Chapter Text
"Pathetic?" Shuichi scoffed, utterly exhausted and at the end of his rope. Ouma's little pranks were one thing, but this ... His whole scheme involving Gonta, his cheap provocations all throughout the trial, punching Kaito....Today he'd crossed the line. "Look at yourself, Kokichi."
"...What?" Ouma, who up until now maintained a carefree expression, suddenly stopped laughing. His eyes widened as he absorbed the detective's words like a bitter medicine, necessary, but barely palatable. Studying his face, he couldn’t help but notice a strange, unpleasant feeling begin to take root in his chest. Why does it have to be Shuichi?
From everyone else, he'd expected this. He’d worked for this. But for these words to come out of Shuichi, of all people... The way he glared at him, his gray-yellow eyes still a little red from crying...it was enough to make the leader's resolve falter.
"Kaito always has us by his side, see?" Shuichi continued in an even voice, gesturing to the Ultimate Astronaut as everyone helped him to his feet. Against his better judgment, Kokichi's eyes flitted to the scene.
And there Kaito was, surrounded by love and affection, everyone's eyes and voices dripping with worry as they frantically checked his wounds. Even the lazy little mage girl was taking action for once.
Ha, what a laugh.
But the astronaut trainee was waving them away all the same, sporting a forced smile for their benefit. Overwhelmed by the attention, but still grateful for their concern.
"..."
Kokichi inhaled sharply, his lips tightening into a thin line.
"But no one wants to be around you ." The detective's voice, bold and frigid, commanded his attention back, placing special emphasis on the final word. Standing there frozen, Kokichi wondered if maybe Himiko's magic was real after all. Because surely, it wasn’t the timid Saihara's gaze that kept his feet firmly planted in the ground.
"..." Shuichi closed his eyes for a second and sighed, trying to calm the seething anger that boiled just beneath the surface of his pale skin. Calm the torrential storm on the verge of exploding from within... But when he opened them back up to see Kokichi stare at him with innocent eyes, a pointed index finger grazing his left cheek, the detective snapped.
"You’re alone, Kokichi. And you always will be."
As if on cue, the petite boy smiled back at him, interlocking his fingers behind his head and tilting his face angelically. "Ah-haha! You’re talking about friends?" He laughed, without missing a beat, hoping desperately that the noise would drown out the overwhelming sound of his pounding heart. "Friends don’t make this game more entert–"
Kokichi paused, watching for the detective's reaction only to realize that Shuichi would no longer give him the satisfaction.
"..."
After this, Shuichi would probably never talk to him again...
All at once, his beating heart stilled. Kokichi dropped his playful demeanor, slumping his small shoulders and slipping into a more natural, yet all the same unreadable expression. "Geez," He began, his voice completely devoid of all its initial pep, "boooring. I'm no longer interested."
Staring blankly at the detective, Kokichi wondered what he ever saw in him. What was it that charmed him so when no one and nothing else could?
Was it because Shuichi always put up with his antics? Because unlike the others, Shuichi never treated him like just another goddamn nuisance that wouldn’t go away? Or was it simpler than that? Like the cute way he puffed out his chest when he felt particularly confident? Or the gentle clumsiness with which he bandaged his wound following the Knife Game incident?
No, it was something much simpler than any of those things. Because even now, towards Shuichi, he was still...
The leader sighed. "I don’t care anymore..."
There were many words Kokichi could think of to describe the unpleasant feeling that blossomed within his constricting rib cage.
Emptiness, heartbreak, dejection ...
But none of those seemed to fit quite right.
Betrayal .
He almost laughed at the absurdity of his mind's answer. Who really betrayed who, though?
Kokichi felt the corners of his lips begin to twitch upward just thinking about it.
If I asked Saihara now, I wonder how he’d respond...
Taking a step closer to the taller boy, Kokichi gathered up all his remaining energy, and whispered menacingly in Saihara's ear, "But I will tell you this..."
He then retreated back for his grand finale, lowering his head, and slipping into a familiar smirk –a perfectly practiced smirk that was enough to make Shuichi flinch. And raising his left hand for a wicked toast, Kokichi slipped on his most sickening mask yet, eyes buggy as a toothy grin stretched from ear to ear, completing his haunting sneer. "The one who will win this game...is me."
And with that, Kokichi was gone, leaving Shuichi to wonder how such a small body could harbor so much malice and ill-intent. What the hell is wrong with him?
"..." Shuichi shook his head, the start of a migraine hammering softly at the back of his skull. He was too tired to think about Kokichi and his lies and the all pure, unbridled insanity that shined in his eyes.
And then there was the astronaut. Right, Kaito!
Momentarily forgetting his anger for Kokichi, the detective rushed to his best friend's side and knelt down to check for injuries. "Kaito, are you okay?"
Some blood noticeably peaked out the Ultimate Astronaut's mouth, sending a flurry of panic through Shuichi's body. Did Kokichi really punch him THAT hard? From this angle, he couldn’t really–
Kaito groaned, snapping the detective out of his inner thoughts. Sweat grazed and dripped down his lightly raised brow, licking gently at his sickly-white face.
He didn’t face his sidekick.
"Hey, Kaito...?" Shuichi tried again, waving a hand before his best friend's eyes while his own were swimming with worry. He didn’t hear Maki shuffle over to them. At least, not until she'd placed a warm hand on his shoulder and gently nudged him aside. Her black skirt fluttered as she crouched down to get a better look at the Luminary of the Stars' paling face and reached out to cup his cheek.
"I-I'm okay..." Kaito sputtered, pushing her hand away. "It's fine..."
But that was a lie. The Hero wasn't fine , and Shuichi and Maki knew it. Skipping training, always holing himself up in his dorm.... I’m an idiot for not noticing sooner.
"C-C'mon, I'll help you back to your dorm," Shuichi offered his shoulder. He’d already forgotten about their little spat during the trial and just wanted to help, but–
"I can walk on my own." Kaito affirmed, not meeting his eyes. "I don’t need your help...Shuichi."
A cold sensation ran through the detective's body. Why...? Why was Kaito refusing his help? Refusing to even look him in the eyes? Their fight wasn’t *that* big a deal.. . was it?
Shuichi found himself wanting to reach out, to try again, but without the astronaut's usual encouragement, hesitated.
Even Maki's expression darkened upon observing the two, and as Kaito attempted to make good on his word and stumble back to the dorms on his own, she quietly promised Shuichi she’d look after him.
And Shuichi was grateful, sure, but even more than that, he.... he’d wanted to be the one to say that.
It was selfish and stupid, but it was the truth .
And suddenly, despite there still being three other people in the room, Shuichi felt very, very alone.