𝗗𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗔𝗡𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗣𝗔: 𝗧𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗚𝗘𝗥 𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗬 𝗛𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗖

𝗜𝗧𝗦𝗙𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗛: 𝗬𝗛𝗦 𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡

[𝗗𝗔𝗜𝗟𝗬 𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗘]

𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁?

[𝘆𝗲𝘀] 𝗇𝗈

𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙡𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜......

❝𝘛𝘏𝘌 𝘌𝘔𝘗𝘛𝘐𝘌𝘙 𝘠𝘖𝘜𝘙 𝘏𝘌𝘈𝘋, 𝘛𝘏𝘌 𝘔𝘖𝘙𝘌 𝘋𝘙𝘌𝘈𝘔𝘚 𝘠𝘖𝘜 𝘊𝘈𝘕 𝘚𝘛𝘜𝘍𝘍 𝘐𝘕𝘚𝘐𝘋𝘌 𝘐𝘛, 𝘠'𝘒𝘕𝘖𝘞!❞

-𝘼𝙆𝘼𝙉𝙀 𝙊𝙒𝘼𝙍𝙄, 𝙎𝙐𝙋𝙀𝙍 𝘿𝘼𝙉𝙂𝘼𝙉𝙍𝙊𝙉𝙋𝘼 𝙂𝙊𝙊𝘿𝘽𝙔𝙀 𝘿𝙀𝙎𝙋𝘼𝙄𝙍

I yawn as I sit up, rubbing my eyes and blinking with a tired face. How many days have we been here? Five already? Has it already been that long?

Actually, what time is it? Did I wake up early? Or did I sleep through the morning announcement—

"BING BONG, DING DONG!"

Oh, there it is.

"Good morning, everyone! It is now seven A.M! Time to rise and shine!" Monokuma's voice echoes from the monitor inside the room, "get ready to greet another day!"

"Another great day!" I mock in a falsetto voice, waving my fingers in a 'jazz hands' position, but my own skits can't make me laugh. I'm too tired.

Hold on, did I actually wake up earlier than the announcement? I'm not a morning person. Does that mean I'm already getting used to it, to all of this?

I shudder. I hope not.

I shuffle out of my bed and out of my dorm, immediately locking it behind me as I make my way down the corridor to the cafeteria.

"You're early," Evelyn immediately notices, "normally you're with the other group."

"Other group?" I question.

"There's three groups that I've identified. The early ones, which are me, Senpai, and Kyran. It also was Yandere and Gold," Evelyn explains.

I flinch slightly at her use of the past tense.

"The ones who usually arrive on time are Rainbow, you, Draco, and Alec... and it was also Evan," Evelyn elaborates.

I flinch again.

"Finally, the ones who are late, or rather come at their own time whenever they wish, are Aly, Lunar, Valerie, Felicia, and Brittney," Evelyn says.

"Oh," I murmur.

"While sometimes they swap times of arrival, most of the time, it's usually those people in those groups," she further says.

"Well, that surely wasn't depressing to hear," Kyran's bitterly comments as he walks into the cafeteria.

"If you are referring to my use of 'was', there is nothing wrong or incorrect with my words. It is true they're no longer among the living, yes? Then there is no reason to use present tense for the deceased," Evelyn defends.

"I know, I know," Kyran whines, sitting down in one of the chairs at the large main dining table, "it's just... sad to hear."

"We can't just mope around, though," Senpai sighs, suddenly appearing in the cafeteria as he takes a seat beside the rest of us, "can we?"

"That's not advised, no," Evelyn declines.

"Are we gonna start role call?" Kyran inquires.

"No. Not until everyone else arrives," Evelyn says.

Silence.

"Took you long enough," Felicia scoffs at Lunar, "you're the last one."

"I was literally right behind you," Lunar defends.

"But you were still last," Brittney comments, crossing her arms, "so even if you were right behind her, it doesn't change that fact."

"That's—"

"Oh, guys. Please, don't fight," Valerie pleads, clasping her hands together, "after all, we're all friends here!"

"You—"

"She said stop fighting," Evelyn commands.

Silence again.

It's only been five days. We can't be getting on each other's nerves already. We all got along so well at first. We can't be fighting now. That's what Monokuma wants, for us to turn on each other.

It seems like a few other people realize this as well because soon Rainbow is giggling more jokes to those close by her like Kyran and Lunar, although, neither of them seem to be in the mood for laughing. Senpai tries talking to Valerie, Alec, and Aly, but the conversation doesn't look like it's going far. And as for everyone else like myself, we're just quietly eating breakfast. It's... depressing to be honest.

"Omelettes for breakfast? How egg-sellent!" Rainbow laughs out, clearly trying to lighten the mood.

"Good one," Senpai also chuckles, once again, clearly trying to get others to cheer up, "right, guys?"

"Definitely!" Valerie chirps, "this reminds me of—"

"Stop," numerous voices say at once.

"Huh?"

"Just... stop," Draco murmurs, "it's not helping."

"It's patronizing," Evelyn comments, "if I mustn't lie."

"They're right," Alec agrees.

I glance over at Lunar, someone who also shares at least a slightly positive mentality like mine. Pleadingly, I shoot her a look that asks her to try and break the tension.

She frowns, turns her head and stares at everyone else around us, then looks back at me with an apologetic expression. She shakes her head slowly, admitting defeat. "They won't listen," it's like she's saying to me, "even if we tried to get them to."

I sigh. But as I open my mouth to try myself, I'm interrupted almost immediately.

"Everything isn't okay. So, don't try to make it seem like it's okay," Kyran mumbles, "please. It hurts more when you do that."

Silence. Again.

It's only been five days.

Five days ago there was fifteen of us.

Now, there's twelve.

𝐅𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐟𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞

"Where is he?" I inquire to myself out loud, wandering the available hallways of the school, "this place isn't that open to us. How can I not find him?"

"You look lost," a voice says from behind me.

"I'm not lost," I respond, "I'm looking for Draco. Have you seen him anywhere, Alec?"

"Can't say I have," Alec denies, shaking his head, "I was just heading to the dance room. Aly's been hanging out in there and I promised her I'd tell her whenever I'm doing something. She's... kinda scared, you know?"

"Yeah. I get you," I admit, "if you don't mind me asking, what are you doing?"

"Oh, I was just gonna hang out with Senpai and Valerie. Senpai wanted to test out something, see if my hacking skills could beat his luck in a video game," he explains.

"And how do you plan on playing a video game in here? We don't have our phones," I point out.

"Don't worry," he assures, "we have a plan."

"Uh-huh. Sure. Whatever. I don't think I wanna know," I laugh out, "I guess have fun. But, are you sure you haven't seen Draco anywhere?"

"Nope. Sorry, Funneh," he says, "but if you find him and neither of you have anything to do, join us. The Ultimate Gamer, Ultimate YouTuber, Ultimate Hacker, and Ultimate Luck facing off in a video game. Sounds fun, huh?"

"Yeah. If I find him, I'll tell him," I chortle.

"Good luck, then."

"That's Senpai's line."

"I—"

"Evelyn!" I call out, waving my hand towards her to catch her attention.

"Hm?" she hums.

"Have you seen Draco anywhere? I can't find him," I ask, hoping she can help.

"Ah, I have. Down the hall, in the library. Seemed like he was looking for something in there," Evelyn advises.

"Oh, thanks!" I gasp, already sprinting to the library.

I run into the library, pushing the heavy wooden doors open with a slam. I glance around, only spotting bookshelves filled from top to bottom, a nearby table and chair, and a fireplace lit aflame.

"Dracooooo?" I call out, cupping my hands around my mouth, "helloooooo?"

"Over here!" I hear his voice echo from the other side of the room. I wander over towards where I heard his voice and walk past a few piles of books scattered amongst the floor almost as if someone's been rummaging through them. "I'm looking for something. Ignore the mess," Draco insists, "I probably should have asked someone who pays more attention to literature where it could be."

𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐎𝐍?

[𝘆𝗲𝘀] 𝗇𝗈

𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙡𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜......

"Huh? Hang out? Eh, sure, why not?" he agrees with a shrug, "but if you wanna hang out, you're gonna have to chill in here. I'm looking for something."

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐎𝐍 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥

𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐎𝐍 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐫!

𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐎𝐍 𝐚 𝐠𝐢𝐟𝐭?

𝗒𝖾𝗌 𝙣𝙤

"Dude, what are you even looking for?" I finally ask after what feels like forever of talking about all types of video games and which ones are good for the mainstream trending.

"A book," he remarks, tossing a few rather old looking ones over his shoulder, "duh."

"I know that. I meant what book are you looking for?" I question before mocking him by saying, "duh."

He laughs. "I'm just trying to confirm something I theorized earlier, and I figured Yandere High School would have a book about it. After all, it's a prestigious school for teenage prodigies; makes sense for it to have valuable information, right?"

"Dancing around the question, aren't you?" I point out, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not 'dancing around the question'. I'm just... withholding information until it's truthful," he defends.

"Unbelievable," I laugh, shaking my head, "if you want, I can help you look."

"You just wanna know what I'm looking for," he remarks, laughing.

"For the love of— yes, I wanna know! I'm nosy, okay?" I admit reluctantly, crossing my arms.

"Alright, alright. You can help. I've seen photos of the book in the past from accidentally surfing the Internet for too long. It should have a dark brown leather cover, with one large water droplet symbol and a curved but elongated triangle behind it," he explains, "sounds generic, I know. But trust me, it's unmistakable when you see it."

"Huh. Okay," I nonchalantly say, wandering over to another bookshelf nearby, "now can you tell me what it's for?"

"Nope. If we find it, I maybe can. But if not, then nah," he simply denies.

"Oh, come on. 'Nah'? That's even colder than being sent 'K' in a text message," I joke.

He laughs, but doesn't say anymore.

He seems like he's in a better mood, I think to myself, recalling earlier this morning at role call and breakfast, maybe he's trying to pick up his spirits. Or maybe Lunar talked to him.

"You aren't plotting my death right now, right?" he chortles out, although in this situation it could have been very plausible that I was.

"What? No," I firmly deny, "why ask that?"

"You're quiet."

"And?"

"You talk a lot."

"Hush!"

"No, but really, it's a good game. Well developed but not popular. If we ever get out of this and can go back to normalcy, you should check it out. It'd be good for a gameplay and—no way!" I hear Draco gasp from the other side, "I found it!"

I jump to my feet —both of us forgetting about our conversation about games— and hurry over to him, where he's crouched down with a large and old-looking book residing in his hands.

"Really? Lemme see, lemme see!" I gasp, peering over his shoulder to look at the cover.

He's right. It's really unmistakeable.

"Hold on, you impatient thingy!" he insists, standing up and quickly flipping through the pages of the book and its contents.

"Aw, come on! I wanna see it! What is it?" I insistently question.

He snaps the book closed, stares off for a moment as if he's considering something, then snaps his fingers together in an 'aha' moment. He promptly turns towards me and says, "Whoops. This is confidential."

"What? No fairrrr!" I whine, placing my hands on my hips, "you promised!"

"Nah. I didn't promise anything. I said 'maybe', which means there was still a possibility I wouldn't show you," he defends, "haha, I'm not an N.P.C. I can still mean other things than what I say."

"That's not how life works!"

"None of this is how life works, though."

"dRACO—"

𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐛𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝!

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐎𝐍 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐮𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

𝗘𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗥𝗘𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗗𝗦

I sigh as I pace back and forth in the center of the cafeteria, no one else around but me. Curiosity keeps eating at me on the inside, telling me to bug Draco until he finally gives in and tells me what the book he was looking for means.

There had been no writing or title on the cover of the book from when I saw it, leaving me without a clue to what its contents are about.

I groan in frustration, pouting as I mumble, "Fine, fine. I'll just find someone else to hang out with."

But who?

𝐅𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐟𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞

I suppose I can just look for someone who isn't busy and ask to spend time with them. I'm not tired right now anyway, so sleeping the afternoon away would be a waste.

I momentarily ponder who probably isn't busy, but then decide on simply hanging out with whoever I run into first, regardless of who it may be. Favoritism in this sense would be rude, right?

"Ouch! Watch where you're going, Ironing Board!" a high-pitched voice squeaks out as I stumble backwards from the impact of running into her.

"That was both of us. We both need to look out—" my defenses are interrupted by her.

"Like I could make a mistake as stupid as that," Felicia scoffs, crossing her arms, "how dare you accuse me for such a thing!"

In my head, I recall my words.

With a reluctant smile, I give into past me's wishes.

𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐅𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀 𝐖𝐄𝐈𝐙?

[𝘆𝗲𝘀] 𝗇𝗈

𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙡𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜......

"You? Hang out with me?" she gawks, eyebrows raised in slight disbelief, "oh, I get it! You wanted to see true perfection in human embodiment!"