YOU, ME & DEATH ━━ polyam ann & kuina

𝟮𝟳 first kill

   "SO WE NEED to start lying, find the Jack of Hearts and kill them off, or we live out the rest of our days inside this prison." Chishiya relayed a basic plan.

   "The game will now commence." The computer announced as a timer for one hour appeared, "You can roam freely until it is time to enter your cell."

   The players glanced around at each other, scared and puzzled. Slowly and carefully, they began to inch toward each other, asking what their symbols were in hushed murmurs, voices shaky with anxiety.

   Glancing at her brother's collar, she remarked, "You're a diamond."

   He did the same, "You're a heart."

   "Um, excuse me..." A timid voice spoke up beside them. A man in a yellow shirt and dungarees shuffled toward them, "Can–can you please tell me my symbol? I can tell you yours..."

   "We already know each other's. You'll have to find someone else." Tomoko returned instantly. Yes, this person seemed harmless but that didn't mean he could be trusted.

   The man gulped loudly with a nod, rubbing at his face and Tomoko saw terrified tears in his eyes. "How–how do you know he's not the Jack, or that she's not?"

   Chishiya glanced at Tomoko, tilting his head, and then he smirked slightly, "I would be able to tell and vice versa."

   "You–you really have your full trust in each other?" The newcomer questioned and the twins nodded.

   "Everyone, I have an idea!" A voice called out. It belonged to a girl in a blue dress. "How about we get together and make teams to tell each other? That way, nobody can lie."

   "Good idea. Um, would you mind if I joined up with you?" The man in the dungarees asked, and the girl nodded with a smile.

   "We'd like to join, too." Chishiya voiced, grabbing his sister's arm and pulling her with him as he stepped forward.

   Honestly, Tomoko wanted to sit back in a corner and let the inevitable savageness unfold. But she understood Chishiya's thinking, too: the sooner they tried to find the Jack, the quicker they would be out of here.

   More players joined the team and they exchanged their names as if it would suddenly bring trust — the man in the dungarees was called Ippei and the girl in the blue dress was Urumi.

   Then, they began to tell each other the symbols on their collars. Nobody lied, which didn't get them anywhere, and everyone survived the first round.

   The team joined up again and began to exchange symbols. This time, Tomoko was a club and so was her brother.

   "Someone needs to start killing people." Tomoko murmured under her breath to Chishiya.

   "Either the Jack will start to kill or someone who is afraid of the Jack will kill. Until either or both of those things happen, this will never end." Chishiya remarked in a low voice.

   "As long as we keep being honest with each other, we'll be alright." Ippei, who had overheard them, said hopefully.

   Tilting her head at him, Tomoko tutted once, "That sounds like something the Jack would say."

   "What? I'm–I'm not! I would never—"

   "I guess we'll see." Tomoko cut him off with a small laugh.

"I told you to give me the answer!" A man yelled, shoving another to the floor. He turned, awaiting the words that will allow him to live.

A different man walked over to the one on the floor, whispering something into his ear.

The man on the floor swallowed thickly before declaring, "You're a club."

But the man, in fact, was not. He was a diamond. So, it had started. The killing had started, and who knew who would be next?

"Oh—"

Ippei was about to speak up and tell the man the right answer when Tomoko slapped his arm harshly with a glare, "Shut the hell up. He might be the Jack for all we know."

"But he might be innocent!" Ippei protested.

"Then, someone killed a bully. It's not our problem." Tomoko returned and Ippei nodded uneasily.

The trio watched as Urumi invited the man who had killed the other into the group and he accepted the offer. Then, Tomoko cast her glance over to the man who had whispered into the other's ear, most likely telling him to kill the bully.

"Oh." Chishiya stated as he followed her gaze. She turned to him with a frown and Chishiya mused, "Banda Sunato. He's a serial killer."

"That explains why he did that, then. He's either the Jack or sick and twisted." Tomoko mused.

Then, the computer announced that it was the end of the round. The twins headed over to their cells, which were next to each other. Tomoko's cell was close to the bully's and she watched him step inside with a smug grin.

However, when she stepped out of her cell, he did not do the same.

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