Chapter Text
"Akise Aru has lost his memories."
"I am aware."
Muru Muru chewed on a piece of corn on the cob while she talked. "Hmm... That's not good. It was the Second's doing. Now parts of his memories are gone and some are confused. He used to be in love with the First and now he's in love with the Second. I don't even think he remembers the survival game at all."
"It is unfortunate. I created him specifically for serving as the Observer in this game and he has proven to be very valuable and useful thus far. It would be a shame if I had to rid of him. This sudden change of falling in love with Gasai Yuno has also greatly changed the future." Deus said.
"Mmm..." Muru Muru looked up. "Are you really going to erase him from existence if he can't fulfill his role?"
"If he can't serve his purpose then there is no other reason for him to exist. If he doesn't show signs of remembering the survival game, then I will destroy him."
Yuno had hardly slept the night before and she grit her teeth angrily.
"I think I'm in love with you, Yuno."
Yuno gripped her sheets and turned away from Akise's side. 'How dare he. How dare he say that to me. What the hell is he thinking?!' Yuno sighed in frustration as she pinched her forehead. How was she supposed to befriend him if he's telling her he's in love with her? If she continued her act of pretending to befriend him he would grow on her and she did not want Akise Aru of all people to fall in love with her.
But if she showed how distasteful she was of him then there's a chance he'd remember her and he would become a hindrance between her and Yukiteru again.
The morning rays shone in her eyes and she draped the blanket over her head. She heard Akise stir next to her and she glanced over to see him starting to wake up. Great.
Everyone had slept in the living room on the floor but Akise had placed his futon next to hers last night before they went to sleep. He rubbed his eyes as he glanced at her. "Good morning, Yuno. Did you sleep well?" He asked. 'No. And it's all your fault.'
"Mm-hm!" She nodded, smiling brightly. "You?"
He smiled back and nodded. "Mm." He looked around the room and chuckled. "It looks like everyone else is still sleeping." She gave a small giggle. "It looks like it." Akise smiled affectionately at her and blushed slightly. Yuno smiled at Yukiteru and felt her cheeks tint pink as she giggled and poked his face. "Wakey, Wakey, Yukki~" He groaned and flipped over, causing her to giggle more. "Yuno...It's so early..." He groaned.
"It's like... nine in the morning Yukki!" "Too early for me... Not even my mom is awake right now..." Yukiteru groaned. Yuno pouted at him. "Fine, sleep in. I'm going to go make breakfast." She said, standing up from her futon and walking towards the kitchen. "May I help you?" Akise asked her. She smiled. "If you'd like to. I can handle it though."
"No, I insist. "Alright, thank you..Akise." He smiled at her as the two walked into the kitchen to prepare breakfast. "Hmm..." Yuno looked at the different ingredients they had. "How about natto, steamed rice, and miso soup?" She suggested. He nodded. "That sounds good." "Okay. I'll prepare the soup if you can make the other two." She suggested.
"Of course." He smiled at her as he went to prepare it.
Yuno sighed as she pulled the ingredients out and thought. 'Now that I think about it, it's kind of strange how easily he fell in love with Yukki in the first place. But why would he fall in love with me now? It doesn't make sense that he wouldn't just fall right back in love with Yukki again.' She scrunched her face as she pinched her forehead. It was all too frustrating and so sudden.
"Yuno, are you alright?" He asked as he looked at her worriedly. She mustered a small smile. "I'm alright. Don't worry about it, Akise." He smiled and nodded as he went back to preparing the meal. She sighed. 'Akise even confessed to me last night, he hasn't said anything else since then.' She thought it was best that way and he hoped he wouldn't bring it up again, she was already stressed enough as it is.
After the two cooked and woke the others, they all sat in the kitchen to eat and Yuno still wore the same troubled expression, hoping no one else would notice.
"Thank you so much, you two. You're both such wonderful cooks. But you could've woke me up and I would've helped." Rea smiled at them.
"O-Oh no, it's no problem. I like to cook, anyways.." Yuno smiled as her cheeks flushed a light pink.
"Mom.. You wouldn't have woken up at that time even if they tried.." Yukiteru mumbled.
"Of course I would have!" She exclaimed, causing the others to laugh lightly.
Yuno ate quietly as the others chattered. She sighed sadly that Yukiteru didn't pay her any attention, continuing to smile with his friends. She bit her lip. 'Yukki.. I want to be the one to make you happy, am I not enough? Why do you need them?' Her thoughts were cut off as she snapped her head up, feeling Rea nudge on her arm. "Ne, Yuno. He's been looking at you again." She whispered, causing Yuno to glance over at Akise who just smiled at her. 'What a creep.' She mustered a small smile back as she turned her attention back to Rea. "Hinata and Mao also agreed it's cute, that he's acting this way towards you.' She snickered and Yuno couldn't help but feel her face grow hot, and it didn't help that the other girls noticed and were giggling about it too. It suddenly struck her that Yukiteru didn't notice, and he didn't do anything about it. 'Shouldn't he be jealous that Akise's been staring at me? Surely he's noticed...'
Her eyes darkened as her hands shook, clutching tightly to her skirt. 'Of course Yukki loves me, it's just his friends. They're taking his attention away from me. He said we could all be friends, but I don't want that if it means he'll forget me. They're brainwashing him. I should just kill them.' She grinned as she giggled lightly under her breath. 'Yukki doesn't need anyone else but me.'
A hand placed gently on her shoulder caused her to snap out of her thoughts, her eyes immediately returning to normal as she turned to face Akise, who was gazing at her worriedly. "You seem uneasy. Is something bothering you?" He asked. "Uh.. No, no I'm alright. I'm just thinking, is all." She smiled, but he only looked at her more questionably. "Are you sure?" "Yeah.. I'm just in deep thought. Sorry to worry you." She kept her smile and he gave her one in return, but it was that kind of expression that meant he didn't believe her. "If you're sure."
After breakfast the group sat in the living room. "So, what should we do now?" Hinata asked after an awkward silence filled the air. "I don't really know.." Yukiteru fidgeted with his hands in his lap.
"Hmm... Let's go visit the city, and just hang around and shop!" Mao suggested. "As long as the guys are separated from the girls." Kousaka said, disgusted by the idea of having to look through female's clothing shops. "Fine!" Mao stuck her tongue out at him childishly. Yuno pouted as she clutched onto Yukiteru's arm. "No, I can't be separated from Yukki!" She whined as Yukiteru squeaked, feeling a blush rise to his cheeks. "Yuno, that's too tight!"
"Aw, don't worry, Yuno! You'll see him later. I think it would be nice for the girls and boys to bond with each other. Especially you, Yuno. You need more girl time with us." Hinata grinned as Yuno pouted. "But-"
Akise chuckled. 'She is cute.' He mused as he watched her cling tighter to Yukiteru as the other two girls tried to pry her off of him.
Eventually Yuno complied after being reassured by Yukiteru and she sighed as she followed the girls around the shop. "Look, Yuno! These clothes are super cute! They look like they would suit you." Hinata smiled as she pulled an outfit from the clothes rack and handed it to her. She held it and looked at it uninterested as the two girls looked at other wracks. "Wah, so cute! Look at this outfit!" Mao exclaimed as Hinata leaned over her shoulder. Yuno sighed as she placed the clothes back on the wrack and walked out unnoticed, before they could catch her leaving. 'I can't be friends with them. I don't trust anyone but Yukki.'
She found herself bumping into someone, with the familiar fluff of silver hair. "Akise? What are you doing out here by yourself?" She asked as she stepped back. He smiled. "I thought I'd find you around here. I wanted to see you." She stiffened in place, before relaxing her shoulders. "Why?" "I thought it would be nice to get to know you better, because I've lost all my memories previously of you." She frowned. 'If you still had them I would've killed you by now.' It still bothered her though, she couldn't just easily forget everything that's happened between them and let it slide. "..Alright." She said as he smiled still and walked with her.
She was careful not to give out any information that could trigger a bad memory as they talked, only giving him simple things like her hobbies.
"What are your parents like?" He asked after a while. Yuno froze at the question and stopped walking. He gently placed his hand on her shoulder as he gave a worried look. "Yuno?" "M-My parents..." She mumbled. She was suddenly hit with a mixture of good and bad flashbacks of her parents, making her clench her head as she trembled lightly. "Yuno!" 'I killed them..' She felt tears sting her eyes as she snapped out of it, feeling Akise's hands shake her gently. He just gave her a worried look and she stopped trembling, wiping her eyes as she gained her composure. "I-I'm sorry.." She muttered awkwardly. By now she should be used to her parents' death affecting her like this, but sometimes the memories were too painful to remember. She never thought she'd ever find herself crying in front of Akise either. "No, it's okay. I'm sorry I asked.. I didn't know.." He said softly as he bit his lip. There was an expression she never thought she'd see from him either. Sympathy. His eyes held a gentleness she's never seen, it all felt too strange that he was giving her a genuine smile, not the cold mocking smirks she would always recieve from him. "It's okay.." She gave a small smile. "Why don't I walk you home afterwards?" He offered. "Uh, sure.. But you don't have to.." She scratched her cheek as he just smiled in return. She wasn't sure how to react to Akise Aru showing her kindness.
When the sun set he walked with her, a comforting silence lingering in the air as they walked down the less busy streets of Sakurami City.
" I had fun with you, Yuno. We should hang out again." He smiled. She mustered a smile and nodded. "Uh, yeah.." He didn't seem to mind the awkwardness and just smiled softly as they made her way to her house. "Thanks for walking me home.." She muttered. "It's my pleasure, I'll see you soon. Bye, Yuno." He said as he waved, and she gave a small wave back before entering her home. 'At least he doesn't suspect that I killed my parents anymore...'
She sighed as she plopped down on the bed after slipping some pajamas on. There's just too many things that were out of place about this whole situation and it frustrated her.
'How much worse could this situation possibly get?'