Sayori's pupils are dilated to the extreme, her mouth is wide open and her body is shaking. The bag Sayori was holding drops on the floor with a loud noise...yet this noise is nothing compared to the soul crushing sound that's coming...

Sayori: "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH..."

Sayori's heartbroken scream rings across the whole house, and immediately freezes my ardent passion as effectively as liquid oxygen. Deep regrets erupt in my mind.

How could I forget Sayori? How could I forget she was supposed to come 8 minutes after Natsuki and Yuri entered the house!?

One part of my eyes notices Monika is looking at Sayori with a surprised expression...but with a hint of something else.

The other part remarks that Sayori's eyes are slowly making their way to Natsuki and Yuri's unconscious bodies.

I realize Sayori is about to discover them. Goosebumps once again creep along my spinal cord.

No….

I should do something. But the gravity of the situation paralyzes me and I can only watch as things continue to go from bad to worse.

Sayori finally notices Natsuki and Yuri…She weakly calls them, as if she wasn't sure what she was seeing was reality.

Sayori: "Y...Yuri...Natsuki...?"

Monika is still sitting on my lap, her arms latching on to my neck. I see she is now glaring at Sayori…

A dreadful idea comes to mind. Is she going to strangle her too?!

Sayori's shaking becomes more and more intense. Her eyes dart left and right, between Natsuki, Yuri and us...And while making incomprehensible sounds, her knees collapse...she falls to the ground, head first.

Fortunately, pillows appear under her just before she hit the ground, preventing any brain trauma.

It looks like Sayori fainted due to the severe emotional shock.

Still on my guards, I try to get up:

Ethan: "Monika! Come on, we need to check Sayori and the other girls!"

While reluctantly moving out of the way, she replies:

Monika: "...Fine…"

Her voice seems disinterested, as if she didn't care about what happened to the other girls!

What the hell Monika!

Before Monika gets up however…I heard Natsuki's faint voice:

Natsuki: "Wha...what...happened…?"

No way...Sayori's scream must have pulled Natsuki out of unconsciousness!

Monika hurriedly gets up and I swiftly follow. I look at Natsuki and I see she is still lying on the floor, weakly moving her limbs. It doesn't appear she can get up yet. Natsuki's eyes notice Yuri, who is lying next to her.

Yuri's hands are slowly opening and closing themselves.

Is she going to wake up too?!

Natsuki: "Yu...ri?...Why...are...you….Yuri?!"

Natsuki's thoughts are currently in total disarray, but she is slowly remembering what happened before she fell unconscious.

I don't know what I should do. I turn to Monika, expecting some kind of help or direction. But Monika's reply tells me she doesn't know more than me:

Monika: "What should we do?"

Ethan: "I...don't have any idea…"

Natsuki heard us and turns her head to us with great difficulty:

Natsuki: "Monika…Ethan?...Yuri...quick...you need... to help... Yuri!"

She still doesn't understand it was us who strangled her and Yuri.

Monika is silent. I can see she is torn between several choices.

One of them must be knocking out the girls out again.

I can't let that happen. Not again. It's too dangerous...And besides, I can't stand seeing the girls being treated like obstacles that need to be eliminated.

I warn Monika in a low voice, so that only her hears it:

Ethan: "Don't you dare hurting them Monika…"

Monika answers with an equally low voice:

Monika: "Why? You know what will happen when they wake up, don't you?! I don't want to lose you again!"

Natsuki's call interrupts our conversation:

Natsuki: "What are you...two talking about? Ambulance...call...the goddamn ambulance…!"

Natsuki's right hand reaches out to Yuri's left hand while Natsuki's left arm is trying to push her body against the ground in an attempt to be on all fours. However, she can't summon the strength yet.

Yuri: "...Na...tsu...ki…"

Natsuki: "Yuri! Yuri,...hold on! Stay with me!"

Sayori: "Natsuki, Yuri? You're real, right? This isn't a nightmare, right?..."

Sayori's voice surprises us. I look at her and I see she has already woken up. She is sitting on the floor with her hands holding her head and seems to be in denial.

The situation is getting worse and worse.

Shit! Everybody is waking up! How...how are we going to explain what happened to them? How to explain ropes appeared out of nowhere and strangled them? How to explain pillows spawned under them? How to explain I and Monika ignored them and kissed each other during the whole time!

No way, there's no way!

Natsuki: "MONIKA, help Yuri! The ambulance!"

Natsuki's plea brings me back to reality. Monika doesn't answer Natsuki and instead pulls me toward her to whisper to me:

Monika: "I'm gonna do it! Trust me!"

She's going to strangle them again!

Ethan: "DON'T! If you do it…"

My words are cut short when I see with horror that ropes have materialized around Sayori, Natsuki and Yuri's necks. They are progressively tightening. I notice a smartphone is lying near Sayori's feet.

She was going to call an ambulance!

My left hand strongly grips Monika's left shoulder. I face her with the most serious expression and voice I can muster.

Ethan: "STOP IT!"

Monika: "NO! Why, why do you care so much? After the festival, I can fix everything! No matter their problems, no matter their memories!"

The festival? Right. We talked about that. Monika said she made backups of Sayori, Yuri and Natsuki' character files. She planned to delete them and restore them to edit their problems but I stopped her by telling her I would die if she did that before the festival. She surely thinks it doesn't matter how much they suffer because she can fix everything after the festival anyway...

While I think that, colors are beginning to get absorbed into pixelated boxes. Static noise is ringing through the world. The characters are beginning to realize the falseness of the world, and time will be rewound soon.

I can understand Monika's point of view but...even so!

Ethan: "So you're just planning to render them unconscious for five whole days! That's crazy! You're going to kill them! If they die, I WILL DIE!"

I can see my argument touched her. She seems to be hesitating. I quickly glance behind me and I observe the ropes aren't tightening anymore.

Monika: "...Maybe...you're right…"

As I begin to rejoice…

Monika: "But I will lose you again if another rollback happens! I don't want to see to that again. NEVER AGAIN!"

Natsuki, Sayori and Yuri's begging voices are calling us...But aside from convincing Monika, there is nothing else I can do for them.

Ethan: "So be it! If I'm rendered unconscious and if MC takes my place then it's still OK! I won't die, I won't disappear! I will just sleep! Come on!"

Monika furrows her eyebrows and grits her teeth.

Almost there, just a little more and...

Monika: "...I..."

Her expression finally breaks as tears are beginning to birth in her emerald eyes. She desperately hugs me, and while looking sadly at my pupils:

Monika: "Okay…Ethan, promise me...promise me you will come back…"

I reciprocate the hug. I feel like it might be the last time I see her.

Ethan: "I promise...It will take more than a basic A.I and some glitches to beat me, you know?"

I weakly giggle with an emotional voice.

Monika: "I swear I will save you...No matter what…"

A ephemeral moment later...

Monika: "I love you Ethan".

Unbeknown to me, droplets of tears are falling from my own eyes.

Ethan: "I love you too, Monika."

I finally let go of the words I have been holding on for what felt like an eternity.

She briefly kisses me.

Then, she pulls herself away with a sad smile and, in a her powerful and tearful voice, she proclaims:

Monika: "NATSUKI, YURI, SAYORI, LISTEN TO ME!"

I turn my body to look at them. The ropes have already disappeared and the girls are now trying to catch their breaths. They are coughing violently, especially Yuri and Natsuki.

Monika: "WE ARE LIVING IN A SIMULATION. EVERYTHING IS FAKE!"

Glitches are quickly increasing.

Monika: "THINK ABOUT IT. WHY YOU CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE TUESDAY? WHY OBJECTS ARE APPEARING OUT OF NOWHERE?"

A coordinate grid is now becoming more and more visible.

So this is the end…

I'm scared. I'm terrified, but this is for the best. I don't know how far time will be rewound this time...Hopefully it will be rewound back to when Natsuki and Yuri arrived at the house. Either way, this timeline is done for.

This is the best choice…

I hear the girls reacting to what Monika is saying. They are realizing the truth of this world.

Maybe I will never wake up this time...

Monika: "REMEMBER YOUR HOUSE, YOUR FRIENDS, THE SCHOOL, YOUR FAMILY! EVERYTHING IS EMPTY!"

Everything is now collapsing into zeroes and ones.

I'm so scared...

I desperately grab Monika's hand one last time and grasp it as tightly as I can.

Don't forget Monika.

Don't forget who you are.

Don't forget what you are fighting for.

Don't forget Sayori, Natsuki, Yuri.

Don't forget,

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