On the Beach at Night [Nagito x Reader]

Chapter 20: Time

The weekend finally arrived and (Y/N) was relieved to be free of school work for the time being. It had been a full week since she entered this world and she was beginning to worry about how much time she had left to complete her mission. Izuru told her that Nagito's time was limited, and she found it hard to believe that seven days had already gone by. There's no way I can make him love me fast enough. Izuru, what were you thinking?

To make matters worse, she was really starting to like Nagito. She felt like she could truly be herself around him. Not just herself, but a better version of herself. He made her feel more confident and he always knew the right thing to say to encourage her. There was something about this being around Nagito that made her feel at home. And his life was now in her hands. The pressure was breaking her and all she could think to do was cry. She pressed her face into her pillow on her bed, and let it absorb her tears.

Unexpectedly, she felt something touch her shoulder. It felt almost like a hand, but there was no warmth to it. It was just a sensation, but it still startled her. She turned around to see Alter Ego standing behind her. His glowing red eyes were unblinking, and he was nearly transparent. Pixelated red squares constantly flashed over him, making it hard to keep her eyes focused.

"(Y/N), Izuru sent me to check on you, but I don't have much time. He was monitoring your vitals and noticed your heart rate and stress levels suddenly spiked."

"Can he see everything that happens here?" she asked.

"No, he can only monitor your physical body. Time here moves too quickly to be observed in real time. It's similar to having a dream."

"How much time has passed in the real world since I got here?"

"Approximately eight hours." A wave of relief washed over her. She still had time. "As long as you are doing fine, I must go now."

"Tell Izuru not to worry about me, okay?" She forced a feeble smile. Her cheeks were still stained with tears. "And tell him to take a break. I bet he hasn't left the lab once since this started."

"I will tell him what you said. Goodbye, (Y/N). Do not give up." With his final parting words, Alter Ego faded away in a flash of red.

I still have time, I still have time, (Y/N) repeated over and over in her head. Alter Ego's words were exactly what she needed to hear. She scrambled out of bed to get dressed, almost tripping over every piece of furniture in her dorm. She grabbed the first clothes she saw out of her laundry basket, which ended up being some black leggings and a plaid shirt that she left unbuttoned over a white t-shirt. Right as she was about to walk out her door, she reached in to her pocket and pulled out her phone.

I'm coming over.

She pressed send without thinking twice. Normally she wasn't one to show up uninvited, but she couldn't wait any longer. She wanted to be with him. Not because she felt forced to, but because she wanted his company. With the weight of the time limit no longer as heavy, she had a new goal in mind. She wasn't going to try to make Nagito love her. She was going to make Nagito love himself.

"Hi, (Y/N). Is everything-" Nagito said as he opened his door, but he was cut off by (Y/N) throwing herself at him. She wrapped her arms around his stomach and buried her face into his shoulder. His neck felt soft against her cheek and she could smell the faint aroma of soap on his skin. It was a relaxing feeling that she wanted to savor every second of.

"Is everything okay?" he finished his sentence, sounding slightly worried. Nevertheless, he returned her embrace and pulled her closer to him, slowly running one of his hands along the length of her back.

"It is now." her voice was muffled by his shoulder. She didn't want to pull away, but eventually she lifted her head up to face him, still keeping her arms around him. Their faces were so close now that she could see the flecks of silver in his green eyes.

"(Y/N), have you been crying? Your eyes are red." he looked at her with even more concern. She frantically tried to come up with an excuse, but it felt pointless.

"I had a rough morning, but I'm fine now." she tried her best to muster up a smile.

"Do you want to come inside then? Sorry, I wasn't expecting guests, so I didn't tidy up." He apologized. His room was clean enough, save for some dirty laundry strewn about. The dorm was nearly identical to (Y/N)'s, other than the color scheme being more boyish. She took a seat on the futon, joined by Nagito shortly after.

"Sorry for the short notice." she said once they both settled into their spots.

"It's no problem at all, (Y/N). Was there something you wanted to talk about?"

"Yeah, I just... I wanted to thank you. For talking to me and spending time with me. It means a lot and I've enjoyed every second of it."

"I should really be the one thanking you. It's really amazing that you're able to enjoy the company of someone like me."

"No. Nagito, stop." She cut him off. His eyes widened in surprise, but he didn't continue. "I don't like 'someone like you', I just like you. No luck involved, okay?" Her voice trembled a little as she spoke. Was she nervous? Upset? All her emotions swirled together, making it impossible to tell.

"But I could never compare to you, or even any of our classmates. You all have incredible talents that shine so brightly. You're all worth something, and you'll all go on to do great things. Having Ultimate Luck is a useless talent. I can't even control it." he smiled sadly, avoiding her eyes and looking down at his palm.

"Maybe you can't control it, but that doesn't mean you should let it control you. Talent doesn't define who you are, Nagito. There's so much more to you than that."

"Aah..." he sighed. "That's so like you, (Y/N). Always believing in others so unconditionally. Your kindness is wasted on me." His voice was soft. (Y/N) tried her best to blink back the tears pooling in her eyes, hoping the action went unnoticed. She wasn't sure there was anything she could do to get through to him anymore. Maybe it was time to give up.

"I've upset you." he crossed his arms. "This just further proves how worthless I am, (Y/N)."

"Fine...you win." she choked out the words, unable to hold back the tears any longer. "If you want to push me away so badly, then why should I stop you? I'll just go." She stood up from her seat on the futon and turned towards the door. Everything she did felt so hopeless. If he can't love himself, how will he ever love me? I've failed you, Nagito. I'm sorry.

"No." Just one word. That was all he said. She turned back to face him. He was still in the exact spot as before, but now there was the glisten of tears that had left a trail along his face. "If I was strong, I would tell you to go and forget about me. But I'm weak, (Y/N)." Another tear fell, and he reached his arms out towards her ever so slightly, inviting her. Without thinking, she made her way over to him and knelt on the futon in front of where he was sitting and threw her arms around his neck. He gently wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her onto his lap, cradling her like a small child.

"I'm sorry, Nagito..." she whispered into his chest, letting tears fall onto the jacket he was wearing. "I didn't mean it..."

"It's my fault, (Y/N). I always say things without thinking about how it makes others feel. I didn't mean to hurt you, but I still did anyways. You really don't deserve that." He nestled his chin against the top of her head.

"It doesn't matter what you think I do or don't deserve. What I want right now is this." She snuggled closer into them, making sure there was no space left between them. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah..." he sighed, "this is okay." And that was how they remained, neither of them speaking another word.