𝐒𝐔𝐃𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐓 // 𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐫ō 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐲𝐚 𝐱 𝐟𝐞𝐦!𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

42

Justice? Fairness? Equality? Freedom? Those are the words to question when one is not being bound and held down by chains and shackles— or when one is being imprisoned in a world where a mere game could tell your fate. Nothing is ever black and white in this world. Every memory or event that you face is painted with real and vivid colors to represent the emotions that they will make you feel— either happiness, or a pit of sorrow.

You walked outside, ignoring the blimp that was crashing down in flames. You looked around for Chishiya and ended up finding him asleep leaning against a stone fence, with Taro on his lap. You inspected him to check for any injuries, and felt relieved when you didn't see any. You crouched to his level and patted his head lightly, waking him up immediately.

His eyes shot open, looking at you. You gave his head one last Pat before uttering a single word.

"Boo." You said, without the intention of scaring him. He let out a sigh and rubbed his eyes, sitting up to get a better view of you.

"Don't startle me like that." He spoke with a somewhat raspy tone.

You rolled your eyes playfully and smiled nonchalantly. "You don't have any injuries, right? Did the King of Spades see you?

"Thankfully not," he shook his head.

Taro woke up with a meow, then he began stretching. He brushed his cheek against your knee and rolled over on it, begging for pets and attention, to which you complied and gave him.

"You fed him, right?" You hummed, petting Taro.

"Of course I did. How was the game?" Chishiya asked, scratching the back of his head and rubbing his eyes again.

"Easy." You stuck your tongue out. "But it doesn't mean that we can take a break yet. We have to complete the other games and we're constantly being hunted down by that King of Spades."

"Yeah." He nodded. "The King of Clubs got defeated, as well as the Jack of Spades."

"So that leaves us with.." you paused and looked around. "..the King of Spades?"

"Yeah." He said. "It'll be tricky, though. Even for us."

You let out a chuckle. "So where do we go?"

"I have a feeling that I know where Arisu is." Chishiya got up, grunting in the process. "Follow me."

You tilted your head in curiosity, deciding to follow him. Taro understood this and jumped on your shoulder before you could start walking.

You began walking to an unknown destination with Chishiya. He didn't give you a single clue on where you were headed, making you curious for the whole walk.

"Are you going to tell me where we're headed towards or not?" You asked, a brow raised and your arms crossed.

"Shibuya City." He answered simply, not faltering in his steps.

You hummed in response, continuing to walk behind him as he led the way. "Why do you want to see him?"

"I don't know." He put his hands in his pockets. "I guess I just want to see if he has made any improvements regarding the way he thinks or views situations.. and I do want to talk to him."

"So, you wanna see if he's gotten any smarter?" You simplified his response with a smile.

He let out a small chuckle. "Precisely."

—☆×☆×☆×☆—

You looked around Shibuya City, intrigued by the overgrown vegetation. Nature seemed to even grow on buildings, and moss was filling the  gaps of the cracks on the floor that you stepped on.

"Soon enough, vegetation will overtake humanity in this world, huh?" You thought out loud, more to yourself, but loud enough so that Chishiya could hear.

"Yeah." He replied, looking at the vines that hung atop the abandoned and dark buildings.

"...Y/N? Chishiya?" You heard a familiar voice call out, unsure if it was you.

You turned around to meet Arisu's gaze, his eyes full of confusion. Your arms remained crossed, though you did let out a small smile to him.

"Yo." Chishiya greeted informally, putting his hand up in a motionless wave to Arisu. "I had a feeling you were still alive..ever since the Beach incident."

Arisu let out a chuckle, smiling without any hint of anger or resentment. "That's right.. you really put me through hell back there."

You hummed, scanning his expression. "Are you still mad?"

He seemed shocked that you would speak to him, his eyes widening slightly as he heard your question. His eyes darted to the cat on your shoulder, completely puzzled.

"Don't ask." You rolled your eyes.

"..No." he answered after a few seconds of silence and shook his head. "I could never be mad at the person who saved me and my friends' lives on our first game."

"Didn't last long." You scoffed, turning your head to the side.

"I'm still grateful for what you did." Arisu smiled at you. "So, thank you."

"No need to thank me." You closed your eyes for a moment. "If I didn't help you, we would have all died, since it was a Clubs game. I was doing the bare minimum."

He chuckled, looking down. "Well, I'm not even in the right state of mind to be mad at you right now, so it's nothing really."

"I see." You replied, your eyes softening by the slightest.

A comfortable, yet somewhat unsettling silence followed.

"You.. seem to have changed. Both of you," Arisu remarked, breaking the silence, "you're more calm and.. nicer?"

"Well," Chishiya hummed, "I guess we've both been through a hell of a lot. I'm assuming you did, too."

"Yeah." Arisu replied simply, smiling.

Chishiya looked at you for a moment. You turned to meet his gaze, wondering what he wanted.

"Y/N, Arisu," he called out, "can I tell you something that I have never told anyone before?"

You smiled at him, tilting your head slightly to the side. "I'm listening. Go on."

Arisu looked at him in silence, giving him the freedom of saying whatever he liked.

Chishiya inhaled a slow, yet sharp breath, and looked down, his hands remaining in his pockets.

"Well, I—"

He was almost immediately interrupted by a gunshot.

"Y/N!" Chishiya shouted, immediately removing his hands from his pockets and running towards you.

A grunt escaped your lips as you fell to the ground, holding the spot that burned so much and coating your hand in a thin layer of blood.