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In a rare turn of events, Monokuma and the Monokubs decided it would be a good change of pace to take the entire class out for a camping trip. Of course, the area was monitored and bordered by the Exisals, ready to punish any student that had attempted to escape. Unfortunately, camping was not your ideal past time, so you weren't looking forward to sleeping outside on the cold, hard ground, among the dirt and bugs. Protesting wasn't allowed, however - you had no other choice but to go along with whatever Monokuma and the Monokubs had planned, lest you be punished by them for disobeying the rules.
"Alright, everyone! Let's get everything set up, starting with the tents!" Kaito boasted.
Reluctantly, you followed Kaito's orders. You worked together with Kirumi and Maki to set up a large tent that would fit half of the girls. Kirumi did most of your work, as you had never set up a tent before and weren't sure what you were doing.
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After all of the tents were set up, everyone gathered around the firepit. There were log benches evenly placed around the firepit, making enough spots for everyone to sit. Kirumi had prepared a variety of campfire snacks on the picnic bench nearby. You were always impressed by how she was able to prepare such a grand feast for everyone in such a short amount of time. Kaito and Shuichi struggled to start the fire with only sticks and dead grass, while everyone else lined up at the picnic table to grab their food for the night.
Eventually, Kaito and Shuichi got the fire roaring, lighting up the area with a strong orange light. Everyone sat down and enjoyed their snacks by the fire, while being entertained by some of the other students during the night. Korekiyo told unsettling folk tales that sent a chill down everyone's spine. Kaito had his head up to the night sky as he searched for constellations and frantically pointed them out to whoever would listen. Miu kept pushing people to play truth or dare, but everyone knew she was just going to dare people to do overly sexual things, like skinny dip in the lake nearby or make out with a random person in the woods. As the night went on, all of the students began winding down and going to bed one by one. You were tired after all of the exhausting work that came with setting up the tent, but not tired enough to even consider sleeping outside for the night. The amount of people that sat by the fire slowly dwindled down to only a few students. You zoned out and stared into the crackling flames of the fire, eyes feeling heavy, until suddenly someone sat on the log bench beside you with a heavy thump. You peered over and noticed Gonta was gazing down at you with a look of concern on his face.
"Hi, Y/N! Something wrong?" he asked.
"Oh, hi Gonta... yeah, I'm not a fan of camping, and I'm not really looking forward to sleeping outside tonight..."
"But sleeping outside is so relaxing!" he argued.
"Ah, maybe for you, but not for me..."
Suddenly, Gonta stood up and shot his hand out towards you.
"Come. Follow Gonta!"
You hesitantly placed your hand in Gonta's. He grabbed your hand and pulled you off of the bench with such force that you thought he was going to throw you. He led you down a path into the woods that slowly grew darker and darker as you walked further from the fire. You were stumbling over your feet to try and keep up with his quickened gait. Suddenly, you felt yourself trip over a large tree root that stuck out of the ground - you let go of Gonta's hand to break the fall with your own hands as you fell face first towards the ground. Gonta noticed that you let go of his hand and stopped to see what had happened. He turned around and noticed you were on your hands and knees on the forest floor. He rushed over and knelt beside you to help you get back up on your feet.
"Oh no! Y/N, are you okay??" he panicked.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine... I think I should just go back to the campsite for now."
"No, we're almost there! Gonta gonna carry you, okay?"
"Oh, uhh... okay.."
In one swift motion, Gonta swung you off of your feet and picked you up bridal style. You could feel your cheeks flush red at his sudden movement, but thankfully it was too dark for Gonta to see how embarassed you were. Instinctively, you wrapped his arms around his neck to hang on for dear life. You ended up blushing even more at the fact that your face was so close to Gonta's in this position.
After walking for a few more minutes at Gonta's pace, the two of you reached a small clearing in the forest. He set you down gently on the soft grass and examined the area, double checking that it was safe for the both of you to spend the night here. You dusted yourself off from your fall earlier and turned towards Gonta, who was looking the other direction. Making his final decision, he removed his bug case from his shoulder and set it down on the ground beside his feet. He began to unbutton his suit jacket, fumbling with the buttons in the dark. Then, he approached you once his jacket was off, and draped it around your shoulders like a blanket. Out of nervousness, you tensed up when the large article of clothing made contact with your skin. His brown suit jacket was several sizes too big for you, and draped down to your thighs.
"Y/N, you okay?" he inquired. He bent down to your height and looked into your eyes.
"Yeah, I'm just nervous, that's all..."
"No need to be nervous! Gonta will keep you safe!" he stated. He smiled confidently, hoping his words would reassure you.
He straightened his posture, towering over you, and began to undo his tie. The moon was just barely bright enough to see Gonta's muscular silhouette in the dark. You almost wished it was a full moon, just so you could see more of him underneath his suit jacket and admire his form. Once his tie was fully undone, he set it down next to the bug case on the ground, and began to unbutton the first few buttons on his dress shirt.
'...Is he stripping down?" you thought.
"Gonta used to sleep naked in forest, but now Gonta gentleman. Don't worry!" he said, interrupting your thoughts.
Once Gonta was fully comfortable, he sat down on the grass and patted on the spot beside him with his left hand, beckoning you to come and sit with him. You obliged, and carefully sat yourself down next to him. Slowly, you started to feel reassured about this whole "sleeping outside" thing. Gonta's jacket was still warm with his body heat, and combined with his presence and his foresty scent, relaxation was beginning to set in. You let yourself lay on the forest floor and shut your eyes to bask in the moment. Gonta leaned back and laid down with you, peering over at your face.
"Gonta.. can we cuddle? Just for a bit?" you asked sheepishly.
"Oh! Uh.... yes, of course, Y/N!"
You rolled over into Gonta and wrapped your arms around his large frame, burying your face into his chest. Gently, Gonta reciprocated and wrapped his arms around you, being careful not to crush you. He rested his chin on top of your head and breathed out calmly, basking in the moment. It was nice to be away from the others for once, away from Monokuma and the Monokubs, just to have this moment between the two of you together. Gonta's arm made for a perfect pillow, and, eventually, you lulled off into a pleasant slumber, enveloped in Gonta's warmth and protection. Deep down in his heart, Gonta loved you, but wasn't quite sure how to show it to you yet. He hoped that this gesture was enough to show you how much he cared about you. He gently began to pet your soft hair with the hand that was on your head. Gonta let out a relaxed sigh and closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep.
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When morning rolled around, the two of you were found sleeping in a much more intimate position than the night before. Gonta was laying on his back with his arm around your waist, while you were still snuggled up to him on your side, with your head resting on his chest, and your left leg draped over both of his legs. Gonta was already awake at this point - after spending so long in the forest, he learned to get up quite early, but he didn't dare move an inch to disturb your slumber. Instead, he stared up towards the treetops, watching as the leaves rustled in the warm summer breeze, and listened to the birds chirp sweet songs to each other.
Your eyes fluttered open after one of the most relaxing nights you've had after participating in this cruel killing game. However, when you realized the position you and Gonta had been sleeping in, your pleasant awakening was ruined. You yelped and shot up from your sleeping position, and crawled about a foot away from Gonta.
'Great, I definitely ruined things with this guy....' you thought.
Out of all of the students, you favoured Gonta the most. He was so kind and gentle, and just wanted to help everyone escape. Not to mention, it was cute to hear him ramble on about bugs, and watch his eyes light up as he found new bugs to show you. It also didn't help that his physique was very impressive. After some time, you realize that you didn't favour Gonta, but rather, you had a massive crush on him. You tried your best to hide it from him and the other students, but you had a feeling that everyone else was starting to catch on to the fact that you had feelings for him.
Gonta sat up after you crawled away from him, with a look of surprise and confusion on his face - he thought you were relaxed, and it baffled him that you were suddenly scared of him.
"Y/N, what's wrong? Did Gonta startle you? Sorry!" he apologized frantically.
"Ah, no, Gonta, it's just that I forgot we were cuddling, a-and I didn't want to make you uncomfortable or anything..." you trailed off.
Suddenly, Gonta scooched over closer to you, to the point where his thigh was almost touching yours. You gulped, blushing madly at how close he had gotten to you. There was no hiding your feelings now - you had to confess now or never. You peered up at Gonta's face, and noticed that he was also blushing. Perhaps this feeling was reciprocated?
"Um... Gonta enjoyed cuddling with Y/N last night..." he mumbled, struggling to turn his thoughts into words. His red eyes drifted off and looked down at the vibrant coloured grass beneath him. His blushed cheeks were starting to flush an ever deeper shade of red.
"Um... Gonta likes Y/N a lot! Gonta.... uh... loves Y/N!!" he exclaimed. He covered his eyes with his hands, trying to hide his embarrassment.
Your heart swelled with an overwhelming feeling of euphoria. Never in your life have you experienced your feelings getting reciprocated, let alone with such an amazing guy like Gonta. You placed your hands on his wrists and slowly guided his hands away from his face. Impulsively, you placed a quick kiss on his cheek, which was surprisingly soft, and very warm from his blushing. Gonta let out a soft moan of surprise, caught off guard by your romantic gesture.
When you pulled away from the kiss, you looked into Gonta's eyes and smiled warmly.
"I love you too, Gonta!" you proclaimed excitedly.
Gonta smiled at your words, which quickly turned into a large grin that went from ear to ear. He let out a hearty chuckle and practically leaped at you, knocking you down to the forest floor. He towered overtop of you, pinning your wrists down to the ground, in a rather suggestive manner. Then, out of nowhere, he kissed you on the lips - you could tell he was nervous, as this was most likely his first kiss. His lips were soft and warm against yours - it was a feeling of pure bliss that you longed to experience with Gonta. Gonta pulled away and saw the look of bewilderment on your face. Fearing he did something wrong, Gonta got up off of you and looked down at your face, his brow furrowed.
"Sorry! Did Gonta do something wrong?" he panicked.
You sat up and looked Gonta in the eyes, Then, you took his large hands in your own, stroking his knuckles with your thumb.
"Haha, of course not Gonta! I really enjoyed that kiss. And I'm very happy that you feel the same way about me." you reassured him.
The two of you sat like that for a while in the grass, enjoying each other's company. Your romantic moment was ruined when you heard Kaito's voice echo through the woods, calling your name and Gonta's. He had every right to be worried - after all, this was a killing game, not to mention that the two of you could easily get lost in the woods.
"I suppose we should head back to the others, shouldn't we?" you suggested.
Gonta nodded and let out a quick "Mhm!" of affirmation. He gathered his things and straightened out his clothes, doing his best to make sure he didn't look too disheveled. You helped Gonta tie his tie, as he could only do it in a mirror. After you helped him get straightened out, the two of you started to head back to the campsite, holding hands. Gonta ensured that he walked at a slower pace so that you could keep up.
When the two of you got closer to the campsite, you spotted Kaito in the distance, awaiting your arrival at the entrance of the forest.
"Where were you two? We were all worried sick!" he exclaimed.
You explained the situation to Kaito in full, leaving out the romantic details. After all, your confessions of love only just happened - you planned on revealing that detail to everyone later on, but only when Gonta was ready to as well.
"Everyone! Look who I found!" Kaito announced to everyone, interrupting their breakfast.
All of the other students gazed over to you and Gonta's direction, some of them sighing with relief that the two of you were still alive.
"Gonta and Y/N! Where were you guys last night?" Keebo questioned.
"Hahaha! I bet she was gettin' dicked down by Gonta last night. I'm jealous!" Miu joked. You scowled at her, causing her to gasp and mutter an apology under her breath.
Kaito explained to everyone else what happened, sparing you the chore of having to do it to everyone individually.
"Well, whatever. I'm just glad to see they're safe. Let's chow down on some breakfast already." Ryoma suggested.
You and Gonta were the last two to get breakfast - it ended up being a little cold, but you didn't mind. As long as the two of you were in each other's company, you couldn't be happier.