#alice in borderland fic

[chishiyasleftnut]

Hi everyone ＼(٥⁀▽⁀ )／This is another fic I wrote in the middle of the night, but I couldn't get the scenario out of my head haha. It's not smutty at all, but I want to experiment a bit with different genres. I hope you'll all like it! (ღ˘⌣˘ღ)

2+1

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤 Genre: Fluff w/ mild angst. Warnings: Minor existential dread, mentioning of abortions. Pairing: Dad!Chishiya x fem!reader.

Plot: After a long day at work, dad!Chishiya contemplates about his new role as a father. Is he even cut out for the job?

1140 words. 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

Chishiya had never seen himself as the father type. Perhaps it was the subconscious fear of becoming like his own father - distant and uncaring - that kept him from wilfully pursuing that path. However, despite his best efforts to prevent it, you had managed to accidentally become pregnant and he had had to come to terms with the scary reality of fatherhood. 

It wasn’t as bad as he thought. Sure, the little creature was awfully noisy and smelly at times, but he had to admit that she was also kinda cute. Did the positives outweigh the negatives? He wasn’t sure. But he knew he didn’t completely hate being a parent as much as he originally feared.

Luckily, Chishiya was earning enough money to secure you a long maternity leave, allowing you to bond well with your baby in a way Chishiya never would. He had accepted that and somewhat found peace with the fact that he wasn’t expected to be as close to the tiny being as you were. It was easier to handle having to accept that he was the secondary caregiver and not the primary.

Another benefit of his job were the long hours, which gave him a much-needed break from dealing with home life. He had always used his work as a coping mechanism to deal with every small, negative thing life threw at him, but it was only after becoming a dad that he realised that that’s what his own father did too. It scared him to admit that he shared more than just blood with the man who had been so distant his entire childhood. However, he tried to shake the feeling and convinced himself that he was taking extra shifts to afford your maternity leave. Mh, yes. That was 100% why.

Despite desperately seeking a sanction from the reality of his newfound status as a dad, a part of him was always looking forward to coming home. And so he did this night, stepping into your shared apartment, which was only lit up by the moon shining luminously through the big and modern windows. The apartment, which long ago had been only sparsely decorated (just as he liked it), was now covered in proof of your child’s existence; no matter where he looked, he saw baby toys, neatly folded onesies, and an array of pacifiers in every colour possible.

Trying his best to ignore the way his once tidy apartment had changed, he walked with tired steps through the apartment until he got to the master bedroom. Slowly, he opened the door, mindful of the way it creaked so as not to disturb you or the little human sleeping safely in her comfortable crib next to your bed.

For a while, he stood still in the doorway, examining the way you and your baby’s breathing were synchronised, as if you had become one with one another. Although he would never admit it, he envied you - envied the way you so easily let this helpless child into your heart and how you so naturally took care of her every need in a way that Chishiya couldn’t make sense of.

It was those quiet moments that assured him that you made the right choice in keeping the child. Of course you had discussed the possibility of getting an abortion, but now that your daughter was in front of you - living, breathing, feeling - neither of you would want it any other way. How silly of you two to even consider any other option, he thought with a small smile creeping up on his lips.

With gentle steps, he walked into the bedroom, carefully closing the door behind him before approaching the bed. Despite how silent he was attempting to be, you regrettably woke up. He hated when he woke you up after a night shift - now more than ever. As a doctor, he was well aware of how desperately a new mother needed rest, and he hated taking that away from you for even a moment.

“Go back to sleep,” he whispered while climbing into bed next to you, still dressed in his hospital scrubs. “It’s just me.”

By instinct, you turned around to examine the small child, unable to fall back to sleep yourself until you had assured her that she was safely asleep. Luckily, she was, her chest rising and falling at just the right speed. He admired your natural dedication to ensuring your offspring’s safety and comfort. It always looked like second nature to you; like you were never, not even when asleep, not aware of how your daughter was doing.

Chishiya moved to embrace you, hugging you from behind and burrowing his face into your neck, taking in your scent. And that’s when he realised that work wasn’t his sanctuary; this was. It wouldn’t be easy for him to rearrange his mindset, but he knew he had to try. While you had never complained, he was well aware of how much being the prime caretaker of a newborn was taking a toll on you. You never got a full night’s rest anymore, surviving on napping throughout the day whenever the baby miraculously fell asleep.

That would have to change, and he knew it. No, he not only knew it; he wanted it to change. He wanted to be a better father and partner than his own dad was, and that started with reducing his work hours.

“I’m taking next week off,” he mumbled into the small hairs on your neck, unsure if you were even awake and listening to him. If he was honest, he wasn’t even sure if the comment was directed at you or if he just needed to say it aloud to believe it himself.

To his surprise, you hummed and scooted even closer to him, gently affirming to him that you were listening. Perhaps tomorrow, when he inevitably has to repeat the very same sentence, he will get a more enthusiastic response.

He could only hope that you were just as excited about the new change as he was. Still, he hoped you were without the deep fear that was echoing through his entire being - the fear of failure, of not being good enough for the sweet, innocent baby that was laying just half a metre away from the two of you.

In the last seconds before he slipped into unconsciousness, Chishiya, for the first time, found peace in his new role as a father, coming to terms with the fear of not being enough for the almost doll-like little girl that lay peacefully so close to him.

After all, very few great things were accomplished without fear and worry, and there was no doubt in his mind that this truly was a great thing. He could and would change. The two of you had turned into three, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

[keysmashingfantasies]

Hi, could you please do a story about Chishiya and his feelings for reader. Kuina teases Chishiya for liking reader and she keeps trying to play Cupid but reader is oblivious. He ends up actually getting embarrassed over Kuina bugging him and starts acting awkward towards reader and she wonders why so she confronts him and he awkwardly explains how he has feeling for her. Lots of fluff. I just imagine him getting all shy over not having interacted with girls much.

yay!!!! i love fluffy pieces. in my delusional heart alice in borderland is just a big sit/romcom. and that's it.

no warnings for this one. very vanilla and sweet. also for the sake of SHIT going DOWN on s2, this will be set on the Beach.

"What are you doing?", Kuina came closer with a smirk leaning over the railing with a smirk, next to Chishiya, that was well hidden beneath his hood, watching over you.

"Nothing. What about you?", he tried to appear nonchalant but, unfortunately, Kuina knew him too well.

"It doesn't look like nothing", she replied in a sing song voice, her eyes crinkling with a big smile that held a cigarette tight. "It looks like you're spying and drooling over the girl from the diamonds game!", she kept going, laughing up a storm. Thankfully, her cheery demeanor blended well with the other residents that were drinking and having fun despite all things.

Chishiya had a crush. What was first admiration stemmed from an outstanding performance from her on a diamonds game that took place in a music shop of all places, worthy enough of being invited to be an executive member, now grew into a full fledged crush. And much to Chishiya's dismay, Kuina clocked him immediately and now wouldn't leave him alone.

"Seriously, you've been at it for what? Almost a month now! Go talk to her! We can die at any moment here!", Kuina was growing frustrated. She missed her friend. When he wasn't thinking about his plans and improvised weapons, he was moping around like a highschooler in love and it was pissing her off.

"And you want me to do what? To throw myself at her like Niragi does with these poor women? I don't even have time for this anyway. Didn't have before this, don't have it here, probably not when we get out", he said. Kuina sighed. He really did sound like a mopey lovesick edgy teenager. Thankfully, he had a big sister figure and she was ready to intervene.

It didn't took long at all for Chishiya to keep bumping into you, the pair of you seemingly moved by the strangest coincidences.

First, it was Chishiya being interrupted by knocks at the door while he was tinkering with the tools he managed to sneak into the Beach under his hoodie, coming face to face with you.

"Uhhh. Good night?", he asked, suddenly flustered. Why were you in his room?

"Oh! I'm so so sorry. Kuina told me...", you paused, to check at the plaquette with the room number. "Kuina told me that this was her room. Oh, am I interrupting? Are you... her boyfriend?", this may be a weird way to check but this was the perfect chance for you to see. You've been seeing him in your peripheral ever since the game. You could barely concentrate, he was so cute.

"No! No I'm not her boyfriend. We are just friends", he said.

"Oh! Sorry, one of us must've gotten confused", you said, suddenly awkward. Now what? What would you say to keep the conversation going? It didn't matter because Chishiya shot your hopes down immediately.

"Well, actually her room is in this hallway. 516. Not 502", he said.

"Oh, okay. My bad", you said, turning to walk away, much to the dismay of Kuina who was peeking around the corner to see if her efforts at Cupid were working.

Then it was Kuina asking for help to find Chishiya constantly.

"Have you seen Chishiya lately? Can you help me find him, please?"

"Uhm... So many people. I wonder where Chishiya is"

"Can you check on Chishiya for me? I think he went to the roof".

Meanwhile, he was avoiding you like the plague. In his mind you certainly caught what was happening and was bothered by it. He, on the other hand, was embarrassed as could be. After having a stern talk with Kuina to get her to stop, he decided to save himself even more embarrassment and just avoid you.

You wondered what you did. Usually, Chishiya was stoic and serious. So when you greeted him good morning and he looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole, you knew you fucked up. But when Chishiya made his best to avoid you during a game, almost causing both of you to fall in a trap, it was time to do the grown up talk and talk to him.

Thankfully, you knew exactly where to find him now. After checking his room, 502, and getting no answer, you went to the next best spot.

You were right. Chishiya was there, on his spot, watching the sky. You remembered the time you had found him here by request of Kuina, and that you had compared him to a cat on a window. He gave you one of his "smiles", which was really just a quirk of his lips up, but now you wondered if he was just being polite.

"Chishiya?", you asked, slowly approaching as to not to frighten him.

"Y/N!", trying to not frighten him did not work. He composed himself quickly though. "What are you doing here?", he said in his normal nonchalant fashion.

"I... Do you mind if I join you?", you asked, sitting next to him in the concrete.

"No, no... Not at all", he mumbled. "What brings you here?", he said before his eyes grew a bit. "Is Kuina looking for me again?".

"What? No. I was just wondering... Lately, you've seem off. Like you're mad at me or something. I just wanted to know if I did something to upset you. I'm not trying to make enemies, especially not here", you seemed so sad, something clenched inside Chishiya's chest.

"You didn't do anything. I was embarrassed", he said after a few beats of silence.

"Embarrassed of what? You did nothing?", you said.

"Well, you see... Kuina is a good friend of mine. And she's been trying to help me. By making us bump into each other. Because since that first diamonds game I... You've... You were... I admire a lot what you did in that game, the way you played", he said.

"Admired?", a dopey smile made its way into your face. You had to add "cute guy you're into says he's admired you" to your list of evidence that you're all actually in heaven.

"Yeah. And as time went on it became a sort of... infatuation. Kuina was trying to help by inconveniencing you. And then it made me embarrassed to think it was because of me", he was looking forward, more through you than at you.

"You didn't need help. You could've just talked to me, like we're doing right now", you said, moving closer to look into his eyes. You felt your heart in your throat but he was so nervous you didn't want him to get even more flustered in case you looked at him funny.

"Yes but I wouldn't know how if you didn't come to me. This hasn't exactly happened before, didn't have the time", he said.

"Oh", you said. "Well, that's fine with me. And we're here now. Talking. And since we're on the topic, I have some sort of infatuation with you too", you said.

"And what now?", he gave you a smile. One of his Chishiya smiles.

"Now we stick together. And one day, when we're back, maybe go on a date", you extended your hand to him.

"Hmmm. Short term?", he took your hand in his.

"We find Kuina. And we thank her. And then we go to 502", you gave him a smile that made his heart do somersaults. He really owed Kuina big time.

[iheartcake123]

Loved your banda story! hoping you can make another story where Matsushita and Banda both have feelings for the reader and the rest is up to you.

hii! ahh glad you liked the first fic <33 i was so nervous about posting it for some reason hahah & thank you for the request- the ending was hard to write skkfjf but i hope you enjoy this :)

☁️insane-sunato banda☁️

warnings: spoiler for season 2, smoking and mentions of torture/killing

Masterlist

sunato banda x reader

“im suspicious of a lot of people. even you. so, why would i tell you who i think the jack of hearts is?” you looked up at urumi who was standing with her minions.

“i could never be the jack of hearts. i don’t have it in me to kill anyone” she responded with a pout and you rolled your eyes in response.

“whatever” you mumbled before standing up and walking away from the conversation, back to the central guardroom.

you had no energy to deal with anyone other than your close friend chishiya.

“how did we get stuck in a game with complete idiots?” you groaned approaching him.

he couldn’t help but laugh at your facial expression. you really were done with the game.

“stop laughing!” you held back a smile, stopping yourself from also falling into a fit of laughter.

that’s what you liked about your friendship with chishiya, he could make you laugh just by looking at you. even when you first met him at the beach, it was a friendship that formed without even trying.

“matsushita keeps looking at you” chishiya then raised his eyebrow in the direction of the tall boy who was stood in the corner of the room.

“he’s probably still holding a grudge after i turned down his offer of joining him in the game as his partner” your eyes scanned his facial expression and matsushita gulped before averting his eyes to the floor.

“banda as well” chishiya then added as he gently nudged you to which your eyes then flicked to banda who was leaning against the wall a couple of feet away from matsushita.

when your eyes locked with banda, an eerie smirk appeared on his face and you awkwardly cleared your throat.

“great. he’s probably plotting to murder me” you mumbled to yourself before turning back to chishiya “there’s just no privacy in this game, im heading to the staircase to try and get five minutes of peace and to maybe have a quick cigarette”

chishiya nodded his head. he understood that you didn’t mean him and that you just needed to get away from some of the other players. you sent him a smile and began to walk in the direction of the staircase.

“see you later” he called out to you and you quickly waved before disappearing down into the staircase.

“finally” you sighed with a smile leaning against the railing.

you reached into the back pocket of your jeans and pulled out a half empty pack of cigarettes. you took one out and pulled it up to your lips before lighting it with your lighter.

once it was lit you stuffed everything back into your pocket and enjoyed the silence as you took puffs out of the cigarette.

it was a unhealthy addiction. you knew that. but, in times like these sometimes a cigarette was needed.

your mind wondered to your other friends. were they okay? were they alive? you didn’t know.

it didn’t take long before your head flicked in the direction of the sound of footsteps.

it was matsushita. he was walking down the stairs with a snack in his hand. his eyes were glued to the steps as he walked and your eyes followed him as he continued to make his way downstairs.

just as he passed you suddenly, he then stopped in his tracks.

“smoking is bad for you” he said turning to finally face you.

���and so is pairing up with a murderer in a game about truth” you muttered to yourself under your breath, taking another puff before turning to him with a forced smile “did you need something?”

“oh-it’s just that smoking isn’t good for your health” he repeated fiddling with the snack in his hands nervously.

“i know that but i don’t care. at least not anymore” you then stepped forward towards him “you should try it, it helps with stress”

your hand then reached forward to offer him a puff of the cigarette.

matsushita stood and thought about it.

“you don’t have to try it if you don’t want to, i just thought you could use a bit of stress relief” you pulled the cigarette away but matsushita quickly stopped you.

“no, i want to try it” he grabbed the cigarette and took a deep breath in.

“slow down” you warned and pulled the cigarette away from his lips “it’s your first time and-”

before you could finish your sentence he started coughing hard.

“that’s enough of that” you sighed throwing the cigarette to the ground and stepping on it.

after a couple of seconds of matsushita coughing you send him a concerned smile.

“are you..okay?” you placed and hand on his shoulder and looked up at him.

a grin was plastered on his face as he nodded his head. you huffed in relief and brought your hand down his shoulder to his bicep area.

“thank goodness” you couldn’t help but chuckle at the situation “for a second there i thought you were going to pass out”

“you know, you’re right. it does help with the stress” matsushita’ eyes focused on your lips before then turning his attention to your hand that was still on his arm.

“oh um im glad it helped you” you cleared your throat while taking a step back “i guess i’ll catch you around”

you sent him a quick smile before speed walking back up the stairs to the central guardroom. you and matsushita just had a bit of a moment. and you didn’t hate it.

matsushita silently congratulated himself as he watched you walk up the stairs and when you were completely out of view, he let out an unsettling laugh. he had pulled off his plan of getting you closer to him.

“that was weird” your face expressing the confusion over what just happened as chishiya turned his attention to you upon hearing your voice.

“what was weird?” he responded.

“matsushita, i let him have a puff of my cigarette and then-i don’t know if was weird” you shook you heard trying to forget the moment.

“you do know he likes you?” chishiya added and your eyes went wide.

“woah, no way! that doesn’t even make sense”

“y/n he stares at you almost all the time and the first chance he got, he wanted you as his partner. whatever happened, he was probably trying to get your attention and make a move before banda does”

“im sorry did you just say banda? why would- none of this makes sense” you couldn’t believe what you were hearing but then the dots finally started to connect.

it all technically made sense. but why did they like you?

——————————————————————————————

banda watched you from a distance. your mannerisms is what attracted him to you. you weren’t evil yet you weren’t completely innocent either. the perfect balance. there wasn’t many things he found beautiful in life but you were definitely one of them.

he had to wait for the perfect time to make his move. so that’s why when he saw you sneak off to the bathroom, he followed.

now, he wasn’t a pervert and waited until he could hear the water running to suggest that you were done and now just washing your hands.

with no hesitation he entered the bathroom. the sound of the creaky door caught your attention and you lifted your head to look at the reflection in the mirror to see who it was.

your body froze for a second when you saw banda however, you played it off and went to grab to paper towels to dry your hands.

banda didn’t say a word. he instead just watched you.

as you continued what you were doing, you chose to just ignore his presence. you then made your way towards the exit.

just a second a way from opening the door and walking out banda harshly grabbed on of your arms and yanked you away from the door. he then used his body to block the exit.

this was when you couldn’t ignore him any longer.

“do i make you nervous?” he questioned reading your facial expression.

“no” you looked away to try and avoid his face but also to try your best to hide the fact that it was a lie.

of course he made you nervous. he was a murderer and you were alone with him in a bathroom.

“you’re cute when you lie” his voice was monotone but when you looked at him a smug smile was resting on his face now as he continued to stare at you “i like you..there’s something about you. we could get a long very well. what do you say? get to know me better”

you looked at him in awe. he was very straightforward and when he spoke, he had a charm to him. it was attractive. surprisingly.

you didn’t know what to say and banda let out a low chuckle.

“have a think about it” he leaned into your ear and you shivered as you felt his hot breath on your neck for a brief second.

banda then moved out the way and opened the door for you to walk out.

so you did.

and you immediately went to chishiya.

“this can’t be happening!” you frantically paced back and forth and then paused “you know what? im just not going to think about it. i have bigger things to deal with like, finding out who the jack of hearts is. surviving to get back to the others and figuring out how to escape this hellhole of a place”

chishiya nodded his head as he listened to your rant. as much as he wanted to give you advice, he knew this was situation that you needed to figure out by yourself.

shockingly, you had been able to avoid both banda and matsushita all the way to round 14. the only people that remained was chishiya, them, yaba, kotoko and you.

since you had been so focused on avoiding banda and matsushita, your plan of trying to figure out who the jack of hearts was ruined. you had no clue.

when round 14 ended, kotoko ended up dying. when everyone excited their cells you watched as everything unfolded. matsushita had been the jack of hearts this whole time. it all made sense and you priced everything together.

“y/n, tell them! im not the jack of hearts. it’s him. you know me, we almost kissed, i would never kill anyone” matsushita begged you as he grabbed your arm before pointing to yaba.

“im sorry but im on their side…there’s a reason they kept you alive. they must’ve made a deal” you told matsushita trying to get out of his grip.

matsushita’ eyes went wide as banda and yaba closed in on him.

“please you can’t let them do anything to me!” matsushita pleaded gripping your arm tighter.

yaba and banda then stepped in and ripped matsushita off of your arm. they then dragged him into one of the cells.

you closed your eyes as your hands began to shake. you could hear matsushita’ screams and you could only imagine part of what the duo were doing to him.

meanwhile, in the cell band squatted in front of the helpless man on the floor. he was furious that matsushita hadn’t let go of y/n earlier and he needed answers about this land.

“it’s a shame i cant kill you but there are still many ways to have fun” banda’ eyes went dark and he grabbed matsushita’ face and made sure it made contact with his blade.

after some torture, the game soon came to an end after matsushita purposefully guessed his suit wrong. he didn’t want to endure anymore from the duo that tortured him.

when the collar came off you knew it was finally over and you were relieved.

“go ahead without me okay? there’s a couple of things that i need to do. let’s meet at ____ in two days” you told chishiya and he raised an eyebrow but nodded.

“you know i’ll be there” chishiya pulled you in for a quick hug before making his way out of the prison.

you waited for banda and yaba to appear down the hall. when they did, banda knew to stop and talk with. he stopped in front of you while yaba continued towards the exit.

“have you decided?” he was smirking and you looked down at his shirt which now had blood on it.

you had thought about it. and despite everything, you did want to get to know him better.

“maybe im insane or maybe being in this world for so long has changed me. but, the answer is yes” you breathed out and banda looked down at your lips.

you noticed this and you began to heat up.

a part of you was screaming to kiss him but a part of you was screaming not to.

which one would win?

he leaned forward and so did you.

but just before his lips could touch yours, you put a hand on his chest to stop him.

“change your shirt first” you gave his chest a couple of pats before turning on your heel and walking to the exit.

“interesting” banda tilted his head to the side before shortly following you.

this was going to be fun.

[gay-dorito-dust]

⚠️A little drabble with slight Season 2 spoilers for AIB. ⚠️ this was shit.

“You had every opportunity to be rid of me and yet here I still breath, has my usefulness to you not ran out yet after all this time? Had there not been a time where you could’ve easily disposed of me?” You asked Chishiya as you dragged your bleeding form -curtesy of the king of spades- to mark your final resting place beside him, back pressed up against the car; too tired to accompany Arisu and Usagi to the final game but your faith in them was unwavering. They’ve came this far so it stood to reason that they could put an end to all this. You’ve all lost too much to meet your end here; despite how tragic that sounded, it was a befitting end. To die at the end of the game.

Freedom is almost within reach now and all you could do was reminisce on your time in the Borderlands as time etched away slower then usual. For you the more notable moments took place at The Beach; the once warm safe haven that turned into a nightmarish hellscape right to the very end as it burned down in a blaze of fierce flames. You met Chishiya and Kuina there during a period of your life where you’ve seen one too many of your friends die during the games; Even gotten betrayed by one or two during the more morally tolling ones, which forced your hand into killing them so that you may survive in their stead.

So your willingness to befriend or ally yourself with someone else were slim to none. At the time you didn’t care if you lived when participating in the games, so much so that it made you more reckless and daring during them. Which in retrospect was the dumbest shit you’ve ever done; thinking that the consequences don’t extend to you after your dead because they do and the games like to remind every participant of that. So when you did meet Chishiya and Kuina, you knew what they’re game was almost immediately.

They weren’t here to make friends and neither were you, which was why when one day they did approach you that you were immediately on high alert, hand reaching for the knife that you kept after removing it from the cold hand of a dead man you came across before reaching the massive mansion of party goers. They extended their hand in ‘friendship’ but you shut it down as you stared at them dead in the eyes and told them, “don’t think I don’t know what game your playing at because I ain’t willing in becoming an meat shield for either of you to hide behind when things get too rough. Find some other gullible bastard and quit bothering me.” Before leaving the pair in the hallway as you went to prepare for another game.

Another memory you remember so fondly was when after you had gotten hurt from a game, instead of going back to the cars that would lead you back to The Beach, you slunk your way into an alleyway to die, your position was very much the same as the one you were in currently, back pressed against the brick wall and waiting death to take you far away from this desolate hellhole. Just when you had closed your eyes in acceptance, a voice called out to you and it wasn’t belonging to an angel; It was Chishiya. “What’re you doing?” He asked, however you knew that he could care less for the reason, he just wanted to get a reaction out of you for his own entertainment.

“Waiting to die so I can be as far away from you as possible.” You replied, not bothering to opening your eyes to him.

“That’s a little dramatic don’t you think?” He responds, leaning against the wall as his eyes examine the wounds you received as his brows furrowed but not out of worry.

“Doesn’t matter, all that does is the fact that soon I’ll be free from all this pain and will never have to participate in another game as I cross over into the afterlife.” You stood to your reasoning with steadfast loyalty.

“Dramatic and selfish,” Chishiya said as he ventured forth into the alleyway and knelt so that he was in front of you, getting a better look at your injuries. He didn’t have the best view from where he was standing previously and decided that closer examination was needed. So he kept the conversation going without easing any suspicion within you as you ‘awaited death’ as you so kindly put it. “Your wounds aren’t that severe, they’re deep but the only everlasting thing they’ve leave is a scar at most.” He deduced as you opened your eyes to glare at him. “Now get up before the cars leave us behind and we’re presumed dead.” Chishiya then stood up, offered out his hand for you to take.

You begrudgingly took his hand as he then hauled you off of the floor and began to help you hobble back to the cars that took you back to The Beach, where Kuina was waiting in the lobby for him and subsequently you as she took you off of his hands and aided in getting you to Ann for medical attention. Luckily the additional days added to your visa allowed you to make a full recovery for the next game.

The rest were blurred chaos of varying degrees and the only face that you could clearly make out of that mess was Chishiya’s and his voice, cool under pressure, guiding you to clearing your hectic mind and silence the unnecessary noise that would’ve inevitably have you killed. Even when you weren’t accompanying him in certain games, his presence was with always with you that soon before you allowed yourself to be swept away with everyone else and their growing anxieties, you would clear away their screeching voices and allow yourself to let the answer come to you rather then hopelessly chase it.

“You’re right, I did have opportune moments where I could be rid of you in order to save myself but for some reason, I just let them keep slipping through my fingers. Every time. At first I was wondering if I had let this place force me into a moment of weakness. I was left perplexed and questioning everything when all but soon enough I found my answer.” Chishiya said calmly for a guy who had just gotten shot. Twice. “What was it?” You asked him, awaiting him to finish the sentence on baited breath. “I got attached.” He finally answered glancing over to gauge your reaction like he always did. Which was a habit of his that you’ve only began to take notice as of just recently. He never did once glance at anyone else other then you when he wanted to know how his words affected someone.

Chishiya knew how he made people feel but for some reason he put more effort into knowing how you felt about his words, his actions, everything. It was weird, he even did this back at the beach but when you asked Kuina about this, her answer didn’t make any sense to you. “He’s grown attached to you.” She said but you could only scoff at such ridiculousness, “he only cares about what I came give him. Face it Kuina, Chishiya would rather throw me under the bus then ever admit it to my face that he’s attached.”

You stared at him as though he had grown a second head all the while he rested his head on your shoulder, “what’re your plans after we get out of here?” He changed the subjected, already knowing how you felt about him, he always knew and deep down he believed that you did too and that’s why you didn’t say anything in response. “I don’t know, I’ve worn myself down by just trying to survive and outlive others that I haven’t given it all that much thought.” You admitted to him in a moment of vulnerability, “but I wouldn’t mind it if we went through the unknown together.” You added, resting your head on top of Chishiya’s.

“Is that so?” He asks with a slight air to his tone as though he found all this funny but his hand reached for your own, you tensed at how cold you’ve both become in such a short amount of time that you were starting to actually face your own mortality. It was scary but for Chishiya; you’d brave anything. “Only if you want to of course, wouldn’t want to deter the great Chishiya Shuntaro from better things.” You added as to make light of your situation but faulted when you felt him starting to weigh heavily against your side. “Chishiya?” You said softly. “That sounds nice,” he finally spoke after a moment of silence but his voice was a lot quieter then before, “see you on the other side.” He added as the blimp belonging to the Queen of Hearts finally came down in the form of fiery rain before everything became black.

You awoke in a hospital with no memory of how you got here. Lost and afraid you almost called out in a state of panic when is voice, cool and collected, reached out to you. Silencing the unnecessary noise within. “Your finally awake.”

[hoongiri]

vanilla latte — ryohei arisu

˚. ⋆　☄︎　🔭　in which you meet arisu for the first time after the meteorite— an internet cafe is a much more pleasant meeting spot than the borderlands.

　pairing — ryohei arisu x gn!reader (works both platonically and romantically)

　genre — fluff / angst (idk how to categorize this tbh)

　tags — aib s2 spoilers, post-borderlands au, reader and arisu were friends in the borderlands, reader was best friends with tatta before and during the borderlands, reader is acquainted with arisu's brother, sad boy arisu due to the deaths of karube and chota

　warnings — not proofread lol

—————

　it was taking everything in you to not drop out of university. you would think that after a deadly meteorite left you and numerous others hospitalized that you would get a break. unfortunately, you were wrong, as always.

　even though you were pronounced dead for one minute, there was no getting out of your dreaded assignments. perhaps you should honour your late best friend, kodai tatta, and drop out of school to immediately be sucked into a pyramid scheme. you sighed at the memory of him; you didn't think you would ever accept the fact that he was gone. it was all too sudden and incomplete— you should have at least been there to say goodbye.

　you shook your head at your pointless ideas, arguing with yourself that you wouldn't be able to pursue your lifelong dream if you were to leave university unfinished like your late friend. the homework would have to be done, despite how much you'd rather stay in bed. plus, you could use a distraction. studying was better than coming to terms with loss.

　after about twelve minutes of begrudgingly filling out questions, you couldn't help but find yourself coming back to blankly stare at your ceiling. it was obvious that you could do with a change of scenery. you had just survived a literal space rock falling from the sky, the least you could do is get out of your bedroom and into the city of tokyo to find a comfortable place to hit the books. plus, you could use something to drink in the meantime.

　fortunately for you, you wouldn't have to walk for long before spotting a familiar building— an internet cafe which you had often seen on your instagram feed being praised for its delicious beverages. from the looks of it, it didn't look too busy at this hour, either. you mentally shrugged, figuring that this could work for your study time.

—————

　taking a seat at one of the computers in the corner, you can't help but look up at a boy around your age furiously clicking his keyboard and mouse. it alarmed you slightly, as you had dabbled in your fair share of computer games when you were younger, but never to the extent of the male adjacent to you. biting your bottom lip, you stifled in a laugh; you had never seen someone so passionate about video games before. it was almost concerning how much emotion he put into clicking buttons. perhaps you should try his methods to cope with losing tatta.

　turning your head back to your own computer, you made a mental note of all the work you had yet to complete, sighing as you realized that the list was almost neverending. your mind idly faltered, instead letting in thoughts of anything but your work into your brain. one thought in particular caught your attention— it was about the passionate gamer you had just observed. before you had looked away, you caught a small glance of his face, more specifically his eyes; you could have sworn you had seen them before. a wonderful shade of deep brown, with sparks of integrity and honesty behind the irises. where have you seen them before? they made you feel too warm to have just belonged to a stranger, but then again, you could count on one hand the amount of friends you've ever had. this boy was not one of them.

　you decided that you needed some caffeine, as you obviously were starting to show signs of sleep deprivation. standing up from your chair, you carefully make your way over to the counter, intentionally not looking in the way of the fluffy-haired gamer. quickly ordering your classic drink of choice (a vanilla latte), you leaned against the wall, entraced in deep thought once again. if there was one thing to know about you, it's that you aren't the kind to easily let things go. could he have been in the same class as you? that was possible, but you ruled out the possibility knowing that you would have at least known his name.

　your train of thought was broken by the voice of the barista. "one vanilla latte—" he started, and you made a start for the counter to collect your beverage. however, your path was blocked by the only other customer that had caught your attention— the fluffy-haired gamer. you watched as his hands attached to both sides of the mug that you believed to be your latte. "—for arisu," the barista finished.

　arisu.

　his name is arisu.

—————

　your arms held on tight to tatta, your face buried in the crook of his neck as you two leaned against the door to an apartment. ever since most of the population of tokyo had disappeared, you two remained attached to the hip— even in near-death situations.

　"game clear."

　a sob escaped your mouth at the annoucement. the nightmare was over, and you and tatta were still alive. in all honesty, it was thanks to the lanky boy that had saved your best friend. him and the girl that you had spotted climbing between floors. they both seemed accustom with these death games, seeing as neither of them were paralyzed with fear at the sight of a man wearing a horse mask successfully killing a majority of the other players.

　"let's get out of here," tatta said to you, to which you responded with a solemn nod. slowly standing up, you looked down at the floors below you. though you saw no dead bodies, you could see their blood; that was enough to make you wince. turning your head towards what you could only assume was the exit, you spotted your two saviours conversing. sighing with relief, you started to follow tatta towards their direction. passing the boy that had so courageously pushed your best friend out of the way of the tagger, you paused. turning to face him, you gave him a sincere nod— you couldn't muster up a smile in these conditions.

　"thank you for saving tatta. he's all i have." making eye contact with you, the boy gave you a humble nod.

　"it was nothing," he replied.

　from one of the lower floors, you could hear a male yell out. the name "arisu" rang throughout the floors, catching the lanky boy's attention. you figured it had to be the yellow-haired partner of the boy who you could now identify as arisu.

　following tatta, you exited the game arena, unaware that this would not be the last time you had your ass saved by a boy called arisu.

—————

　your face lit up. you knew the surname arisu— you used to be in the same class as hajime arisu before you switched out (you were too frustrated that he always came top of the class). that had to be hajime's brother, right? it was the only explanation as to why he had seemed so familiar.

　approaching the younger arisu brother with a smile on your face, you looked up at him.

　"are you hajime's brother?" you asked the boy, tilting your head ever so slightly to the side as you awaited your answer. you could tell that your question had very obviously caught him off guard, seeing how he now resembled a deer in headlights. he nodded quickly, picking up his latte in the process.

　"uh— yes, i believe so," he started, mixing up his words in the process. "sorry. i am, my name is— um. it's ryohei." you couldn't help but feel a smile creep upon your face. you had never asked him for his name, just if he was related to a boy that had been in one of your classes previously. a typical response from a gamer, you thought. you opened your mouth to introduce yourself, but you were cut off by the barista calling out your name. the both of you turned your heads to see a beverage identical to the vanilla latte in ryohei's hands on the counter. picking up your drink, you grinned at the boy.

　"you have a nice name," ryohei said to you. not moving from his position in front of the counter.

　"thank you, as do you."

　a moment of awkward silence passed, and neither of you had moved— you were sure that the boy in front of you had an intense gaming session to return to, yet here he was; staring at you. perhaps he was experiencing the same sense of deja vu as you had? no, that didn't make sense. you knew him from his brother, but he couldn't possibly know you from anywhere else.

　he must be lonely.

　you weren't the only person who had lost somebody close to them due to the meteorite. could he be one of those people, too?

　it seemed too soon to ask.

　"if you want to sit at my table, you're more than welcome to do so," you said to him. taking your vanilla latte from the counter, you nodded to your study setup in the corner. his eyes followed yours, acknowledging the unoccupied computers next to you.

　though he said nothing, his warm brown eyes were enough to give you an answer.

　little did you know that this would become a regular occurrence, with you walking into the internet cafe every week to see ryohei at your regular table with two vanilla lattes. perhaps adding another friend to your list wasn't so bad after all.

[daidonzo]

I keep scratching, but somehow I can't get in

part 1 │part 2 │part 3 │part 4

'Break his legs so that he dies in the next game.'

'What the fuck?'

The words came out of your mouth, clear as water. A visceral reaction to hearing Aguni telling that to Niragi. He wished you hadn't said anything, because everyone in the group of militants behind him turned around to look at you. Not him, although he did move his head slightly so that he could observe you from the corner of his eye. His body, however, kept facing the two people he was harassing — a young man, thin and tall, with shoulder-length dark hair, and an athletic girl with a pretty face. He had played a game with both of them long ago, Five of Spades. Kuina, your friend, was also sitting beside them.

Aguni had told you. And he had to hope that you knew why he was doing this; it was not the first time something like this happened, and sooner or later Takeru would come to save the day and put Aguni in his place. It was a way for him to… what exact words had he used? Establish dominance.

You had gone to play a game that night. And that's why he had decided to do this today, to scare the newcomers, to put on this show. He hadn't expected you to return so soon. He was glad, of course. Glad you were alive, glad he would be able to stare at your big eyes and wake up by your side one more day. He could do it forever. He would, if it depended only on him.

But he didn't want you to see this. To see him like this.

'You're not breaking that guy's legs.'

Fake it until you make it, people said. And even if you weren't afraid of the man you shared a bed with every single night, you did find Niragi and Last Boss intimidating. You had mentioned it to Aguni, many times. The latter because… well, what kind of psycopath walked around hunched over with a katana? It was pretty self-explanatory.

'Thinking you are Pyramid Head from Silent Hill and actually living to it is enough to creep anyone out.' You had said one night you were both standing in The Beach's lobby, pretending to shiver just by thinking about it, using it as an excuse to seek refuge on his arms. Aguni wasn't sure who that person you had mentioned was, but he had wrapped his arms around you and kissed your forehead.

'He's not going to harm you.'

'Oh, I know. I have you to protect me.' You had then given him a quick kiss on the lips, not caring if anyone was watching.

Niragi you just found unpredictable, and Aguni had to agree that it was the most horrifying thing about him; the fact that no one ever knew what was going through his head. The big rifle resting on his shoulder he had seen him shoot a bit too many times didn't quite help.

It was him, Niragi, with his tacky shirt and piercings who walked in your direction, stopping mere centimeters away from you. You were taller than most women, but you still had to raise your head to be able to look at him in the eyes. Were you pretending not to be intimidated at all or were you really that courageous?

'Ah, are you jealous the boss wants a taste of the new girl?'

Aguni had to stop himself from grimacing when he heard that. He was angry, he was ashamed. Panic slithered up his throat, choking him. He swallowed, uncomfortable, the muscles on his neck standing out.

He couldn't see your reaction very well.

He could only hope those words hadn't felt like a punch straight to the stomach to you. They had to him.

'What is it, Niragi? Are you jealous that I'm the one sucking his dick and not you?' You replied. Always with a sharp, venomous tongue, and a quick response. Never afraid to hit below the belt, as long as it served your purpose. Your nails were digging into the palms of your hands, the only thing actually actually revealing your true feelings.

Niragi narrowed his eyes. Aguni could tell he was conflicted — you were under his protection, he had made that much clear. He had got you a new bracelet with a higher number, and a bigger and more comfortable room, with a bed that not even Hatter had dared to take away from you. It was not like you spent many nights there either way; you were usually at Aguni's room, only going to yours whenever you had an argument he didn't know how to solve, or turn into angry sex. Which was becoming less and less common as he got to know you better.

But even if you were Aguni's protégé, you had just insulted Niragi. In front of everyone. And that wasn't something he would let slide easily.

His free hand closed around your arm, pulling at you, bringing you so close to him your faces were nearly touching. Aguni clenched and unclenched his fists. His muscles were tense. He saw you looking in his direction. Were you asking him to intervene?

'You're lucky you're so good at it, or you would be dead now. You bitch.' Niragi's threat could be heard easily, even if he hadn't raised his voice over the volume of an angry whisper. That's how silent the rest of the world was.

You let out a bitter laugh, throwing your head back. It looked like you would spit in his face. Like you would slap his hand away. Aguni took a step towards you both when he heard Takeru's voice. Just as he knew he would, eventually.

'Is this a fight?'

'Back off, Hatter. This doesn't concern you.'

Niragi let go. You rubbed your upper arm, pink lines appearing where his hand had been holding you. You scowled at your aggressor, taking a couple of steps back, clumsy. Tatta, one of your friends, appeared and held you by your elbow to help you stabilize.

Aguni looked at you. He wanted to ask you something, anything. If you were okay, if you were hurt. He could tell from your face, your eyes, your tight lips, you were not happy. But what you were feeling exactly escaped him.

Takeru demanded his attention, refering to him by name.

'And who is the boss here, Aguni?'

The military man had missed the conversation that had just taken place between Niragi and Takeru. But anyone could have guessed what it was about.

He didn't have to pretend to be mad, because that's exactly how he was feeling. Furious, irritated. Crossed, that his friend kept doing this. That he had forced him to play this evil, mean character in front of you, even after Aguni had told him how much you meant to him. That he loved you, or was starting to. That you were much more to him than an occasional partner.

He just stared at Takeru.

'It's you. Isn't it?'

'Go take a shower.'

Aguni just left, after stealing a sideway glance at you. Hoping you would follow, begging you to. It seemed you knew him well by then, because that was exactly what you did.

You walked right behind him to his bedroom, closing the door once both of you were inside.

'What were you thinking!? What if Niragi had actually broken up that guy's legs!?'

'Are you okay? Did he hurt you?'

You looked surprised by his question. You lifted your arm, so that Aguni could see the marks Niragi's grip had left on it. He got closer to you, tentatively, almost scared, not wanting you to run off, as one would approach a street cat.

You didn't move.

'No, Aguni, I'm fine.' You finally whispered, your voice breaking when you pronounced his name.

Aguni had seen you fuming, full of wrath, even. Had seen you crying, yelling, screaming and shouting. But he had never seen you looking so sad, so miserable. He took you into his arms. It took a few seconds, but you hugged him back.

'I'm sorry.'

You didn't reply. You just buried your face in his chest. You didn't cry either. It made him feel worse, this lack of an emotional response. This apathy.

You let go after what seemed like an eternity, flashing him one of those crooked smiles of yours. One without much joy in it.

'You didn't mean any of that, right?'

'I didn't. Takeru…'

'I know, I know. Can I ask you something?'

'Anything.'

'Isn't he going too far? Chishiya showed me that container… where you guys drop the corpses. He told me Hatter had killed some of those men himself.'

Aguni couldn't lie to you, so he told you everything. He told you about Takeru becoming more and more deranged each passing day. About how he had found him doing exactly that, killing some of the residents of The Beach with his bare fists because they had hidden their cards from him.

He confessed how desperate he really was. How scared. He was losing his best friend, the only person who had been there for him through thick and thin. His ride or die. The person who meant the most to him in this world.

You listened. You nodded. You held him. You wiped the tear that run down his cheek. You whispered reassuring words. You kissed him.

You didn't say anything until you were sure he had finished.

'I'm here. You're not alone. I don't know how to fix this but… we are in this together, okay? We will find a way.'

'I love you.'

He couldn't help himself. The fact that you had used 'we' instead of 'you'… You hadn't said 'You will find a way'. You were a team. You would stick with him, just as he had told you that day at the pool.

You smiled your half grin before replying. This time, your eyes accompanied the gesture.

'I love you too.'

───⋆☆─────────────

'Let's leave The Beach.'

'Hm?'

You were nearly asleep, in Aguni's arms, your mane of hair all over his chest, his fingers tangled in it. You opened your eyes, rubbing at them with one of your hands. You yawned.

'Let's leave. You and I. Let's go away.'

'Aguni…' He adored the way you said his name. 'Do you really think that is a good idea? Can you at least sleep on it?'

'Will you come with me if I decide to leave?'

'Promise me you won't decide it now?'

'I promise.' He was convinced his opinion on the matter would be the same in the morning.

'Then yes. I'd go with you to the edge of the world.'

It was really that simple.

[niragisimp]

The Pain Before (Niragi x Reader) Part Nine

(TW: Drunk sexual attempts, Non-con, Sexual Assault)

Part Eight, Series Masterlist, Part Ten

You didn't see Niragi for a while after that night. Maybe it was because you did what you were told, in a way. You thought of the looks people would've given you if you just walked around all day wearing Niragi's shirt, so you opted to wear it around your waist instead. It didn't help much, the looks were still just as persistent as you thought they would be. You did notice that whenever you got nervous or anxious, you found yourself holding onto the fabric, rubbing it between your fingertips. 'Maybe it's the softness,' you thought. It wouldn't take long before you realized you were wrong.

Kuina had been coming to your room more often to check up on you, bringing food along with her cheery self. You always accepted graciously, and today was no exception.

You grabbed the plate from her hands with both of yours, "Thanks, I was starving! Crazy to think how often you forget to eat here." You shot her a smile before digging into your fruit first. It was always canned food mostly, it stayed fresher for longer, but you didn't mind. Food was food, especially since game night was surely ahead of you. 

"When I first got here, it was so crazy! Like, there was food, but it had already started molding! So gross," Kuina popped a pear slice in her mouth before continuing, "Honestly, I'm kinda thankful for Chishiya for bringing me here. Food is everywhere!" She made you chuckle.

You looked down at your plate, fiddling with your food as a natural smile crept up to your face, "You know, you bringing me food like this reminds me of when I first got here. I never got to really thank you for that, though." Kuina tilted her head questioningly, "What do you mean? I never brought you food."

You paused for a moment, your hand lingering in place, "Huh... Well, when I sprained my ankle, someone left plates of food outside my door. They were always gone before I could get to thank them, so I guess I always just assumed it was you, or Chishiya..."

Kuina laughed at the thought, "Chishiya isn't that kind of guy, trust me. Although I have to say that's kinda weird, maybe you have a friendly stalker?" Niragi immediately flashed through into your mind, shaking your head to rid the thought. "Y-yeah... Maybe." You changed the subject, bringing up Borderland life instead. 

"Have you seen Hatter lately? He's not looking so good." Kuina did have her fair share of gossip, even in a death land. "I guess he's sending out people more frequently, Aguni's been on edge too. Maybe something's happening?" She thought out loud. You listened intently to her words, thinking them over.

"Isn't there one card nobody has seen yet? Maybe he's getting antsy about finding it." Kuina hummed in response, "Maybe. Either way, I heard from Chishiya there's gonna be another outing tonight. Even for those that have days left." You felt your heart drop. "Another one? It's barely been a day since I had my last game..."

Kuina gave you a sympathetic look, "Me too. Everyone but Executives have to go. I'm hoping Chishiya will get me into a good group." You sighed, bringing your plate up closer to your lips, "Ugh, I hope it's not another Spades game. I'm tired of them." Little did you realize, you might as well have just jinxed yourself. That night, put into a group of random Beachgoers, you had your worst game to date.  

Niragi pushed through the door, his heart nearly beating out of his chest. His eyes landed on you immediately, the blood of others covering half your body from the waist up. He could see your eyes still not being able to quite focus in on him just yet. He approached silently, or as silently as he could, given his heavy breathing. He had drowned out all possible sense of clarity once he heard what state you returned in.

  He pulled you into him, wrapping both his arms around you. Resting his chin on the top of your head, you stood there in silence together; him, relishing your scent, and you, taking in the softness of his shirt, the lingering smell of his cologne. He wanted, no, needed, words to come out. Words of comfort, perhaps. Words of scolding for going off without him, but his heart nagged at him. If you belonged to anyone, it certainly wasn't him. 'Not yet.'

Against his need to hold you, he pushed himself back, lifting your face to meet his, "Are you alright?" His voice reminded you of that day. Soft, almost gentle, in his own way. You looked into his onyx eyes, feeling the numbness in your body melt into them. The tears came unwillingly, spilling out before you could open your mouth to speak. Niragi just stared at you for a moment, seemingly lost in confusion. His hand dropped from your shoulder to grab your own, pulling you into the bathroom.

You wanted to resist, to crawl into a ball and drop off the face of whatever world this was. But you let him take you, sitting you on the floor as the water turned on. He contemplated for a moment before sighing heavily to himself. You couldn't tell if it was out of frustration or pity, but you couldn't gather yourself to figure it out. You sat silently as he dropped down to his knees, lifting up each limb carefully, and began to undress you. He was almost delicate in how he handled you, like a cracked doll about to break if he wasn't careful.

Maybe that's all you were to him. The way he dressed you, gave you food, made sure you stayed around so he could look at you. Almost like some sort of prize. It almost riled you up, until you recalled the foggy night in the back of your mind.

It was the first game you played together. Niragi kept you on his shoulders to reach the flag while others were pushed and shoved; literally fed to the wolves. But he held onto your thighs like you would float away if he didn't. He carried you to Ann, leaving without so much as a cocky remark. He left food when he knew you would have trouble with the stairs, even taking your plate while you talked with Chishiya and Kuina.

There was one night you still couldn't quite recall. You were a bit high on painkillers, whereas the day after you remember Chishiya telling you not to take too many. But you woke up after a horrid dream, your brain and body still a mess. There was a person sitting in your room that night, watching you. You remember how they towered over you on the bed, almost as if about to take advantage of you. But they didn't. Instead, they planted a soft kiss on your forehead, leaving without so much as a word. 

Your focus came back to the present as the hot water enveloped you. You looked over, seeing Niragi's sleeves dripping wet as he scooped water onto your bruised body. He poured the water over your shoulders, his eyes focused on the blood covering your skin. Never would you have thought Niragi would even be this worried about someone, let alone yourself.

He stopped for a moment before taking a cloth from the towel rack, dipping it in the water and gently rubbing the blood from your arms. He was careful as he brushed against the cuts, constantly checking your face for any sign of discomfort. Soon your tears were all dried up, staining your face. Niragi stopped once he noticed, taking his free hand to wipe under your eyes. His hand lingered on your cheek, the warmth of his body spreading throughout your face.

Your eyes locked for a moment before he took his warmth away, holding himself on the bathtub. You could see his tongue pressed against his cheek, a quirk you've noticed that meant he was concentrating. The piercing stood out most of all as he licked his lips slowly. It wasn't in an aggressive or threatening way, almost like he was thinking deeply about something.

"(Y/N)," your head turned to face him, your eyes speaking for you. He watched you for a moment before continuing, "Do you... Remember me?" You forced a small smile as you croaked through a dry throat, "I didn't hit my head, Niragi." Noticing he didn't seem pleased with that answer, you scrunched your brow questioningly. "What do you mean?"

"Do you remember me? From... Before."

You sat up slowly in the tub, the realization that you were fully naked now just hitting you. "From... Before? I don't think we knew each--" You stopped for a moment, a particularly bad memory taking hold of you.

(TW: Drunk sexual attempts, Non-con, Sexual Assault ahead)

Haru was drunk. Very, very drunk. It was a Wednesday, no, a Thursday. You just transferred to your new school after moving out of your aunt's home. Your parents sent you away to an all-girls boarding school. Haru had convinced them you were a bad influence. Stealing, doing drugs, leaving alcohol and paraphilia scattered about your room. None of it was true of course, but that didn't stop them from taking his side completely. You thought they had accepted it was him all along. Spreading rumors and bullying others, getting older kids to buy him alcohol, and getting high behind convenience stores. 

Almost everything he said you did, he was the true culprit. Your parents never once believed you, even after you came back. The only time they ever believed you was when you said the fire was an accident.

It was raining hard that day. It felt odd, to start at a new school at the end of the week. You imagined everyone had already been fed countless lies about you, with Haru being the way that he was. The day went by without incident, and you even managed to exchange numbers with a few other girls before you left. Haru must've seen, because they never spoke to you again after that day.

He held your body to the wall, his free hand still clutching his bottle of liquor. "You," he hiccuped, "Think you're so damn special." His body swayed, almost forcing you into the brick behind you. "H-Haru, please, I just wanna go home..." His face scrunched in anger, spitting out his words. "Home? Home?! You don't have a home you stupid whore!" His face was so close to yours that you could smell the alcohol on him.

"Please, let's just go--" You muffled a scream as the bottle struck your jaw, your once restrained arm now being free as he held the bottle to his lips once more. "You don't EVER tell me what the fuck to do, understand?!" He screamed at you. Maybe the rain truly was coming down too hard that nobody noticed, but even if they did, they didn't bother to help.

You shook your head in understanding, pursing your lips. You could taste the blood, internally hoping it wasn't visible. "There's nothing fucking special about you... I mean, look at you!" He hiccuped again, his feet steadying him. He looked you up and down, his eyes glazed over. His hand reached out at your top, ripping the first three buttons, exposing part of your chest. "Haru! Stop!" You cried out, pushing him away.

His face turned sour and he took another step towards you, leaning his body into you, "You don't fucking listen!" He grabbed your face violently, forcing you to look up at him, "You're nothing fucking special..." His eyes traveled up and down your body, your mind screaming at you to get away. But you couldn't, not under his weight. Not even when his hand began to slide itself up your thigh, under your skirt.

You don't like remembering what happened after that, but nobody believed you about that either, so it didn't really matter. You remember crying, the screams, and him telling you to shut up, followed by a quick knee to his groin. You pushed him as hard as you could and began sprinting. You didn't know the area as well as you did once, but it didn't matter. The faster you got away, the safer you'd be.

You could feel his eyes glaring into your back, your feet pounding on the cement sidewalk. You turned the corner, slamming into a young man. You knocked the both of you over, your lungs screaming for air as you hit the ground. It didn't take long for your vision to focus, looking at the young man, probably similar to your age, holding out his hand to you.

You remember his glasses, the concern on his face, thinking he actually looked kind of... Cute. Any other day, you would've gladly taken his hand. Perhaps it would've been the start of a friendship or even, a romance. But not today. Any day, but today.

Niragi's thumb gently wiped the side of your face, bringing your mind back. The water had gone cold, the ripples in the tub from your tears echoing in the silence like a leaking faucet. You could feel your heart in your chest beating loudly as you realized suddenly it was getting incredibly harder to breathe. You faced the cold red water covering your body as your body began to tremble.

His eyes widened as he watched you start to panic, Niragi pulling you from the tub forcefully. You let out a yelp, the cold air seemingly slamming against your bare body. You were left alone for a moment as Niragi dashed out of the bathroom, only coming back after with a familiar gold and black shirt. He draped it around your arms, coaxing you out of the bathroom and into your bed.

This Niragi was foreign to you. 'If I had gotten the chance to know him before the Borderlands, was this what he was like?' He pulled the blanket over you, seemingly sighing as he turned his back, beginning to leave. 'Was this a frustrated sigh, or one of pity?' You thought, not for the first time today. The words came out of you before you could think of how they would sound.

"Stay."

Niragi stopped where he stood, his back still towards you. His hand moved in the darkness, fidgeting with itself it seemed. He turned his head ever so slightly so he could look at you, your face stained and your body shivering. You could see his adam's apple move up and then down again before he walked over to the edge of the bed where he sat.

You stared at his back for what felt like forever before he knelt, untying his shoes and pulling himself up onto the bed fully. You felt relief when the warmth from his body spread throughout yours. Pulling his shirt around you more so than it was, you inched your way over to him.

Niragi licked his lips, his metal piercing gleaming in the moonlight from your window, "Don't expect me to be here in the morning."

You took his words with a grain of salt, even though it oddly made your heart hurt hearing it. "... I know," you meant to say more proudly, but it came out as more of a whisper than anything. You paused on your next words for a moment, pushing through your unease around the subject.

"I... I do remember... Thank you."

Those were the last words before your body was able to relax, the exhaustion catching up with you at only a moment's notice. As your eyes began to close, you could hear Niragi's breath hitch for just a moment as you lost consciousness against Niragi's arm.

Niragi looked at you for a moment, taking in your peacefulness. He moved to his side just a bit to try and get comfortable but was met with your tightening grip on his arm. You pulled his arm into you, readjusting your head to rest on his chest. He was taken in by the smell of your hair, though it still had blood crusted in it, it still smelled like you. He placed a gentle kiss on your forehead, just like he did that first night. Niragi rested his cheek against your head, wrapping his other arm around your body.

He ignored everything he had fought to make a reality. His urge to kill, to toy with others, and to take whatever he wants when he wants it. 

'I can be that again tomorrow,' Niragi thought, 'but for tonight... Maybe...'

"Sleep tight, (Y/N). I'll protect you." He whispered into your ear and he found a reason to rest for the day.

[acequidwrites]

She opens her mouth and in a voice Ann’s heard every night for the past four months even though that’s impossible — this impossible girl asks, “Sorry, but I know you?”

“No,” says Ann. “Would you like to?”

or: ann and kuina meet (again)

[gxilds]

the dealers survival guide to the borderlands

masterlist

When a much needed vacation to see extended family is interrupted, Link Suisha is left shamefully dealing death games in return to staying alive.

When an error is made and she is left standing after the number games, she has to play the face games to fill her visa.

When it turns out she doesn’t know as much as she thought, she has to discover the secrets of the borderlands with the players who beyond suspicious of her.

prologue

1. Jack of hearts

[jack-of-all-trades-21]

Additional protagonist starterpack

The only thing that I will forcibly cram into my busy school life is writing for AIB so that is this. I came up with two short stories that both have in common that they basically give potential for extra characters to live in the same universe, both failing a bit in their heroic ways. I will link the second one here as well.

i. "Zookeeper'' ii. Sniper on the rooftop

I'm still walking with this limp from the last game. What happened there is not something I processed yet, not sure I will. The dragging noise along this gravel is starting to make me nervous. Am I drawing attention to myself? Would that even matter?

In the hopes of reducing all crunching sound I try to lift my leg up higher from the ground, more higher than I would like, each time I do pain shoots up all the way to my hip. It's as I can feel my nerves as small strings that are not laying in the right spot on their bones.

It will go away in a couple days I'm sure.

Some strings just have to click back in their place. As long as I keep moving everything it should be ok.

It's also my fault. If I hadn't tripped I would still be completely vital. Though I should be lucky to even be alive. It doesn't happen often that someone survives a game after making a mistake, or a literal slip-up in this case.

I've seen it before. This place emitted a lot of light in ways that it would almost passes as a game arena. I can recall that one time that I was frantically searching in this stupid place for a new arena because I had been stupid enough to let all my visa run out. That and also just staying in a shit shelter location.

I've learned a lot since then. More understanding of the game types, I've started to understand what kind of people have certain intentions within each game. But because of that there's also this thing spooking through my mind that I didn't slip at all and that another player might have done something to throw me off.

I guess it's somewhat ironic that I've returned here. Not that it is even on purpose, but.. ah, I really don't know where I'm going with this. It doesn't matter anyways. Now that I am here for the second time I've got some different ideas.

I'm frantic. I'm just frantic and stupid and I should just find a place to sleep. But I like to self-sabotage my own ways. Instead of doing something that could actually support my survival, I'm prancing around the edges of this zoo I've never been to my entire life.

My stupid urges are what's going to get me killed, and it's not even in a game. No fair environment with set rules, but from the shit world around it.

Would that be entertaining to watch? If anyone is watching, would they find it amusing that for once, the incredibly basic player that always 'plays it safe' that they had to follow around, is finally doing something which is going to give them a raise? Will they make their boss proud? Will I be on TV as the most useless player in this entire show?

I genuinely don't even know where I would start. Sure, finding the entrance is something I can do. But now I've set foot in this park and I feel like I have no plan to begin with. Being honest to myself though, you have been like that this the entire time, maybe even before being send here. Oh silly me.

Just think for one moment. Enclosures are most likely powered by electricity, which is very much non-available. So with cage doors and other things that make up the enclosures not working, what would make me think that the animals residing in them would stay? Not only that, where they even here at the very start of the so called creation of this world? There's no animals in this zoo. And I can't play the beautiful savior that dramatically unleashes them from their cages.

At least I didn't foolishly killed myself in the process. Can you even imagine? I open the cage of one of the felines, and they start chasing me as a 'thank you'.

I guess I'll walk back to my old hiding spot. It couldn't hurt staying there for one more night. I at least got to enjoy the pretty lights here, that's fun I guess.

[chishiyasleftnut]

Discord server!!

Hi ( ^ω^ )

I, @chishiyaisasnack, and some other friends have had a discord server for a while now. It is a Nijirō Murakami server, but everyone is welcome to come hangout, even if that’s not your primary thing 🌸

We wanted to open it up for other people! We’ve recently added a specialised fanfic channel to it, so it made sense that I would advertise it on here ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶ if you want a place to discuss fanfics, Alice in borderland, Nijirō Murakami, or just to have fun, please join!

Our only requirement is that you’re at least 18. It is meant to be a SFW server, but we still don’t feel comfortable having minors around. Especially now that we’re advertising it on tumblr blogs that have smut on them and inviting other (potentially smut) writers lmao. Every other rule is stated once you join the server ❤️

If you join, feel free to share your tumblr username in your introduction! That way we can maybe find our mutuals haha

Link:

I AM WORKING ON NEW FICS TOO! I’m just a bit stressed about my bachelor thesis atm, so I can’t get anything to sound right ( ; _ ; )

[keysmashingfantasies]

Hi! I finished AIB and honestly it was a rollercoaster. I was wondering if you could do a Chishiya fluff of them competing in one of the games from season 2? (Any maybe kinda established relationship- I’m in love with him)

i can sure try! (⁠*⁠˘⁠︶⁠˘⁠*⁠)⁠.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ thank you for requesting and feedback is always welcome. it's very short but i think it turned out okay!

"Are you insane? You jumped out of a moving car!", Chishiya chastised you while you both took refuge in a building nearby, huddling close to each other and whispering, while the two of you thought of ways to avoid the King of Spades.

"Well, I wasn't about to leave you!", you said, decidedly as if it was an universal truth. "You didn't leave me in the first game we played, you didn't leave me back when the Beach was burning... I'm not leaving you now. You made me a promise, remember?", you smiled, intertwining your fingers together. Usually, Chishiya wasn't one for PDA but since it was just the two of you inside an abandoned building, you thought it would be a good exception. He made sure no one knew about the two of you back in the Beach, not even Kuina knew until you were months in.

"Hm, did I? I don't recall", he teased with a slight smile, tightening his hand around yours. Of course Chishiya remembered, he wasn't one to make promises after all, but he indulged both you and himself with that one. 'We'll get out of here together'.

"You don't, huh?", you chuckled. "Well, I do. It's very important to me. Something something we'll get out of here together, if I'm not mistaken", you smiled at him.

"Oh, yes. I suppose I did. Hm. Now I have no choice but to go through with it, do I?", he humored, earning himself a weak slap to the arm while he raised his hands in surrender, not letting go of your hand and effectively pulling you into him.

"Damn right you don't. You're not getting rid of me that easy. Our promise go both ways", you said, quietly, now admiring him upclose. At the sound of gunshots far away, you hid your face in his chest for a moment. "If we can get rid of him. What the hell, does he has infinite ammo?"

"I guess. We'll wait for him to pass by and then we'll move. Find a game. Find the others, if possible. You alright with that?", he asked, leaning in close.

"I'm fine with whatever if it means you'll be by my side", you were determined, Chishiya could see that. Could see that you meant every word, and your undying loyalty made his heart clench.

"Of course I'll be by your side. I'm not that easy to get rid of either", he pecked your lips.

[gay-dorito-dust]

Name a star after me

You had begun a tradition within the borderlands. For every player that died in a game, you would name a star after in memoriam. It didn’t matter whether you were temporary allies or not because in the end you were all humans fighting for survival; whilst the game makers sat comfortably, taking great pride in making you suffer by playing the games. They didn’t deserve to be amidst your starry memorial if this is what they found entertaining.

So after the most recent game it was already night when you arrived back at the apparent complex you were all hunkering down in for the time being. You made your way to the rooftop and named four more stars after the fallen players. Two were on your side, two weren’t. “I am thankful for your participation in the game today, I’m sorry it didn’t end the way you would’ve wanted nor you got the proper burial you all deserved but at long last, you are free from all pain now.” You whispered to the wind in an almost silent prayer.

You opened your eyes and just as you were about to join the rest within the lobby in making your next move, Chishiya was blocking the exit with his body. “It’s dangerous to be up here all lone and defenceless.” His voice filled the air as he attempted to scare you away from rooftops all together but you’ve played these games as long as he had at this point, that you knew never to leave to go anywhere without some protection. You wordlessly pulled out the pocket knife you’ve picked up along the way from your pocket and showed it to him.

“First of all, not defenceless.” You told him as you tucked it away again, “and secondly, says the guy who isolated himself on the rooftop of the Beach. Multiple times, might I add.” You added, remembering the times that you caught glimpse of Chishiya’s fake blonde hair from the corner of your eye so often, that you believed for a short time that what you were seeing was a ghost. “You got me there.” Chishiya says as he made his way closer to you until you were across from one another. His eyes reflected the lights perfectly as it catches on his hair, making it seem silver whilst making the white of his hoodie practically illuminated him like a beacon.

“…Stargazing?”

“Excuse me?” Chishiya notions his head towards the star filled sky you were seemingly so transfixed on, “I said are you stargazing?”

“Oh no, I was just upholding a tradition I made since being brought here.” You told him and it seemed to peak his interest as he leant forward a little towards you. “Oh? And what would that be exactly?” He asked and suddenly you felt overexposed, vulnerable under his gaze and a tad insecure that he would find your tradition silly and or stupid. “After every game I would wait until nightfall to name a star or stars after the fallen players in memoriam, seeing as I can’t exactly give them the proper burial that they deserve.” You told him but felt a little awkward afterward when he didn’t say anything other then stare up at the stars with a face full of thought.

“May I name one?” You blinked at his question and were just about to ask him what he meant before the realisation of what his words hit you and you just gestured to sky with an arm, “I’m going to name one Ippei.” Chishiya said, his eyes never tearing away from the ink black sky. “Ippei huh? Someone you met in a game?” You asked without trying to sound as though you were prying for more information but you knew it would be best if you made your intentions known to Chishiya; rather then have them hidden from him because in the end he always finds out.

“He was too much of a soft soul for the Borderlands.” Was all he told you as you both stood in mutual silence which was then disrupted when the man next to you asked you the most unusual question. “Would you ever name a star after me when I die?”

“That’s not going to happen for a long while but yes, I’d name the brightest star after you Chishiya.” You told him honestly as he raised his brows at you quizzically, “you have that much faith in me?” He asks, once again moving a little closer to you in hopes of not misconstruing your answer. “No.” you admitted, moving away from him to the railings that kept you or anyone from going over the edge, staring out at the desolate city with familiar eyes.

“No one here is invincible because they happen to be good at a particular game. Everyone is bound to slip up and make a mistake,” you paused to smile to yourself before continuing, “but I just know that you’re smart enough to prevent that from happening.” Chishiya hums in satisfaction of your answer. “Chishiya?” He hums again, “would you…if I were to die, would you mind in continuing my tradition and name a star after me?” Now it was his turn to be a little confused at your request. He knew that you were smart enough to get yourself out of a tight pinch but to go as far as to predict your own death and ask him to carry on your traction was bound to leave him a little curious.

“What makes you so certain that you’d be dying anytime soon?” He asks.

You shrug your shoulders as you then turned your eyes to the stars above, “I don’t. But tell me, is it better to enter every game knowing it could quiet literally be your last or go into every game thinking that your untouchable? Impervious to death as though favoured by the game makers of this forsaken battleground?”

Chishiya made his way next to you, leaning his arms against the railings as he watched the stars alongside you. “I don’t have an answer for that question. However I think our best course of action would be to prove ourselves wrong and not die so that we may continue to come here and carrying out your tradition; As a means of keeping whatever ounces of sanity we have left intact of course.” He said, not once tearing his eyes away from the stars but his hand crept over your own, squeezing it tightly in some form of reassurance.

“Of course, why else other then to keep our last shreds of humanity together.” You echoed, squeezing his hand back as you slowly learnt your shoulder against his.

[hoongiri]

˚. ⋆　☄︎　🔭　alice in borderland masterlist

♡ — fluff. 　♤ — angst. 　♧ — crack. 　♢ — suggestive.

this list is not all of the characters i will write for, just the ones i believe i will write for the most. feel free to request karube, chota, mira, and so on.

　── ryohei arisu ★

♡/♤ vanilla latte

　── yuzuha usagi ★

nothing yet . .

　── hikari kuina ★

nothing yet . .

　── shuntarō chishiya ★

nothing yet . .

　── rizuna ann ★

nothing yet . .

　── kodai tatta ★

nothing yet . .

　── all characters ★

nothing yet . .

[realisticjupiter]

haihaii!! your profile has been like.... THERAPY to me bc the aib fixation is back AND ITS STRONG ESPECIALLY TOWARDS CHISHIYA 💔💔💔 i love the way u write as well !!

so with this could i request a touch starved chishiya... like a chishiya that needs readers attention so bad but is too embarrassed to downright tell them "I WANT CUDDLES" or smth... still he does everything in his power to get readers attention atp the only thing left is to just BEG

also could i be 🎶 anon ? i picture myself being very active here from now on... have a nice day!!

Summary: Chishiya can't sleep without you.

Genre: Fluffy

Pairing: Chishiya x gn!reader

Warnings: None! :)

Word count: 784

a/n: Aghhhh i hope this is okay!!!!! That is actually so sweet of you, I'm so glad you've liked my account!!!<3 And ofc you can claim an emoji, hello 🎶!!

Chishiya tried everything to get you into bed with him. He tried seducing you, gaslighting you, and of course his manipulation tactics didn't work either.

All you were focused on was trying to fix the phone from last night's game. It was still on, so you thought it would be easier to get into before it powered off.

Every time he'd call your name, you'd brush him off. Mostly because he always used a certain tone of voice you've become far too familiar with when he tries to get what he wants.

All he wanted to do was kneel at your feet to tell you exactly what he wanted. To tell you he just wanted you to hold him, to tell you all he needed was your attention.

But he couldn't. He never has been able to ask for help, or ask for anything without feeling vulnerable for that matter. He was closed off, that's what people knew about him; that he didn't show those types of emotions in fear of being belittled.

Chishiya could feel his eyelids getting heavy and his eyes burning from keeping them open, but he knew no matter how hard he would toss and turn; he wouldn't be able to sleep without you.

It was pathetic, he'd admit that. It was a loop he found himself getting stuck into, and found there was no way out of it. He hid it pretty well, though. Through late nights where you'd fall asleep alone and wake up to him beside you. You truly had no idea he struggled so much.

He was so tired. He'd do anything if you'd just stop and sleep already.

And he found his last option, the one thing he dreaded the most.

"Y/n?" Chishiya whispered, his voice husky as he climbed out of bed and walked towards you with slow steps.

"What?" You hummed in response, never peeling your eyes away from the task at hand.

"Please," He spoke underneath his breath in an almost incoherent whisper as he stopped to stand beside the chair you sat in.

"I don't know what you want, Chishiya. No one is keeping you awake." You sighed, watching from the corner of your eye as he stood by your side, rubbing his eyes with his palms.

"You're keeping me awake." He murmured, watching your hands as they played around with the device's motherboard.

"How?" You said in defeat, finally turning your attention to him. You looked up at him with your hands thrown in your lap, clearly waiting for his response.

He let out a huff as he looked around the room; avoiding eye contact. When he finally looked at you, his eyes were soft and glassed over.

His next sentence was incoherent.

"What?"

[inaudible]

"Chishiya. Speak up, please." Your words were soft as you stood up from your seat, placing your hands on his upper arms.

"I can't sleep without you." He finally spoke, his words finally registering in your mind.

When he realized you had finally heard him, he felt like he could say anything. And with his new found confidence he continued to speak.

"Why is it so hard to ask you to touch me?" He breathed, letting his head fall onto your shoulder.

You smiled at his soft demeanour. You knew how hard it must've been for him to admit something so close to himself, especially since it was about you. You've found a new side of Chishiya you haven't seen before.

You brought a hand to comb through his hair as the other scratched up and down his bare back, "I'm sorry, Chishiya. I should've just read your mind." You whispered against his shoulder as you held him close to your body.

Your words were an obvious tease, trying to humor the situation at hand. Which did make Chishiya snicker.

"You should have. You've always been able to." He muttered, wrapping his arms lazily around you.

You smiled warmly as he spoke, pulling away to drag his hand towards the bed. You climbed in with him closely behind you. He waited for you to get comfortable, before he joined you under the covers to tangle his limbs with yours.

"I'm proud of you, Chishiya." Your sultry breath hit his forehead as you mumbled against his skin.

He stared down at the way your bodies fit together, processing your words with a smile he knew you couldn't see.

"Now go to sleep, 'm here." You spoke once more into his skin, kissing his forehead and massaging your fingers into his scalp.

His cold fingers danced around your bare skin, trying to bring himself impossibly closer to you before his body fell limp into a night's sleep.

reposts and comments are appreciated <3

[niragisimp]

The Pain Before (Niragi X Reader) Part 8

Part Seven, Part Nine, Series Masterlist

Your breath caught in your throat and Niragi locked his seemingly angered eyes into your own. You started to pull away before a hand wrapped around your waist, and you found yourself pressed into the side of the blonde. "She's busy right now." Without giving Niragi time to respond, Chishiya began walking with you past him, whispering into your ear to not look back. You could feel his Niragi's eyes on the two of you as you walked away, a small pain in your heart. You pushed the feeling aside-- though he did save your life, he was also a dangerous man with a loaded rifle.

Niragi seethed. He watched as you left with Chishiya, his anger beginning to spill out of him. He quickly hurried to his room, throwing the door open and throwing the nearest thing he could touch. He didn't bother to close the door, who would stop him? It wasn't long before his room looked like the aftermath of a police raid. Curtains ripped and thrown to the floor, his mattress lying sideways against the wall, the desk in the corner now on the floor in pieces.

"What the hell was that snake doing with her," his mind raced. "He shouldn't touch her. Nobody should ever touch her." He ran his hand through his hair, the tie that held it back long gone. He caught his reflection in the mirror briefly, filling himself with disgust. "I look like I did, back then. Almost," he sneered at his own thoughts, kicking the bathroom door fully open to give himself a good once over. He could see his tongue piercing pressed against his cheek, but other than the rest of his piercings, he did still look the same.

His hair had gotten a bit longer, and his eyes had a more dangerous look in them. He didn't look at himself much these days, there wasn't really a need to. He was feared and left alone by pretty much everyone but the women at the Beach, or Aguni if he got a little too out of hand. He took a deep breath, running his hand through his raven hair. His mind wouldn't get those thoughts of out his head, no matter what he tried to do. It just kept going back to that day. 

The rain kept pouring, running the blood from his nose down into his shirt. Nobody looked at him, and even if they did, they didn't stop to help. His ribs hurt every time he took a step in front of him, the ache spreading throughout his body. His knee must've gotten scrapped when he tried to stand at one point, the rain stung when it struck him through the hole in his now ripped pants. Part of him wanted to wipe the rain from his cracked glasses, the other too tired to care. He kept remembering that girl.

She had on the same uniform as his school requires, but he couldn't say he recalled ever having seen her before. She wasn't in any of his classes, nor at lunch. He closed the door behind him, sighing as the dark empty house greeted him once again. He threw his shoes to the ground, pulling himself up the stairs and into his room. He collapsed on his bed, his soaked uniform still clinging to him.

"She was beautiful," he thought to himself in the dark, "I hope she got home safely," his face was buried in his pillow, but he could still feel his cheeks heat up. He thought himself something of a savior almost, like what he did had made a difference. If he wasn't in that alley, if that girl didn't run into him, would Haru have had his way with her? "She was clearly in distress," he thought, recalling her torn shirt, her makeup running and her eyes puffy. "Whatever happens to her," he continued, his mind drifting off to sleep, "I hope she gets to smile again."

Chishiya sat on the bed with you, almost uncomfortably close. The silence went on for what felt like forever, but it didn't bother you much. You couldn't imagine it bothered Chishiya either, for that matter.

"Are you alright?" You nodded your head, looking down at your bruised hands. "Spades?" You nodded again, turning your hands over to get a better look at them. "You know, your finger might be broken. You should see Ann." He stared at you for a minute before placing his arm around you and patting your arm awkwardly. You tried to hold back a laugh as you looked up at him, "You're really bad at this, you know?" He steals a quick glance before almost smiling. "Just make sure you keep yourself alive."

You frowned and looked back down at your hands, one looking much better than the other. "Why do that when I can just inadvertently rely on a madman with a gun to save me all the time..."

"The world needs more smiles like yours." You gasped, not getting a moment to process as his hand found its way to your hair, ruffling it to your dismay. "W-what the, how do you like it!" You said rhetorically, instantly going to do the same with his. He laughed, surprising you. He wasn't a man that showed emotion often. He grabbed your hand, still in his hair, and gingerly placed it by your side. 

"It'll be over soon, I think."

You tilt your head to look at him, "What do you mean? Are you going to take the--"

He keeps his gaze forward, a coy smile starting on his lips. "Trust me," he stands before giving you a chance to probe him further, "I have to get back. Kuina is waiting for me."

You nod in understanding, hearing him walk towards the door. "And (Y/N)?" You turn to look at him, "Yeah?"

You watch as he smiles looking at you, "Try to smile. It's good for the atmosphere." He shoots you an awkward wink that causes you to laugh, and to your surprise, he laughs back. You gather yourself and make your way to the bathroom, eager to scrub the sweat off yourself. "Be seeing you and Kuina tomorrow?" as you walk into the bathroom. You hear him respond with a light hum in agreement as moments later the door opens and closes, leaving you alone at last.

Aguni sighed, looking into the room. If it wasn't for Niragi sitting in the center on the floor, rifle in hand, Aguni might've questioned what had happened. He knocked on the open door with the back of his hand, "Hey." When Niragi kept his eyes forward not responding, he continued, "Go cool off. They have to fix the room." He stepped back when Niragi stood up, clutching his rifle to his side.

He remained silent as he walked out of his room, his jaw still clenched. Almost instinctively he made way for (Y/N)'s room, almost running down the stairs to your floor. He almost threw the door open, pushing his pace around the corner. Niragi stopped himself in his tracks when he saw what was ahead of him; Chishiya closing your door, hoodie unzipped, hair unkempt with a coy smile plastered on his face. He eyed Niragi from down the hall, giving him an almost "Gothca" look before turning his heel and heading in the opposite direction.

Niragi contemplated following him for a moment, his judgment clouded over with, envy perhaps; or maybe it was jealousy. Regardless, he didn't care for the feeling. He took a breath as he remained focused on your door, heading forward. 

He rushes into your room, not bothering to knock. He heard your surprise in the bathroom, rushing out still in your bathing suit. You couldn't help but be surprised when you saw Niragi standing in your room, rifle at his side. "W-what're you doing in here?"

Niragi looked you over, taking note of the bruises on your hands and legs. He began to feel his heart quicken as you looked at him questioningly, "I... I, just... Just, sit down!" He yelled. You jumped a bit at his tone and sat as he asked, keeping your head high enough to watch him as he started pacing in front of you. "I still need to talk to you!" You swallowed the lump forming in your throat, not that it helped much. The sweat on your palms was already enough to tell you that you were uneasy.

Looking down, Niragi saw your bruised hands begin to shake. He quickly took your chair from the provided desk and sat in front of you, his arms resting on his knees as he leaned forward to face you. The two of you sat like that for more than a moment before Niragi started to speak, "Why was Chishiya in here?"

You took a deep breath to answer, "The same reason you're in here, to talk." You kept your head down low, wondering how far your not-so-brave face could carry you at the Beach. You could hear him scoff, "Yeah, people always come out of a talk looking like that." He nodded to your still-ruffled hair causing a gasp to escape, your bruised hands hurrying to fix it.

The urge to defend Chishiya gave you a bit of courage, real courage, something you weren't used to in this place. "Maybe some people are actually nice--" Niragi brought your face up to meet his and held your chin in between his fingers, his voice stern. "Why're you still wearing that?" You could feel the blood drain out of your face, your mind rushing back to nights prior when Niragi threw you out of his room.

Your lips suddenly felt dry and your throat feeling hoarse. "I-I, this... This is the dress c-code--" He cuts you off, nodding to your dresser, "No. I mean, why haven't you been wearing it?" You find yourself tilting your head cautiously, glancing over, "But... There's nothing in there, but my spare top..." He let go of your face, his hand dropping to his knee as he stood abruptly, walking over to your dresser. You leaned back to see past his back as he opened the second drawer, pulling a familiar piece of clothing out and tossing it at you.

The material was soft, like silk almost. Without realizing it, you had clutched the shirt in your hands, your fingers carefully going over the patterns, relishing in the softness. This place may pose as a paradise, but no bedspread you ever felt could compare to this velvety touch. Your mind snapped back to reality as you realized Niragi was standing in front of you, looking down at you with unfamiliar eyes.

"Um... Didn't you say to give this back?" You felt yourself become awash with shame, trying to remember the comfort Kuina gave you when you told her what happened that night. "It wasn't my fault," you echoed in your mind, trying to calm yourself.

Niragi could feel his shoulders tense up as the words flowed from your lips. He tried not to look at them, tried not to make you uneasy, but it seemed he just had that effect on people these days. His body moved faster than he wanted it to, leaning over the bed and seemingly trapping you between his arms as you held yourself up on your arm. He watched your eyes as his hair fell down, almost touching your face; everything he wanted to say to you vanishing into thin air.

Your eyes stared as his own darted from one of yours to the other, seemingly trying to find something. His eyes rested on your lips as they started shaking, your mind racing with uncertainties. Niragi gently placed his hand under your chin, almost tracing your jawline with his thumb. "Wear the shirt. I won't ask again." His voice was lower than you've ever heard it, and it oddly reminded you of a sweet honey. He pushed himself off the bed and away from you, eyeing your hand with the shirt still clutched in your fist.

Niragi didn't say another word and he left you in your room, looking back at you briefly as he closed the door gently. You let go of the breath you didn't know you were holding, your heart almost pounding through your chest. You looked at the shirt in your hands with confusion, "When was he in my room?" You remembered Chishiya surprising you in your room two days ago, with a message. "Niragi was in here earlier. He seemed to be carrying something with him, but he didn't leave with it. How strange is that?"

You sat in the dark for a while, contemplating the last week. Life wasn't easy, but it was easier surviving on your own than at the Beach. You had barely ever talked to anyone, let alone casually bunked with a little over a hundred other people. You couldn't help but humor your heart a bit as it pained you gently from inside your chest, wondering what could've caused such a reaction. Maybe it was the thought of leaving Kuina and Chishiya? That didn't feel right, but it was the only logical reason you could think of.

The bed engulfed you as you lay down, your hands beginning to throb after your hot shower. You let yourself relax for a bit, soaking in the warmth of your surroundings. Your eyelids began to get heavier as time loomed on, something you graciously accepted. You did begin to wonder though, as your mind spun its wheels, why you couldn't stop thinking about Niragi in your room earlier.

He looked so familiar in a weird way, so gentle. You brushed it off as your mind playing a trick on you, but your memory backed it every step of the way. His voice, the way his hair fell. It all seemed so familiar, yet so distant. You didn't have much time to contemplate these rising thoughts, as sleep pulled you into her grasp, and left you to wonder for another day.