Danganronpa: Melancholic Mayhem

Chapter 4 Part 2: Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones, But Words Can Truly Kill

"Hey! He left the macaron!" Sugai cheered, reaching for the pastry on the table. Suddenly, his hand was smacked away by Kajiwara. "What? Do you want it to go to waste?" Sugai said, glaring at Kajiwara. My eyes drifted to Otani, who was staring at the door sorrowfully.

"Everyone's become... a lot more tense... recently..." Otani said.

"Well duh! When a tiny red panda controls your well-being, it's kind of hard to stay relaxed!" Sugai snapped back, before he chuckled for a moment. "But at least he's an idiot... otherwise I wouldn't have half the joy I do now ripping on the guy." He laughed to himself.

"You mean 'the thing'. I would not refer to that psychopath as a person." Kajiwara replied.

"Hey, maybe we could throw a celebration! That would cheer everyone up." Otani said, a bright smile on his face.

"NO!!!" Kawata yelled, slamming his normal hand down on the table. Everyone jumped back, their gaze's suddenly turning to Kawata. Kawata's face was filled with anger and terror, before the rage subsided and all that was left was fear and sorrow. He sifted his hands through his hair, gripping onto his head in a panic. "No, I'm sorry, but the answer is no. We have so few people left as it is, and I- I really don't want anyone else to die, despite how flawed they may be." Otani stared, a look of sadness but understanding on his face.

"Yeah. I'm sorry. It was a stupid suggestion. I apologize." Otani replied, looking away a and staring at the floor sorrowfully. I stared at Kawata, concerned. Was... he okay?

"Hirano!!!" Sugai whispered, suddenly grabbing my attention. I paused, before walking over and leaning my ear over to his mouth. "I have a great prank in mind that I need your help with..." Sugai chuckled.

"What are you whispering about?" Kajiwara asked, skeptically looking over at the two of us.

"Wouldn't you like to know sawbones?" Sugai replied, an evil look in his eyes.

"Oh I very much would." Kajiwara responded. I stared at the two of them for a moment.

"U- um, I'd love to Sugai, but I have something I need to do today. W- which I should probably do right now." I replied, laughing nervously. Sugai folded his arms, making a pouty face.

"Goody two shoes always doing good stuff ruining my fun..." Sugai pouted. Kajiwara rolled his eyes, as I started to walk towards the door.

"Wait, Hirano! Do you not want any breakfast?" Otani asked.

"Oh, um, can you save some for me?" I replied. Otani stared sadly, but reluctantly nodded. "Th- thanks! Talk later!"

I sighed, walking over to my room. I pushed past the caution tape, and wandered around. The entire place seemed abandoned, or rather ransacked. Everything had been ripped apart, as if a hurricane had raced through and scattered the room with items and pieces of furniture.

I began to ravage through the area, finding little things that I had before the room was destroyed. Books, pencils, a pamphlet, and other studying supplies. And suddenly, my hand stopped. It had been a while since I'd last seen it. I slowly picked it up, turning it over in my hand.

The sticky note I'd written to myself near the start of this killing game. I paused for a moment, sitting down on the ground, looking upwards. That was quite a phenomenon. Even though it wasn't even that long ago, it felt like it had been forever. And the thing I was the most surprised about was how long I'd lasted. I was still alive? Honestly, I'd expected to die almost immediately. The fact I was still here was so surprising to me. I looked at the note again.

If I died now... would I die happy? Would I die proud of myself? Proud of the person I'd turned out to be? That was a good question. I stared at the note for a little more time. Well, what had I done up until now? It's hard to say. I mostly... care if everyone died proud. Did Furuya? Did Sazama? Did Shishido? Did Morita? Did Naito? Did Tengan? Did Miyazaki? Those were the questions I did care about. I stared at it for another moment. Well, I'm proud that I've grown so much. I'm proud that I care so much. And I'm glad that I've finally stood up for myself. I still have a ways to go but... yeah. I think I'd die proud.