Doki Doki Literature Club - The Taste of Sunshine

Collateral Damage

They'd driven for nearly six hours before the first drops of rain began, and very quickly those sparse drops turned into a torrent of freezing rain that made driving potentially deadly very quickly.  The adrenaline and fast food that had been fueling them up to this point was quickly giving way to fatigue and a creeping anxiety that was taking a tight hold on both of them.  It was becoming clear that pushing any further this evening wasn't an option.  Thankfully for Genji and Sayori, the main route that led into the mountain pass took them through the extremely small town of Emerald Grove, the last bastion before the long drive through the mountains towards Sandcrest to the North.
             Emerald Grove was a sleepy town that functioned largely off of the patronage of travelers heading back and forth between New Briar and Sandcrest, and the occasional travelers that were making the journey to East Haven who were interested in something a bit more scenic than the regular coastal route.  Genji was over-tired, anxious, and the fast food that they'd gotten earlier had done nothing to stave off his hunger.  Without the light pollution that they'd grown up with in New Briar, the night sky was terrifyingly dark, the stars seemed so much brighter when they weren't being drowned out.  In the moonlight, behind the veil of freezing rain, the mountainscape looked oddly terrifying to him, resembling some sort of otherworldly impossible stone architecture that would be appropriate to a H.P. Lovecraft story.  Sayori on the other hand stepped out of the car after they'd parked and looked up the abyssal sky and smiled at the star studded welts that adorn it.  Genji looked over at her, each icy pellet of rain that stung her face seemingly not registering.  It was almost as if in that moment she felt free, finally saying Hello world, I'm finally here.
    They'd pulled in, parked and gotten out at what appeared to be the only motel in town.  The sign out front was occasionally flickering, it read Forestside Inn in fancy lettering, with artwork of trees and a deer behind it.  Below it read "Vaca_cy", the letter N burnt out.  While it wasn't necessarily their first choice in somewhere to stay for the night, it certainly beat sleeping in Genji's car.  They'd arrived not a moment too soon as well.  As Genji was parking the low fuel indicator came alive on his dashboard.  Not that it mattered at this point, the freezing rain was going to prevent them from going any further tonight.  Right now, what mattered most to Genji and Sayori was getting a room where they could warm up and then having something to eat.  Within walking distance from the Inn they could see a restaurant, The Hunter's Lodge, that said Open 24 Hours on the sign.  There was also a fuel station just down the road, a corner store, a chapel, an emergency medical clinic and what looked like a small cinema along with some assorted novelty shops before side streets branched off from the main road leading to the residential area of Emerald Grove.  Stopping just outside the lobby, Genji took off the cloth backpack that he was wearing and began to rummage through it, looking for his wallet.  During his search he saw that he had 20 missed phone calls from his mom, and 45 missed calls from Monika.  He'd heard none of them since he put the phone on silent before throwing it in the bag...right now he didn't want to speak with either of them.  He knew they were angry, and probably worried, but right now Sayori was his priority.
    "Hey..." Sayori said, her teeth chattering as she had her arms wrapped around herself, "I'll take care of paying, don't worry about anything".
    Neither of them were dressed for winter weather, let alone freezing rain.  Both were only wearing sneakers, jeans, and hoodies.  The pair didn't even have essentials like hats or gloves, it had completely slipped their minds when sneaking out of Genji's house.
    "You don't have to Sayori" Genji said as he closed the backpack back up.
    "It's like they say, don't leave home without it!" she said laughing a bit, teeth still chattering, as she pulled her credit card from her pocket.  "I always keep it on me in case I need something.  It's hooked up to my dad's account, so money won't be a problem for us...please let me do this for us" she continued, pleadingly.
    Genji didn't object after this point, he knew how much this meant to her and after everything they'd been through he wasn't going to take being able to pay for them away from her.  While Sayori  never really used her credit card for things beyond creature comforts or some small recreation, tonight she was going to put it to good use.  She owed Genji that much, a warm bed and a hot meal for the night.  How things had been left with Monika was eating at her, she felt truly gutted about it and hoped that there would be a way that she could make things right with her, but in this moment she needed to worry about herself and Genji.  This is what a girlfriend, a fiance...a wife...would do for her family, and in that sentiment she found the strength to have a resolve of iron, even if only for a few moments.  After checking in and getting their room key, Genji and Sayori made their way back down the walkway, taking it around the corner and then following the path that led to the inner courtyard of the Inn where they found their room on the far side.  Fingers shaking from the cold with a numb feeling beginning to set in, the pair hastily unlocked the door and got inside, quickly shutting it behind them and locking it again. 
The sound of howling wind began to pick up as the freezing rain hitting the window intensified.  They were soaked, Genji immediately set the backpack down on the chair in the corner before pulling off his hoodie and t-shirt, the warmth of the room felt good against his skin.  Sayori had immediately set to turning up the temperature on the thermostat on the wall before starting to take off her wet clothes as well.  The room was relatively spacious, with a queen sized bed, coffee table in the corner with a couple of chairs, tv on the wall along with a small dresser and mirror.   It had a quaint hunters lodge feel to it, right down to the color scheme and wall decor chosen for the room.  For a motel it was remarkably clean as well, although the faint smell of cigarette smoke hung on the air from past visitors.  For the moment the only place they had to place their wet clothes was on the chairs and coffee table in the corner, which served well enough for now.  Once she'd taken everything off, Sayori found the remote for the TV and turned it on, found a random sitcom to have on for some background noise, and went into the bathroom.  Along the bottom of the screen Genji saw a weather advisory indicating a travel warning for the next twenty four hours due to freezing rain.  Whether they wanted to or not, Sayori and Genji would be guests at Forestside Inn for the next couple of days it seemed.
"I'm freezing" Sayori said as she turned on the hot water in the shower.  "Hey! The bathroom is pretty big!" she continued, trying to sound as positive as she could.
    Genji stuck his head in.
    "You know, I'm actually at a loss for what to say" he said finally with a laugh.  Sayori smiled and giggled.  He began to go back to sit on the bed but Sayori grabbed onto his hand.
    "Where are you going?  You need to warm up too, this is no time to get sick.  It's shower time" she said, pulling him into the walk-in shower with her.
    Genji's face turned bright red.
    "I don't..." he began, but she quickly grabbed onto Genji and kissed him.
    "It's nothing we haven't already seen or done, and besides...I just..." she said to him, trailing off as she kissed him again.
    By the time they'd finished with a hot shower to warm up (and then everything afterward), Genji and Sayori both fell asleep on the bed without even realizing it.  They'd planned to step out to get something to eat at The Hunter's Lodge but exhaustion had set in from the long drive on top of the stress that each was already under.  At around one in the morning Sayori awoke to the sound of infomercials playing on the TV, for a moment she'd completely forgotten why she and Genji were at a motel before everything came rushing back in one unpleasant flood.  As quietly as she could, Sayori crept out of bed and put some dry clothes on that had been stored away in the backpack, slipped her sneakers on and stepped outside.  The wind stung her face as she closed the door behind her, the freezing rain had made everything extremely slick.  Taking a step forward she had to regain her footing as she almost slipped.  Sayori looked at her phone and saw that she had countless missed calls from Genji's mom, and nearly fifty missed calls from Monika.  There was also a missed call from her father, and she knew already that it was likely due to the charge to his account for the motel this evening.  He received notifications of every purchase Sayori made, and while he didn't particularly care what she was purchasing, he did care when it could be indicative of her getting herself into trouble.  It may have been extremely late, but she knew he would pick up if she called him, especially after he tried to reach her.  Dialing his number it only took two rings before her father answered.
"I was starting to wonder when I was going to hear from you" her father said after answering.
"Hi dad..." Sayori said.
"What are you doing out in Emerald Grove?  That's literally the middle of nowhere" he
asked.
"I..." she began, but despite trying to be strong, began to break down crying.  "Dad I
need your help" Sayori finally managed to squeak out.
    There was a long silence on the other end of the line.
    "Dad?" she finally said.
    "What is it this time, Sayori?" he asked.
    "It's about...It's about Sawa..." she began, he cut her off.
    "Ah, I'm going to stop you right there.  I thought that I put this business to bed when she disappeared.  It certainly cost us enough to make sure the police didn't look into that too hard.  So let me guess, their renewed vigor for the case has led them directly to the three of you, just like I told you it was going to" he said cooly to her.
"Genji and Monika were just trying to help me...they wanted to protect me..." she replied.
"None of this explains why you are in Emerald Grove though" he said, now wanting
answers.
"Monika and Genji were both questioned by the police about it...and then I told them that I remembered everything and was just pretending not to...and Monika hit me, and then Genji and I ran away..." she explained, holding back tears as her voice quivered.
Again there was a long silence.
"Do you realize how insane what you just said to me sounds?" her father said.  "So to
look less guilty, you and Genji have decided to run away.  And what is your plan after tonight?  Just keep running?  On what money?  And where will you be running to?  If the police had even a shred of tangible evidence they could use they'd have arrested all three of you already, but by running you've essentially shot a flare up into the sky and screamed look at me harder"
    "Dad I'm sorry!" Sayori said, interrupting him.
    "No, we're past the apology phase.  Now I will have to get out my wallet again and spend money to clean up your mess.  All right in the middle of the biggest acquisition our company has ever made!  Do you have any clue what kind of stress that I've been under?  And you choose now of all times to do this!  Well I suppose I should applaud your consistency, Sayori, you've managed to keep up the tradition of being a complete disappointment" he said coldly.
    "No...I'm..." she tried to speak up, but he stopped her.
    "Save the excused, save the apologies.  Do you have any idea what it would do if my name was dragged through the dirt along with you?  No, here is what I'm going to do.  I'm going to make a few phone calls, offer some incentives to help get this investigation to stop, and once that is all done?  Then you and I are done, Sayori.  The house in New Briar is going up for sale tomorrow, and I'm going to give you forty eight hours to get your things out before I change the locks.  I thank God your mother is dead, or she'd have died of shame from seeing what you've become" he said.
    "Dad...please no...I love you, please..." she said, forcing her voice through her tears.
    "We're done Sayori, I'm going to fix things this final time and that is it.  Goodbye" he said, and with that hung up on her.
    Sayori continued to cry in the minutes that followed the phone call, although this late at night in the rain no one would have been able to tell.  She looked up at the sky and just let the tears wash off of her face as tiny shards of icy rain pelted her.  Slowly Sayori made her way back into their room, as she reached the door and put her hand out to open it she heard a voice from behind call to her.
    "Sayori!" the woman called, weakly, as she staggered towards her with a hand on her side.
    "M...Monika?!" Sayori called back, taking a step forward.
    Even in the darkness, under the moonlight combined with the faint glow of walkway lighting in the courtyard Sayori could tell that Monika was limping.  By the time that she made it to her Sayori's eyes had widened, Monika was holding onto her side and was bleeding from a gash on the right side of her forehead.
    "Sayo..." Monika began to say, completely out of breath before collapsing in front of Sayori.
    When she woke up, Monika found herself in bed under the covers in Sayori and Genji's room.  The pair were sitting at the table talking, watching and waiting for Monika to wake up.  The gash on her head had been washed bandaged the best that Genji was able to, and although bruised her side didn't have any lacerations, thankfully.
    "She's awake!" Sayori said, jumping out of her chair and getting on the bed next to Monika.  "What happened?  Why are you out here?!" she asked.
    Monika groaned.
    "Ami and I couldn't reach either of you so I decided to take a guess on where you were probably going...I just got really lucky..." she said as she tried to sit up.  "Genji and I always talked about going beyond the mountains...it looks like you two were actually going to do it"
    "We had to stop for the night, the freezing rain was going to make driving impossible" Genji said. 
    "I know, I tried to drive in it and ended up going off the road and slamming into a tree a couple of miles from here" she explained.
    "Monika, you shouldn't have driven out here, you're lucky to be alive!" Genji spoke up, extremely upset and worried about her condition, "You probably have a concussion"
    There was a long silence between all three of them.
    "I couldn't let the two of you go.  What are you running away from?  New Briar is our home...just because your mom and I were angry and upset...it's pretty normal given the circumstances, don't you think?  I just...I felt so hurt to have been kept in the dark...I needed some time to cool down so I could think, and the same goes for your mom...but when we both came back up to talk, we found that you two had run away.  I told Ami I was going to find you both and bring you back home, even if it killed me...who would have guessed that it almost did" Monika finally said.
    "Monika I...if you knew the truth after all this time...I knew you'd be angry, and I didn't want to lose you.  You and Genji are like parents to me...you both have always looked out for me, you love me no matter how badly I screw up...it would kill me to lose all of that.  I'm so sorry for what I did, you can hit me if you want, you can beat me senseless, I don't care...please don't abandon me though...I'll do anything to make this up to you" Sayori said, trying to put on a brave face.
    "The truth is...Genji was right...you didn't ask us to do anything for you.  We did it all on our own, because we both love you and wanted to protect you.  Please, both of you come home.  Ami is a wreck and thinks you two ran away to kill yourselves together.  It took all of the convincing that I could do just to calm her down.  Just...please...she wants you to come home, and so do I" Monika explained.
    "Even if we came home...the police are already looking at us..." Genji began, but Sayori spoke up.
    "...That is being taken care of" Sayori said.
    "What do you mean?" Monika asked.
    "My dad...I made a deal with my father.  He is going to call in a couple of favors that he is owed to make the investigation go away...and then he and I are done.  I'm not even worth the effort being angry with, I'm such a disappointment that he would rather just be free of me...he's going to just write a check, hand out some stock options, and then he's done with me for good" Sayori explained, sounding completely defeated.
"I...I'm sorry, Sayori.  But you still have us" Genji said, joining her and Monika on the bed.
Even sitting up in bed, Monika looked unsteady.  Her eyes seemed to be fixed on something off in the distance despite looking at the bed spread right in front of her.  Genji slowly waved his hand in front of her eyes, there was an extremely delayed reaction as Monika looked over at him, breathing dryly.
"Can you help me to the bathroom?" she asked him.
"Sure, come on" he said as pulled back the bedspread, sitting on the edge next to her and helping her to stand up and walk the short distance she had to go.  Genji and Monika were a few steps into the bathroom, the darkness much easier on Monika's eyes than the lamp had been out in the main room. 
"Hold on, I'll get the light for her" Sayori said, quickly coming over and turning on the light switch on the wall just inside the room.
As soon as the lights came to life in the bathroom Monika took a step back, closing her eyes as hard as she could before making a retching sound and throwing up on the floor.  She fell backward, nearly taking Genji down but thankfully he was able to keep Monika on her feet.
"We need to get you to that emergency clinic down the street" Genji said, "Sayori can you grab something for her to wear?"
"I'm on it" she said, already going through the backpack they'd brought for something that would fit her.  "I'm sorry Monika, these might not fit you quite right but it's all I've got" she yelled to the bathroom as she laid out a pair of jeans, a long sleeve yellow shirt with a black cat on it, some fresh underwear and a pair of socks.  "Should I go start the car?"
"No, we can't drive, not with the roads covered in ice.  We're going to have to walk...just very slowly" Genji replied as he helped Monika clean off the vomit that she'd gotten on herself. 
Genji stepped outside so Sayori could help Monika undress and put on the new clothes, then once they were ready Sayori and Genji each helped Monika walk, her arms around each of their shoulders, from the motel down the street to the emergency medical clinic.  In truth it was maybe a thousand feet from the Forestside Inn to the clinic, but a five to ten minute walk took them nearly forty minutes on the icy pavement.  Thankfully, they'd been given a respite from the freezing rain, but trying to navigate the icy sidewalks in the dark was quite difficult.  Luckily, after a very careful walk, they arrived.  Monika was taken back right away and evaluated, while Sayori and Genji were asked to remain in the waiting room.  After nearly an hour she reemerged with the gash on her head having been stitched, and had been given paperwork with a "Do" and "Don't" list for concussion recovery.  X-Rays also confirmed that she'd broken one of her ribs in the crash, which would have to be left to heal on its own, and had its own "Do" and "Don't" list for recovery.
The trio were faced with what would be a very slow walk back to the motel, but the smell coming from Hunter's Lodge was so alluring that they decided to stop and have something to eat before going back to get some sleep.  There wasn't much they were going to be able to do for the next day with the weather forecast to be as terrible as it was tonight.  The Sheriff's Department had been contacted in regards to Monika's crashed car, and it was going to have to wait until there were safer driving conditions before a tow truck could come out to get it and bring it all the way back to New Briar.  Monika knew that her parents would be furious with her, moreso because of her decision to drive in such hazardous weather...but at this point she didn't care.  She'd come this far because she was worried about the welfare of her friends, not because she had nothing better to do.  They may yell at her, or ground her, but in the end it seemed like a fair price to pay for the relief of knowing Genji and Sayori were alright and being able to bring them back home.  Outside of a handful of other night owls, they were the only patrons at Hunter's Lodge and took advantage of this by sitting at a huge semi-circle booth in the back of the restaurant normally reserved for families so they could each have some space to spread out and relax.  Monika shifted from having her hand over her eyes to looking around briefly until she couldn't tolerate the light any further.  The decor was everything you might expect, with faux wood paneling on the walls, antler chandeliers and trophy animal heads mounted on the walls.  Monika ordered black coffee and dry toast, while Genji ordered a club sandwich, and Sayori ordered a hamburger with fries. 
"Your appetite never ceases to amaze me, Sayori" Monika said, trying to muster a laugh.
"Of course I'm hungry, Genji and I used up all our energy earlier..." she began to say, Monika quickly cut her off.
"Ah, too much info, I'm good thanks" she said, finally smiling and starting to laugh a bit.
"Is my mom alright?" he asked.
"You should call her Genji.  You know you guys shouldn't have run away, she was seriously on the verge of a nervous breakdown" Monika replied.  "And...Yuri and Natsuki were freaking out too...your mom called them both asking if they'd seen you and Sayori.  So yeah...everyone is kind of...we just want you to come back, both of you.  She didn't tell Natsuki or Yuri why you ran away, the secret is safe but..."
There was a very long silence between the three before Sayori spoke up, looking over at Genji.
"We made such a mess, Genji..." she said.
"I...I didn't want to worry anyone.  We just panicked...I made a bad decision, I'm sorry" he said to Sayori and Monika.
Before they could talk any further, the waitress brought their drinks to the table, with Sayori having Pepsi and Genji deciding just to have water.  Monika took a sip of her coffee and thought carefully before she spoke again.  It took a moment to sort her thoughts, but she finally had them lined up the best they were going to be.
"I have something to say...and I need you both to promise not to get upset.  I thought about this on my drive up here tonight and I think...each of us need serious therapy.  We're all carrying so much trauma and I started to worry that the truth of things might be that the three of us are really bad for each other.  But I can't believe that is true, not after everything we've been through together.  But...we each need help, and there's no shame in admitting that.  And if you guys really want to get married and have a successful marriage and bring children into this world and give them a good life, you both will see that.  It isn't just about ourselves anymore, even our relationship with each other is being affected" Monika explained.
Again there was a silence between them before Sayori finally spoke.
"If it means a better future with Genji, and a good marriage, then I'll do anything I have to" she said, there was a firmness in her voice that Monika hadn't ever picked up on before.
"I will too" Genji said, he smiled at both of them, "I don't want to lose either of you"
"Me either" Sayori said.
Monika smiled gently, she covered her eyes again in part because of the light but also because tears were beginning to well up and she didn't want them to see.
"I'm going to step out to call my mom...Sayori don't eat my sandwich" he said as he got up.
"I make no promises" she replied with a huge grin.
Back outside the wind had picked back up and the freezing drizzle had started again, starting to coat the existing ice with a fresh new layer.  The biting cold nipped at Genji with each gust, and as he dialed his mom's number he could only imagine the amount of screaming she was about to do when she answered.  But, when she answered Ami sounded like she had been crying.
"Genji?" she answered, sounding like she'd rushed to the phone.
At first he didn't know what to say.  Her anxiety grew in those seconds of silence.
"Genji are you there?  It's ok baby, I'm not angry" she said, he could hear her voice starting to crack.
"I'm sorry mom" he finally said as he leaned back against the wall of the restaurant and slid down, crouching while he talked.
"Listen, Monika left earlier to find you guys, I have no idea where you are or if she ever found you..." she said before trailing off.  Genji spoke up.
"We're in Emerald Grove.  Monika got into an accident about two miles out of town and has a concussion and a broken rib.  It's going to be freezing rain here until tomorrow evening, but once things clear and the ice thaws we're going to come home" he said.
"Oh thank God" Ami said as she exhaled.  "Is Monika alright?" she quickly followed up, the relief of Genji and Sayori coming back home being replaced with anxiety about Monika.
"She's banged up but she'll be alright.  We have a room at the motel here in town, she'll be able to get plenty of rest" he explained.
There was a pause.
"Genji, I talked..." she began, Genji cut her off.
"I know mom, you told Natsuki and Yuri that Sayori and I ran away.  It's not a big deal, we can talk to them when we get back and make up some reason for why we did" he said.
"No Genji, I talked to your father tonight.  He needed to know what was going on in case you two showed up in Sandcrest.  I didn't tell him why you ran away, he doesn't know what happened and neither do Natsuki and Yuri...he..." she said but then trailed off. 
There was an uneasy silence between them.
"What is it mom?" he asked.
"He thinks that maybe a change of scenery would be good for you.  Good for both of you, I know that he said you could come live with him and I explained that you and Sayori are engaged, he said Sayori is more than welcome to move in also.  I...you know tonight really shook me...I want what is going to be best for you, and I think there's too much trauma and bad history attached to New Briar for you.  Genji I...I told him that you and Sayori would move to Sandcrest to live with him.  And I promise you that I will come to visit, and that I'm going to sell the house and move out there as soon as possible.  I can request a transfer to Sandcrest Memorial Hospital and work out there so we'll see each other all the time...but New Briar has nothing for you or Sayori, this...I think this will be for the best..." she explained.  "And as for those detectives..." Ami continued, Genji spoke up again.
"They won't be coming around again...Sayori's dad is taking care of everything..." he said, sounding extremely defeated.
"What do you mean?" she asked, confused.
"It's a really long story, I can tell you what happened when we're back home if that's ok" he replied.
"Sure baby, that's no problem" she said gently.
"Mom?" he asked.
"Yeah?" Ami replied.
"I...is this really a good idea?  Moving with dad?" Genji said, there were so many conflicting emotions going on inside him that he wasn't even sure how he felt.
"It's going to be alright...this isn't about me or your dad, I promise you that it's all going to work out.  We're all going to have a fresh start" she said.
"I love you mom" Genji finally said after a short pause.
"I love you too Genji, get some sleep, we can talk more tomorrow" she said.
Heading back inside, Genji saw that their food had come, with a bite taken out of his sandwich.  Sayori had a big smile on her face but to make up for it offered him a bite of her hamburger which he was more than happy to take her up on.  For whatever reason, her hamburger and his sandwich tasted like the best things he'd ever eaten.  Maybe it was from a sense of having a weight lifted off their backs, or from being able to just sit and genuinely enjoy time with the most important people in his life, but he was extremely thankful for this small moment.
After eating and paying, the trio headed back to their room at Forestside Inn where they each began to fall asleep, Sayori deciding to snuggle in between Genji and Monika on the bed.  Monika was nearly asleep before her eyes shot open and she spoke up.
"Hey so...not to be rude but...I'm not laying in anything from you guys, right?" she asked.
"Nope, that was where Genji's laying!" Sayori announced.
"Oh my God, go to sleep Sayori" he said sleepily and put his arm around her stomach.
"Goodnight Genji, goodnight Monika" Sayori said with a yawn.
The following day it was nearly 1pm before any of them woke up, and when they did it was to the sound of Monika's cell phone ringing on the nightstand next to the bed.  Half asleep she reached over to see that it was Yuri calling her.
"Hey Yuri" she said, yawning.  There was a brief back and forth between them that woke up Genji and Sayori, Monika was sitting up in bed.  "Yuri, I can't understand what you're saying when you're crying" she said. 
"What's going on?" Sayori whispered to Genji, she'd only just now woken up.
"I'm not sure" he whispered back.
"What do you mean the chief fired your dad?!" Monika exclaimed. 
Genji and Sayori immediately sat up, Monika looked over at both of them, her mouth hanging open.
"It's going to be alright Yuri, I'm..." she began then stopped as Yuri could be heard on the other end.  "We should be home tomorrow and then we can get together, don't worry ok?  Everything will be alright, I'll call you once we're back and you can come over to Genji's.  We're all here for you and Kaori, I promise"
Monika hung up, none of them were sure what to say.
"Dad...what did you do?" Sayori thought to herself.