forum THE PROMISED NEVERLAND NEED Emma. Norman. Ray. Isabella. Phil. Conny. Don. Gilda.

Started March 22, 2021 by ink_sans123 group

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"I was sleepin' fine, then I got this killer headache," he replied, sitting up. "It could just be natural, but I'm doubting that for some reason."

Crystal walked over to him. “How bad is it?”

"Terrible. It's like I'm bein' stabbed right through the skull." Hiro rubbed his head once more, and let out another pained groan.

Crystal winced. “Yikes…”

Hiro flopped back onto the bed, squinting his eyes. "I heard if you focus on something other than pain, it goes away. Weird that it isn't working. Then again, I've probably used the technique a ton of times, to the point where it just doesn't work."

“Maybe us talking will help,” Crystal said, flopping next to him.

"Yeah, I suppose it could," Hiro said, looking over at Crystal. "And you're not as bratty as the others, so that's a plus I suppose." Hiro looking up at the ceiling and huffed. "What should we talk about, then?"

“I don’t know…there’s so much to talk about…” Crystal sighed.

"Well, maybe we can start with basic stuff. Like, favorite foods or something, maybe." Hiro arched his head back.

“Yeah…you wanna go first?” Crystal smiled softly.

"Sure, I don't see why not. On the topic of food, my favorite is squid ink pasta. It sounds bad, I know, but trust me, it's pretty good. We had it here one time when I was younger. I've loved it ever since," Hiro rambled on, stopping himself before he went off on a tangent.

“Oh, I remember that!” Crystal smiled. “I hated it,” she giggled.

"Mhm, I remember you spat it back up. Different strokes for different folks, I guess." Hiro chuckled after what seemed like decades of him not giving a single glint of emotion. For once, he was happy, let alone actually feeling something.

“What happened to you? When we were younger, you were so optimistic…” Crystal looked at him with worry.

Hiro sighed. "Times have changed. I'm not the foolish brat I was back then. I've grown." The slight smile on his face faded. "At least you didn't change. You were the light everyone needed back then, and you still are. I guess some things- or, in our case, some people, never change."

Crystal teared up. “Yeah…”

Hiro noticed Crystal beginning to tear up and leaned over towards her, hugging her tightly. He was silent, speechless even. He hadn't expected the conversation to get this sad, let alone this quickly. Hiro smiled at Crystal, hoping for her smile to return as well. "Don't cry, Crys," Hiro said, finally breaking his silence.

Crystal hugged back. “I-I can’t help it…it hurts to see you like this…”

"I know. I hate seeing how low I've fallen, too. But sometimes, we have to accept change. Hell, maybe I'll change again in the future and go back to the optimistic fool I once was." Hiro eased his grip on Crystal. "Maybe we can leave this place someday. And maybe that'll be the change I need. The change we both need."

“B-But how will we leave? There’s walls everywhere…” Crystal looked up at him, her eyes still filled with tears.

"There's gotta be an exit, right? I mean, we're let outside everyday, so there's doors leading out. Maybe we can find a passage to the area outside the bounds of the yard… Maybe then we'll have a chance. We can make a run for it. We can start a new life. Maybe bring a few of the others with us, just so they get to experience freedom too… God, this plan sounds insane, doesn't it?" Hiro said, joking near the end in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Crystal laughed a little, wiping her eyes. “I’d like that…”

"Then let's try it. We'd have to keep it on the DL, so that Mom doesn't catch on, but I think we can do this if we really try," Hiro said, noticing that Crystal was beginning to grow happy again. He'd always been the one to focus on people's physical cues, as well as their vocal ones. In a way, some of his past self was beginning to come back from where he had repressed it.

Crystal nodded. “After all, we owe it to everyone to try!” she smiled. She was definitely feeling better now.

"Exactly," Hiro agreed. He let go of Crystal and ruffled her hair. "That headache's finally gone… In fact, I nearly forgot I had a headache to begin with. Do you think you're gonna be able to sleep now, or shall we stay up a while longer?"

“I want to stay up. If we’re gonna escape, we’ll need a plan!” Crystal said, filled with determination. She fixed her hair after Hiro ruffled it.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. We also need to map out all the doors in this building- Maybe then we can plan an escape route from there," Hiro began. He looked up at the ceiling as the dim lights lit up his face ever-so-slightly. "And we can continue on from that point onward."

Crystal nodded, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. “Yeah!”

"Mhm. So, we will need to sneak out of this room and maybe see if there are any blueprints anywhere that include a floor plan. Maybe Mom has them in her room or something," Hiro said, now hyperfocused on coming up with a plan to escape.