The next morning, I did the same routine I did everyday; wake up to the morning announcement, use the bathroom, and head to the dining hall for breakfast. However, this morning was a bit odd.

As I was eating my breakfast, I noticed no one else was in the dining hall. It was rather strange considering we usually always came here at the same time and I certainly did not arrived any earlier or later. Perhaps they gathered somewhere, but I can worry about that after my meal.

I finished my meal rather quickly and cleaned up after myself, rushing out of the dining hall. There were no students littering the hallway anywhere, so they must have either been hiding in their dorms or gathered somewhere altogether. Most likely the latter.

As I walked the halls, I heard some commotion echoing from the bathhouse. It seemed to be someone screaming in a rather high pitch...what if a murder were occurring?

I ran as fast as I could have possibly ran to the bathhouse. My heart was racing in e̶x̶h̶i̶l̶a̶r̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ fear as I flew down the halls. What was going on?!

When I made it to the bathhouse and ran inside, I located the origin of the screaming; it was Hifumi.

"S-She's trying to kill me!!" Hifumi screamed as he pointed to Kyoko. I glanced around and noticed everyone else was gathered in the room with them.

"What is going on?!" I shouted, gaining my peers' attention.

"Ms.(L/n)! Help me please; she's trying to kill me!" Hifumi pleaded, waving his chubby finger at Kyoko.

I raised an eyebrow. "Kyoko, what is going on?"

"I never stated that I wanted to kill you," Kyoko sighed. "I asked a question and he did not answer."

Hifumi continued to whine, tears falling from his eyes. I looked back to Kyoko. "What did he do?"

"He snuck into the bathhouse at night and used Alter Ego without permission. I caught him last night and he was hugging the laptop and breathing irregularly," Kyoko explained, sending a glare to Hifumi.

I cringed a bit. "What were you doing..."

"Please don't kill me! I was just ta-talking," Hifumi cried.

"Which was prohibited," Kyoko interjected.

"B-But talking to her was just so much fun!!"

""Her"?" I questioned. "Did you fall in love with something?"

"Uwahh!! No way; is this love?" Hifumi let out a squeal. "She is an angel...perhaps it is love!"

"How did this happen?!" Hina exclaims, a hand over her mouth.

"Well...I just wanted to hear her say "master" one more time, but then I poked around her settings and saw she was a well-designed programmed," Hifumi explained. "It was the first time I was able to talk like that with a normal girl..."

"Are you referring to Alter Ego? I would most certainly say that it isn't a "normal girl," let alone a girl at all...I don't think a program would have a gender," I stated.

Hifumi seemed to ignore my statement. "We talked about all of my hobbies and she wasn't annoyed or disgusted at all. Before I knew it, I found myself liking her. Her face, her personality, her voice, her keyboard-"

"You misunderstood the situation, Hifumi. Alter Ego was interested in the information you gave it, not you," Celeste states. "It exists to learn more and more; of course it would want to know about things it had not known."

"I-I know...but-"

"Oi, jerks! I'm tired of sittin' here listening to you guys talk about whatever!" Taka suddenly screamed.

"Oh, Taka! Nice to see you back dude," Hiro chuckled.

"Who's Taka?!"

"Uhm, you?"

"Hell no! I am not Taka, I am me!!!" Taka's eyes flamed as he yelled.

"What?" Hina mumbled in confusion.

"C'mon, isn't it obvious! I'm Kiyotaka and Mondo! Kiyondo, I suppose...I'm gonna stick a banana up your tailpipe!"

I let out a small chuckle at the way Taka was acting. Everyone questioned his behavior and I explained what happened the previous day with Alter Ego. Once I cleared that up, everyone was more enlightened upon the situation.

Taka let out a chuckle. "Hifumi!"

Hifumi flinched as Taka rested a hand on his shoulder. "Yes?"

"I dunno what you're thinking, but bro belongs to me!" Taka claimed, tightening his grip on Hifumi's shoulder.

"Huh?" I muttered.

"Alter Ego is a copy of the one who gave me my soul back! I'm not gonna let anyone else have him!" Taka let go of Hifumi and glanced back at the laptop that contained Alter Ego.

"W-Wait, don't say crap like that-"

"I'm sorry, but I cannot withdraw!" Hifumi interrupted me. "Mr.Ishimaru, destiny has bound her and I together!"

"Well me and him have been bound together by the heat of friendship!" Taka insisted.

"Guys, this is stupid. Alter Ego doesn't belong to either of you. Chihiro left it for all of us-"

"Moron! Keep talkin' me down and I'll ram my fist into your stomach!"

"Yeah! I will do the same!"

I was surprised by the statement from the two. "Oh, really? I would like to see you try. I could break both of your arms easily."

"Knock it off, all of you," Kyoko asserted. "Alter Ego is vital to understanding new clues related to the school. Don't mess with it and let it finish its work. Do I make myself clear?"

Hifumi and Taka remained silent at her statement. Kyoko raised an eyebrow at the two, silently repeating her last statement. They both gave short replies of understanding.

"We should leave the bathhouse now, the mastermind is bound to be getting suspicious now..." I suggested.

We all began to leave the bathhouse, most of us going back to our dorms (myself included). Upon entering my dorm, I let out a sigh. What would I do with my free time?

I laid down upon my bed and stared at the ceiling, stretching my hand upwards. I used my pointer finger to draw small shapes into the air. My thoughts began to trace back to Monokuma as I drew a bear into the air.

Hm, I hadn't seen him for over a day now...was he busy? Did something happen?

I felt a wave of concern wash over me as the thoughts clouded my mind. I dropped my arm down onto the bed beside me as I began to ponder what happened to Monokuma. I laid onto my side and curled into a fetal position.

He had to be alright; after all he had made the morning announcement today. Although it was probably a recorded message, I used that idea to reassure myself. It's not like Monokuma would be murdered, right?

I shut my eyes and shook my head. No way would he be killed. Especially after showcasing how strong he was the first time we had met! Though I did wonder where he was...usually I would see him everyday. This was strange.

I reopened my eyes only to feel them begin to droop again. Without much else to pass the time with, I took a quick nap.

I couldn't have been asleep for more than an hour before I began to stir. Someone seemed to be whispering my name, but I ignored it and began to drift off to sleep. I wasn't ready to wake up yet; plus I was having a decent dream.

I felt the weight in the bed shift and more whispering following that.

"(Y/n)...(Y/n)..."

I let out a groan and scrunched my nose. Who the hell is trying to wake me up?

"(Y/n)~" the persons lips brushed against my ear as they mumbled my name.

I let out a gasp, snapping my eyes open. Hovering above me was Monokuma who happened to be laughing quite loudly.

"Monokuma! What the hell?" I yelled, shoving him away so I could sit up. "Where have you been?"

"Aww, does my princess miss me?~" Monokuma brought his hand to my face, caressing my cheek with his thumb.

I clicked my tongue. "Don't get like that. I was just wondering where you were since you normally bother me often. It's strange for you to leave me alone for a day. Now, what happened with you?"

Monokuma looked rather worn out. His eyes weren't as lively and his hair was messier than usual. Seriously, what happened to him?

"I've been a bit busy with headmaster stuff, ya know?" Monokuma lets out another laugh. "You really were worried for me, weren't you?"

I rolled my eyes. "Believe that if you want. Whatever helps you sleep at night..."

I looked away from Monokuma and towards the monitor displayed upon the wall. A small silence lingered within the room as the two of us sat next to one another.

Monokuma scooted closer to me, resting his head against mine. His hair tickled my nose a bit, causing me to nearly sneeze. Monokuma then spoke softly, "(Y/n), I'm sorry."

"For what?"

He ignored my question. "...Do you have a plan?"

"A plan for what?" I asked, confused.

"For this killing game."

"Of course I do. I plan to survive and help hope prevail against despair."

"That's great," Monokuma responded sarcastically. His tone shifted to a more serious tone as he spoke once again. "I have a plan to stick to as well. I can't mess this up or else I'll be in trouble." A dry chuckle erupted from his throat.

"Then why are you sorry?"

He lifted his head, turning to look at me. I returned his gaze, staring into his heterochromic eyes. Monokuma frowned, holding my face in his cold hands. "If I fuck up this plan, something bad will happen."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What will happen?"

"I can't say or else the other mastermind will chop off my head!" Monokuma joked.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"(Y/n), you're involved with this. I'm messing up the plan by being so affectionate towards you, my dear. The mastermind believes that by me having obvious favourites that it'll ruin the killing game," Monokuma paused, looking down and intertwining my fingers with his own. "That's why I'm sorry. I'm causing more trouble for you."

"How is this causing trouble for me? You're the one messing up the killing game that I'm fighting against. If anything, this benefits me," I spoke.

Monokuma shook his head. "This affects you greatly. If you don't understand already, you'll understand it eventually."

He gently squeezed my hands tighter and lifted his head to look me in the eyes again. "(Y/n)."

I smiled. "Monokuma."

Monokuma chuckled a bit, leaning in to kiss my nose. The gesture made my face warm up. He reached one of his hands back up to caress my cheek. I relaxed into his touch, closing my eyes.

Why did he have such an effect on me? How can one person make me feel like this?

When I reopened my eyes, Monokuma looked as though he would cry. "Monokuma...are you alright?"

"(Y/n), you are very important to me and you know that, right? I'll always follow you in whichever path you decide to walk along."

Where were all of these words coming from?

"You...you mean the world to me," Monokuma's voice began to lower to a whisper as he leaned closer. "(Y/n)...I love you."

I was truly caught off guard by Monokuma's lips pressed against mine. His hand gently cradled the back of my head while the other rested on my waist. I slowly brought my arms around his neck and closed my eyes.

The kiss was short and, before I knew it, Monokuma pulled away. He seemed a bit surprised with himself, but he held a grin upon his lips.

...I shouldn't have let my guard down.

"W-Wait...This isn't supposed to happen," I mumbled, pulling myself away from the boy. "Oh no. This isn't a game of love; it's a game of hope against despair. I...I shouldn't have done that."

I quickly stood up and turned to Monokuma, whom I had just shared a kiss with. "M-Monokuma...I'm sorry. I think I messed something up-"

"(Y/n)! It's okay; everything is fine," Monokuma assured. He also stood up, making his way over to me. Monokuma went to pull me into a hug, but I lightly shoved him away.

"No...I have a plan for this entire game! I can't mess this up or else I'd have failed Junko."

"What do you mean you'll "fail Junko"? Who cares about that now?!" Monokuma retaliated.

"She was my best friend. I had an unbreakable bond with her and watched her die right in front of me! I have to go through with this for her!"

Monokuma's mouth was agape as he tried to form a response. Tears began to flood my vision and rush down my face.

"(Y-Y/n)," Monokuma stammered, pulling me into a hug. I accepted the gesture and wrapped my arms around him tightly. I buried my face into his chest and cried.

"There, there..." Monokuma whispered, planting a kiss on my head. "(Y/n). You won't fail Junko. She would never be disappointed in you...after all, you were her best friend."

I continued to sob, soaking his clothing with my salty tears. Monokuma rubbed by back soothingly, pressing a few more kisses to my head.

"I can assure you that she would never be disappointed in you."

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I do not own Danganronpa or any of the characters. I do not own the artwork used unless stated otherwise