"A Love Story" Kaede and Shuichi

Chapter 20

Kaede's POV

I woke up to a tear stained pillow case, new wrinkles staring back at me. I blinked my eyes until my vision was clear, and I pushed myself up roughly. With a sigh, I threw the blankets off of me and hugged my knees to my chest. "Here I am.. Again.. I wish dreams lasted longer." I thought as I closed my eyes, trying to cling to the washed away memories in my clouded mind. "I wish I could stay in that world. With all of the flowers and mountains. I don't want to be here anymore." Tears began to fall. "No not again, Kaede. It's not the time for that. We gotta be strong. I am strong. If I'm late to the dining hall everyone will know something is up, so I gotta get up."

I released my firm grip around my knees. I walked to my bathroom groggily and looked in the mirror. "Oh no.. I look horrible.." I thought aloud, blond strips of dirty hair draped over my face, stains on my long-sleeve shirt from my runny nose, and my eyes looked like they had just been stung by bees. I groaned in irritation and began to speedily fix my look. After a shower, eye drops and some cold compress on my face, I was beginning to look more like me.

Part of me waited for Shuichi to ring the doorbell and him waiting behind that door, cute as ever. But the other part of me scolded myself for being so idiotic to allow myself to become vulnerable. I always feel vulnerable around him, like I don't have to put up any walls or shells. That is the dangerous part.
I practically tip toed toward the door, waiting for that ring to reach my ears. I swallowed my tears and my face neutralized. I opened the door to see...

Nothing. Nothing but the other closed dorm doors around me. I locked my door after stepping out of the room and made my way to the dining hall.

I entered the room to see everyone but Kiyo, Kokichi, and Himiko. My eyes immediately locked with Shuichi's. His eyes widened barely, and he stared at me from under his hat. I changed my view to Maki and gave her a small smile, sitting next to her. She looked a little surprised, but returned a small grin, which I appreciated.

I knew avoiding Shuichi was hurtful, but I felt I had to.

Maki and I made small talk as the rest of our peers trailed in. We ate Kirumi's wonderful breakfast, as always, and all sat around together.

Shuichi's POV

Kaito and I talked the majority of breakfast. I knew he was avoiding the question of why Kaede and I weren't talking, I saw it in his eyes. I couldn't help but be in a somber mood, which definitely wasn't masking the fact something happened between us.

"Alright, c'mon Shuichi! We are gonna go train!" He cheered and grabbed my hand, yanking me up from my seat. Others were starting to leave so I thankfully wasn't embarrassed by the sudden request.

"R-Right after eating? Shouldn't we let our food settle?"

"Nahhh, we'll be fine! Now let's go!" Without turning back Kaito and I left the dining hall and headed to the courtyard. When we got there he plopped on the ground and patted the grass next to him. I sat down.

"Sooooo..." Kaito stalled.

"Sooo? Aren't we gonna train?" I asked.

"Yeah, don't you want your food to settle first?"

"Oh, yeah."

After an awkward moment of silence, Kaito bursted out "Okay what's going on between you and Kaede?" My cheeks flushed and I turned my head away from him.

"N-Nothing! Nothing at all," I turned back to see his serious expression.

"No, you're lying. What's up, man?" I sighed.

"Well, she doesn't want to get close to me. She is afraid this is what Monokuma wants; all of us creating close connections and then being forced to kill each other. She is scared. And scared of the unknown."

"Well, she's got it all wrong!" Kaito furrowed his eyebrows and became passionate in his speech. "Monokuma wants us to think we can't work together, that we all can't be friends. He wants despair, and whether she thinks she is protecting herself or not, she is stepping into despair. We gotta believe things are gonna turn out okay!"

"Yeah, you are right, Kaito," I said sincerely. "I just want her to be happy, but I don't think she is doing what will make her happy right now."

"I agree, all she is doing is isolating herself! I see the way you two look at each other," I blushed, ducking behind my hat. "Don't act embarrassed, you guys are the most outright couple in this whole place." That just made my face more red!

"You gotta talk to her," Kaito said. I looked up at him, adjusting my hat.

"And say what? Her final words to me were, 'We can't be close. I don't want you to grieve if I end up dead.'"

"Woah, that's dark." Kaito said with wide eyes.

"Yeah, it is. I am worried about her."

"Well, you still have to talk to her. She isn't thinking right. Kaede, who was the one giving us hope when we were trying to escape through the tunnel, who always says we need to stop fighting and work together during arguments, she is the one surrendering to despair? She needs your help, Shuichi."

I sat in silence, taking in everything Kaito said. He gave my back a slap. "It's gonna turn out good, I know it will. You ready to train?" I looked up when he jumped up from the ground. I gave him a grin.

"Yeah, I'm ready." Kaito and I started with some push ups and worked out, watching the sun cross over our cage we were stuck in. As we trained I continued to think about Kaede and what was happening between us. She couldn't leave my mind even if I tried.

"You know something that seems weird to me, Kaito?" I asked between sit ups.

"What is it?"

"Why did Kaede all the sudden feel this way? Is it because of what Kokichi said at the table? Cause ever since then she has been different." Kaito sat in thought for a moment.

"You could be right, this might have sprung from Kokichi. I don't know why he has to be so mean. Always provoking everyone, it ticks me off!" Kaito quickened his speed in his sit ups as I worked hard to stay at a steady pace.

"Yeah I don't understand him at all really. He's always putting on a show," I replied.

I looked up at the sky above us, the pixels slowly moving overhead. I knew the clouds were fake since everything else around us was but I couldn't help but pretend that they were real clouds. That there was a natural breeze passing by and after this training session I would go home to see my family once again. Eat my mom's delicious home cooking and talk to them about everything that has happened. But the more I stared up at the sky, the more clear it became that it wasn't real.

"I know all these things; the grass, trees, sky, and scenery aren't real. But my love for Kaede is real. My want to care for her and make her happy is real. I wish I could just shower it upon her but she made her decision. I just hope she changes her mind..."

Word Count: 1283

(Sorry for the later update!)