This time they don't go up with the lift in silence, because Tatsuya speaks up the moment the doors close and the lift starts moving.
"Look, I may not be as good at this as Arita-san, but we can't forget what she told us. That we need to keep moving, even if it's painful. We can't give up now." He clenches his fist over his chest and looks everyone in the eye one by one "Let's defeat Monokuma by not playing his twisted game."
Ichiro sighs "I don't know how long that'll last but... Let's try anyways."
Tatsuya shows a faint smile "That's good enough for me."
"Okay! We'll make sure no one else gets killed!" Ginjiro beams "We'll keep the memories of our friends close and make it our strength!"
Maeko grins "Now you're speaking my language!"
"I don't think anyone is ever going to speak your language with all the swearing." Ren states.
The others stare at him for a moment before everyone, except Naomi who just rolls her eyes, starts laughing.
"Kimura-kun, did you know that you're fucking hilarious!" Maeko manages to say between laughs, wiping happy tears from her eyes.
"I wasn't trying to be funny..." The chess player looks around at his classmates and he manages to smile himself 'But if everyone is able to be okay again, I don't mind.'
"How about we find a way out and then we all stay friends?" Ginjiro suggests.
"Th-that sounds nice." Yukiji admits with a shy smile.
"Tee-hehe, we'll be the best of friends, right, Shintani-chan!" Aika beams, hugging the taller female, who looks very awkward.
"You're all stupid." Naomi huffs.
"Come on, Endo-chan, did you have to ruin the mood again? You're such a party-pooper." Aika pouts.
The hunter rolls her eyes while crossing her arms "I'm not ruining the mood. I'm giving all of you a healthy dose of realism. If you really think no one is going to kill each other again, then you're all as naive as Matsui." She points at the calligrapher with an accusing finger.
"Hey, there's no need for you to attack Kaida." Ren calmly says, deciding to stand up for his friend.
Naomi crosses her arms again and scoffs "Don't defend her. I know you think she's naive too. So don't be a hypocrite, she's definitely going to get us killed one day."
"Take it back." Ren is about to adds something else but is stopped when someone places a hand on his upper arm. He glances to his right and notices the person who Naomi's attacks were aimed at.
"Thank you for standing up for me, Ren, but I don't want to cause a fight." She flashes him a smile before turning to face Naomi "I get where you're coming from, Endo-san, I really do. I know that I'm naive and that it's dangerous in this situation." The bluenette places a hand on her chest "But I want to believe in everyone, regardless of the odds. That's why, I'm not going to change my mindset, just because you're telling me to. I believe in you too, Endo-san. So please," She smiles, "Try believing in me too."
Naomi walks towards Kaida, who takes a step forward, creating some distance between Ren and herself. The echo of skin hitting skin can be heard in the entire lift.
Kaida places a hand over her cheek, which started turning red, with tears in the corners of her eyes.
"Don't try befriending me." Naomi hisses "You should've just died instead of Izumi, he would've been less of a pain to deal with."
YOU ARE READING
Living Danger
FanfictionWhat are you going to do when you're locked up with your fifteen classmates in a building and the only way out is by killing one of them? This is the question the students of the 94th class of Hope's Peak Academy have to ask themselves when they're...
