“Hey, Mimi, you got a minute?” Sitting on her bed, her aqua blue hair still wet from her shower, the girl sits up on her bed upon hearing a familiar voice call her name.
“Pomni? Sure, come on in.” Mimi adjusted herself so her feet were touching the ground before Pomni entered. Something felt wrong about not looking professional in front of her. Opening the door, a girl with black hair and golden eyes peaks in. Once she seems sure of something, she enters, dressed in a big t-shirt (too big for her anyway) and short-shorts. Mimi takes a moment to process what’s in front of her before blushing madly. “U-uhm, you’re just getting ready for bed huh?” She asks, trying to keep her untamed thoughts at bay.
“Ssssort of.” Pomni mutters, tightly clinging to the hem of her shirt. She peeks nervously at Mimi, who’s doing her best to sneak glances without being too obvious. Pomni holds in a giggle, walking over to Mimi and sitting down next to her. “I…wanted to talk to you about the new guy, though.” She said, her face suddenly turning to worry. Noting the shift in tone, Mimi quits her gawking and waits for her to elaborate. “Do you…trust him?” Pomni asks, sounding like the answer for her is obvious.
“Hmmm…he has Maria on his side. Clearly the two got close because of that incident. Still…I think I’d need to get to know him before I gave you an answer to that.” Mimi sighs. To be honest, she wasn’t too sure about him either. It wasn’t really fair to have any strong feelings one way or the other till she really saw what he was about, but at the same time, if he were to actually try anything, not being cautious would be dangerous. She decides mentally that indecisiveness is the best way to take the situation for now. She reaches her hand over and lightly pets Pomni’s head. “Don’t worry, I won’t let him hurt you. I won’t let anyone hurt you.” She promises. Pomni looks up at her.
“B-because~?” Pomni whispers. Realizing what her words implied, Mimi almost died on the spot.
“C-CAUSE YOU’RE MY FAVORITE COMPATRIOTE!” She says a little too loudly, making Pomni pout.
“You’re lucky you’re my favorite too…” She pushes into Mimi, till she’s laying atop her. “Anyways, I’m sleeping here tonight. Protect me~~.” Pomni hums, snuggling into Mimi’s chest.
“Y-you…haa…” Mimi gives in, reaching out to turn off her bedside lamp.
…
Walking down the hall of dorm rooms, the girl with white hair looks over the walls. Beige wallpaper. No decor. Empty. Lifeless. Boring. Boring boring boring. That’s all life had been since she got here.
“They shouldn’t have brought me back to life if things were gonna be more of the same.” She complains. “And why does that woman get to have all the fun?”
“They all say woman, but I’m 24, you know.” The girl jumps, turning to see Maria smirking, leaning against her room’s door. “Aren’t you only 2 years younger, Sasha?” Maria’s question irks her.
“You know how old I am. Don’t make me talk about something boring like that.” She says with little patience. Maria chuckles.
“Alright, well, Marissa is asleep, and I want some company. So, what do you wanna talk about?” Maria asks, cocking her head. Sasha raises a brow before tilting her head up.
“That boy…did he really help kill that angel?” Sasha asks. Maria nods.
“He did his fair share. I would be completely gone if he hadn’t picked himself back up.”
“He stabbed that thing on death’s door…” Sasha whispers to herself. “How interesting.” She smiles. “Maria…do you think he’ll be fun to play around with~?” Her question causes Maria’s face to twitch.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
“Sasha…” Maria’s voice goes dark. “You won’t be doing anything that will end in him dead again, will you? You know as well as I do that this is a one time thing.” Sasha giggles, placing a hand on her chest.
“Oh Maria, I promise. You have nothing to worry about in the slightest~.” Sasha’s unconvincing promise causes Maria to step forward and grab her by the collar.
“Sasha, out of everyone here, it’s always you that has some unnecessary shit cooking in that head of yours. Please, for your own sake, I suggest you put that shit to bed. Understood?” Maria asks, clutching her collar tighter. In response, Sasha shows no sign of fear.
“I could kill everyone here tonight and no-one could do a thing to stop me.” Her words aren’t a threat. They’re the truth, and Maria knows it. Maria grows shaky, before pushing Sasha back.
“Watch yourself.” Maria says, her face deadly serious, before returning to her room. Sasha watches her close the door, snickers, and continues down the hall, to the very last room. She knocks once, twice, three times. After a moment, the door opens a crack and Christopher peeks out. His gentle blue eyes narrow as soon as he sees his visitor.
“Oh, come for some late night teasing?” Christopher asks, sounding just the tiniest bit annoyed.
“Aww, upset about dinner? Hehe, I promise, I’ll be on my best behavior. Sooo…can I come in~?” Sasha asks with her tongue just the tiniest bit out. Christopher stares for just a moment before sighing and opening his door enough for her to enter. Once inside, Sasha yawns, stretching her arms. “My first time in a boy’s room. So, where are the porn mags?” She asks, before giggling.
“Yeah yeah, I’ll have you know I, a respectable person who keeps their porn in their homework folder.” He says, looking around, making an ah-ha sound upon finding a small tablet. “So, this thing can really connect to the internet?” He asks.
“Yeah, its a tablet after all. It just has the added benefit of some tools only helpful involving ghosts. You get the idea right?” Sasha snickers, knowing he has no idea.
“Fuck off, I’m new.” He says, turning the thing on and laying in bed. Sasha watches him for a moment before crawling into bed with him and getting close, watching whatever he’s doing. Christopher freezes up completely. “Uhh…what are you doing?” He asks. Sasha points at his tablet screen. Displayed on it is a novel site.
“What’s that?” She asks.
“...oh. It’s a site for reading novels.”
“Oh. I like reading.”
“Yeah? Like, reading what?”
“Splatterpunk stuff.” Christopher takes a moment to consider what she just said.
“I see. So, the hardcore gore stuff?”
“Yeah. It’s fun sometimes. I don't like the basic stuff though. I prefer when it has a point to it.”
“I mean, yeah, that makes sense. Though something existing just to be absolute batshit grossout isn't the worst thing in the world sometimes.” Christopher says, gradually de-stiffening.
“Yeah? Well if you say so. What kind of novels do they have on here?”
“All kinds. Though, it is mostly Chinese cultivation stuff. That’s generally pretty popular.”
“Cultivation?”
“Ah, I guess you wouldn’t know about that if you haven’t heard about sites like these.” Christopher smiles, clearly having fun.
“Well, I’m all ears.” She says, watching, and listening, so intently. As he’s busy explaining though, he doesn’t seem to notice the little twinge at the corner of her lips.
…
With a sigh, Marissa leans back in her chair. Her green eyes stare vacantly at the ceiling as she shoots back another shot of whiskey. Everything about this situation feels like the definition of too much.
“So many dead…” She mumbles to herself, before going back to pour another shot. “How the hell are we supposed to do anything about this?” She holds her face in her hands. “Why is this on our hands? I…I don't want…this.” She feels tears building up in the space between her hands and eyes. Dribbling down onto her desk, mocking her. “Why am I still alive? Just let me be his victim if I have to be responsible for all this.” She grits her teeth. “If I just…bite off my tongue…” She slams her hand on her desk, unable to take herself. “No…you can’t. Don’t abandon her. Maria…don’t abandon Maria…”
She takes a moment, and takes her next shot.
…
Throughout the place, a quiet has overtaken. In these few hours of guaranteed peace, one girl, Bea, is sitting on the entrance steps, staring off at the forcefield surrounding the place, keeping it separated from the broken reality outside. With a grunt, she stands up, before making a finger gun just ahead of her.
“Bang.”
The ground before her erupts with gunfire as its pummeled by a rain of bullets. After a few moments, the barrage ends, and Bea is panting like a dog.
“S-shit…still no control.”
She quietly taunts herself before looking up at the sky. She forces herself to stand up straight.
“...what a beautiful night tonight…”
The night passes from there on in a gentle peace.