𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞'𝐬 𝐋𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭 | Inquisitormaster & Zsquad| Danganronpa

☆𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟖☆ || 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

FRESHMEN YEAR- OCTOBER

Vibrations from beneath my arm wake me up, and I let out a tired groan as I pull myself up, using my elbows as support. Patting the cushion— the sound of thunder against the quiet of the morning— I grip my phone and pull it into view. Blindly, I swipe left on my phone about six times before the alarm's blaring sound ceases, and I'm plunged back into silence. A sigh lets loose, the brightness of my screen catches me off guard. Nine o' clock... Nine o' clock... What the hell?!

I feel my eyes go wide as I spring up from the couch and stumble over my feet. I spin around quickly, trying to recall everything that happened between me turning on the Halloween Channel and... Falling asleep, I guess. The alarm only woke me up, as Jade was still resting peacefully on the couch; curled up with her hair brushed over her face and her arm serving as a pillow on the arm of the couch. How could she still be asleep right now?!

Something takes me over as I step over to her, grasp her shoulders, and shake as hard as I can in this lazy state. Groggily, Jade rubs her knuckles into her eyes whilst inhaling deeply. When she sits up, I take a step or two back and watch as she adjusts to her surroundings.

"Don't do that again," she mutters, dropping her hands at her side; it makes a faint noise against the cushion.

I exclaim before I can process what Jade says, "We're late!"

"Cool," Jade says sarcastically, then she bares her teeth. "Don't touch me again, okay?"

I noticed how strained and sharp her voice was, and I felt guilt flooding my heart. Lips drawn, I nod. The news of us being late settles in her brain, and she springs up similarly to how I did not too long ago. We both rush to our rooms, throw on our uniforms quickly, and adjust the accessories as we slip on our shoes and are out the door in less than thirty minutes.

♡⁘♡⁘♡

"Oh, hey, look, they were just late," I hear Zach say intrigued as he stops in his tracks and turns on his heel to us. Levi, who was walking beside him, turns as well. I'm not sure how well they were getting along before, but as Jade and I slowed our rush to a stop, a smile— beaming for Zach, small for Levi— cracked on their faces.

"What happened?" Levi asks, quirking a fine, thick brow, referring to mine and Jade's tardiness.

The last thing I expected either of us to do was look at each other, sharing a sharp stare, then turning back to the boys standing in front of us idly.

I shrug. "Nothing. My alarm just went off late."

"Oh... Why do you have an alarm set so late?"

"For moments like these," I answer blatantly, scratching the nape of my neck as embarrassment floods my nerves.

Zach nods his head, poking out his bottom lip. "Fair, fair."

I quizzed the guys, asking what they were doing out there instead of being inside. The classroom was locked, according to them, and they decided to come out here instead. Leaves of all colors coated the pathway, colors of autumn reflecting against the sun's rays. 

A whiff of cinnamon whisks by, and my head follows the trail of the scent to pinpoint where it is. Not too far past the school's gates was a food stand. The wooden panel of the stand was ladened with pretzels, funnel cakes, tubs of French fries, and cinnamon rolls. A smile pulls at my mouth as I walk away from the three to get a closer look at the treats.