Alcohol Spills [BYAKUYA TOGAMI X READER]

Epilogue

-------

The ascension up the elevator was a silent and eerie one. He looked down at the floor, his expression empty but his mind full.

15 minutes. That should be plenty of time. The elevator dings to a halt and Byakuya strides out into the first-floor corridors. He navigates himself through the very well familiar walls, stepping through them for the final time.

He sees the vault door from a distance, wide open truthfully so.

10 minutes.

He stands before the vault door, fresh air finally hitting him as he steps forward, leaving Hope's Peak Academy in the past and painfully leaving her.

"Byakuya! Over here!" called Aoi, waving over at him while stood with the others.

His pace increases as he walks over to them.

"We must make haste, that timer is reaching dangerously low. We need to get moving or we'll be caught up in the explosion."

The group hurried away from the school, as quickly as they could.

00.05

00.04

00.03

00.02

00.01

The glass windows shatter upon explosion, spreading from the impact as if the glass itself wants to get away. Piercing groans of the building echo as booming sounds can be heard from a distance. Kyoko and Byakuya observe from a safe distance, watching aspects of the school crumble and fall. Aoi and Sakura dive behind a tree, embracing each other protectively.

"You had to leave her in there?" Inquired Kyoko.

"I can't imagine how it must feel for you. Surely you still feel an ounce of regret for betraying her, no matter how noble it was." she continued.

An ounce was an understatement.

After a few minutes pass, the booms and crashes silence themselves. Hope's Peak was now a nonexistent institution and reverted to a pile of rubble.

Aoi releases herself from Sakura's protective hold hesitantly and stands to watch the remains of the school. She then glances over to Byakuya and at the collar of his shirt.

"Where did that blood come from?"

"That's... not important now. What is important is that out of the 16 of us, 6 survived the despair we were subjected to. Mark this day as a turning point for us all. For we are lucky to be survivors."

---------------

Months pass, and what was left of Hopes Peak was now an unoccupied piece of land. Police investigations stirred upon the emergence of 6 high school students who survived the Hope's Peak bombing.

The students reportedly killed in this bombing were: Leon Kuwata, Sayaka Maizono, Junko Enoshima, Chihiro Fujisaki, Mondo Owada, Kiyotaka Ishimaru, Hifumi Yamada, Taeko Yasuhiro, Toko Fukawa and {Y/N} {L/N} as confirmed by the survivors.

Kyoko proposed the survivors to not explain the killing game they faced and allow the families of the fallen to live with the peace that their children were taken by freak accident, and not intentionally. Afterall, even if the case was brought to the police, what could be done about it now? {Y/N} {L/N} was dead, no further punishment could be done. In addition, the injustice the families would feel would weigh forever, seeking retribution against something that can no longer be punished against. It was easier to keep quiet about it too. A part of Byakuya was glad to keep the situation out of {Y/N}'s name. It returned to her some of the dignity she so clearly lost.

As for the families of those who died, Makoto insisted they visit the families, reassure that everything was fine, and help them grieve. While Byakuya threw money at the problem, should I say, compensating the families. He knew that he was partly to blame for the whole game, he could've aided the end of the game much faster. So in a way he repaid the families in the only way he really knew. Of course, he'd never acknowledge his involvement in {Y/N}'s mastermind activities,but he still felt guilty.

Byakuya returned to home life again. He could never see a daiquiri the same again. Occasionally, he reimagines her blood on his hands.

And in the end, alcohol spills and so does blood.