Chapter Text
It had been about a week since this killing game began. My morning started the same as always, with the Monokubs announcement displayed on the monitor. God were they annoying.
I half listened to whatever nonsense they spewed while I drug myself out of bed. I rubbed my eyes as I shuffled over to my closet full of identical uniforms. As I got changed and ready for the day I headed for the door. Right as I was about to reach for the handle I stopped. What’s this?
I bent down in front of my door to pick up a poorly folded piece of paper. The side facing up read:
“To Shumai!!!（╹◡╹）♡”
Kokichi…
Begrudgingly, I unfolded the wrinkled note to see what Kokichi wanted this time. The contents inside read:
“Heeeyyyyyy! Wanna play a fun a game Shumai??
Oh wait this is a letter so u can’t actually respond…(^з^)-☆ Oh well! I’m sure u already said yes! Somewhere around the school I’ve hidden a very explosive surprise@(・●・)@!!! At 10 AM today it’ll explode if no one is able to find it…! Soooo u better get searching!!”
- Kokichi Oma o(｀ω´ )o
What?! A bomb?? Where would Kokichi even have gotten one from..? I don’t have time to think about that right now, I have less than two hours to find this thing!
8:15
I stuffed the note in my pocket as I rushed out of my dorm room and towards the dining hall. By the time I reached it I was out of breath. Wheezing a little, I pushed open the dining hall door. Everyone immediately turned to face me.
8:20
“Shuichi? Is everything ok bro?” Kaito asked as he made his way over.
“Poouchi is probably just out of breath from fucking his pillow too hard..” Miu said dismissively.
“Miu! That isn’t a logical deduction!” Keebo chimed in.
Before responding I scanned the room to confirm my suspicions,
Just as I thought, Kokichi was nowhere in sight.
“Kaito.. everyone.. something serious happened this morning!” I huffed out as I slowly regained my breath.
I pulled the crinkled note out of my pocket and unfolded it for the others to see.
“Kokichi hid a bomb somewhere in the school, and we only have two hours to find it before he detonates it!” I explain.
“Where did he even get the bomb from?!?” Tsumugi exclaimed in disbelief.
“Are we sure this is even real? Why would Kokichi want to blow up the whole school? He would die too, you know..” Maki asks, skeptical.
“Real or not we can’t take that chance!” Kaito booms. “Let’s all split up and search this school from top to bottom! Miu, Keebo you guys search everywhere outside including the labs. Maki, you and I have the first floor covered. Tsumugi you take second, Himiko third, Gonta fourth and Shuichi you’ve got the fifth floor! Let’s all meet in the courtyard in 50 minutes to discuss what we find!”
8:40
We all nodded in unison before heading to our designated areas.
8:50
As I made my way up the stairs I compiled a mental list of all the rooms on the fifth floor. I decided to start with Tsumugi's lab as it was quite large, leaving plenty of space to hide a bomb. After digging through countless prop sets and costumes I left the ultimate cosplayers lab.
9:15
Dammit! I had less than an hour left to find this thing! I began to pick up the pace, running frantically from classroom to classroom. Each one seemingly more empty than the last.
9:45
Finally the last stop on the fifth floor was my lab. I walked up to my lab door out of breath. Just as I was about to open the door I heard faint clinking come from within. My hand froze in place, hovering over the doorknob. It returned to my side as I shifted over to peek through the small crack in the door. With squinted eyes I saw a small figure sitting at the table towards the back of the room. White sleeved arms were placing and replacing down objects I couldn’t quite make out, on to the table. A blur of purple hair flew back as the figure sat back in the chair, folding their arms. They looked back at the table then towards the door, impatience showing through their body language.
Kokichi!
I hesitated there at the door, contemplating whether or not I should grab the others or confront him myself. It was now 9:50, there’d be no way I could find everyone else in time!
As I thought things over I subconsciously shifted my weight onto the outside doorframe, causing the floorboards beneath me to squeak. Shit!
Just as expected of the Ultimate Supreme Leader, Kokichi noticed the almost silent noise. He jumped up out of the chair and made his way to the door.
Shit, shit, shit, shit!
Just as I made up my mind to open the door myself I felt an opposing force pulling the other way.
Kokichi was holding the door shut.
“Heeeyyy Shumai!! You sure took your time finding me huh~?” He beamed as he allowed the door to be cracked just enough for us to see each other properly.
“Where’s the bomb Kokichi?”
“Hmmm,” he seemed to stall as he peered around me, looking to see if there was anyone else nearby. “You know, it’s rude to try and enter someone’s place without bringing a gift.”
“W-what are you on about? You’re in my lab!”
“So? I prepared such a great surprise for you though and you brought nothing to show your appreciation!” Kokichi whined.
“I wouldn’t say a bomb is a great surprise Kokichi” I sighed, already getting frustrated and confused minutes into talking with him.
“Who ever said it was a bomb?” Kokichi said as he tilted his head and brought a finger to his lips in an attempt to look cute and innocent.
“But your note said-“
“Yeah I know! It is a bomb! I was just testing you nihihi!” Kokichi laughed.
Uhg talking with him makes my head hurt…
“Look Kokichi-“
“It’s 10 AM Shuichi. Which means it’s time..” all traces of laughter and fake positivity had left Kokichi’s voice.
“But I-“
“Time for our Tea party~!” And there it was back again.
“What-“ before I had time to protest Kokichi had drug me into my own lab.
Arm linked with mine, he pulled me towards the small table at the back by the fireplace. The fake fire crackled as Kokichi ushered me into a chair across from him. Finally having a moment to gather my bearings I was now able to see what Kokichi had been tinkering with. Splayed out on the table was a white ceramic intricate tea set and a few matching decorated plates piled with scones, cookies, and other various treats. There were only two tea cups set out, I could see the remainder of the set just past Kokichi, half hazardly stored on my desk. Along with various wrappers, crumbs, and boxes..
Great, just one more thing for me to clean up..
The purple haired leader must have caught me staring at his mess rather than his organized arrangement in front of us.
“It wasn’t me, Shumai! A ravenous bear broke into your lab and ate half the snacks I so graciously brought before running away without cleaning up!” He spewed while making a convincing puppy dog face to match the story.
“There aren’t any bears here though-“
“I know! That was a lie!” He grinned
I wonder how long he’s been waiting here? He wasn’t at the dining hall this morning so what that “bear” ate was probably his breakfast…
“So Kokichi, about the bomb..”
“Shhhhh. Let’s eat first~!” Without warning Kokichi shoved a scone into my mouth.
“Hffgh-!” Instinctively I took a bite and caught what fell out before it hit the table.
It was vanilla flavored with blueberries baked into it. The sweet crumble momentarily distracted me. Kokichi had an almost sincere looking grin spread across his face. I could feel my face beginning to reflect how flustered this was all making me.
So that was his goal, to get me to lower my guard.
I went to speak but Kokichi had another scone locked and loaded. But I was prepared this time, I covered my mouth with my hands blocking his scone attack. While muffled, I continued my investigation, “Kokichi please can you be serious for five seconds!”
“…”
The supreme leader stopped and was silent for the first time in a long time.
“Kokichi..?” I mistakenly moved my hands away from my mouth, reaching out towards the boy across from me.
“That was five!!” He beamed before stuffing another scone in my face.
Damnit. Talking to this guy is impossible!!
Pulling the second scone out I sighed.
If he won’t talk about the bomb, I guess I’ll try asking about something else.
“So why the tea party? I asked as I defeatedly continued eating the scones.
“Mmm, finding the perfect hiding spot for that bomb reeeaallly wore me out, so I was hungry.” Kokichi said nonchalantly as he began eating a scone himself.
Right. So what he really meant was just as I thought, he skipped breakfast.
“Why in my lab?” I said as I reached to pour myself some tea.
“Isn’t it obvious Mr. Detective?” Kokichi hummed.
I squinted at him as I tried reasoning things out for myself. I took a sip of tea as I forced my brain’s cogs to turn. Kokichi glanced over at the closet housing various vials, then it hit me.
The poison!
I spat out my tea as soon as I realized his implications.
“Aww looks like you figured it out! I was hoping you’d get through at least a few more cups before noticing..” Kokichi frowned.
He was lying, he wouldn’t have given it away so easily with his glance if that were the case.
“Why poison me if you’re going to blow up the whole school anyways??” I asked as I wiped the corners of my mouth.
“Nihihi~! I was lying about the bomb silly! That was just to get you to find me!” He giggled.
“What-!? So everyone’s searching the school for no reason-?”
“Nihihi~ yep!”
My mind raced as Kokichi continued snacking as if this whole conversation were normal. He brought his teacup up to his mouth, about to take a sip. Did he forget it was poison?!
Without thinking I reached across the table and smacked the tea out of his hand. The cup and its contents clacked against the wooden floor. Somehow, it didn’t break. A small gasp escaped Kokichi as he appeared genuinely shocked. I froze.
“I- uh-“ I stammered, “you said the tea was poisoned…. Idiot..” I mumbled
And just as quickly as he lost his composure, Kokichi regained it. “Nihihi~! Awww Shumai was worried about me!!” Kokichi beamed.
“Well yeah, just because you're an asshole doesn’t mean I want you to die..” I admitted as I scratched the back of my neck.
Kokichi just smiled, a bright ear to ear smile that caused his eyes to crease and his dimples to show.
Then he leaned in, close, too close. I blinked in disbelief as I felt my face heat up.
What is going on!?
“Kokichi-“
“There was never any poison Shumai~” he whispered, his breath brushing against my ear as he lingered.
“What-?” But before I could ask any more questions Kokichi had spun out of his chair.
With his hands behind his head he began walking backwards as he faced me still. “Sorry, I gotta run but this was really fun Shumai!” He cheered as he spun on his heel and ran out the door.
“Wait-!” I stood to follow him but my reaction time was too delayed. By time I made it out to the hallway Kokichi was already nowhere to be seen.
I just stood there, flustered and confused as to what had just unfolded.
What the hell was any of that!?!? Why’d he lie about the bomb, the poison? …. Why did he get so close just to whisper that to me..? And why did my face get hot when he did…?
I turned back around to look into my lab where Kokichi had left his mess. I sighed before I got started cleaning things up. I tended to the spilt tea first as I didn’t want a stain to form. Not that it really matters anyways in a place like this..
Then after disposing of all the boxes, wrappers, and crumbs I was left with Kokichi’s tea set.
Where’d he get this set anyways? It seems too intricate to be one randomly found in the warehouse or dining hall..
Placing that thought aside I carefully packed the delicate set back into the case Kokichi had left on my desk. As I was placing the last cup into its slot I noticed some odd lettering on the bottom.
What’s this?
I took it back out, and gently flipped it upside down to examine it better.
“OMA.” Was sketched onto it sloppily, presumably with a permanent marker.
“Huh..” I hummed to myself.
I guess there’s even more I don’t know about Kokichi than I thought…
I finished tidying things and slid down into my desk chair to rest for a moment. I glanced back at the case housing Kokichi’s tea set. I suppose I should return it.
As I moved to stand up I paused… and instead slid my chair closer to the desk. The sides of my desk were lined with drawers housing various office supplies amongst other things. After rummaging around I found what I was searching for, a pen and paper. And so I began my letter…
After a few minutes and multiple failed attempts that lay crumpled up in my trashcan, I was finally satisfied. I secured my final draft to the tea set case with a piece of tape. As I made my way out of my lab, case in hand, I ran into all the others.
“Shuichi! Are you alright!?” Kaito exclaimed as he ran over to me.
“We saw Kokichi wandering around the courtyard after we all met up there, but you never showed.” Keebo explained.
“Yeah Kokichi told us you found the bomb and defused it, what happened?” Tsumugi added.
“You forget to come tell all of us cause you got lost looking up your own ass shitichi?” Miu asked.
“Ah no- sorry everyone..” I began.
“What’re you apologizing for Shuichi you saved us all! We should be thanking you, right guys?!” As Kaito said this he pulled me into a side hug. I shifted the tea case to my other hand, making sure to keep the note side facing away from the others.
Not that I’m hiding things from them, but this is easier than trying to explain something I barely understand myself.
“Ah that true, thanks Shuichi! Gonta very greatful!”
“Nyeh I could’ve stopped it too with my magic..” Himiko muttered.
After exchanging gratitude with everyone I decided it best to not correct the narrative Kokichi had given them. Once all the excitement had settled down we all went our separate ways. I headed back to the dorms, making a quick pit stop at Kokichi’s room.
My hand hovered over the door as I contemplated knocking. I could feel my face flushing at the thought of having another conversation with Kokichi today… I can’t handle any more of his nonsense right now.
So instead I just resigned to setting the tea set down in front of his door for him to find it himself later.
As I walked away I glanced back down at the note I wrote,
“Dear Kokichi,
If you wanted to hangout you could’ve just asked.”
- S.S