Chapter Text
School. The one thing that Nagito found himself actually looking forward to, at least to some degree. He could put off all of that nasty despair that way. No need to think about that, when he could be doing something else much more productive, more hopeful.
He made his way through the hallway, admiring how… Quiet and calm it felt. Like a library, almost. Minus the books of course.
The students that were around seemed to look at him a lot longer than he expected, but then again his outward appearance was probably a bit jarring. Messy, unusually white hair with light brown ends that stuck out at odd angles, almost like Albert Einstein's did, but much less charming. That, alongside his pale features and tired green eyes probably made him look more like a college professor who probably should have retired a decade and a half ago rather than a fellow student. Thankfully though, their gazes did venture away and Nagito silently thanked them for it.
Not because he didn't want to be stared at, but simply because he wasn't worthy enough to be taking up even a fraction of their precious time, in his mind.
Just then, there was a wailing cry that broke through his thoughts, and a plum-haired freshman seemed to trip on nothing and fall almost comically in a very lewd pose, much to her chagrin. Tears streamed fiercely down her face as she furtively apologized while trying to get herself up.
Without thinking too much about it, and really before he himself knew it, Nagito was at her side and offering her a hand to help her up. To his mild surprise, her tears only fell faster as she sobbed, her words unintelligible. After a few moments though, and with a few watery sniffles, she took the offered hand and he pulled her to her feet.
“Are you alright? That looked like a nasty fall.”
“I-I'm okay…Thank you t-though, usually people don't…- D-Don't care that mu-much about me.” Partway through her sentence, she seemed on the brink of crying once more.
Komaeda was a little unsure of how to respond, but it seemed he wouldn't have the chance to. Before he could even get a word out, the bell for class rang, echoing through the hallways.
Silently, he offered a bit of a smile, in a way that he hoped came across as friendly “I'll see you in class?”
To his quiet relief, the plum-haired girl shakily smiled back, her cheeks framed with tears “Y-Yeah. Thank y-you again.” With that, she turned, making her way over to two other girls, a redhead with a hanging camera and a shorter blonde who wore a rather nice kimono, though her expression wasn't nearly as pleasant.
Regardless, no time to think about that now. With a sense of determination, he headed to class himself.
What greeted him was possibly the strangest assortment of students that he'd ever seen; Some were in-uniform, some weren't, like the girl in the kimono from earlier. He was a bit surprised to see her in here, since he'd thought she was someone's younger sister who was only around for the time before class, but there she stood, arms folded, glaring with puffed cheeks at nothing.
Spotting an empty desk near the front, he took a seat, carefully setting down his things with much deliberation. After all, he'd learnt over the years to be nothing if not that, though it usually didn't do much good.
Eventually, the classroom slightly settled down once the teacher had made her way in. Despite what she said really only being a welcome speech, Nagito found himself hanging on every word. She was rather good at that, he noted. At least she was engaging.
Faster than he knew it, the bell had rung out yet again. With Ultimate students, things worked a little differently, meaning that they didn't really have to hang around anymore. He didn't quite know where to go, or how to spend this time, but maybe a walk around the school grounds, some fresh air, might do him some good. So, with that in mind, Nagito packed up and meandered out of the room and back into the hallway, with no real destination besides “outside” in mind.
Once he was out, he paused, taking a moment to simply stare; New York was strangely familiar, but in an unfamiliar way. He couldn't quite place it, really.
Bump.
And just like that, someone else was on the ground. This time however, it was Nagito himself, leaving him wondering how on Earth he'd ended up there when he'd been standing perfectly still.
“Sorry, that's my fault.” Came a rather awkward-sounding voice to his left.
Sitting up, Komaeda could see another student. A boy, with tousled medium brown hair and very average-looking pea green eyes. One look at his uniform said that he was in the Reserve Course; In other words, talentless.
“Mm? Oh, that was you?” He asked, in a tone that sounded almost uninterested. He stood, dusting himself off.
“Er, yeah. I- Wasn't looking where I was heading, and I didn't expect anyone to be right in front of the door.” After a bout of silence, the Reserve Course boy added an extra “Sorry.” And with that, he picked up Nagito's bag from the ground, handing it to him before stiffly walking off while staring at the ground.
He watched the other student as he left, shaking his head.
Komaeda felt bad for him, really. What must it be like to attend a school for the extraordinary, only to be, well, ordinary by comparison? Even he himself had his luck, paling in comparison to others though it may. He slung his bag back over his shoulder with a thoughtful hum. Then again, what did it say about that boy’s determination? Coming here regardless of all that.
How intriguing.
Without giving it much more thought, he himself headed down the path. No reason to let it all ruin the time he’d have by himself. At least, that’s what he initially told himself. But things kept irritatingly nagging at his brain. It was really getting frustrating, so much so that he stopped walking once again, his expression flickering briefly with annoyance.
“It’s nothing.” Nagito said aloud calmly “You’re overthinking.” As always. You can’t just let things go, can you? The silent berating was nothing new and anyone who would have looked at him right then wouldn’t even be able to tell. With a short sigh, he kept on.
Worthless.
