Nagito Komaeda was, in his mind, a pretty worthless person. He had no actual talent, and his personality tended to rub people the wrong way and make them upset. He was aware that he didn't truly have a place in this world, yet here he was anyway. The only thing that he even had going for him was his luck, and even that tended to bring him trouble. He was poison, and he seemed to drag down everyone around him. However, he assumed there must be some reason for his pathetic existence, and at some point in his life, he realized that he could exist to help bring hope to the world.

He could never truly be a symbol of hope, since he was so pathetic and useless, but he could help those who embodied hope. This is what led him to leap at the chance to attend Hope's Peak, despite being aware that filth such as himself had no business being there. If he could be of service to his classmates, then at least he had a slight reason for existing. He would've never imagined that he would fall in love with a fellow student.

Hajime Hinata was part of the Reserve course. Komaeda initially hadn't even been aware of its existence until he started going to the school. The idea was preposterous to him at first. How dare these useless people think that they had a right to attend this school just by paying money? This school was for the hopes of the world, not for people even more useless than Komaeda. The idea of it truly disgusted him. But then he met Hinata.

Hinata was someone who was a lot like Komaeda. They both admired Hope's Peak more than anything, and they both wished that they could be as talented as their peers. Hinata treated Komaeda like an actual person, although at first he was visibly put off by Komaeda's personality. Still, he acknowledged Komaeda and would listen to what he had to say. This unexpected kindness led to Komaeda becoming fond of the other boy. Hinata became his first true friend, and eventually his best friend. He also became Komaeda's first love.

At first Komaeda had planned not to do anything about it. After all, nobody, not even someone as kind and good as Hinata, would want to be with Komaeda. Even if Hinata was as average as Komaeda, he was still too good for the other boy. Plus, Komaeda really didn't want to ruin the only friendship he'd ever had. Things were good as they were, so who was he to mess that up?

But, one day on impulse, Komaeda did something that would change everything between them: he kissed Hinata. The other boy was shocked, to say the least. He became flustered and nervous, which in turn led to Komaeda panicking.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that, I know you couldn't possibly want to be with trash like me," Komaeda babbled. He took a few steps back, and then turned and ran away from Hinata, who was frozen in a state of shock.

Komaeda was so distressed by what he had done that he didn't bother with going to school for the rest of the day. It wasn't like anyone would notice or care about his absence anyway. He felt awful about it, though. He usually liked going to class, because he enjoyed witnessing the cultivation of the hopes of this world. But today, he couldn't bring himself too, which led to even greater self loathing. Not only had he just ruined his only friendship, but he was also failing to be there for his classmates. He truly was a disgrace. This was the closest he had come to feeling despair in a long time, and that scared him. His only consolation was that his hope would be even stronger once (or if) he overcame this. Somehow, the thought didn't help as much as it usually would.

During lunch time, he got texts from Hinata, wondering where he was. They usually met for lunch, but Komaeda couldn't stand the thought of facing him right now. Who knew what Hinata would say to him? So instead, he just turned off his phone like the coward he was, and laid down in his bed. He spent the next few hours alternating between trying to study, and just sitting there and thinking about how badly he had fucked up. Eventually he just gave up on trying to sleep, and he just laid there until about 4 in the morning, feeling awful.

At some point, he managed to fall into a light and restless sleep, where he had dreams of Hinata coming to his room to yell at him for being such disgusting trash. He was startled out of these dreams a few hours later by someone knocking on his door. His heart plummeted, because he knew there was only one person who would bother to come and see him. His suspicions were proven to be correct when he heard Hinata's voice on the other side of the door. Was his bad dream actually a premonition of what was about to happen?

"Komaeda? I know you're in there. Open the door, we need to talk," Hinata told him. Komaeda very much did not want to do that, but he felt himself getting up anyway and walking to the door. He rested his hand on the door handle, but didn't turn it yet. "Komaeda, please," Hinata's voice broke through his hesitation, and Komaeda opened the door.

Hinata looked exhausted. That was the first thing that Komaeda noticed. The other boy must not have slept well either. That just made Komaeda feel even more guilty. He hadn't wanted to deprive his best friend of sleep. He knew how hard Hinata was working to try to make it into the main course. The other boy's eyes were filled with concern, although he seemed a bit relieved once he laid eyes on Komaeda. The two boys just stood there in silence for a minute and tried to figure out what to say. Finally, Komaeda opened his mouth to speak.

"Hinata-kun, I'm so-"

"Komaeda, don't you dare say you're sorry again," Hinata interrupted him, stepping inside of Komaeda's room. Komaeda immediately shut his mouth, feeling apprehensive and uncertain at the slight irritation in Hinata's tone. Hinata took in Komaeda's expression, and he sighed. He continued in a slightly calmer tone. "Look… you just sort of took me by surprise yesterday. I didn't think you… and I wasn't sure how I…" he trailed off, seeming at a loss for words. Komaeda swallowed heavily, knowing what the other boy was trying to say.

"It's okay, Hinata. I know that you can't feel the same about me," Komaeda's voice almost broke as he said this, and he looked down, unable to meet his friend's eyes anymore. He felt his eyes stinging with tears that he refused to let fall.

Hinata huffed in annoyance, and stepped closer to Komaeda. "I never said that. You're not letting me finish. You keep assuming I don't like you that way, but…"

"But what?" Komaeda could barely get the words out. He finally met Hinata's gaze again.

Hinata looked conflicted, like he didn't know what to say. His eyes flickered down to Komaeda's lips, and it registered to both of them in that moment how close they were to each other. Their eyes met again, and Komaeda's breath caught in his throat when he saw the intense look in Hinata's beautiful green eyes. He didn't even get a chance to think before Hinata's lips were pressing against his. Hinata kissed him softly, gently, as though Komaeda was someone precious and important. The kiss also felt certain, though, and Komaeda could sense that Hinata was trying to convey his feelings through the kiss. Komaeda's eyes fluttered shut as a few tears slipped through. He couldn't believe that this was happening. He kissed Hinata back, and lost himself in the feeling of the other boy's lips against his own. He'd never experienced such intense emotion before. He wasn't sure how long the kiss lasted, but eventually they both pulled away. Komaeda opened his eyes, and gasped at the fond, loving look that Hinata was giving him.

"Hinata," Komaeda whispered the brown haired boy's name like a prayer.

"I like you, Komaeda," Hinata told him, his face flushing slightly at the verbal admission of his feelings. "I like you a lot."

"You shouldn't," Komaeda blurted out. He wanted to punch himself for ruining the moment, but this had to be said. "I'm not good for you, Hinata. I'm not good for anyone." He was terrified of what would happen if he let Hinata get this close to him. He couldn't stand the thought of his luck harming him.

"That's not true. You were nice to me, when the others in the main course wanted nothing to do with a reserve course student like me. You're my best friend, and you're important to me. If you… really don't want to be with me, I understand, but I want you to know how I feel," Hinata told him. He looked so vulnerable that Komaeda swore he fell even more in love with him.

"I do want to be with you, more than anything," Komaeda admitted. "I just… please promise me that you'll be safe, that nothing bad will happen to you. I can't lose you." Hinata's eyes softened.

"You won't lose me, Komaeda. I'm not going anywhere," Hinata promised him, sounding so sure of himself that Komaeda couldn't help but want to believe him. Hinata looked so determined, and so...hopeful. Komaeda felt the last bits of resistance draining out of him.

"Okay," Komaeda gave in. "I can't resist you, Hinata." An embarrassed smile broke out on Hinata's face.

"Good. Nice. Thank you, Komaeda," Hinata awkwardly responded. "So, what does that make us?"

"Boyfriends?" Komaeda suggested shyly.

"That works for me," Hinata agreed with equal shyness. Komaeda let out a relieved sigh, which caused Hinata to laugh. Komaeda felt his anxiety draining away at the familiar sound of his best friend's laugh. Hinata truly was beautiful when he was this happy. Komaeda felt his own happiness growing at the realization that this amazing person was now his boyfriend. He couldn't help but feel a bit ridiculous that he had spent the last 24 hours worrying so much, when there had clearly been no need to. For the first time in a long time, Komaeda felt truly happy and carefree. The future had never looked this hopeful, and he knew nothing could ruin this feeling. He couldn't help but feel like as long as he had Hinata, everything would be okay.

A/N: Hello it's me. I haven't published anything in a while. I'm deep into danganronpa hell tho so. Here's a fanfic. I might make this a series. Idk. Anyway this is my first time writing for this fandom so I hope I didn't do too badly. Please review if you can!