Despair: Become Hope // komahina

Chapter 14 : A New Home

"Hajime, why's there white stuff on your hands?"

Oh shit.

His mind drew to a blank, or whatever the android equivalent of that was. He paused whatever he was doing, every wire in his body frozen as if he were a deer in headlights.

Hajime retracted his hands back when he felt Aoi grab one of them to inspect the white plastic on it. What should I say? He began to panic.

Glancing at the albino next to him, his eyes screamed at him for help. But, just like him, Nagito was also at a loss of words and was panicking just as much as him.

"Mind explaining, Hinata?" The brunette pointed at his hands. There was still a smile on Aoi's face, but it was not a friendly one this time. Her eyes were narrowed at him, and he could sense an intimidating aura around her.

Faux skin was beginning to form back over the white plastic patches on his hands, not that it helped the android anyway.

Fear crawled on his back, as he noticed his stress levels increasing at an alarming rate.

"A-Aoi, I-I..." Hajime stammered.

"He's an android," Nagito blankly stated with a dead look in his eyes. Hajime snapped his head to the side, looking at him with a shocked expression when the albino just admitted exactly what they were supposed to be hiding. "K-Ko.."

The pale human simply sighed and shot him an apologetic look. He then turned to face Aoi, who was silently demanding an explanation judging by her face.

"I guess we can't hide the truth any longer." Nagito cleared his throat before continuing. "If you've been watching the news lately, then you've probably heard of a deviant android on the run with its owner after killing his girlfriend. And as you've probably guessed it," he gestured towards Hajime, "he's the android the police are looking for."

"Long story short, the police are looking for us. Well, it's just Hajime to be specific, but whatever."

"My goodness..." Aoi clasped a hand over her mouth. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She hoped she was just hearing things, and the deafening quietness of her diner was slowly getting to her. Mikan was just as shocked, too shocked to focus on the eggs she had dropped on the floor.

"It's okay if you call the police on us," Nagito hung his head low. "I've been clinging onto false hope that we'd be free somewhere. I never deserved freedom anyway. Trash like me should just rot away and die in despair." And there he went again with his self-deprecating comments.

Still not wanting to give up hope, Hajime stood up abruptly, his hands balled into tight fists.

"Aoi, please don't call the police on us," he pleaded the brunette. "Ko's been through worse times than this. I can't afford to just leave him alone like this. I promised I stayed by him forever...!" His voice cracked, or at least sounded like it did. The tan young woman stood there in shock as she witnessed the android before her beg for his life.

He sounded so alive, so human.

Even though it didn't seem like it, Hajime was overwhelmed with so many emotions at once. Desperation. Fear. Helplessness. Despair.