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Snow falls outside in gentle, powdery waves as Maki, with expert precision, claims her ninth kill of the morning. It's a clean kill, a perfect headshot, and rather than filling her with the sick emptiness her kills normally do, this one fills her with a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.
"MISSION COMPLETE" pops up on the TV screen in bold, black letters. She lets out a small sigh, nodding to herself, and relaxes back into the couch, shifting under the warm, thick blanket covering both her and the girl next to her.
Chiaki had ended the semester by waving some game in Maki's face and declaring that they should play it together over winter break. She hadn't expected that to mean nearly every day of winter break, but Chiaki kept bugging her and who else was she going to hang out with, really? She's not close to many people in her class, aside from Kaito and Shuichi. She's hung out with them a few times over the break, but she'd rather not third wheel on all of their dates, regardless of the fact that they would definitely let her. She's not that desperate for company.
This particular day at Chiaki's, she'd stayed the night, owing to the unexpected snowfall. Sleeping in Chiaki's bed (Chiaki having declared "it's fine, I can sleep anywhere" before demonstratively passing out on the sofa) and Chiaki's clothes (a pair of grey sweatpants and a pink sweatshirt, which she was still wearing) was...difficult, for certain. She's not blind to her developing feelings for the other girl. But she'd managed to stifle her embarrassment and fall asleep eventually.
The next level loads in, and Maki finds herself faced with...a completely enclosed space, with no obvious way out. She frowns, runs her character along the edges of the room just to make sure. There must be some kind of trick here, she thinks, biting her lip. If Shuichi were here, maybe he'd be able to figure it out. But as much as she's taken to the mechanical aspects of games, she doesn't have much patience for puzzles.
"Chiaki, what do I do here?" Maki asks, frowning.
She expects the other girl's lazy voice to follow, like oh, this is where you have to use the grenade to blow a hole in the wall or if you crouch, you can find a secret item, or some other nonsense. Instead, Maki just hears quiet, steady breathing; not until she feels a sudden, warm weight on her shoulder and an arm brushing against her thigh does she realize that Chiaki has fallen asleep.
Maki swallows. Her hands grip the controller tighter.
"Of course," she mutters, less at Chiaki for falling asleep--she might as well be mad at water for being wet--and more at the whims of fate for putting her in this situation, with a cute girl pressed entirely against her and no way to escape.
Not that she needs to escape. She's being overdramatic, and there's no good reason to wake Chiaki up. So she leans back and tries to accept her situation. It's difficult, especially when one of the ears of Chiaki's hoodie starts tickling her neck, but she's an assassin. She's fine. Completely fine.
"...You know, I didn't even want to spend the entire winter break with you," Maki grumbles. "But you were so insistent...you basically messaged me every day asking if I wanted to play with you. Don't you have other friends? It seems like everyone from your class really likes you."
Chiaki doesn't respond. Good. She's really asleep, then.
"Did you...really want to hang out with me that badly?" Maki adds quietly. "You're just like...well, he already knew about my talent, though. If you knew, would you really still want to spend time together like this?"
That's the question that's plagued her, ever since Chiaki started following her around. Asking her about video games. Acting like they were...friends, or something.
"Most people who've found out about my talent have tried to kill me. You don't seem like the type of person capable of that." Maki fiddles with the control stick absentmindedly, expression sad and distant. "...But I never thought I was that kind of person, either."
But against all reason and sense, Maki...wants to trust Chiaki. She wants to believe this girl she's spent so much time with, who's taught her a new hobby, who trusts her enough to be alone with her and fall asleep on her shoulder...she wants to believe Chiaki would still believe in her. It seems like an impossible dream, but it's happened before. And isn't some idiot always telling her the impossible is possible?
A long time ago, it would've been unthinkable for her to believe in someone this easily, this quickly. But maybe, after a year at Hope's Peak...she's changed a little. Her friends have made her softer, warmer. And she's ready to take the same leap of faith they did by trusting her.
"I don't...know if I can tell you everything just yet," Maki admits. "But maybe someday, I will. Someday soon. And then I can tell you..."
Maki trails off. Chiaki continues to sleep peacefully on her shoulder.
"Well," Maki sighs, with a small, fond smile, "I should clear the first level before I worry about the final boss. Right?"
Maybe Maki's imagining it, but she swears Chiaki smiles just the tiniest bit in her sleep.