Chapter Text
“Holy shit.”
“Huh? You don’t like it?”
Hajime shakes his head, still in half-disbelief. “N-No, of course not. It looks great, but… eight thousand dollars?”
Nagito puts a hand on his shoulder, a gesture that probably wouldn’t seem particularly romantic to an outsider though Hajime believes otherwise. “It’s our honeymoon, darling. Plus, we can definitely afford it.”
Hajime rolls his eyes. “Well of course you can afford it, you’re practically loaded. But I don’t think it’d be very fair to you if I couldn’t contribute too.”
“We’re married now,” Nagito points out. “Everything I own, you own too. It’s our money, not mine.”
“Legally, yes, but…”
“Nope,” Nagito interrupts. Hajime can’t even be annoyed; there was a certain charm that Nagito possesses when he finally decides to be assertive. “You work so hard. You’ve already done so much for me, Hajime. I… I want you to let me return the favor.”
Suddenly, the image of the trial comes to mind. His very first trial—the first success of many more that followed.
But with him by my side, it was the sweetest victory I’ve ever experienced.
“Fine,” Hajime relents with a tired smile on his face. “You win.”
Nagito looks absolutely overjoyed at this development. “Incredible! What a hopeful turn of events!” he declares. “I don’t know what I’d do if you refused!”
“Really?”
A long pause follows before Nagito finally makes a confession.
“I, uh... I already bought the tickets.”
Goddammit, Nagito.
I love you.
After weeks of anticipation, the day finally arrives. It is somewhat cloudy and the slightest bit windy—though that kind of weather isn’t exactly rare in Manhattan.
Something Hajime thinks is slightly strange is the lack of other people on the dock. There are only about nine others who appear to be passengers.
“It’s supposed to be an exclusive trip,” Nagito supplies when Hajime expresses his concerns.
“I guess that makes sense,” Hajime concedes.
Not anyone would be so eager to spend six thousand bucks on a cruise.
With nothing much else to do, Hajime decides to observe the other passengers a little closer. After all, he is going to spend the next week or so interacting with these people. Not to mention, it seems like this is quite the odd lineup.
No… maybe ‘odd’ isn’t the right term for it. Perhaps ‘diverse’ would make a little more sense.
Standing next to a camera-bearing woman with red hair is a short girl in a kimono. She’s whining about something, though they are too far away for him to make out exactly what that is.
Then there’s probably the most unapproachable person he’s ever seen in his life. The man is about 6’2 with muscular arms and what seems to be a face of perpetual disdain, almost comparable to Prosecutor Togami’s.
Hajime shivers. Don’t wanna mess with him.
Conversing with the muscular man is someone who appears to be the captain. Somehow he doesn’t look the slightest bit intimidated by his companion’s appearance.
Maybe they’re friends, then?
In the middle of the dock is a relaxed-looking woman with considerable… assets. With the mole on her chin and the cigarette sticking out from between her lips, she possesses a more mature sort of charm.
Finally, standing near the far end of the dock with her back to the rest of the crowd is a pale woman with long, dark pigtails. The way she carries herself reminds him vaguely of a grim reaper—watching silently, but always ready to attack. There’s something else about her that strikes him as odd, but it’s merely impossible for him to pinpoint it.
An odd, foreboding feeling passes over him. Intuition isn’t exactly his strongest sense—he’s primarily inclined to things that are more concrete—but that unexplainable dread that lurks inside his mind is undeniable.
Nagito, ever perceptive, seems to notice it too.
“What’s wrong?” he asks. His voice is comforting, but unfortunately, it’s not quite enough to dispel his feelings completely.
“I don’t know,” Hajime answers. Despite being vague, it’s the closest he can possibly get to the truth when he doesn’t even know the truth himself.
Nagito frowns and clasps his hand a little tighter. “Look, if you aren’t feeling up for it, that’s totally fine by me. We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”
“Are you crazy ? You paid a shit ton for this trip, and I’m not about to let it go to waste,” Hajime insists, his pragmatic side beginning to regain control.
Nagito looks like he wants to object, but can’t seem to find the resolve to do so. “I guess… but you’re not obligated to do anything, you know.”
“You’re right. I’m not obligated to stay with you, but I’m choosing to,” Hajime responds. “So… wherever you go, I’ll go.”
And that’s final, he adds in his head, avoiding vocalizing it for the fear that he’d come across as too aggressive.
Meanwhile, Nagito’s pale cheeks are now the color of strawberries. “I… I’m so lucky to have someone like you.”
Hajime smiles. “Likewise.”
He’s trying so hard to put on a brave face. He really doesn’t want Nagito to worry—whether it be about him or about the possibility of something bad happening on the trip.
He’s already been through hell as it is… he needs this just as much as I do. If not more.
But I still can’t shake that feeling.
“May I have everyone’s attention, please?” a loud, authoritative voice rings out. Its source appears to be none other than the captain himself. “We will be boarding the ship momentarily. Employees will be arriving to assist you all with your luggage shortly.”
Hajime sighs.
Looks like there’s no turning back now.
Boarding the ship is a surprisingly quick and easy affair. They give their bags to the bellboy, show their tickets to the cruise director, and enter.
The ship itself isn’t necessarily the largest, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in extravagance. Large ornate chandeliers hang from the ceiling, casting an almost ethereal glow onto the room below. The floor is made from pale pink marble, and it’s polished to perfection, and the accents on the walls and ceiling are done in gold.
All-and-all, it’s nothing short of breathtaking. During the two years he’s spent with Nagito so far, Hajime has experienced more of the luxuries of life, though he can’t say he’ll ever grow 100% accustomed to it.
“Nice, huh?” Nagito asks with a proud smile.
Hajime nods. “Oh, for sure. It’s like a castle.”
No wonder it was so expensive.
“If this is a castle, you’re my king,” Nagito quips in response with a small giggle. Hajime flushes out of a mix of embarrassment and endearment.
“R-Really,” he mumbles, earning another laugh from Nagito.
“Of course.”
“Tch. How annoying,” an unfamiliar, childlike voice snaps. “Get a room for your nasty lovey-dovey shit, why don’t you?”
The voice belongs to the blonde girl in the kimono, who somehow manages to seem even shorter up close.
“I am so sorry,” the red-haired woman quickly apologizes, shooting an icy glare at the blonde girl. “Hiyoko doesn’t seem to know how to keep her mouth shut .”
Hiyoko pouts, scowling up at the woman. “That’s not true, Mahiru! I’m just being honest!”
The woman—Mahiru, apparently—rubs her temples and sighs. “I think I feel a headache coming on…”
Hajime—and probably everyone else who’s ever interacted with Hiyoko—can’t help but agree.
Awkwardly, Nagito taps on his shoulder and whispers in his ear.
“Do you think we should, uh, meet some other people?”
“That’s probably a good idea,” Hajime concurs.
They decide to move over to the center of the main area, where a large group of passengers and crew has congregated. There are a couple of comfortable-looking couches arranged in a circle, and they take a seat on one of them and introduce themselves.
“I’m Hajime Hinata,” he says, trying his best to be as casual as possible. It’s somewhat difficult to adjust to a conversation that isn’t with Nagito, his clients, or the people at Hope’s Peak.
“Nagito Komaeda,” Nagito adds. “Hajime’s husband.”
Hajime can’t help but notice the slight wavering in Nagito’s voice when he says his last name.
It makes sense, though. I can see how he’d be reluctant to associate himself with his parents. Especially after… what they’ve done.
“Hiroko Hagakure,” the woman with the cigarette says. “Out of curiosity, is this your honeymoon?”
“Yeah, actually. Looks like it’ll be a nice one,” Hajime responds with a chuckle. It feels like a half-lie, but he tries his best to ignore it.
“Ah, really?” a man with green hair and piercings says. “Don’t worry, we’ll do our best to make it unforgettable.”
He’s wearing a uniform… an employee, maybe?
“Oh, hell yeah!” a woman with electric blue eyes and strawberry-blond hair cheers. “You motherfuckers are gonna have the time of your lives!”
After a few minutes of chatting, Hajime learns that the man is named Rantaro Amami and he’s the ship’s first mate. The intimidating muscular man reluctantly introduced himself as Juzo Sakakura, and the loud-mouthed strawberry-blonde is called Miu Iruma (though she prefers it when people refer to her as ‘The Gorgeous Girl Genius With A Massive Brain and Even More Massive Tits,’ supposedly.)
Finally, it’s the brown-haired woman’s turn to introduce herself. Now that he can finally get a closer look at her, Hajime notices her eyes. They’re a bright shade of red—practically too bright to be real—and almost glassy, in a way.
“I’m Maki Harukawa,” she says, her voice monotone. “I believe Shuichi has mentioned you before.”
“Shuichi Saihara? You know him?” Hajime asks.
She nods. “Yes. Mutual friends.”
It didn’t take a genius to tell that Maki wasn’t exactly up for much elaboration on the subject of Shuichi, so Hajime changed it.
“So, uh… are you excited for the trip?”
He winces the moment the words came out of his mouth—they were undeniably corny and felt very unnatural. Meanwhile, Maki appears somewhat surprised at the question.
Maybe she isn’t used to small talk… or maybe she just thinks it’s a stupid question.
“I-I guess so,” Maki says as she fidgets with one of her pigtails. “It’ll be a nice break from work.”
“Aw, come on!” Miu interjects loudly. “It’ll be more than just a break! Show some enthusiasm!”
Somehow, after this comment, Maki looks even less enthusiastic than before.
She gets up from the couch, her arms wrapped protectively around her chest. “I’m going to my room. I’ll see you all later tonight.”
And with that, she’s gone.