Needle and Thread - Oumasai

Prologue

His eyes caught the sight of the list; The list that he had grown to hate with every inch of his tired body.

Years of expectations.

Years of drained energy.

If only he could rip it to shreds and tear the pain away.

He wanted to let that list burn and watch it crumble to cinders. He wanted to strike it over and over again until the words on it were completely unreadable, stained with the blood from his knuckles.

This single piece of paper was apart of his normal routine. Every day, he was reminded of his suffering from the moment he woke up. He would need to drink coffee in order to stay awake, he would pack his heavy textbooks in his backpack, change into his rank uniform, and leave the house without eating breakfast.

The numbers haunted him.

The numbers scared him.

Yet at the same time, the numbers were the only thing he had.

If the numbers were to disappear...

Would he truly be free? Or simply switching to another type of hell in this harsh world of organization.

-

That other type of hell is something that he has become used to. The numbers may be important, but they meant nothing to him. He doesn't need numbers on a paper to determine his future.

They can't provide him water.

They can't provide him food.

They can't provide him happiness.

He has grown an inability to meet eyes with another's, and constantly keeps his face towards the ground.

Every figure seems to drag the day on longer than it should.

Every figure seems leaves him with a feeling of rejection.

Every figure seems to hate him.

The constant reminders that he will never be happy simply because of a rank.

A simple title, yet it causes so much pain.

His bursts of anger are controlled by his sorrow, but his excuses are ignored in this harsh world of organization.

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Shuichi Saihara, the boy controlled by names and ranks on a list.

Kokichi Ouma, the boy controlled by loneliness and betrayal from others.