Truth, Perjury, and Sacrifice

Incognito

Byakuya stared at his phone screen, re-reading the messages. It had only been two days since their return and they had already hit a rough patch. Karen's fervent stubbornness, or in her word's tenacity, did make matters difficult, which often did push Byakuya further than he would normally tolerate. He could have walked away years ago. He could have left Karen and Nagito alone in the hallway that one day. He had multiple opportunities to not become involved with someone who he knew to have a difficult personality. But Byakuya was equally stubborn in not letting her go.

Me: Naegi, what does your schedule look like in the next few weeks?

Naegi: Um I'm just focusing on recruiting students. Kyoko's kind of determines mine atm.

Me: Keep the Saturday three weeks from now clear.

Naegi: Why? What's going on?

Me: I'll explain when we meet this Friday. I need to confirm the date.

Naegi shook his head at his phone, "What the hell is he planning?" he shrugged, texting Kyoko.

"Who was that?" Nagito asked, watching Hajime re-enter the room.

"Uh...Kazuichi. He wants to know if he can have access to the electrical panels."

Karen blinked, "Oh. Um, sure, I guess." She grabbed her purse, digging around for the full ring of keys. "Here's the master key. I'm going to give him the panel, plumbing, and alarm keys. Is he home or can I just leave them with you?"

"Yeah, he's home." Hajime took the master key and politely rushed her out. Once the door was shut, Hajime gently locked the door.

"What are you doing?" Nagito asked.

"That was Makoto. He wants us to pursue recruiting without Karen knowing."

"Well, what you just did was stupid then. She'll immediately realize you lied to her."

"No, I texted Kazuichi." Hajime grimaced.

"Hajime! So, you want us to go behind her back?"

"You were the one who gave her false hope that any of this was a good idea!" Hajime and Nagito stood and stared at each other. "She's going to fucking kill us."

"Oh, not just us, I assure you." Nagito sighed, burying a hand in his hair.

After dropping the keys off at Kazuichi's, Karen sent a text to Nagito that she didn't realize how late it had become. Climbing into her car, she sat for a moment, mulling over the strange feeling in the back of her mind. Glancing up at the apartment building, she started the vehicle and began to pull out of the parking lot. A sudden flash deterred her eyes for a moment, triggering her foot to hit the brakes. "What the hell?" she blinked, looking around. "Must have been a reflection," she reasoned, glancing at the numerous glass and metal materials around the area.

When Karen pulled into her driveway, she noticed Toko and Komaru sitting on her front porch. "Hey, what are you two doing here?" she said, locking the car doors behind her. "Is something wrong? Is someone hurt?" A familiar sense of paranoia launched into action.

"No, no one is hurt," Toko mumbled. "But something is wrong."

"Toko, you don't have to be so harsh." Komaru rested her hand on Toko's shoulder.

"What is it, Toko?" Karen waved Komaru down, offering a nod and smile. "Is it about the other night?"

"Yes. But more importantly, it's about you. Do you think you're the only one who has struggled for the past few months?"

Karen blinked in surprise at her. "Of course not, Toko. We experienced the same horrific events. I never once thought I was the only one," she said, pushing passed the girls to the front door. "Why on earth would you think that?"

"Because you come back here, never once open up about why the hell you left, nor bothered to ask how any of us were doing. Especially Byakuya." Toko was out of Komaru's reach, standing just behind Karen. "I don't know if you've even noticed how exhausted he is."

"I have noticed! I'm his fucking fiancée, so yeah, Toko! I do notice! I know what I did was selfish and cruel. I apologized for it and I will spend the rest of my life apologizing for it." Karen turned on her heel, putting her face only a few inches from Toko's.

"He won't admit it, but I know he was alone every night for three months. He has nightmares just like we do."

"I know, Toko."

"He wouldn't call or confide in any of us, so he suffered alone."

"I know, Toko."

"We all watched him work day and night so he didn't have to go home to an empty house."

"I know, Toko! I know!" Tears brimmed Karen's eyes. "How long are you going to shove my dumbass decisions in my face? What do you want from me? What right do you have to come to my home and ridicule me on my relationship? You think you know him and that you love him, but I have known him far longer than you and love him more than you will ever feel! You don't know the bullshit we have gone through to get where we are. And I didn't work half as hard as Byakuya did. So, the only one who deserves an apology is him. Leave. Now." Karen wiped the tears from her face and slammed the door on Toko, locking it behind her.

"Komaru, will you please talk to me?" Toko prodded again.

After a few more moments of silence, Komaru darted her eyes from the road to Toko. "You said you were going to be calm and civil. She's going to tell Byakuya what happened and that's going to create a bigger mess. What do you even have against her?"

"Besides the fact that she tried to kill me?"

"She's apologized for that. Don't you think we don't understand what she's gone through?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you weren't close to Enoshima. And how bad do you think the hallucinations were for her to rely on her medication?" The pair sat in silence, listening to the whirring of wind and car wheels. "I'm just saying that...she's gone through a lot, too, not just Byakuya. That's their conversation, not ours." She glanced at Toko once more, noticing her posture had sunken as she leaned against the car window.