Danganronpa: Painful Truth

Afternoon Drive

Natsumi had tears in her eyes by the time Peko finished answering her questions. Fuyuhiko had his face set into a determined scowl, keeping himself together. Peko's insistence that he hold his tongue hadn't been necessary after all, as he had no idea what to say.

Peko's eyes were closed, her expression solemn. "Now that you know, I hope you can forgive us for keeping this from you. We did not want to negatively affect your impression of us at such a young age."

Natsumi stared at the floor of her father's office, wiping her eyes. She was beginning to feel guilty for being the only one concerned by her parents' history. She had always been the closest with her parents out of anyone in the group, which was surely why it had affected her so badly. It used to surprise the others, with her mother's stoic, intense gaze and her father's short temper, but beneath their scary appearances, there was a kind, loving mother and father. How could she have doubted that so easily?

"Y-yeah," Natsumi sniffled. "I'm sorry, I just...when I saw that file...I got really fuckin' scared, okay? Sorry."

"Yeah, that's a shitty way to find out," Fuyuhiko sighed, his voice tight. No matter how much time passed, he always hated recalling the people he and his wife and his friends had once been. "But it was a long-ass time ago. It's always gonna be part of our past, but we don't wanna think about that shit anymore, and neither should you."

"I guess..." Natsumi scowled at herself for her timid voice. "I still have to think about it, I haven't had as much time as you guys have. But..." A fresh wave of tears blurred her vision. "I believe you."

Peko nodded and hugged her tightly. "That means more to us than you know. If you have any other questions that may ease your mind, please do not hesitate to talk to us again. Now that everything is out in the open, we have no desire to hide anything else from you."

Natsumi returned the hug fiercely, sniffling. Over her mother's shoulder, she saw the blurred image of her father, rubbing his good eye hastily. She couldn't remember seeing him cry before.

She released the hug and wiped her face again. Even her mother had a sparkle of tears in her eyes. The remorse darkening their faces made her feel silly for how long she had been avoiding them, frightened to confront them.

She approached her father as confidently as she could. "Hey...Dad?" She cleared her throat to purge the emotion from her voice. "I know I just got home and shit but...can I go out for another drive?"

Fuyuhiko nodded, opening his good eye. "Yeah, go for it, kid. Actually," he pulled out his cell phone with a grin. "I know what's gonna cheer you up. I'll get Kazuichi to go with you, maybe help you make some improvements."

Natsumi's eyes lit up, and she returned the grin. Kiki's admittedly annoying father had taught her quite a bit about working on vehicles, but the most important lesson he had taught her was how entertaining it could be to deliberately subject someone to car sickness. "Hell yeah!" she cheered. "Alright, gotta go make sure my project is ready for the road!"

Fuyuhiko snickered. "Just don't fuckin' kill him. We still need that pussy for repairs and shit."

*************

It was a mild, beautiful afternoon. There was no fog or rain to obscure the road. Even still, there were enough clouds to obscure the worst of the blinding sunlight at all times. The temperature wasn't even high enough to distort the road with heat waves. The visibility was perfect, making it an ideal day for a leisurely drive in the mountains.

Unfortunately for her passenger, Natsumi didn't take 'leisurely drives.'

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!" Kazuichi shrieked as his soul attempted to leave his body once again. "SLOW DOWN! I'M GONNA DIEEEEEE!"