Chapter 6 - Otaku

------

Being an otaku is hard

------

Sitting on a chair near the hospital bed, Dio fiddled with his phone.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

Well, he tried to.

"What the hell is up with this thing?" Dio complained. He was feeling annoyed at how many messages his phone was receiving.

He flipped his phone upside down and threw it above the air. He repeated this action a couple of times, but the dinging sounds wouldn't stop.

In the end, he sighed and closed his eyes. With a heartbroken appearance, he covered half of his face using his hand.

"Is this what it feels like to reach the peak as a normie? Being popular is so tiresome... haah." He sighed dejectedly. But deep down inside, he was secretly happy at getting attention.

Even if the attention he was receiving were malicious.

"Damn," Reading the messages on his phone, he couldn't help but curse. "So many people with bad intentions want a piece of me... truly, being too handsome in a world full of ugly people is a challenge..."

"What the hell man. Stop being so narcissistic." Kaname said with a tired voice. Looking at his best friend(?), he couldn't help but smile. "You brought me here?" He asked absentmindedly.

"What do you think?"

"If you could carry me, then why didn't you do so from the start? I could've saved my stamina and maybe even dodge the bullet." He gestured at his bandaged shoulder.

Dio scoffed. "You can't dodge bullets." He also smiled and muttered. "Only I can."

"Anyway, what do we do now?" Kaname asked Dio seriously.

"What?"

"I'm saying, should we continue to play the game? I don't want to kill people." Kaname said, feeling guilty about killing a person. Even if that person tried to kill them.

Hearing his words, Dio's face paled. He stared at his hands and he gulped nervously. The image of Banda-kun's head exploding from his fingertips haunted him.

"Well, m-me too..." Dio's voice quivered. He closed his eyes and calmed himself before he tilted his head at Kaname. "What do you mean we?"

"Huh?" Kaname's lips tightened before his eyebrows furrowed. "You..."

Like an anti-social otaku in his natural habitat, Dio proceeded to discard their relationship once he got what he came for. After all, he already saved Kaname's life, he should be thankful that Dio even conversed with him.

"Look Kaname, I only followed you because I was curious. If you don't want to play the game, then don't."

"Then, you're saying you will play it?" Kaname asked in disbelief. He couldn't understand why Dio would play a game called that risked his life.

"Of course." Dio answered confidently. Feeling proud at his new powers. 'I'm practically invincible. Why shouldn't I explore the limits of my power?'

"Even, even if it means killing other people?" Kaname said while clenching his fists.

Dio shut his mouth. The feeling of warm blood touching his bare skin made his hair rise. If he said he wasn't scared, then he would be lying. He was surprised to see that killing people was so simple, if he could put it into words, it would be...

Instantaneous.

There were no last words or communication.

There was only you being alive now.

And you dying later.

It was so fast that he couldn't even process what was happening.

Banda-kun was just standing there, frozen.

Then in the next moment--

He was laying on the ground. A headless corpse.

"...You don't have to kill people to play the game you know." In the end, he decided to make an excuse, whether it was for himself or for Kaname, he didn't know.

"But still! This game is killing innocent people like us!" Kaname yelled fiercely while sitting up.

"Innocent?" Dio stared at Kaname's eyes. The moon hanging above the sky reflected his glowing golden eyes.

"I'm not innocent Kaname." He said in a straight but firm voice. Reminding himself of what his done.

"Wha... but... he was killing us..." Kaname replied in a whisper.

"Indeed. You could also say it was self-defense. But..." A melancholic smile appeared on Dio's face. "I did it anyway. I killed him." He admitted. Although it was an accident inside his head, deep down inside, he knew that he might have killed him if he poured all the power he has in a single attack, in the end, he still decided to do it.

"You don't understand Kaname. I need this game." Dio spoke with a pained expression.

"Wh-Why?... you don't need to force yourself because of guilt--" Kaname was cut off before he could finish his words.

"See? You will never understand." Dio smiled, as if ridiculing Kaname's naive thought process.

Without bothering to explain, Dio turned around and left. Kaname could only look at Dio's back. For some reason, he felt that Dio looked lonely when he said that he didn't understand.

"How could I understand if you don't tell me...?" Frustrated, he decided to use his phone and get some answers. Since Darwin's Game started it all, then there must be a way to stop it. He wanted to know what drove Dio to play the game, even though he doesn't want to.

"Shuka-san..." Remembering the mysterious girl who texted them, Kaname thought that she might have the answer his questions.

...

The night was dark and cold. Walking along the deserted street, Dio wore a brooding expression. With his head lowered and lips pursed, he trudged on the sidewalk.

"...Being an otaku is hard." Dio said helplessly. He had to act like a different person in front of other people, even when he doesn't want to.

Rejection.

Even in Japan, they discriminated against otakus. They were known as an outcast. Someone who doesn't fit in the system. Especially for a hafu like Dio.

Even though he had handsome features, a kind but fake personality, good grades, and shiny blonde hair that cause jealousy, some curious girls couldn't get enough of his handsomeness. That is why a few plain-faced people still dislike him.

Mostly men.

No, all of them are men.

Those who bullied Dio were all boys who were jealous of him.

Even though he called himself a normie, he was in fact, a Riajuu.

(Riajuu - People who die and explode regularly.)

He has a humble and polite attitude towards strangers, even though he is generally a cold and anti-social person. (Fake)

He has good grades. (Result of Hard Work)

He has a great fashion sense. (Anime standards)

And most of all,

He is a gentleman(Lie). (Follower of gender equality.)

The bullying stopped at middle school, the only one who is bullying him in high school is a single person. But the problem is, the person who is bullying him isn't jealous of his looks, nor his grades, he just couldn't sleep at night without calling Dio an Otaku.

Dio sometimes wondered why he was getting bullied, even though he acts normally, has a healthy body, and good grades.

But then he remembered that the guy who was bullying him seemed familiar. He was one of the kids he betrayed and traumatized in middle school. That's why he decided to just let him be, after all, with the difference in build, it would be impossible for that person to hurt him, now that he has the power to stop time, then he couldn't even open his lips in front of Dio without getting boogers in his mouth.

And also that person's girlfriend confessed to him. But he rejected her because he doesn't want his otaku-self to be exposed. Thus leading them to break up, and Dio was to be blamed for being too handsome.

All in all, Diomichi Diovich is a hypocrite.

But, even if he is a riajuu who thinks of himself as a normie, the world works in mysterious ways. One could never have everything. If Dio has a good social life, then he doesn't have a family life. If Dio has a good apartment, then he doesn't have a place to call home.

Perfectly Balanced.

Like all things should be.

------

This one is too short. I'm practicing writingdrama, don't mind me. I'll upload another one later.

On another note, I'm kinda feeling borish not gonna lie, I might switch between my other fanfic (MHA: I Explode!) and this one when it comes to updates.