Masked Hope (Nagito x Fem!Reader)

Clean Up (Daily Life Part 9)

"I'll do it." I volunteered.

"Huh. . .?" My words took Nagito by surprise.

"Oh no, not you too!" Kazuichi groaned. "You and Miss Sonia are way too pretty to be doing dirty housework!"

"While I appreciate your. . .compliment," I sighed. "I really don't mind. I used to do lots of housework back home, and I enjoy the peace and quiet."

"Are you sure. . .?" Nagito asked.

"Of course!" I reassured. "I should probably get started now if we want to start that party by sundown!"

I said my goodbyes and exited the restaurant through the balcony. When I got to the doors of the old building, I placed my hand on the handle and pulled. The door was heavy and the inside was covered in dust, causing me to cough and waft it away from my face.

The entrance halls looked. . . retro, to say the least. The walls were covered in an orange, zebra patterned wallpaper along with dark wood trim. The floors were covered in a burnt orange carpet with darkened swirls. I walked in and heard the doors shut loudly behind me, leaving the interior covered in darkness.

"Well, shit. . ." I sighed to myself. "There's usually a power box or something near the back of old places like this. . ."

I took out my e-Handbook and used the light from the screen to make my way to the back of the building, where I found a dusty storage room. Despite being the ideal place for a circuit breaker, there was nothing of the sort that I could feel.

As a result, I went back to the front door and pulled it open, getting slightly blinded by the sudden presence of light. I then check the second most logical place for a circuit breaker: the back of the exterior of the building. Still nothing. I went back inside and began checking each of the rooms.

The first room was an office, complete with a desk and bookshelves on the far wall. I noticed a small white panel on the wall with a wire going towards the ceiling. I shined the light along the wire and saw that it was connected to an AC unit. Beside it, I noticed a black box with two levers and an arrangement of switches.

I pulled the desk over to the wall and used it as a step-stool to flip the red lever on. That should do it, I thought as I heard a whirr of energy emanating from the box. Sure enough, the room was soon illuminated by overhead lightbulbs. I then left the office and examined the rest of the building.

There was still plenty of dust and cobwebs on the overhead beams, which I ignored as I walked back to the storage closet. Inside I found a broom, mop and bucket, and a duster. Perfect, I thought. These should do just fine.

With that, I got to work on the preparations. I finished cleaning the entrance and hallways pretty quickly, next was the actual scene of the party. Around the corner from the entrance is where I found doors to a large room: a banquet hall. Just like the hallways, the banquet hall wall was full of dust and cobwebs, but there were three tables stationed in the middle with clothes over them. I shook them out before folding them up and leaving them on the centre table.

The floors in the space were hardwood, so I began sweeping with the broom and humming a light tune. The silence wasn't suffocating this time. No, this time it was. . . relieving. Being able to just pretend that this whole situation wasn't real, pretending that I was back home in my study cleaning up after being away. I used to go on long trips overseas, but whenever I got back there would always be dust on the floors and tables. It seemed tedious at first, but it eventually became a warm welcome that kept me sane.

I soon finished with the broom and switched to mopping, being sure not to miss a spot of dirt. Once I was done I glared up at the cobwebs.

"I wonder. . ." I started. "Are you there, Monomi?"