"SECRETS" - If Mari Survived... (OMORI Fanfiction/AU)

* ˚ ✦Chapter 5: Heroes* ˚ ✦

Art by remi_(mozzaremi) on Danbooru

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Sunny found himself waking up inside his hospital room again. But he wasn't alone this time.

The blinding white lights revealed a figure watching over Sunny. "Oh," the voice said, "you're awake!" It was Hero, the man himself. Why would he, of all people though, watch Sunny?

"Hero?"

"Yeah, I came to check on you. You collapsed when you came into Mari's room..."

Sunny tried to sit properly, but his body ached. Hero helped him lay back down, gesturing his hand as a sign that he should relax. "Where are the others..." Sunny spoke in a weak tone. Hero chuckled, "Yeah, Kel and Aubrey are playing the gameboy together. I hope that's going well.. and Basil is resting in Mari's hospital room."

"Ah.."

And so, another awkward silence replaces the vibe. The sound of the cold air coming from the air conditioner was calming at least. The sound of the both of them breathing made the silence seem okay. That was until Hero struck another conversation.

"Sunny, the truth is, I came to ask you something." And there it was. Of course he came to ask about Mari. Sunny hated being questioned, it scared him.

"You were there yesterday, when Mari fell. You witnessed it, you even carried her out the door to call for help."

Oh no... please don't...

"Tell me... what really happened."

Man. There it was.

Sunny felt a rush of uncomfortableness flow throughout his body. Why did he have to ask that..?? Now he feels even more remorseful.

"Why... Do you want to know?" Hm, quite a dumb reply indeed. Hero is Mari's closest friend, very close to being called her boyfriend. They always told each other everything, and it would kill him to have her hurt. He would kill whoever hurt her. No one is sure if he meant it as a metaphor... or literally.

"Huh? Because I care for her. I care for all of us, Sunny. What if there was something in your house that was unstable? I could help fix it, you know. Or what if..." Hero paused for a moment. A shadow grew on his face.

"What if someone hurt her."

Sunny's expression became really afraid and concerned. Imagine if Hero found out Sunny pushed her...

"S-someone... hurt Mari?"

Hero raised one of his eyebrows in confusion. "Uh... maybe? That's why I'm asking YOU, Sunny... hehe..."

Sunny felt how uneasy he was. His stomach kept churning, and his head kept shaking. Or he was probably just hungry.

Sunny stayed silent. He didn't say a word after Hero's last statement. "Ah, come on, Sunny! I need to know. I won't let whoever hurt Mari hurt you. I'm here to protect you, bud!" Hero smiled and patted Sunny's back in reassurance. But Sunny did not give in. He knew he couldn't really trust that sentence, even if it was from Hero.

"Hmm..." Hero's smile started to fade. "There's something you're not telling me, Sun." Sunny became even more afraid after hearing Hero say that. He adores Hero, he's always been like his big brother figure. He could tell Hero a lot of things, just not this one... Sunny did not succumb. "Waiting for something to happen?" Sunny spoke in a dead tone.

Hero groaned. "Sunny, why can't you just-" but he stopped, realizing he was starting to burst. "...Sorry. I'm getting a bit carried away." Hero stood from the chair he sat on and sighed. He loved both Mari and Sunny, but Sunny wouldn't tell him what happened. He was just so clueless that Sunny was the actual cause of... what happened.

"Sunny..." he continued, "Promise me you'll tell me soon." He patted Sunny's head and proceeded out the door. Sunny laid back down, collapsing on his pillow. He was grateful Hero didn't find out. But he knew that sooner or later, everyone would know. Mari would have to tell them, it was no use hiding it. Plus that was the day of the recital, he had to miss something he and his sister put a lot of time and effort into. But he didn't really care much...

And... What was that? Before Hero started questioning Sunny, he remembered hanging out with them. Everyone was fine... It could have been a dream though. Yet it felt so real...

Sunny started recollecting the "dream" he had. He enjoyed it in a way, so he wanted to remember whatever happened. He remembers waking up in... a room. Then entering a weird dream world. He also remembers meeting Mari and Basil in the park for a picnic, Mari and Hero being weirdly loving, and... oh... did that really happen.......?

He remembers... an eternal sound of... a heartbeat. And being trapped in an endless void of the color white. He felt stuck, and it was boring. He had the urge to... yeah.

Stabbing myself in my dream...? What a weird dream he had. Or was it a nightmare? Speaking of nightmares, didn't something happen before he woke up in the White Space?

~ creak ~

The sound of the door opening without warning scared Sunny to death. He quickly hid under the blanket and didn't move or breathe. "Woah, there, didn't mean to startle you..." A tall lady in a clean hospital uniform greeted him. It was his nurse. Sunny took a deep breath, confused why he was so jumpy all of a sudden. "You seem to have collapsed... twice today..." the nurse remarked nervously. She checked Sunny's vitals and records. "I don't think it's recommended to stay here all day, lad!"

"Huh?"

"I think you should take time to go out and have fun! Let the sun meet your pale skin, and spend time with your family or friends. Your stress levels have been pretty high lately. So don't pressure yourself by working too much."

"Ah..."

Sunny returned to lying down on his bed again, not looking like he wanted to go out. "Well, what's wrong, dear?" the nurse asked, concerned. Sunny buried his face in the pillow, making his voice muffled. "My parents aren't here and my sister is injured."

"Oh, you still have your friends, you know! What were their names? Uh... Bagel, Audrey, and... Orange Joe!"

Sunny almost smiled. Almost. He got up and headed for Mari's room, where they all were. He left the nurse to stand there, and she sighed in a satisfied tone. "He truly is... weird," she told herself aloud with a smile.

Sunny strolled through the hallways of the hospital, looking for ROOM 143. On his way, he accidentally pushed someone. Ah, it was Hero. "Oh, Sunny!" He chuckled as he gave the monochrome boy a wink. "Hey, I hope things are cool between us. I really didn't mean to startle you, it was quite immature of me."

Sunny couldn't reply, but he really appreciated Hero for that. He just went up to embrace him. Hero smiled and continued, "... I'll take that as a yes, bro." Sunny looked up at Hero and gave him... his style of a grin. Hero then remarked, "Sunny, look, I don't want to lose you or Mari. So promise me we're going to stay honest with each other, okay? I'm hoping you'll tell me soon!" He then ran off to get something in the vending machine. Hero is such a hero.

But he's making it seem like Sunny could be the villain.

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Word Count: 1208 Words (Excluding Author's Note)

A/N

Ehe more than a hundred reads alreadyyy :0

I hope this is enjoyable... if you guys want, I can add a bit of romance? I promise, the next chapter/s will have scenes where ships (except illegal ones of course) will be featured or bloom in some way ;D

Thanks for reading <3

- Mireille