The Thorns of Despair: False Love's Hope - Nagito Komaeda x Reader

Chapter 5: Used and Abused, then cast away

~Nagito's POV~

The first step of my plan was complete. I had given Teruteru a photo album of Sayaka Maizono. The first step of this plan was a success. By giving him this book, I was able to get the location of the Super High School Level Pharmacist, Seiko Kimura.
"Seiko? Ah yes, she's always working in the science labs. I managed to meet her through (f/n)." Teruteru said. I felt that the conversation was quite dull but when (f/n)'s name escaped his lips I perked up.
"(f/n) knows Seiko?" I asked curiously.
With a perverted smile, caused by the Sayaka photo album, he nodded. "I heard that they're pretty good friends. (f/n) eats lunch with Seiko and helps her with experiments a lot." he said before becoming absorbed in the photo album once again.
Suppressing a disappointed sigh, I thanked him once more before walking towards the science labs. (f/n)'s involvement in this intrigued me.... but ideally I wanted to keep her out of this. There was a high chance of her being hurt, after all. On my way there, I didn't see the person I was looking for, but the person I was thinking of.
"(f/n)." I greeted the girl in front of me.
She quickly turned to me and smiled. "Nagito! What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I need to see the Super High School-Level Pharmacist, I'm constipated." I told the lie confidently and smoothly, expecting her to be disgusted and to wonder off. Well, she'd be disgusted with trash like me anyway. But her smile didn't waver. And only concern filled her eyes.
"You poor thing. I hope you feel better soon. I know, I'll take you to Seiko! Follow me!" she said in a cheerful tone and she led the way. I stood there, shocked for a moment, before following her. As we got close to the door, she warned me to be quiet, for reasons I did not know, before we entered the science lab. As we entered, I saw a girl mixing chemicals by the desk and I could only assume that she was Seiko Kimura.
"Excuse me." I said politely to her before the contents of her test tube exploded. Her eyes widened as she hastily turned to me and pulled down her mask.
"Get back! Do you have a death wish?" she asked, panicked. I heard (f/n) giggle behind me.
"Sorry about him Seiko. I tried to warn him." she told Seiko with an amused tone.
Seiko put her mask back on and sighed in relief. "Hello (f/n). Who is this person with you?" she asked.
"I'm Nagito Komaeda. I need a laxative." I introduced myself.
"To be precise, it's a reactivator... That's a drug that increases the activity of the intestine." she informed me with a shy tone.
Putting my hands together, I said "That'll be a big help! I've been constipated for such a long time! It's been just awful... It's good that (f/n) could bring me here." I glanced at (f/n) to see her looking at the ground with a shy and modest smile. "I was really lucky-" I started but was cut off by an unknown voice.
"Hey, hey.... I know you're in there! It's a pain to do, so you open the door!"
"But it's already unlocked...." Seiko said as the unknown voice kept speaking. Her shoulders slumped before she walked to the door. Confused by her change in behaviour, I turned to (f/n) and was shocked by what I saw. I never thought someone like her would wear such an expression. Her usual smile was twisted into an angered scowl and a mix of hatred and fury filled her usually shining (e/c) orbs. I wasn't sure what surprised me more. The fact that she was capable of feeling such bitterness towards someone, or the fact that it wasn't aimed at someone like me.
"Um..." I said to Seiko to get her attention. I wanted to progress as quickly as possible. If I stayed for much longer, even more questions about (f/n) would fill my mind.
"It's already finished." Seiko replied, pointing to the storage room. "It's on the shelf, at the very back of the storage room. The drug is on the right side of the upper shelf. Go ahead and take it. The one on the right!"
Before entering the storage room, I glanced back to (f/n) one last time. She was staring at a girl and boy at the door. She stared at them in contempt as she stood just in front of Seiko, almost in a protective manner. I wonder.... what is the mystery behind these people? The way (f/n) was acting around Seiko and standing up for those who she thought deserved it, really was just like her... I looked at her with a smile before entering the storage room and looked for the drug.

~Your POV~

Ruruka Ando. I hated her with a passion. All she did was manipulate people and use them for her own selfish purposes. She treated Seiko so cruelly, forcing her to do things that she didn't want to do. Seiko was one of the kindest people I knew, she didn't deserve that kind of treatment. She may be the Super High School-Level Confectioner, but she was anything but sweet. As she sat on the sofa with Sonosuke, I couldn't help but glare at her. She only came when she wanted something. That wasn't friendship. Every word she said irritated me more.
"That's why I want your performance-enhancing drug!" Ruruka said as she fed Sonosuke some sweets. She gave Seiko an innocent smile and my rage only grew, especially when I saw how conflicted Seiko was.
"To be precise, it's a reanimator that I'm studying. The physical performance boost is a side-effect, and-" Seiko explained before being cut off by Ruruka.
"That means it's effective, right? Okay, okay! No need to sweat the details!"
"I'm going to unveil it during my exam...." Seiko's voice was becoming more strained.
"Huh?!" Ruruka said before puffing out her cheeks in a way that she thought was cute. "You won't give me what I'm asking for?"
"At times like this, you always come to me..." Seiko was sweating and I sensed the bitterness in her voice.
"I do feel bad that I'm always counting on you."
"Then why do you always do it?!" I shouted at her, fury taking over. Seiko stared at me in shock while Ruruka just looked at me with a blank expression.
"Huh? Who are you to interfere? You don't know Seiko like I do." she said emotionlessly.
"That's because I actually know her! All she is to you is a way of getting what you want! Seiko has been trying so hard to make this reactivator and now you just want to steal that from her?!" I yelled and clenched my fists.
"She's my childhood friend. She's the only one that I can count on at times like this." she said, feigning innocence. Then she turned to Seiko. "Please! You're the only one I can turn to! I mean, we are the best of friends right?" she asked Seiko, holding a macaroon towards her. Didn't she know that Seiko would die if she ate anything sweet?!
"Very well, I'll give you the drug." Ruruka cheered while I stared at Seiko in shock.
"Seiko...." I said and she responded by looking at me with a sad expression. She felt that she could never escape from being a slave to Ruruka and that was what I wanted to change. Especially when Ruruka gave me a victorious smirk.
Just at that moment, Nagito came out and looked at Ruruka. "Excuse me." he said, only to have Sousuke hold a knife to his throat. Panic swelled in me.
"Who are you?" Sousuke asked him but I quickly intervened.
"He just came in here to get a drug! Leave him alone!" I said, not hiding my desperation.
"He's a first year. He came for a laxative." Seiko supported me, sensing my discomfort.
Nagito just laughed and held up the bottle as Sousuke released him. "Shall we go, (f/n)?" he asked me and I felt hesitant to. I didn't want to leave Seiko alone right now. I wanted to support her and help her become strong enough to beat Ruruka. But at the same time, I could see Ruruka looking at me deviously. She realised how much I cared about Nagito and I feared that if I left him alone, she would do something to him to shut me up and get Seiko's complete obedience. So, filled with irritation, I left with Nagito.
"What's wrong?" he asked me.
Hesitantly, I replied. "Seiko reminds me of you. She's someone that needs saving from herself and the people around her. That's why I want to help her. That Ruruka is horrible... she's using the drug that Seiko spent so much effort on for her own exam!" I told him with a frown on my face.
Faster than I could register, he embraced me and a blush covered my cheeks.
"N-Nagito....?"
"Don't worry (f/n). I won't let her have a chance to use that in the exam."