The Ultimates

Thirty-Eight

Hello, everyone! I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to upload this chapter. Work and school are exhausting, and it's been a bit hard to find the time to update. But things will hopefully be calming down again, and I should be able to start updating bi-weekly again. I hope you all enjoy this new chapter. Glam on!

^^^

There were no other words to describe how dinner went other than awful. It was the worst. After hearing the Nevermind's true feelings about me and Nagito, I knew there was no way to change their mind. I already knew they wouldn't like me based on what he'd told me, but being forced to sit through the rest of the dinner, acting as if I hadn't heard them, made it even more difficult to talk and hold a conversation with them.

The only good thing was that I could finally sit next to Nagito, allowing me to hold his hand throughout the night. From the moment I sat beside him, I grabbed his hand. He turned his head to look at me, and, finally, a glimpse of him shined through his eyes. His face remained blank, but his eyes were broken. I squeezed his hand, kissing the back of it and smiling at him as I ignored whatever one of the Nevermind's said.

Nagito managed to smile and squeeze my hand back. I felt my shoulders relax, relieved to know he was still with me. Once we were away from the manor, everything would be okay. I'd make sure of it.

At the end of dinner, the Nevermind's wanted us to stay for coffee and dessert, but Sonia came up with the excuse that I had a curfew. Since Gundham was no longer on location at the manor, Sonia would have to drive me home, and with her being Nagito's ride, he came with us.

Nagito and I sat in the back as Sonia drove. She'd glance at us in the rearview mirror, watching as I securely wrapped my arms around Nagito and held him close to my chest. I kissed the top of his head, rubbing up and down his arms, hoping he'd snap out of his daze and come back to me.

When we pulled up in front of Nagito's apartment complex, I unbuckled his seatbelt and led him out of the car.

"Hajime," Sonia spoke, and I glanced at her. "I really am sorry about such an awful dinner."

"It's not your fault," I assured her.

"I know, but I still had to invite you. Please, allow me to make it up to you both with a nice dinner sometime, just the three of us."

I chuckled. "That's awfully kind of you, thank you. Be sure to invite Gundham, too, though."

Her eyes sparkled. "Absolutely."

I waved goodbye as Sonia drove off.

Nagito slipped his hand into mine and interlocked our fingers. I jerked my head back to him, noticing how he was finally waking from his daze. He smiled blissfully as he led me towards the complex doors. "I need to grab my keys, but then we can head home, okay?"

"Nagito," I whispered, knowing it was important to tell him what I knew.

"Yes?"

"When Sonia and I left the room-"

"I know," he said, smiling sadly and squeezing my hand harder. "Any time Sonia leaves me alone with my parents, she listens in. She's told me before, so I assumed you were out there as well." He sighed loudly. "They've always been like that with me. I grew up hearing everyone in the manor refer to me as trash, and I believed them. Honestly, I still do."

"You're not trash," I firmly stated.

"Sonia is the only one who made me not feel like trash." He smiled widely, his eyes sparkling. "Then she introduced me to Gundham, and I felt accepted by him, too. Once I met all the other Ultimates, I suddenly felt... average. After being considered worthless for so long, it's nice to be considered as plain as everyone else."