The Fear of the Past //Saiouma (Pregame)

Chapter 24

Kokichi had a feeling something bad was going to happen that day.

It was more of a gut feeling than anything. And from past experience, he had learned to trust his gut feelings.

Because of this, he was very hesitant to get up. He really didn't want to deal with whatever this bad thing would be.

But then he remembered a piece of advice that was given to either him or other him. He couldn't differentiate the two.

"The faster you start your day, the faster it ends."

And so, Kokichi reluctantly stood up, grumbling all the while.

He headed over to the shower, preparing some hot water in order to calm his nerves. He stayed in there longer than needed.

Once he had gotten out, he proceeded to dry his hair with his towel, getting annoyed at the droplets of water dropping onto his skin. After his drying session, he changed into his every day outfit.

He looked at himself in the mirror and frowned softly. His normal look was boring.

Using an old rubber band that he had found somewhere, he tied his hair up. Sure, some strands were still dangling, but it wasn't as messy as it was before.

With a satisfied hum, he exited his room, wondering where or what he should do. He wasn't feel exactly hungry, so he didn't want to go the the dining hall. Plus, after what he did last night, the students were sure to ask questions.

On the subject of questions, Kokichi was still confused as to why they hadn't asked him any questions. Sure, it was better for him. He would've been very uncomfortable if they asked him to answer a question, yet it was strange. Not even Shuichi, the student known as the Ultimate Detective, had asked him a question.

Since he had no where else to go, he decided he would go visit his flower. It had been a while since he had last seen it. Plus, he figured that something that didn't change would do good for him.

Once he arrived, he leaned against the wall and stared at the beautiful flower. He gently touched the petals, making sure to not damage it in any way whatsoever.

How did he find out that Maki was the Ultimate Assassin? Yeah, he didn't know either.

But he did doubt her. She didn't seem like the Ultimate Child Care-Giver. But that wasn't enough for him to go on.

He picked up clues by the way she acted and what she said. They were usually just slips of the tongue, but that didn't change the fact that she had said it.

But it was all tied up together when he recived that note.

He knew it was from the mastermind. He knew that the whole purpose for it was to tear them apart. To disrupt their harmony.

Yet he still trusted it. Well, he didn't necessarily trust it, he still had his suspicions. But when he saw the way Maki had reacted, he immediately knew that it was true.

Why was he going over how he knew that Maki was not who she said she was? He didn't know.

He layed on the grass, staring at the flower. The way the light hit the flower was so pretty, it made him want to stare at it forever. If Angie was still alive, he would've asked her to paint it the way he saw it now.

He touched the stem softly, feeling the stem underneath his fingers. It was suprising how fragile life could be. If he wanted to, he could easily snap that flower and in the process, killing it.

"Kokichi dear? Are you there?" Kirumi's voice suddenly spoke behind him, surprising Kokichi.

"Kirumi?!" Kokichi sat up, suprised at Kirumi's sudden appearance. "And Gonta too?!" He added after he saw Gonta appear behind her. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, we planned on doing this at breakfast, but since you didn't show up, we decided to find you instead." Kirumi said smiling softly.

Gonta had two plates of food, Kirumi had one. They sat down infront of Kokichi and handed him a plate. "Kokichi wanted to eat with Gonta and Kirumi. But couldn't. So Kirumi and Gonta make breakfast together to eat with Kokichi!"

Kokichi stared at the plate of food and back up at Kirumi and Gonta. "You did this for me?" He asked softly, not believing that anyone would do something like that.

"Of course we did. Now, eat quickly before the food gets cold." Kirumi ordered.

Gonta and Kokichi looked at each other before giggling softly.

"Yes ma'am." Kokichi replied happily as he ate.

After of a while of the three eating, they stacked the empty plates on top of each other.

"I'll wash those later." Kirumi murmured more to herself than to them. She turned to face the two. "Did you enjoy the food?"

"Hmmmmm welll." Kokichi responded first. "Yep, it was good."

"Gonta happy Kokichi enjoy food!" Gonta smiled happily at him. "Gonta need to ask. Is Kokichi okay? Maki hurt Kokichi, so Gonta worried."

Kirumi's expression hardened as she remembered what had happened the night prior. "Yes, are you alright? That seemed really painful."

Kokichi scratched the back of his head. "Hm yeah, I'm fine. It wasn't that bad honestly."

"That's great." Kirumi let out a relieved sigh. "Oh, is this a new hairstyle?" She gestured at Kokichi's ponytail.

"Huh yeah. I wanted to try something different, y'know?" Kokichi replied while lightly pulling on it.

"Gonta just happy he can be with friends." Gonta suddenly said.

Kokichi looked suprised for a second before smiling. "Yea. I hope things don't change."

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Kokichi walked along the school corridors, not really knowing what he was hoping for.

He stopped in his tracks when he saw Kaede walking into her lab. He quickly walked on over and went inside.

"Kokichi? What are you doing here?" Kaede turned around in suprise as she heard Kokichi enter. "Can I help you?"

"Yes actually." Kokichi closed the lab door. "Can you play a song on the piano for me?"

Kaede looked suprised for a second before smiling. "Of course. Come on over here and pick a song." She gestured to the rows of piano songs around her lab.

Kokichi nodded and scanned the rows. He stopped at a particular one. He picked it up and handed it to her. "Would this one work?"

Kaede got the music sheet and quickly read over it. "Clair de Lune? Yeah, it works. It's a beautiful piece."

Kaede stretched her hands before starting to play.

Kokichi gasped softly at the sound. It was beautiful. The most beautiful sound he had ever heard. He leaned against the piano and closed his eyes, focusing solely on Kaede's playing.

Once Kaede was done, she looked up at Kokichi. "So, how do you like it? It's my first time playing infront of another Ultimate my age, so I was pretty nervous."

Kokichi looked down at the piano keys and to her again. "It was... beautiful I guess. Your really talented. Thank you for playing for me."

Kaede beamed at the praise. "Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. If you want me to play anything else, just let me know."

Kokichi nodded as he watched Kaede put away the music sheet. "You should totally do a performance for everyone." He suddenly said, suprising not only Kaede but himself.

"A performance...? Maybe I will. I want to see everyone smile, so if my piano playing can do that, then maybe I will." She smiled at him. "Thanks!"

Kokichi nodded. He waved 'bye' at her and left, closing the door behind him. He stayed in the doorway for a while and as he expected, he soon heard more piano music coming from inside.

He shaked his head softly as he walked out, heading to Miu's lab.