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Isono spun a strand of hair around her finger as she made her way towards the dining room. Her brain felt like it was melting, a bit. She keeps looking at the ground, thinking she might find it dripping onto the floor.
It’s a silly thought! She’s been having a lot of those, lately.
The situation she’s in makes that understandable, she thinks. She figures everyone is a bit paranoid right now. Lack of sleep does that to a person. She remembers one time she stayed up for two whole days for some stream marathon... She got a ton of new subs from that one.
She tugs harshly on her hair and wonders if she’ll get a chance to sleep again.
Obviously, she will. Obviously. Obviously, obviously, obviously. It’s so obvious she shouldn’t even be thinking about it! Gosh, why does anyone listen to her. Always saying things that are so obvious.
Still, she thinks about it. She’s a pretty easy target. Small. Weak. Painfully exposed.
She tries not to think about how easy it would be for someone like Hama to snap her neck. And yet.
An arm suddenly grabs at her wrist, and she swears she feels her heart stop. Orange eyes blown wide open, she whips her head around to stare at her future killer. She’s certain, this is where she dies. This is what she gets for stepping out of her room. For walking around so carelessly. For-
“Isono.”
Oh! It’s Okazaki.
She relaxes a fraction, a sheepish smile on her face.
“Hanano! You scared me!”
He pulls away, and fidgets with his tie. He does that a lot. Fidgeting. Always grabbing at his wrists or picking at the fluff of his coat.
“My apologies.” He murmurs, and her smile becomes more genuine.
“Hey, it’s okay! I’m just a bit paranoid. I guess a lack of sleep will do that to you.” Isono shrugs, clasping her hands in front of her to keep them away from her hair.
“Cognitive impairment tends to begin after 24 hours without sleep.” Okazaki mutters. Head tilted in a way that Isono is pretty sure means he isn’t looking at her directly. “Hallucinations are common after 36 hours. As well as an increased appetite and extreme fatigue.”
“Huh.”
“S-Sorry.” Okazaki suddenly tenses. Grabbing onto his tie like he’s trying to strangle it. “I’ve been- Reading. To try and pass the time.”
Isono smiles. “Did you get the books from Ken? He told me something similar yesterday.”
Isono wasn’t aware that Okazaki could tense further, but he did. Suddenly looking like a bow with it’s string pulled too tight. A slight tremor in his hands that he hid by shoving them into his pockets.
“Yes. Though I think he is angry at me.” He pauses, turning his head to the side. “...He doesn’t like that I dog-eared the pages.”
She laughs a bit at that. “Aw, really? That’s kind of cute!” She raises a hand to her face, holding her cheek as she tries to imagine the argument. “It’s hard to picture him getting angry. He’s such a mellow guy!”
Okazaki chuckles darkly. “I guess he doesn’t appreciate having his things being damaged.”
“I guess that makes sense. I’m sure he’ll forgive you, though. Ken is really sweet!” She hopes he is, anyways. He seems nice. Sometimes he needs a bit of prodding to do things- but he’s never been rude.
She has to ignore the part of her brain that’s screaming at her. ‘you barely even know him! you’ve known him for less than a week! just because you’re taking a gamble on him doesn’t mean he’s safe!’ Something in her stomach tugs at her and aches. She wants to trust Ken. She has to trust Ken. She’s already decided to trust Ken, so if she’s wrong about him then it doesn’t matter- if she’s wrong she’s going to die either way.
“Looks can be rather deceiving.” Okazaki mutters. Isono looks down at the floor.
“I guess so.” The hallway is quiet. Her heartbeat pounds in her ears. She almost asks him- can you hear it? can you tell how terrified i am? do you think i’m going to die here? do you think he’s going to kill me? -but she doesn’t.
Obviously she doesn’t.
“Um. I’m gonna go get food, I think. Like you said, increased appetite!" She chirps, pointing a thumb at the dining room. “It was nice chatting with you, though!”
“Wait!” He calls out to her, grabbing her wrist again just as she starts to leave. Her body goes still, and she looks at him.
She sticks her smile to her face with sheer willpower, and forces herself not to snatch her hand away. Guys don’t like it when you do that. They’re more likely to hurt you if you look scared. So she smiles. Smiles nice and pretty like and ignores the goosebumps on her arms.
“I-” Okazaki lets go of her, and she slowly clasps her hands together in front of her chest. Eyeing him and the hallway around her. There’s no one else here. Of course there isn’t.
He takes a deep breath in, and lets it out slowly.
“I’d try and stay out of the kitchen, if I were you.” He whispers.
A chill runs up her spine.
“Why is that, Hanano?” Isono asks lightly, stepping back ever so slightly.
“I saw Sasaki go in there earlier.” He explains, stepping closer. “And I have noticed she has been rather... anxious seeming lately. I would hate to have something bad happen to you, Miki.”
“I’m sure she wouldn’t do anything!” Isono adds, tensing as Okazaki snorts. “But if it makes you feel better, Hanano, I can go back to my room.”
He does seem to relax at that. Shoulders dropping and a shaky breath leaving him.
“It would mean a lot to me.”
“Alright- thanks for looking out for me, Hanano!”
“Of course.” He grabs at his wrist and twists it. “The world would be a lot worse without you in it.”
Isono chuckles a bit, trying to ignore the sting from her cheeks. “Aww, thank you so much! You be sure to stay out of trouble too, okay?”
“Of course.” He murmurs again, sounding a bit distant.
“Well!” Isono claps her hands together. “See you later!”
It’s not her cleanest exit. It’s awkward and obvious and she’s certain he can see her sweating. But she just needs to leave. She needs to leave, and go hide in her room. She needs to be away from here.
He doesn’t reply to her, anyway. Seeming lost in his own world.
She’s thankful for that.
Earlier, she prayed that someone would walk in on them. Praying that someone, anyone, would be there. Make sure he couldn’t do something to her in the open.
Now she’s thankful her prayers tend to go unanswered. She keeps the smile on her face until she gets to her dorm just in case- but she thinks if she actually ran into anyone right now she’d just run.
She triple checks her lock before letting herself lay down on her bedframe. Taking in shuttering, shallow breaths.
Was Okazaki threatening her, or warning her? She can’t tell what kind of danger she’s in.
She’s safe for now. But how long will that last? She can’t stay out of the dining room forever. Is that Okazaki’s plan? Scare her into starvation? Not the most effective. She can always ask Tsuno to get her things. Or she can go to the storage room.
Maybe he’s going in there to kill Sasaki. Maybe she just sent another girl to her death by leaving like he asked.
“Attention students.”
The sudden voice over the intercoms causes her to gasp. Body flinching harshly.
She barely has time to catch her breath before it continues.
“A body has been discovered.”
Something inside her goes completely cold.
She raises her hands to her mouth just as tears sting her eyes.
“Oh god,” She thinks. “What the hell have I done?”