The pounding at his cottage door rouses Hinata from his sleep. Well, whatever sleep he had managed to get following that confusing fourth trial in the Funhouse.

"Who the hell. . ," He mutters, carefully sliding out of bed and padding across the cottage, "Maybe it's Komaeda-kun come to kill me, heh."

He throws the door open and to his surprise, Komaeda is standing there with an unimpressed look on his face. "My, my, I didn't realize it took reserve courses so long to answer the door." He huffs, breezing past him and slipping inside.

". . .I didn't invite you in. Plus I was asleep." Hinata mumbles, shutting the door and following after Komaeda.

"So what?" The brunet demands, "Are you here to kill me or something? What do you want?"

Komaeda digs a pocket knife out of his coat pocket and starts fiddling with it. "Looks that way. I want to. So bad, Reserve Course," He sneers, "You lied to me."

Hinata stiffens. ". . .What?"

"You had me thinking you were some magnificent symbol of Hope when in actuality you're nothing, something lower than dust," The lucky student hisses, "You liar! You betrayer!"

The brunet's eyes narrow. "What?! I never lied to you, I didn't know I was talentless, it's not my fault! You don't need to freak out on me like this! Or treat everyone as awfully as you did today!" He fires back.

"Who gives a fuck about them?!" Komaeda shouts loudly, making Hinata flinch. He'd never heard Komaeda swear before.

Tears spring into the lucky boy's eyes as he stares down Hajime. "Hajime I loved you. . .And the hope sleeping inside you. . .Do you have any idea how much this hurts me?!"

Hinata does his best not to hesitate.

"Yeah, well, I was starting to love you too, but there's no chance in hell now! I don't see how or why my being a Reserve Course should provoke this kind of reaction from you!" He protests.

"That's not just it! Ugh, not like you would understand with your shitty memory." He huffs.

"Okay, that's enough!" Hinata demands, pointing at the door, "Get out! Out of my cottage!"

Komaeda gives him one last glare before storming out, slamming the door behind him.

A few days later, a bewildered Hajime still finds himself sad when he lays eyes on Komaeda's, the man he once thought he could fall in love with's body.