Chapter Text
"Im truly sorry for your loss, Ms. L/N" You heard one doctor say, "plea— tell me– tell me that this ISNT TRUE!" You held the paper, gripping it tightly, you couldnt believe it, you didnt want to. This wasn't real, all a dream, probably a nightmare. They weren't gone, they couldn't be, they promised you that they would never leave you, that they'd be there for you, forever.
"????? has been confirmed dead. The cause of the death is blunt head trauma and... Ah, it'd be better not to discuss exactly what happened, as it is too disturbing even for us... And I thought think you'd take it well, Ms. L/N." he stopped, looking at you with pity filling his eyes, before continuing again.
"????? and ?????, both of them are still in a coma. ????? suffered from multiple burns and injuries; her face was very charred, badly. And as for ????? also had burns; some of his skin was burned off, and he also suffered from head trauma." He read over the file he had in hand, flipping through the pages. You caught a glance of one of the autopsies. It was disturbing; the body disfigured to the point you no longer could tell which of your friends that was.
You stayed silent. His words repeated over and over in your head. "We are trying our best to save them, do not worry, Ms. L/N." He looked at you with pity in his eyes, you stood there blankly. You felt numb; you were numb. Nothing could overcome the apathy you felt; you had nothing left for you. No one to motivate you to continue going, to continue living the life you had. You questioned yourself.
How did things turn out like this? "I... I understand, thank you"
You were alone, all alone now. Outside of their hospital room, you were shaking; it should've been me, was all you could think of, if only you joined them as well. Your body went limp as you slouched down on the clean floor, sobbing. Your hands clenching, "Why did you three have to leave me as well..."
Your fists clenching, frustratedly trying to fight back your tears. "They promised me... That they would never leave me..." You bit your lip. "Please, why can't they— come back... I'll do anything..." you mutter out as your tears blur your vision; you couldn't breathe properly as you kept hiccuping from the tears. Why, WHY did this have to happen to them? Maybe if you went on that stupid trip with them- y-you could've at least been with them. You should've been with them; the guilt was too much for you to bear, it was too much. You couldn't breathe; a hammering pulse felt like it ripped right through your heart.
Breaths quickened, your breathing becoming erratic; you felt as if your throat was closing in on you, like how the news of them crumbled onto you. A cold sweat dripped down your hands; you were shaking, fingers tingling in different directions as you coughed to breathe. Vision narrowing, losing your ability to see from your peripheral vision, it became all too blurry. Your chest pounded against your ribs. No, no, no. This couldn't be. They were still alive; they were still with you; they had to be. They couldn't leave you, even through death. They couldn't escape you. Your eyes flicker back; the halls were unoccupied; it was just you- it had to be a dream. The rest of the world seemed to be a distant reality; an overwhelming sense of nausea filled all of your senses.
They couldn't leave you.
Gods themselves would have to tear your body apart if they thought you were gonna give up so easily. You were determined to get them back. You felt as if swarms were crawling inside your stomach, tying it into knots; you couldn't breathe. Why couldn't you breathe?
[ Fu fu fu, what a sight to see! ]
You snapped out of your trance to see a black cat wearing a bowtie on its neck with its unnatural crimson eyes looking right at you. Were you hallucinating??.. "What the hell?" Your eyes widened at the fact that this cat was floating right in front of you. Who was this? Was this the Grim Reaper? Were you gonna die? You couldn't, you couldn't die, you wouldn't allow yourself to die. You had to bring them back no matter what. Even if it cost you everything you had.
[ I see low levels of HOPE yet high levels of DESPERATION from you, human! he he!! ]
[ –It's not EVERYDAY you see a potential host that is DESPERATE but also having excellent mental and physical capabilities?!? It's commendable, human! ]
[ He he he. . . Tell me, are there any wishes you have, human? ]
Your panicked breathing became even more erratic; a wish? You had a wish. M-maybe this was God's way of giving you a second chance? This had to be. And they always told you that you were an opportunist; you couldn't let this chance go to waste. "I... have a wish." You mumbled; the cat immediately flew right in front of your face. It was uncanny for a cat to have such dark eyes, dull, nothingness. He wasn't far from you though; you had nothing else left. The spark in your eyes long gone.
You snap back to reality, to see your system, Des, searching for a new story to enter. You sigh, sitting back on one of the digital couches you have in your dark, empty room. It had always been so cold; maybe it was just your loneliness that made you feel cold, having no one to rely on sucked. But sucks to suck, you just had to... persevere through this. You were determined to do so.
[ Y'knoww, you did pretty well in the last story! You're probably one of the only newbies to accumulate this many points! ]
"Mhmm," you say, unimpressed, going to check your points.
[ MISSION POINTS ]
[ >>> 8000 PTS ]
It wasn't enough.
[ Aren't cha gonna buy anything with that? ]
"Hah, dont try to persuade me to buy anything; you already know what I'm going for anyway." You put your hands behind your neck. "Now, what's our next mission?" Stretching as you asked him, to be honest, you were tired if it wasn't obvious enough. If you could have any blemishes on your face, it would've been some egregious eye bags. But luckily, because of something-something filter, you didn't remember what Des called it. Basically something that didn't allow you to gain any imperfections on your body.
[ he he he, I'm glad you asked, dear host! ]
He fixes his bowtie before speaking again, a grin appearing on his little face. Des would prop up a screen right in front of you. It wasn't anything you haven't seen, not exciting or anything.
[ I've picked a fairly easy world for you, as you seem a little tired from the last one! ]
Des nuzzles against your face, emphasizing your downturned eyes, expressing how tired you were of everything. You gently push him off, "Just let me see the story's premise already," your eyes narrowing at him.
He pushes the digital screen to you.
[ Tell me, have you ever read a story with a 'non-human' genre? ]
"Why'd you have to pick a story with that genre?" you raise your eyebrow at the cat; he ignores you and keeps speaking.
[ In this world, after the monsters who have been sealed in a mountain for over a hundred years were unsealed, they tried to co-exist with humanity! ]
"Oh, I expected something different, heh." he gives you a stink eye as you speak. "Continue"
[ Although a lot of humans did not want to accept that monsters were co-existing with them, and that's when our female lead, Irene Flowers, along with her toxic childhood friend, Y/N L/N, move into a monster-dominated neighbourhood! ]
"Oh, so a general teen-girl story? This actually sounds like a vacation. Maybe you are telling the truth." You teased him; he let out a huff that sounded like a deepend meow, it was cute.
[ Dear host, please shut up and let me speak! ]
[— Hmph, anyway, you will be the bridge for the male lead and female lead to meet! You aren't the main antagonist or anything, just an annoying second-rate villain! ]
[ #NONHUMANML #PROTECTIVEML #MONSTERS #FLUFFY #WHOLESOME #SWEETFL #BITCHYBFF #2FACEDBFF! ]
[ Easy vacation for m- YOU! ]
You put on an unamused expression and stand up. You needed to ask a question before entering, looking at Des with your brow raised. "Why so sudden? A non-human genre all of a sudden? What, you've gotten a newfound fetish for them, Dessy?" Tilting your head to the side as Des would scroll through his own UI, maximizing a screen for you in big bold letters. 'MONSTER MONTH'? Now what the hell was that? Seemed like Des was able to read your expression and cough.
[ MY! I always forget that you never socialize, a phone for communication and media for hosts for absolutely nothing. Absolute hermit. ]
Des scoffed; you still looked unimpressed as he continued to explain.
You were a bit offended, but his words held truth. Your phone held all sorts of apps, just like the ones you'd have when you weren't a host. People even followed you and asked to be mutuals, but you never responded. You were too busy for that. Going through story after story, you had just forced Des to respond to them.
[ BECAUSEEE, We've allowed hosts to also be another species- Monsters! Tons of new monster hosts for the monster genre, or non-human genre. And because we are so welcoming, we created a WHOLE month dedicated to them. If you complete a story with a monster as one of the leads as a non-human, or monster, extra points. And more stories completed, even more points! ]
You nodded along; this was good for you and Des. And you have always been open-minded, so you did not pay any mind to it. "Alright, that sounds easy enough, now, shall we?" He smiles as, in a flash, you are transported into this new world.
You look around to see that you were holding a box, inside a house still being furnished. You put down the box on the floor before going to the porch. So this is my house? You inspect it, and it looked simple, just how you'd like it.
"Y/N!!"
You hear a high-pitched squeal before a girl who's noticeably shorter than you embraces you tightly, smiling childishly at you. "Rene!" you let out, squishing her chubby cheeks. "Hehe, I missed you so much, y'know!" She finally lets go and puts her hands on her waist. "Are you done moving all your stuff?" You nod, "Help me with mine, pleeasseee?" she whines, a little too high for someone, but you dont mind. You roll your eyes jokingly and pat her head, "Yeah, yeah, I will!"
She grabs your wrist, leading you to the moving truck, showing you only a few boxes left. "I've become a little independent after we parted ways after college!" She strikes a pose as you get some of the boxes in the truck.
"Sooo, how have you been?" She walks beside you, striking up a conversation with you. "I've been alright, trying to find another part-time job here," she continues humming as if waiting for you to say something. "How have you been doing?"
"If you ask, then I shall answer! So I've actually picked up multiple hobbies, not like you would understand, but I've met people- more friends, oh, and I also got a job actually and even gave a speech during graduation! Oh, and I also ran into some monsters and talked to them; they were like super nice, and then—"
Yap, yap, yap, was all you could hear; she couldn't stick to one topic if her life depended on it. Going back and forth while you put her things inside.
After the last boxes, you wiped off your sweat, "Is that all?" She hugged you again, but much tighter, "Yep! That's all!"
She was hugging you so tight, you were actually wondering if she was trying to hug you or suffocate you. "I, I really need to go!" she seemed to deflate after you said that, her hug getting looser, "But..." You patted her head quickly, looking at her with a pitiful expression on your face. "Sorry, Rene, but it's really important, the house and stuff!" You patted her head, waving a little to say goodbye as you scurried off to your porch; luckily, you two were neighbours.
As you enter your house and close the door behind you, a cat appears beside you as you look at it annoyed.
[ Your acting is always on point, dear host! Even if I barely gave you information about the character you were occupying, he he he! ]
"You–!! All I knew about her was her name, and you wanted me to act as if I knew her for years!" You toss your arms in the air, clearly angry.
[ Well, it actually made you seem more like a bitchy friend, as you barely listened to her and acted as if you didn't know her! You gained a few extra points from doing that ]
You cross your hands, tapping your legs against the floor, "Tell me more about my character"
[ You are currently playing as a toxic friend for the female lead ]
[ You've known Irene since childhood after you saved her from her bullies, and ever since then you've controlled her like a puppet rather than treating her as a friend, controlling whatever she did, who she had as friends, and whatever ]
[ But during college, you two separated as your majors were different; you haven't seen each other for 4 years. ]
[ —And once you heard that she was moving to the same neighbourhood as you, you decided to get your little minion back. ]
"And I did have her under my control, until she met the male lead?"
[ As expected of you, dear host! Immediately understanding the story just from a few words! ]
[ But essentially, you have to meet the male lead first, as you get a job at the pub here, called Grillby's. ]
[ When you meet the male lead, you two become friends easily. You still want to isolate your friend, so you talk about her as if she's the toxic one. ]
"And he does believe me for a while, but when he meets the female lead, he falls in love with her kindness or how she treats him?"
[ He eventually helps the female lead realize that you were a toxic friend and she cuts you off- ]
[ A story about healing, cutting off toxicity and trueee lovee! ]
"After all that, I just have to move out of the neighbourhood, right? No murdering, or death, whatever?" you ask him.
[ Correct, the ending for your character is just moving out and leaving the female lead's life entirely! ]
He purrs as you pet him. "Can you at least help me furnish my new home?" He nods; in one blink, all of the boxes are gone, and the inside is fully furnished. "Thanks, Des"
[ The male lead is also a skeleton ]
"The male lead is a WHAT?!" You try to imagine a skeleton, and all you can see is a realistic skeleton walking their merry way with Irene; you were bewildered. You couldn't lie; even if she was very VERY talkative, she was drop-dead gorgeous! Her dark wavy hair was silky and had a shine to it; she had clear pale skin and pink pouty lips, even perfect white teeth! "A literal skeleton? Just full bones? No skin?" You would've expected a vampire; even a fucking werewolf would've been alright, or a squid-monster. You haven't had many experiences with monsters, except for Halloween, but you always just dressed up as something basic.
[ Mhm, and your character also had a crush on him, another reason why you didn't want him to meet her ]
[ And the main storyline will start in two days! I applied for an appointment interview for you, tomorrow, 11 am sharp! ]
You were still sitting there, not taking his words seriously, astonished at how a could skeleton pull such a pretty girl? Tapping your chin as you thought, a little silly but it was serious. How would it even look? Eurgh... You imagined one of those skeletons you saw in the science lab once, that. As a male lead? Really? Has humanity gone this low already?
[ Good luck, dear host! ]
He teleports away, leaving you with your thoughts on this story. "Ugh," you get goosebumps thinking of a hyperrealistic skeleton; you quickly shake your head, trying to stop the mere thought of it. "It's not like he'll be involved with me after I leave this story," You murmur, looking around your newly acquired house, composing yourself before going to look around.