Seventeen (Kokichi Ouma x Reader)

Chapter Two - Hematic

The sound of the music resonated in your mind, it's chaotic energy seeping it's way into your thoughts. No matter what you did, where you went, it wouldn't stop. If anything it only got louder, more insistent that the first murder would take place. The images flashed rapidly on the monitor, burning into your mind. Drowning, hanging, bludgeoning. Before this started you had asked yourself how anyone would be driven to do something so cruel, but as the deranged melody found its way to your ears you were able to understand. It was all because of the First Blood Perk.

The morning after you arrived at the academy Monokuma had made an announcement while you were all gathered in the dining hall. A "motive", he called it. In hopes of sparking the start of the game, he would allow the first killer to go free without a class trial. It was morbid, you thought, and most of your classmates agreed with you. That is, until he revealed to you the catch.

There was a time limit, two days, and if no one died, everyone would get killed instead. It shook you up at first, scared of the threat of death that so prominently loomed over your head as the days went by, but what scared you even worse was the fear of your classmates. Any one of them could snap under the pressure, murdering one of your peers and earning their escape from it. You'd have to come face-to-face with the pale, cold body of your classmate. Or maybe you wouldn't. Maybe that victim would be you.

Maybe it would be Kokichi.

The thought was enough to send your heart into overdrive. It was as if your mind wanted to torture you, imagining the worst scenarios possible. Him curled up and bloody, his chest motionless as his breathing had long ceased, his face deprived of any emotion. The one who killed him granted freedom as a reward. You tried to keep your mind off the possibilities, reasoning with the irrational side of your head, but none of it worked.

And now, as the taunting music of the killing game blared throughout every room and space in and around the school, you found those thoughts invading your mind even more. If this was enough to drive you to the edge, what was it like for the others? The more fragile-minded? How much longer would it be before someone finally snapped?

Your nails had dug deep into your skin now, drawing blood once your hands unclasped. It was the only thing keeping you grounded, allowing you to focus on the stinging sensation instead of the insanity around you. In a fit of unease you had retreated to the corner of your dorm, knees pressed close to your chest as you buried your head in your arms. But even in your state, it wouldn't stop.

You couldn't be alone. The fear was eating you up from the inside, the worry that he would get hurt nagging at the back of your mind. Carefully, you pulled yourself up from your position, clenching your eyes tight as you did so. The wounds from a few days prior were still healing, an aching sensation emitting from them whenever you moved too suddenly. With a deep breath, you began towards the exit of your room, your pace quickening as you got used to the motion.

The foyer was completely vacant, an eerie feeling creeping up the back of your neck as you looked around. Biting your lip, you nervously ran up the stairs before it could get any worse, constantly checking over your shoulder as you sprinted to his dorm.

As soon as you knocked on the door he answered, a shocked expression taking over his face before softening into one more devious, "(y/n), you didn't come here to kill me, did you?"

Ignoring his taunt, you pushed past him, sitting down at the edge of his bed. You rested your elbows on your knees, head lowered as you intertwined your fingers together. He sensed the mood right away, shutting and locking the door before taking a seat beside you, placing a hand on your shoulder, "What's wrong? You aren't responding to my jokes."

You lifted your head up, meeting his eyes hesitantly as tears welled up yours, "I'm scared, okay? This music has been driving me insane and I can't stop thinking about everything. This is reality, people can die, and I'm terrified that you might become one of them." You were beginning to panic, your breathing growing more erratic, "I don't want you to die, Kokichi. I really don't, but I'm so scared..."