We Have Each Other - Under Construction

Chapter 2

*Mondo POV*
I'm sitting in Naegi's living room watching a movie with my... friends? Can I call them that?
One of my arms is propped on the couch behind Chihiro. My left hand is in Taka's, who's sitting curled up next to Junko.
Recently, he's been really desperate for physical affection. I mean, that's probably my fault.
And he's almost never alone. He's either with me or Chihiro 99% of the time. Not that I mind. I don't know if I could be able to function without him at this point.
Junko has her arm around him and she's rubbing soothing circles on his upper arm. Chihiro is sitting with his arms around his legs.
I don't think any of us are really paying attention to the movie, it's just a distraction. After a while, I hear Naegi sigh and he pauses the movie. We all turn to look at him.
"There's a question I've been meaning to ask you guys." He says calmly, his eyes on the floor.
"How are you... alive?" I feel Taka and Chihiro tense up. It's about five minutes before somebody speaks. Taka sits up and takes a deep breath.
"When Hifumi hit me on the head, I didn't die immediately." My chest tightens and I can see Yamada flinch as Taka speaks.
"I was about to give up when a few Monokumas carried me out of the room." Taka's voice cracks when he says that little fur-bag's name.
I tighten my grip on his hand and silently urge him on.
"I passed out while they were carrying me. When I woke up, I was in that cell with the rest of you." The rest of the 'victims' nod along.
"It was pretty much the same for me." Maizono comments, staring at nothing. I feel Chihiro shiver next to me and I turn to look at him. He was shaking and crying, clutching at his throat. I quickly pull him closer to me, hugging him tight.
"I don't... I-I don't wanna... t-talk about it anymore..." He gasps in between sobs. I lock my arms around him tighter, trying to provide some sort of comfort.
Eventually, Chihiro's sobs turn to light sniffles and he moves away.
"S-s-Sorry about that everyone." The rest of the class, seeing how distressed the kid was, immediately started comforting him. A small smile spreads across my face at that. I know, better than anyone, that Chihiro has had horrible self-esteem issues ever since he was a kid. I'm glad that he finally has people who care about him.
Even Togami looks at the kid with sympathy. Even though he's a huge prick, I can see that it's an act. Little shit can't fool me.
When things calm down, Hina makes a suggestion.
"Can we do something else? This is giving me to much time to think." She gestures to the still paused movie. She's sitting comfortably in Sakura's lap, holding a barely touched bowl of popcorn. Naegi's little sister speaks up.
"We could just go to sleep." I cringe at the idea. I've only slept once this week, and man do I regret it. I was only asleep for a few hours before I had a nightmare so horrible that it left me shaking for the rest of the night. i cant remember exactly what it was about. Probably something stupid. The rest of the class gives similar reactions and Komaru looks to her brother.
"Did I say something wrong?" Naegi just pats her on the arm and gives her a reassuring smile. Fukawa, who's gotten oddly attached to the egg-ette, speaks up.
"N-None of us are r-really keen on s-sleeping at the m-moment." She says with her usual stutter. Komaru frowns, not understanding.
"Nightmares, kid." I clarify. She gasps and covers her mouth quickly.
"A-are they really that bad?" I nod sadly. Junko shakes her head as a single tear rolls down her cheek.
"Can we change the subject please?" Komaru nods quickly and mutters an apology.
"Well, if we're not going to watch the movie, what are we going to do?" Sakura asks, still holding on tight to Hina. I see Fukawa scoot closer to Komaru and start playing with the hem of her shirt nervously.
"W-well I have a s-suggestion..." She stutters.
"What is it Toko?" Naegi encourages with a patient smile. A light blush creeps over Fukawa's cheeks as she continues to look at the floor.
"I-it's really stupid, b-but I w-was wondering if we could collab-borate on m-my new novel." Collaborate? The hell's that supposed to mean? Chihiro must have noticed my confused expression. He leaned over and muttered in my ear.
"It means she wants us to help her write it." Oh. I look back up just as Taka speaks.
"I think that's a wonderful idea! Thank you for the suggestion Fukawa-San." He exclaims with a smile, saluting. Fukawa blushes more and finally looks up from the floor.
"N-not that I c-care, but y-you guys can call m-me T-Toko." Taka smiles brightly and nods his head. I scratch the back of my neck and look at the rest of the class.
"It sounds cool, but I won't be much help. I'm not good at... words and shit." A few lighthearted chuckles echo around the room.
"Th-thats fine! I really j-just w-want help with the p-plot. I'll t-take care of th-the words." Toko says with a shy smile.
"Oh. Well in that case let's do this!"

                          ***** Time Skip *****

After a few hours, we have a solid plot going. Toko has a notebook out and is writing down almost everything we say.
Yamada and Chihiro are currently in a heated argument about the fate of a specific character.
"We can't just resurrect her! What would be the point?" Chihiro exclaims. Yamada rolls his eyes and adjusts his glasses.
"The point, Mr. Fujisaki, is that her death will upset the fans!" Chihiro facepalms, hard. Celeste decides to speak up at this point.
"But would bringing her back lessen the impact of her sacrifice?" Kyoko nods along with the statement.
"It wouldn't make any sense to resurrect her after such a heartbreaking death." She declares smartly. Taka nods from beside me, deep in thought.
"The only reason she's dead is because of the main characters decisions. I believe he should live with the consequences of his actions."
Toko is scribbling frantically in her notebook. I push my hair out of my face and sigh. I haven't bothered to style it since I got home, so it's kind of just hanging in front of my eyes.
"What do you think Toko?" I ask, wanting the argument to end. Toko's head snaps up and she looks deep in thought.
"I-I think I'm g-gonna side with Chihiro on th-this one." Chihiro cheers in triumph while Hifumi pouts. Just then, I hear a sound, like something falling off a counter.
My body reacts before my brain and I shoot up into a fighting stance, hoping to defend myself against whatever made the noise. My heart's pounding and my breathing's all messed up.
A voice in the back of my head tells me that I'm being irrational, but I can't bring myself to lower my fists.
Instead of finding a crazy murderer, I find a middle aged woman with brown hair and brown eyes.
I feel my muscles relax a bit, but I'm still on the defense.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." She says warmly. I look behind me to find the rest of the class looking just as shaken as I am.
The thing I'm most focused on is Taka. He has his arm wrapped protectively around Junko and Chihiro. He's halfway to his feet, his muscles tensed for a fight just like me.
Junko is holding on to Chihiro as tight as humanly possible. Everyone has the exact same look of terror on their faces.
I know that we shouldn't be reacting like this. She only dropped a cereal bowl for fuck's sake! Komaru removes herself from Toko's iron grip and walks over to me.
"It's fine you guys. It's just my mom." She says, putting a hand on my shoulder. I flinch violently at the casual touch.
Why did I flinch? I was just fine when Taka or Chihiro or any of the others touched me. Why is this little girl any different?
I scoff and join the others as Komaru hugs her mother.
I sit beside Taka, who's steadily calming down. I pull him close to me and hold him tight. He helps unscramble my brain. Naegi's mom starts talking as she goes back to making her cereal.
"I just woke up for work and I saw how much fun you were having. I didn't want to bother you, so I snuck into the kitchen to make some breakfast." She explains cheerfully.
Wait... work? What time is it? Naegi pulls out his phone and his green eyes widen.
"It's 6:30?!" He exclaims.
"The shit?" I mumble to myself. It feels like I've only been here for an hour. Anyway, I seriously need to get home. I'm supposed to be meeting the gang tomorrow- er- today. I grab Taka's hand and stand up.
"Welp, I gotta get going. We should do this again sometime soon." I say. The others wave goodbye and I leave the house.
I hop on my bike and wait for Taka to get on too. Once he's situated, I turn back to him.
"Ready to go?" He nods, smiling, and we take off.