and sunlight kept them working for hours more. Kokichi didn't even care how long it would take. It was finally going to happen.
"For fuck's sake, Ouma, why are your hands quivering like that? You're gonna drop Kiibo!"
Kokichi scoffed, "I'm trying, Iruma-chan! It's just… He's really big!"
Miu collapsed laughing on the spot, suddenly leaving the entire weight of Kiibo's unfinished robot body on Kokichi, who had already been struggling to carry his weight. So… Kokichi collapsed, becoming a momentary cushion for the hunk of metal before he sat up and pushed Kiibo aside.
He stared, unamused, at Miu who was crying laughing for seemingly no reason. He knew exactly the reason, well, both reasons. Reason one was likely because the inventor was beginning to run low on energy because of her all-nighter the night before, and reason two…
She cried, and laughed, and snorted, and chortled… And then after moments of Kokichi simply staring at her, she snickered and said, "Heh- That's… Ha- That's what she said! Hah!" And the laughing fit continued. Kokichi had seen that one coming from a mile away.
Kokichi wanted to be angry at her for being so careless over a stupid joke, but he could see the warm colours starting to fill the sky. It was getting late, they had been out there nearly all day, and Kiibo still was hours from being complete. Miu was overworking herself, especially after getting next to no sleep.
He stood up, stretching his arms behind his head and deciding to keep his hands resting there as he said nonchalantly, "Y'know… That joke was so good that… I think I'm done working now." (Obviously the first part was a lie, but he honestly didn't think he'd be able to carry on any longer, especially if Miu's humour was going to be that egregious.)
Miu stood up as well, an angry look crossing her face as she let out a small gasp, "You-You can't just– be done working! He's still not done yet, we only have a bit more to go!"
Still, he wandered to the ladder, dropping his hands to lean against it, "Yes, yes I can. And you should be done too, y'know. You can't possibly want to greet Kiibo looking like you haven't slept for 48 hours, do you? 'Cause I know with how long it's taken so far that you're going to end up working into the night again. It's fine, Iruma-chan, we'll just complete him tomorrow!"
She looked apprehensive. Did she really think that moving the completion to the next day would be that terrible? Kokichi understood not wanting to wait another day, but it was obvious that their exhaustion would only make completing the project take longer and leave them completely drained once Kiibo was finally put together, and, personally, he felt pretty drained already.
Giving in, she sighed, "Fine, ya' little shit… But I'm not leaving Keebs on the floor, so you better get your lazy ass over here!"
Kokichi grinned and walked over to help, "O-kay!"
. . .
It only dawned upon Kokichi when he saw a certain detective sitting in the living area, already in pyjamas, that Kokichi had been gone a long while without telling anyone they were going. The night before they hadn't been out nearly as long and Miu had given their ambiguous signal of "getting some fresh air."
It also dawned upon him when he noticed the detective's slightly bouncing leg and neutral expression as he was having a conversation with Kaede that Kokichi still hadn't followed through with the man's request from the night before. He wondered if Shuichi thought he was avoiding him after what happened. In a way, he supposed he kind of was. Or… more so, he was holding off whatever Shuichi was trying to start until he felt he had earned it.
When Miu went straight through the room to get to the kitchen, Kokichi saw Shuichi perk up and look around to finally notice him half-standing in the hall. Shuichi's gaze only lingered for a second before he averted his eyes, manually stopped his bouncing leg, and gave Kaede a tap on the arm as he started speaking to her.
Kokichi followed Miu's path, feeling an occasional glance his way from others, but he ignored it out of hunger. He entered the kitchen and dining area to find Kirumi was preparing something in the kitchen while Miu sat at the island counter a couple seats down from… Maki?
"What are you doing here so late, Harukawa-chan?" He smiled as if it was a purely friendly greeting, but he didn't think such a thing would ever happen between the two of them. He took a seat next to Miu, but only a single space away from where Maki sat.
Her sharp eyes nearly pierced his own, red like the colour of… probably something bad. (His first thought was blood, but blood was pink, obviously!) But she didn't look truly pissed off, only largely irritated. Her serious, flat—though not without some anger—voice responded, "You two are reckless idiots. Why didn't you tell anyone you were leaving? Do you want to die?"
That phrase didn't go without a slight shiver down Kokichi's spine, but he smiled as if unfazed like he always could do. "Hm… Well, I guess it just didn't cross my mind! Although, if you want to be angry, be angry at Miu, she's the one that was in such a rush to get out of here, after all."
Maki narrowed her eyes, examining him, before letting out a sigh. "I don't know if that's the truth or not, but it doesn't matter. You two had… some of us worried. I knew you two would come waltzing back, but Ryoma and I were still told to stand guard duty just in case you two decided to go out that way. That's why I'm here 'so late,' since I had to stare out the door for no good reason while the others ate."
Miu let out a barely audible whimper, likely at Maki's tone or out of guilt.
Kirumi spoke up from in front of them, "I know you all weren't present for dinner, but I did save you all portions. It'll be hot and ready to eat shortly, so please don't let your hunger dampen your moods."
Maki let out a hum that was probably the closest thing to a laugh that she ever would have in Kokichi's presence. Despite her annoyance, she didn't seem too upset though. Like Kokichi's childishness and nonchalance, it was likely an act that she had lived so long with that it was only natural for her.
They all watched as Kirumi kindly plated their meals and gave the three of them nearly identical plates of food. She bowed her head and said, "I hope that the food still serves as high-quality despite the wait."
Miu, practically drooling, nodded enthusiastically, "Oh, it looks abso-fucking-lutely amazing as always, Tojo!"
Kokichi grinned and nodded as well, "Thank you, Tojo-chan!"
Maki hummed in agreement, "Yeah. Thanks."
Kirumi nodded and took a moment to clean up the supplies leftover from dinner, before leaving the room, leaving just the three of them eating their food in verbal silence. (Miu ate plenty loud enough for the three of them, and that wasn't even including her food-moans. Kokichi had to laugh and tell her to "stop eating like a nasty whore!" several times throughout their year of being stuck always sitting together at meals.)
Somehow, Miu was the first one done, usually Maki ate quicker than anyone, but for some reason she was taking her time, and Miu left after taking care of her dishes real quick. Kokichi really hoped she was going straight to sleep with how much she needed it.
Maki ended up being the first one to speak when Miu left. "You know what I meant, right? You know who it was I meant when I said there were some worrying about you two?"
Kokichi looked at her oddly, a bit confused that she would even start a conversation with him, but, after a moment of figuring out what she was asking, he realised what she was getting at and nodded.
She hummed and ate another bite of food before she spoke again. "He kept saying he'd be saying the same about anyone, but you know just as well as I do that that's a bit of a lie, right? I tried bringing it up with him, but he foolishly assured me that that was not the case. He's just as bad as Kaito at lying sometimes. That or… he's not even completely aware he's lying. You know that realm far better than I do, though."
He swallowed a mouthful of food and gave her a confused look, "So…? Are you asking me to tell you something or do something? I'm confused why you're bringing this up. I'm well aware that my beloved Saihara-chan has been a bit… sappy as of late. But if you're looking for an explanation, I don't understand him anymore than you, his friend, would."
Maki blinked, as if shocked by the somewhat reasonable response, but she ended up giving a very brisk nod and replying, "Of course, I get that. I just wanted you to check in on him, because I… have a hunch he's not going to seek you out on his own. But, for whatever reason, your leaving without saying has left him acting… off all day. And while I don't particularly care about you, I care about him and… he cares about you, so… I guess it's about time I stop holding too much of a grudge. Still hate you, though."
Kokichi could tell she was telling the truth when she said that, but honestly, he was glad. If there wasn't at least one person who truly still hated him, he wouldn't know how to feel at all. He respected her hate if anything, it was refreshing after Shuichi's odd compassion as of late.
He smiled brightly before he could think too much about said compassion, "Well, we're on the same page, then! I'll make sure to tell him that you told me how weird he's been acting and how you plan to snitch—"
Maki interrupted him with a death glare. "Don't test me, Ouma. I wouldn't betray his trust like that. I'm not stupid. This was a one time exception because… I worry about his occasional cowardice. And I worry you're an asshole who doesn't actually deserve his anxiety or care."
Taking a final bite of her food, she stood up and took care of her dishes, leaving on that note.
Kokichi's first thought to her words was, I worry about that too. How many times had he ruined perfectly fine things? How many times had he proven himself to be, underneath the hard-to-love exterior, exactly that? He could be an asshole. He purposely was an asshole sometimes, what was stopping him from actually being considered one? Guilt? Guilt isn't enough, and he knew that.
Still, he supposed he knew what he had to do after finishing his dinner. He had to tell Shuichi to stop being such a worried sap.
He finished his food and, as the other two had done, took care of his dishes before leaving the room. The dim nighttime lights illuminated the space giving the sort of glowing effect that moonlight had. It was nice and, honestly, impressive how Miu had been able to make the lights do that.
Kokichi had mistaken the room to be empty at first, but then he noticed that pretty figure sitting in a chair, nose in a book. Silently, he sat down in the chair adjacent to his, surprised that the man didn't notice him until he asked, "Whatcha reading?"
Shuichi took in a small breath out of shock when he turned his head to face Kokichi. Then, he averted his eyes like he had earlier, closing his book and shutting off the little book-light he had had stuck to it. "Uh, just a mystery. Yumeno-san had found it when she and Chabashira-san went looking for books the other day, remember?"
"Hm, I remember now," He replied, before putting on a grin. "Yumeno-chan was disappointed she couldn't find any mage books and Chabashira-chan had to console her by making up a mage story on the spot that was clearly just a lesbian love story between the Yumeno-inspired main character and Chabashira-chan's self-insert."
He blinked in surprise, looking a bit ashamed as he responded, "Ah, really? To be honest, I… I hadn't paid that much attention at all. I knew there was some fuss afterwards, but I didn't really hear what it was about, heh."
Kokichi hummed, "Well… You don't have to worry about hearing everything. You don't need to know what's going on at all times, even leaders shouldn't feel the need to do that, y'know, take it from a leader himself." He made a cocky grin, something that was more an element of Miu's usual humour than his, but he supposed that spending time with someone frequently was bound to affect his humour.
Shuichi, for some reason, smiled. It wasn't a laugh, (Kokichi was well aware it wasn't a laugh worthy kind of joke, especially since he was trying to be a bit serious) but it still felt so odd.
It was a moment before Shuichi let out a small sigh, "I know… I…" He stared out at nothing as he searched for his words. When he finally found them, he turned to look at Kokichi, "I'm going to need help from an experienced leader if I'm going to truly be that, huh?"
Kokichi looked away, letting out a nonchalant scoff. There were only so many times he could do that when Shuichi said something unexpected and sappy before Shuichi started to realise he was doing it to hide his embarrassment. "Don't joke around, Saihara-chan, you know I'm nothing of the sort."
"I'm not joking." That was all he had to say; Kokichi could tell he meant it. He really didn't know how to feel about this new Shuichi. The one that kept catching him off guard, the one that spared him far more looks than he ever did, the one that—
Shuichi spoke after a brief moment of silence, "You never told me about last night. Would you be willing to tell me about it still? I… I want to hear the story."
—The one that wanted to hear stories. Kokichi looked at him quizzically. "Really? Think my stories would be more interesting than that book you have there or something? I'm going to lie about a bunch of stuff, you have to know that. Don't you have Kaito to tell you tall tales?"
His face fell into that resting, thoughtful face of his. "I guess, but you can't blame me for getting tired of his stories, right? I… I want to hear about the night market and whatever it is you two could've gotten up to. It's just like old days, right? You would tell those far-fetched stories about your organisation… do you remember that?"
Kokichi laughed, though not near as loud as he might've with Miu. It was that odd, soft laugh of his. (He had heard it compared to a horse once, oddly enough.) "Of course I remember!" He looked down at his hand. He could still clearly envision the bandage on his right ring finger. The careful knot that Shuichi had tied to keep it there, the bit of fraying that had started to occur from his mindless fidgeting with it, the small amount of blood that had nearly bled through that was hidden most times on the side of his finger…
He hadn't even meant to say it aloud, especially so softly, but while he stared at his perfectly unharmed ring finger, he had said, "I stole your heart…" Catching himself saying something so sappy, he put a wide grin on his face, "Pretty stupid memories, huh?"
Shuichi didn't say a word, but his face made it clear he didn't know what to think about the question. Confused… At least Kokichi still knew he was the same in that regard. That deeply confused face that tried so hard to understand him… It was nearly the same as it had been back then.
Eventually, he just mumbled out, "What does that even mean?" But he wasn't really asking, Kokichi realised that right away. He was remembering and… reciting. Shuichi looked down at his own hand for a moment, before looking up and holding it out to Kokichi, as if… asking for his hand. It took Kokichi a moment, but… he remembered this. "You… You didn't take it before. But… That's just because you didn't want me to know, right?"
Another scoff. "What are you talking about? Want you to know… what?"
He opened his mouth, but only an "I—" came out. Then he just shook his head and pulled his hand away, looking away with a bit of shame in his expression. "Nevermind. I, uh… You were going to tell me about the night market, right?"
Normally, Kokichi would take such an obvious topic change as an opportunity to tease the man, but… part of him didn't want to know what Shuichi was trying to say. Bringing up old, dead memories… What a vile trick to try and get to my weakness, Kokichi thought. So he rolled his eyes, "O-kay. I'll tell you about the night market, since you're dying to know."
Shuichi gave him a brisk nod and his full attention, though his eyes seemed to wander everywhere but Kokichi's eyes; an old habit, Kokichi supposed. Nonetheless, Kokichi started telling him about the night. Mentioning the "annoying detective" that wished him safe travels and the "deadly cliffs" that he and Miu had to scale to get down to the streets.
All the while, Shuichi looked hooked on his every word. Soft amusement glittered in those eyes that seemed grey in the dull lighting whenever Kokichi's dramatics came up. Sometimes Kokichi would nearly lose track of his words because he would almost get caught up in the way the fake moonlight made Shuichi's face glow milky pale, curtained by that perfect blue hair that looked so silky smooth. (Kokichi could only imagine how soft it would be to the touch…)
Kokichi left out the part where the preaching bot was assassinated in the middle of his speech, but he added his own additions, which Shuichi seemed to like for whatever reason. He added a chase scene where he got caught pickpocketing, he added that Miu was actually looking for children's toys and not robot parts, he added a scene where he had to save Miu from criminals, and finally…
"And after days walking down the stairway into hell… We finally made it back home! But… Iruma-chan was so impatient that she went running ahead, so she got there a bit before me. Oh, well… It worked out because that meant that that annoying guy who worried all the time could catch me as soon as I got there!
"He said something silly like how worried he was about someone who was raised in a life of crime, y'know, running several mafias and all that, and then… Then he stabbed me in the back! With my own knife! And… I bled out and died horribly in a puddle of my own blood from my own weapon!"
Shuichi let out a sudden laugh of both amusement and confusion, clearly taken very aback by that ending, "What? Why would that happen?"
Kokichi let out a fake sigh of disappointment, "C'mon, Saihara-chan, keep up a bit. Obviously, he's the twist villain!" He laughed, "I know you didn't see that one coming!"
He looked like he wanted to just be amused, but, of course, he was taking it too seriously, "Well, yeah, I'm surprised… I… I'm not a villain. I'm not going to stab you in the back, and that's certainly not what happened."
"Mm, nope!" He laughed at Shuichi's face which looked as lost and confused as ever. "You aren't the villain. The guy who worried so much is! 'Cause he gets so worried when I leave without telling him that he goes crazy paranoid and thinks I'm an evil doppelganger when I come back. That's why he kills me, duh!"
Realisation struck Shuichi's face and he looked away in shame. "Okay, okay… I get it now." He paused before muttering, "I'm… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to overreact, I…" He trailed off, looking back at Kokichi moments later with a questioning look, "Wait, you weren't even here! How do you know I was…?"
Kokichi grinned and lied, (he supposed he shouldn't disregard Maki's wishes), "I just assumed with how you've been acting… Guess I was right! And you admitted it so easily, too!"
Shame came over Shuichi's expression again. "Ah… Of course. Silly me, huh?" He stared out at nothing again, as if he was deep in thought. What was it that he thought about, Kokichi had to wonder. Did he think about regrets on his own part? Did he think about Kokichi's confusing words? Maybe he was just thinking about something silly like the story.
He didn't mind that Shuichi had turned away at all; it gave him the opportunity to stare and get lost in just how perfect the man looked under the fake moonlight. Kokichi wondered if he looked even more celestial in the real rays of a full moon, with no city lights and polluted atmosphere to block them out. Of course he would, he thought, There's no chance he could possibly look worse.
Then he thought about Shuichi's musings. Shuichi had asked 'silly me, huh?' and Kokichi couldn't help but think, Yeah. He's the silliest, and he doesn't even understand it. After all, stealing someone's heart… it's not very nice, Saihara-chan. But… I'm just as silly. I think 'silliness' is starting to become a bit of a problem. …At least he's a pretty problem.
"So…" Kokichi said, breaking the silence. "I told you that story just like you had wanted. You have any other requests? Any questions that are all stuck in your brain since I was gone all day? Hm?"
Shuichi looked at him apologetically, "Ah… I didn't mean to keep you up so late, again. And… Thank you, I… I enjoyed the story, really. Uh, even with the, um… twist ending. It was amusing and intriguing at least."
He ignored the fact that the man avoided his question entirely, instead taking his chance to confuse Shuichi just a little bit. "Y'know… I think I got the ending wrong. I must've mixed it up with another story, as all creative geniuses do, of course. I'll tell you the real ending now since I just remembered it, actually."
A curious look fell onto his face as he warily nodded, "Alright. Um, what's the real ending then?"
Kokichi faced away as he thought for a moment, keeping his head turned away from Shuichi as he started. "Iruma-chan had gone ahead in the stairwell, but I was too lost in thought to catch up, so I just let her go ahead. It turned out alright because… my beloved Saihara-chan was waiting there like a worrywart. So I… I let him say his silly words about worry and nervousness, even though… He made me nervous, too."
He let that sit in the air. It would've made for a satisfying ending, but it also would've made for a lot of questions, ones he was starting to get too tired to answer. So… After the words had sat long enough to soak in a good amount, he grinned and continued very unseriously. '
"Then an evil robot broke into the base because Iruma-chan left the door at the top of the stairwell unlocked and he blew up the whole place, causing us all to be crushed and suffocated by rock and stone and dirt! The lesson is… don't leave the door open!"
Shuichi looked at him, confusion clear on his face, but also… acceptance? Along with his amusement, he looked somewhat understanding. "I get it," he said. "I think I'm starting to understand a bit." But he didn't clarify what he meant by that and stood up, book and book-light in hand. "I'll go to bed now, then. Sleep well, alright?"
Again, he didn't wait for an answer, almost as if he already knew that Kokichi would have no difficulty sleeping at all because of him. Of course, there was no possible way for him to know that, but, still, it was a bit amusing to think that could be the case.
Kokichi only lingered around for a moment, an image clear in his mind of Shuichi's face under the false moonlight. That was all he would allow himself to indulge in. Tomorrow, tomorrow Kiibo would finally be complete, there was no denial this time. It had to work out, he knew it did.
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