Emerald eyes stared at the ceiling. The birds were preparing for the dawn chorus outside the nearby window; the sun was rising. This meant that any effort to return to the sweet embrace of slumber would be futile, for Monika's alarm would go off in a few moments.

She pondered her early awakening. She had gone to bed far later than usual the night before. As a result, she amassed a whopping four hours of sleep. The club president was normally able to survive a single night with little rest, but unfortunately for her, this was the third night in a row that this had happened. There was something wrong – something she could not explain. Had she been able to pinpoint the problem, it would have been dealt with swiftly so she could continue moving forward. But alas, she lay in her bed like a statue, wondering why her body betrayed her like this.

The blaring alarm served only to exacerbate her headache. A stiff arm reached out to silence the infernal appliance, collapsing on the bed immediately afterwards. Aside from the gentle rays of the early sunlight slowly streaming in through the shutters, the only positive thing about this particular morning was that it was a Friday. Monika turned her head towards the sole window in her room. She shut her eyes, finding solace in the familiar tune sung by the birds.

A minute or two passed before she could muster enough willpower to get up and tackle the day. The simple act of sitting up proved challenging for the girl, for dizziness nearly overwhelmed her. She blinked slowly and hoped to recover sooner rather than later.

'Who would've thought that getting up would prove to be such a mission?'

Perhaps if she hadn't had such a busy week, her exhaustion would've been far more manageable. She quickly realised that it was no use discussing ideal situations; she would just have to deal with her inauspicious circumstances as they came.

"Just get through this day," she told herself, pausing as she stood, "and everything will sort itself out,"

Monika found it rather taxing to lift her feet while walking, an action that caused her to stumble on the miniscule step separating her room's floor from the hallway. She could barely huff in irritation. At least she could make use of the mini adrenaline rush to her advantage as she prepared for the day.

Losing Control – A DDLC Fanfic

Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End

A pen assaulted paper in the corner of the classroom. A pair of feet momentarily shuffled on the tiled floor. Someone scratched their head in thought. A muffled sigh prompted Monika to cover her mouth in an effort to stifle yet another one of her many yawns. She adjusted her test papers and watched as the clock tentatively ticked away the last thirty seconds of the period. Frustration welled up in her gut, manifesting itself as an obtrusive frown on her otherwise gentle features.

'Why can't it just be the end of the day already?'

She was grateful for her seat in the sun, for her body was cold due to fatigue. Thoughts of cancelling the afternoon club meeting were left unfinished as the bell finally rang.

"As usual, just leave your tests on your desks as you walk out," said the teacher, "I hope none of you forgot to write your names."

Students eagerly packed their bags, with only a few bothering to acknowledge his presence with an overenthusiastic "Enjoy your weekend, sir!" before running off to have lunch.

Monika was one of the last to leave, lifting her hand to the teacher in greeting before exiting the room. On the other side of the doorway, Yuri offered a welcoming smile.

"How was it?" she asked.
"Nothing to worry about," replied Monika. "I hope you didn't have trouble with question 3, considering you weren't here for yesterday's lesson."
"Not at all. The textbook summarised it quite nicely,"

Monika returned her smile.

"That's good to hear,"

The two of them continued walking to the cafeteria in relative silence. Monika briefly considered sitting somewhere away from her usual spot. She wasn't sure if she was willing to put up with Sayori's energy. Upon realising what she was doing, the brown-haired girl lightly shook her head.

"Something wrong?" asked Yuri.
"Nothing. Just tired, that's all,"

The taller girl nodded in response. Soon, the two girls reached their destination. They found Natsuki sipping on her juice box, staring rather quizzically while Sayori was telling a story in her usual animated way. Said story was promptly forgotten as the bubbly girl spotted her friends.

"Hey look! It's our own physics girls!" she exclaimed.
"In the flesh," replied Monika with a smile.
"Sometimes I wonder where we found someone like you, Sayori," said Natsuki.

Sitting down, Monika couldn't help but notice the mutual excitement subtly hidden behind Yuri and Natsuki's smiles. The allaying fact that the two of them had finally overcome their differences was more than enough to brighten her dreary day, even if it was only by a slight amount.

"Looking at you two just makes me so happy!"
"Sayori..." Yuri looked to the side in embarrassment.
"Why's it such a big deal anyway?" asked Natsuki, whose face was starting to match her hair.
"Well," replied, "you'd usually either be arguing or completely silent,"
"Yeah," mumbled Monika, "so I'd call this an upgrade."

Placing her empty juice box on the table, Natsuki raised an eyebrow.

"Tired much?"

Monika lifted her head from her arms and laughed sheepishly.

"Sorry, I didn't even realise,"
"It's okay," assured Sayori, "it's been a long week,"
"I concur," said Yuri.

Monika rested on her arms once more while the rest opted to take out their lunch.

"Aside from sleeping," Natsuki looked at Monika, "what are you guys looking forward to this weekend?"

Yuri was the first to answer.

"Well, my parents should be coming home on Sunday."

Her eyes shifted to the sandwich between her hands.

"Although it's only been a week, I still miss them dearly,"
"Hey, a week ish more fhan enough time to missh shumwun!"
"Sayori, don't talk with your mouth full!" reprimanded Natsuki.
"Shorry...Oh I did it again..."

The bubbly girl swallowed as Natsuki shook her head.

"For me," said Sayori, "I'd say I have a pretty good chance at getting us a new member this weekend."

That attracted everyone's attention. Monika sat up.

"Really?" she asked. Sayori nodded.
"Who?"
"That's a surprise!"
"Aw come on, Sayori!" exclaimed Natsuki. "Just tell us!"
"All I can tell you is that our new member might need something enticing to join the club."

Blue eyes met pink as she said that. Natsuki rolled her eyes.

"Is this your way of asking me to make cupcakes?"
"Pleeeeaaase Natsukiii! I'll do anything!"
"Let me guess. Your idea of anything doesn't include telling me the name of our potential new member."

Sayori laughed sheepishly.

"Just as I thought!"
"Either way, it's not someone you know, Natsuki,"
"Somehow, I doubt that," said Yuri.
"Me too," agreed Monika, "I think it might be a certain someone you love talking abou-"

Sayori quickly shushed the club president.

"Uh, guys," said Natsuki, "I'm kinda still in the dark here..."
"Well," said Monika, "Sayori and I are the only ones that really know this person in any case."
"That is correct," said Yuri. "I have only ever caught the tail end of conversations involving this person."

Purple eyes met blue.

"It seems our vice president doesn't trust us with this information."

The girl in question merely let out an awkward chuckle. Natsuki huffed.

"Geez, talk about dramatic."
"So, will you be able to bake the cupcakes, Natsuki?" inquired Sayori.

The pink-haired girl closed her eyes and exhaled in exasperation.

"Even if it's not only for our new member," said Yuri, "your cupcakes would do wonders to ease our usual Monday blues."
"Yeah! My family already finished the share of cupcakes you gave to me," said Monika

A few more moments passed as everyone watched Natsuki with bated breath. She eventually opened her eyes and frowned.

"You guys better be glad I enjoy baking as much as I do or you'd be outta luck."

Monika and Yuri breathed out a collective sigh of relief while Sayori opted to hug the short girl next to her.

"Thank you thank you thank you!"
"Don't squeeze so tight..."
"Sorry..."

Natsuki huffed.

"Now that new issue of Parfait Girls has to wait because of you,"
"But it'll be worth it," said Yuri.
"I concur," said Sayori with a cheeky grin.

The pink-haired girl's mock anger dissipated as she tittered at Sayori's questionable impression of Yuri. The girl in question looked off to the side, playing with her hair in her characteristic style. Monika merely smiled at the group's antics. She spent the remaining 15 minutes of lunch catching up on sleep while the rest chatted until the bell rang.

Well, the short-haired girls did most of the talking while Yuri mainly listened, but that was nothing out of the ordinary.

The day dragged on until, eventually, the final school bell rang. Thanks to her power nap earlier, Monika managed to get through her remaining classes without too much trouble. She hoped that no one would find any issues with her lack of plans for the Literature Club. Luckily, Fridays were relaxed in any case; everyone was usually too tired for anything too intense in any case.

But then again, how intense could a literature club really be?

Monika quickly disposed of those thoughts on her brief walk to the club room. As expected of the leader of the group, she was the first to arrive. She didn't have to wait long for the vice president to join her.

"Hey Monika! Any plans for the club today?"

Her facial expression shifted only slightly, but Sayori immediately noticed that the question irked the other girl.

"It's not a problem if you don't. We can always just do what we usually do – read, or something."
"I was actually kind of hoping to cut today's meeting a bit short,"
"I see...well, we wouldn't want you falling asleep on us!"

Sayori gazed at the ceiling in thought.

"Say, this week has been pretty uneventful, hasn't it?" she asked.
"Yeah, it has," replied Monika, "hopefully next week will be better."
"I feel like we should do something special sometime,"
"Something special?"

Natsuki's voice shifted their attention to the door. She was accompanied by Yuri, who appeared to be equally curious.

"Yeah, something special. Maybe not as a club per se, but as a group of friends."

Everyone paused for thought for a moment before Yuri broke the silence.

"Hmm...well, summer break is coming in a month, so why not then?"
"Yeah!" exclaimed Natsuki, "I'm thinking something along the lines of a weekend getaway,"
"Where would we get the money for that, though?" asked Monika.
"Who says we need money?"

Everyone gave Sayori a dubious look.

"That's not what I meant! It's just that my uncle has a beach house not too far from here, so we don't need to spend money on a place to stay,"
"But then that raises the question of how we'll get there," said Monika.

Natsuki's gaze shifted to the floor.

"If it's only for a weekend," said Yuri, "I'm sure my parents won't mind me using one of their cars."

It was Yuri's turn to be met with incredulous expressions.

"You can drive?"

The pink-haired girl covered her mouth when she noticed how loud she actually said that. Yuri's face flushed. She instinctively wove her purple locks between her fingers.

"Y-yes. I got my licence a few days after my birthday..."
Sayori was stunned. "And you don't say anything~!"
"The test was quite stressful, don't get me wrong, but I didn't think it was such a big deal, honestly..."
"Yuri," said Monika, "I guess we learn something new about you every day,"

Yuri was relieved when the focus shifted away from her the moment the girls started discussing the details of their trip. They would depart soon after the last Friday of the school semester and return the following Sunday evening. Logistics and costs would be handled by Monika and Yuri, while Sayori and Natsuki would come up with activities for the four of them. Of course, Sayori and Yuri would have to arrange their accommodation and transport, but once that was settled, nothing would come in the way of their weekend getaway.

By the time they were done, there was half an hour left before the club meeting would usually end. Instead of cutting it short, the group decided to make good use of the time. Monika and Sayori started with their homework, Yuri continued with her most recent novel and Natsuki got to work on a poem. The latter two were the first to leave when time was up while leaders of the club stayed longer. Sayori spoke up when her friends' footsteps ceased to echo in the halls.

"Are you sure you're just tired?"

Monika paused somewhat abruptly as she packed her books away. The question had caught her entirely off guard, and her reaction would not allow her to talk her way out of answering it. A sigh escaped through her lips.

"Not really," she replied, zipping up her school bag.

As much as she didn't want to answer, she couldn't let Sayori worry. Her eyes were locked on the desk in front of her.

"I don't know how to explain it, but something just feels...off, for some reason. I haven't gotten much sleep the past three nights, and it's starting to eat away at me."

Sayori took a moment to think before responding.

"Does it feel like there's something missing?"
"Not quite. It's more like some things don't really make sense anymore. I can't even give any examples because that's how strange this feeling is."

Monika frowned slightly as she looked up at Sayori.

"I know this must sound ridiculous, and I should probably just try and move on, but I can't."

Sayori offered a gentle smile.

"Don't worry. I know better than anyone that you can't just move on from anything whenever you feel like it, no matter how stupid it may seem to you. Just know that you shouldn't bottle it up. If you need someone to talk to, remember that I'm here for you."

Monika's frustration was quickly overshadowed by gratitude, so much so that she swiftly pulled her friend into a hug.

"Thanks, Sayori. It really means a lot."

The shorter girl was taken aback by the president's unusual display of affection, but she happily returned the gesture. Soon, the girls found themselves ambling outside of the school building. Sayori decided against any notion of conversation due to Monika's faintly aloof demeanour, opting instead for a comfortable silence. They exchanged nothing more than a smile upon reaching the intersection where they usually split up to walk to their respective homes.

When she eventually entered her room, Monika dropped her bag and flumped on to her bed face first. Sweet slumber was all but too hasty to lock her in its embrace, for she did not even kick off her shoes before slipping into unconsciousness.

A/N: Hey there! If you've read my other DDLC fic - Breaking the Barrier - to the end, you'll likely have read about how I was planning a future story. Well, here it is, right in time for DDLC's first anniversary! This one's gonna be much longer than the last - likely around 30 chapters. I'm planning to post a new chapter every 2-4 weeks, so look forward to that. Have a good one!