Danganronpa: Locked Doors of Despair

Ch.1 Daily Life Part 3: Of Hiding, Hushing, and Heating

[A/N] Edited as of 12/3/22

Hachi

It's rare that I come across someone my age who's also just as short as I am, but I'm lucky enough to have met Chimon here. Every time we sit down, only the front halves of our feet touch the floor. And this time he chose to sit next to me at lunch! Tozen whipped up some tuna melt sandwiches for everyone. They've got a lot of veggies in them but the ooey gooiness is just perfect. Now that I think about it, where is the person who trapped us here getting all of this food from, that they can constantly restock?

"Earth to Hachi! Are you okay?" Chimon asks, looking concerned.

"Where are they getting this food from? Is someone else supplying the mastermind? And if so, who?" I ask abruptly.

His expression morphs into confusion. "You make a good point. We should bring that up next time we all get together. But most of us have already left the table. I did have a question for you though."

"Yes?"

"Would you play hide and seek with me?" he smiles charmingly. "Anywhere we can all access, on the count of 50."

"Okay. But if we hide in our dorms, we can't lock it, alright?"

"Makes sense! It would totally be cheating if we set up an impassable barrier."

"Who's going to hide first?"

"Me please!" he beams.

"You got it. I'll start counting!" I turn around and shut my eyes, even covering them with my hands. I know that seems redundant, but it just feels more authentic that way. One... two... three... four... blindfolds are pretty useless, huh? If you tilt your head up just a bit and look through the very bottom, you can see the space under your nose. And nobody can ever tell... OH! Umm... Twelve? Thirteen... fourteen... fifteen... Honestly, if your natural lashes are long enough, you can cheat just by shutting them almost all the way and letting your lashes make it look like they're fully closed. Ah, I did it again... twenty-two.

Eventually, I manage to make it to fifty, and I start to search. He's probably not in the kitchen or dining room, since he had so much time to hide, but I may as well check anyway. I'm not exactly sure how good of a hider he is. That reminds me of the one time I nearly got myself trapped in a dryer while playing. It was scary and the smell of detergent was a lot. I don't find him in the immediate area. He's not hidden in any of the kitchen pantries. Since I'm tiny, I know that it's best to hide in small spaces that people might overlook because they don't recognize that we can fit. I wonder where bugs would hide if they played this game. Maybe inside flowers!! What flowers would they hide inside? Tulips, maybe? Or roses? Or morning glories! Since they only bud during the day, it could make for a sneaky spot at night!

Since my brain is on the track of flowers, I make my way to the garden. There aren't too many potential hiding spots in here, but I can scope it out quickly. The weeping willow tree might provide cover, but the thing about Chimon is that his color scheme, which is mostly comprised of blues and greys, aren't the best for blending in with trees. So I don't bother climbing up the super-tempting tree, I just look at it and confirm that he's not up there. Then I check the little pagoda area, behind the benches. Nope. Before I leave, I make a quick stop to gather some azaleas. Ah, what should I do with these? Bouquet? Potpourri? Dry and scrapbook?

I leave afterwards, deciding to quickly check Chimon's door. Locked. So he's not in there. The store next. I look behind the counter and discover a Monoinu behind there cheerfully displaying wares. I have to admit, I spend a little too much time examining them. My eyes catch on a beautiful silver locket with a wisteria design and I buy it with some of the random coins I've found scattered around. You know, if you look at Monoinu in a certain light, he's pretty cute. I wonder how he... they?... were made. Robots in cartoons are usually super metallic and futuristic-looking. Are they normally that way in real life? Dang, I need to look up more robots. Technically, any of the other students could be robots. I could be a robot! Would I know if I was a robot? Would I have self-awareness? Am I ACHIEVING self-awareness?!