Chapter Text
Just another fucking day with Miu.
Well, at least, it was supposed to be. Yet, it turns out, Rantaro is a lying snake! Not like Kokichi can really say anything, but that’s not important. When he said “We’re going back to ours” he didn’t just mean the people that live there, he meant everyone! For a sleepover!
Kokichi spent the whole car ride back complaining, whining about “sharing his sacred space with a niwit like Kaito”. As they neared the destination, Kokichi slowly realized something. It’s obvious Miu and Rantaro were going to share a room, they had a room to themselves, but there were only two other rooms. His room and the guest room. And there were two blow-up mattresses. Which meant someone would have to sleep in his room. With him. For the whole night.
He made a quick prayer for God to strike him dead that very moment.
“Fuck are ya doin’, Cuckichi?” Miu questioned, shooting him a disappointed glare in the visor mirror of the passenger seat.
“Haha, very funny.” He scoffed and rolled his eyes. It wasn’t gonna be Maki or Kaito, was it? It was gonna be Shuichi… FUCK!
They all inevitably arrived at the clown house. Kaito immediately took to his one specific chair in the corner of the room that he had to force Kokichi out of to own. Maki, Miu, Rantaro and Shuichi all sat on the sofa, Miu using Kokichi, who sat himself on the floor, as a leg rest.
They sat there for the next few hours, not caring to notice as the sun set and the room filled with darkness. Well, until, Miu turned her phone on to check a notification and was almost instantaneously blinded.
“Let’s go to bed then…” Rantaro sighed, turning down the brightness of his girlfriend’s phone. This was what Kokichi was dreading. He was gonna have to spend the next few hours with someone he held the biggest grudge against. I mean, he left him for the most boring people in the world, why would he not hate him?
Well, enough of the self-loathing. It was gonna happen anyway, no stopping it. And it was then that he realized… he was also stupid! Because as he watched Rantaro get the blow-up mattresses, he only saw one. Not the two that he remembered.
“Taro. I thought we had two. Where’s the other one?”
“Really? You don’t remember? Because you made a huge deal of Gonta popping it when he came over last time.”
Ah, of course. How could he forget? He asked for a sleepover with Gonta because they hadn’t seen each other for a week and wanted to catch up. Apparently, much to the shock of Kokichi, he was dating not one, but TWO people! Gonta, of everyone ever living, had the mental capacity of a fucking iguana. How he managed to get someone Kokichi bullied relentlessly and someone that terrified everyone he came across into a relationship and Kokichi couldn’t even score someone as a joke surprised him entirely.
Well, no matter. Surely he doesn’t care and he isn’t suffering from crippling loneliness, right? Right.
“...So who's having that one?”
“Kaito. He said he can tough it out on the floor and let Shuichi have it. But I did overhear Maki and Kaito talking and apparently, by the sounds of it, he just said that so he could inevitably move on the bed with Maki. I don't want his eyes clawed out, so he's having it and sleeping on the floor.”
Kokichi froze. He had to share his bed with Shuichi.
And he was. Right now.
Stuck in an uncomfortably small bed with someone he promised he wouldn’t talk to ever again. It was torture. Every brush of skin, every shy glance, every gentle breath sent shivers down his spine. And, despite all of that, Shuichi didn’t seem bothered at all. In fact, it looked like he was sleeping peacefully, lips parted, quiet snores filling the room. God, he looked gorgeous. Wait- huh? Oh whatever.
Kokichi rolled over, grumbling. Of all people. He’d absolutely prefer for Shuichi to be in Rantaro’s room and be stuck with Miu.
Miu…
His mind raced back to the events of the day. All he could really remember was the look of genuine terror when Rantaro realised she was ‘missing’.
But what if she wasn’t safe?
What would happen then?
He worried, he remembered it, he remembered worrying.
If something actually happened to her… how bad would that be?
“But nothing did.” He jolted to sit up right, glaring down at the supposedly sleeping male beside him.
“You're supposed to be asleep.”
“Yeah, but with you tossing and turning every 5 seconds, it won't let me drift off.” Shuichi sat up next to him. “Also, you’ve been thinking aloud the whole time we've been in here. Miu’s fine, there’s no point in worrying about what could’ve happened, because it didn’t happen.”
Kokichi stared down at his hands, pondering. He was right, and it stung.
“Don’t try to calm me down when I know you were freaking out too. You just wish I wasn’t incompetent so I would say that to you.”
“T- that’s not what I-”
“It doesn't matter.” Kokichi glanced at the male sitting beside him. They were close, so close he could smell him. He smelt nice. “I doubt you'd actually listen to me if I did say that. You'd probably want Kaito to say it or something.”
“Oma…” Shuichi looked disappointed. Fuck. That hurt-a lot, but Kokichi had no clue why. Why would he feel bad for upsetting him?
“No, ugh- just forget I said anything.” He fell back down, wrapping himself in the blankets up to his face.
“They made me choose.”
“Hm?”
“Kaito and Maki. They said that if I wanted to stay friends with them… I had to stop talking to you.”
He slowly sat back up, an eyebrow raised. “You serious?”
“I didn't want to. Obviously. Why would I pick anyone over you? But I fucked up and made a horrible decision, based off of how things are now. I get that you probably hate me, but I just need to tell you that I'm sorry.”
Wow. Kokichi really didn't expect that. It was such a random thing to bring up.
“I never got the chance.” The other continued, not even bothering with eye contact. “You cut me off before I could explain. And you started hanging out with these guys. You're so different than when we were kids, it makes me think what I was making you hold back. You seem so lively now than you were. I'm sorry if you ever felt the need to hide yourself from me.”
“...I just did it because you were so quiet. I didn't wanna, like scare you or anything. God, how did we even get to this…? This is such a random thing to bring up.”
Shuichi chuckled, but it sounded hollow. “I just thought you should know now that I have the chance to tell you. Goodnight Kokichi." He laid back down, wrapping himself up tightly.
Kokichi did the same, lying on his back. “Goodnight… wait-” Kokichi!? Since when did he say that!? He was calling him Oma earlier, right? He heard Shuichi laugh, and he knew it was on purpose. “When did we get to a first name basis, huh!?”
No response. And, just like earlier, he heard quiet snoring.
“Oh don't pretend to be asleep!” Kokichi groaned, but didn't say anything more. Why was he making such a big deal about it anyway? He should be happy, not annoyed. He got a long-needed apology. Why was he stressed about being called his first name by Shuichi of all people? Surely that was a good thing.
So why did it bother him so much?
It couldn't be because he was upset and didn't want it, no. No way. He was definitely happy to be back on friendly terms with Shuichi, so what's the fuss?
It couldn't be… because he… was waiting for it. Right? Right?? Couldn't be because he stayed up every night thinking of what could've been. Couldn't be because he wanted the others gone, so it'd only be Kichi and Hara, against the world, like always. Couldn't be because he…
liked him
Right?
Didn't he though?
Did he though?
He was kept awake all the time. Wishing things would be different. He wanted to be alone with him, always and forever. He had dreams he wished he didn’t because it left him with a huge problem every morning and a familiar feeling. A feeling he hated. That doesn't mean…
Oh!
Oh…
He did.
He liked him.
He LOVED him.
It felt horrible, yes, but it was the truth. Kokichi was in love with someone he just started talking to again. How pathetic would that sound to have someone explain why he's been a little off? How did this even happen…
Well, no biggie.
No one finds out. Ever. That's set in stone.
Well, until he ends up telling Miu.