Chapter Text
Another day begins, no different from yesterday or tomorrow.
The girl buried under a blanket is thankful that she has no reason to get up or bother convincing herself to do so...Well, it would be more accurate to say that she has no reason to bother doing anything today. Holidays granted her that much respite though it didn't make her happy like most people of her age.
While she may be a little lazy, Sayori ultimately feels...empty. Always has. She often thinks about why she even bothers going through the motions. Maybe obligation? Hope that she'll get better tomorrow? It's hard to tell and it probably doesn't particularly matter.
It wasn't always this bad though. Not long ago, there was something to motivate her a little. Sayori's been friends with him since her childhood and they were always together. Whether it was him helping the clumsy girl get up earlier, her tricking him into buying snacks, playful teasing from both sides, there were plenty of interactions between the two. It didn't clear the sky, but each day looked a little brighter, a little less cloudy. He gave her a reason to at least put enough effort to look happy.
Unfortunately, it didn't last forever. His parents had to move far away and whatever attempts at communicating online they've made soon fizzled out into silence. He probably has better things to do than worry about her now, she couldn't blame him even as she felt herself sink deeper into mud. Maybe he was happier now that she wasn't around to waste his time.
A low grumbling sound snaps Sayori out of her thoughts. With a quiet groan, she rolls off her bed onto the soft carpet (maybe she should remove it so that it doesn't seem so inviting) and slowly gets up. She should have something in the fridge to nibble on. It's not like she can sleep more anyway, she's been simply lying in bed for a while now.
With some food and soda on her desk, the girl decides to boot up her laptop and aimlessly browse the internet. She doesn't know what she's looking for, but sometimes, she finds an article or a video to linger on for a bit. Maybe she'll keep searching until she's done with breakfast...Well, it's almost noon already, but those are trivial details.
Something in the corner of her vision draws her attention. It turns out to be an ad for some game. A dating sim? Sayori has never played any, but she recalls her friend talking about them, saying that they are pretty long and he got invested in some of them. She chided him for spending too much time on something silly like this when he had school to worry about. He was kinda lazy too, genuinely lazy, and she had to make sure he didn't get kicked out for that.
And here she was, following that ad to Vapor, an online store for videogames. A dry chuckle escapes her lips at that thought. Maybe she could kill some time like this.
"Doki Doki Literature Club..." - she whispers to herself.
The description doesn't sound like anything out of the ordinary for these games. The point was to have one of the characters fall in love with you, right? Said characters are exclusively girls in this game, but that's fine, she doesn't expect herself to get too into the game anyway. It's free too, so, there's nothing to worry about at all.
And just like that, she clicks on the download button.
(If she were more focused, she would have noticed that the link was all wrong and the games in recommended section were all Doki Doki Literature Club)
It doesn't take long for the game to be installed, but Sayori decides to get some snacks first. Chocolate chip cookies should do! The girl has way too many of those, but they help make her feel just a little better. He certainly would yell at her for eating in bed and getting crumbs everywhere, but he's not around to do that and so she flops on her bed and puts the laptop in front of her.
"Doki Doki!" - the title screen says cheerily as three happy schoolgirls appear next to the menu and an upbeat melody starts playing.
...should she be doing this?
The girl's face heats up a little from embarrassment. It's not strong enough for her to immediately close the game, but definitely enough to have second thoughts. If she weren't entirely alone in the house at that moment, she would have changed her mind, but a bit of curiosity makes her continue.
(If she weren't busy stuffing her face, she would have noticed a little message before the title screen warning her about her imminent death)
When the game asks for her name, she pauses to think with another cookie in her mouth. If she remembers correctly, most player characters are named by the player. "Sayori" would be the obvious choice, but isn't the protagonist here a guy? She's pretty sure that's what the description said.
"Hmmmmmmm...Maybe Satoki?" - she muses out loud. It's just the first thing that came to her mind, but she goes with it anyway.
When she starts the game, the first thing she sees is a background image depicting an oddly familiar street. It takes Sayori a moment to actually start reading the text, which is just the protagonist rambling to himself about how boring things are and his uncertain future. The way he talks reminds her of her friend. Is it normal that she still hasn't seen the player character's face? He never talked about that, he was always more focused on the girls.
(If she weren't busy thinking about trivial things like that, she would have noticed a pair of emerald eyes staring at her from a distance)
Shortly afterwards, the background changes to an empty classroom. Now the protagonist is thinking about what club to join. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what his choice will be, but Sayori's reminded of her own school life. With her childhood friend gone, she never bothered joining any clubs or take part in any group activities like that. There just was no reason for her to. She didn't even get to make any more friends, that gloomy attitude she adopted hasn't done her any favors, but that's okay, it just means she won't be a burden.
(If her thoughts weren't so occupied, she would have noticed a bloody handprint on a window and a tuff of pink hair on the floor next to the door)
Suddenly, one of the main girls appears on the screen.
"Oh my goodness, I totally didn't expect to see you here!" - the girl with a bow says, covering her mouth with her hand. "It's been a while, right?"
The two strike a conversation. Apparently, he and that girl - whose name turns out to be Monika - know each other, but he immediately writes her off as being way out of his league. A tinge of envy at Monika's description is quickly replaced with confusion. Shouldn't she be a part of the main cast? She's on cover art and title screen, not to mention the description of the game puts quite a bit of emphasis on her.
It doesn't take long for Monika to lure Satori with promise of cute girls and cupcakes. Well, she doesn't specifically offer him the former, but it really sounds just like Sayori's friend. Not that she herself would be entirely against cupcakes.
(If she weren't so fixated on cupcakes, she would have noticed the smile on Monika's face grow disturbingly wide...maybe she really should start paying more attention)
"I'm back~! And I brought a guest with me!" - Monika says as they enter a classroom, clearly excited to have another member.
"Eh? A...a guest?" - a taller girl with purple hair mutters, clutching her hands on her chest.
"Seriously? You brought a boy? Way to kill the atmosphere," - a smaller girl with pink hair complains with crossed arms and a pout.
The club members - Yuri and Natsuki respectively - are introduced to Satori shortly afterwards. He's already captivated by them - which happens to give Sayori a bit of secondhand embarrassment and a red tint to her cheeks - and they give him a warm welcome.
Sayori doesn't notice it at first, but she ends up enjoying reading about their antics. Even if she's not given much control beyond advancing text and some dialogue options, she finds herself having fun as if she's inside that classroom. It's not until she runs out of cookies and feels her smile falter that she even noticed she had one. It's no surprise that she chooses to continue paying, but not before she gets more things to chew on...and shakes off all the crumbs.
(If she wasn't so absorbed in reading, she would have noticed a pool of blood next to one of the chairs...How scatterbrained can one person get?)