The sun was shining high in the sky as the lifeboat containing the remaining students bobbed over the water. They had lost track of how long they'd been floating there- days, a week at most. Their water supply was running low, as well as their food.
Jean, as pale as he was, had quickly become sunburt within a few hours of their first day. The others soon followed, their skin turning bright pink. Many of them were starting to get restless and irritable, arguing with one another over the smallest things.
Jane sighed and trailed her hand through the water as they floated, humming quietly to herself. Her memories were coming back to her in bits and pieces, but never the whole picture. She just remembered how good it felt to hang out with her friends, laughing and goofing around. Had hope really been their best option...? At least if they were stuck on that boat, they would have food and proper living space, not to mention sanitary conditions-
"Hey, what's that?" asked Rin suddenly, pointing to a dot on the horizon. The others looked up and stared, trying to make it out.
"It's a boat!" Jean gasped, his pink tinted face lighting up. "Maybe they'll rescue us!"
The boat soon approached them, pulling up to the side. It was just a fisherman's boat, but it was much bigger and more inviting than the one they were currently on.
"Oi, what are you kids doing out here all alone?" questioned one large, strong-looking man. "Are you lost?"
Akemi jumped up and smiled at him, letting out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness you found us! We've been adrift for days, we-"
"Hang on!" said another man, scratching his head. "I think those're those missin' kids... from that school, Hope's Peak?" The first man's eyes widened, his jaw dropping.
"I think they are!"
"Quick, get 'em aboard!"
The students were quickly hauled onto the ship and given dry towels, along with food and water.
The fishermen had many questions for them, which they would be repeating to the press over and over once they returned to shore. It took many of them a while to get their land legs, wobbling along the shoreline for the first time in months.
The police were waiting for them once they arrived, and before they could blink an eye, they had made headlines all across the globe. Dozens of news shows had called in, requesting the students for interviews.
Tommy, wanting to stay true to his promise to Carter, answered one request for a TV interview. Soon, he found himself face-to-face with a perky woman, sitting leisurely in her big red chair. Tommy shifted uncomfortably, trying his best not to look towards the cameras staring at him from all directions.
The reporter fired one question after another, and Tommy found it hard to keep up with her. She talked so quickly, and he often just found himself staring blankly at her for several seconds before answering.
"How were the conditions on this boat?"
"How did you feel when you found out that you would be forced to kill your classmates?"
"Were you ever tempted to kill anyone?"
"What happened to the other students on the ship who had murdered?"
The woman asked many more questions along with these, and Tommy found it rather unsettling that she was asking these so casually. Did she not understand that people, his friends, had died? He was sure his story sounded absolutely insane. Still, he answered them all honestly. At the end of the interview, Tommy announced that he would be publishing a book about their experience, along with notes given to him by one of the masterminds. He faltered a little as he mentioned Carter, not meeting the reporter's eyes. It was just too painful.
The police had located what was left of the families of the students, who had been trapped in a warehouse somewhere in Mexico. Apparently, Carter had given the GPS coordinates in his journal along with his other findings.
Years went by, and soon, the RMS Despair had faded into nothing but a painful memory. The students kept in touch with one another, and sometimes even scheduled meet-ups so they could catch up with one another. Even though it was over, they all promised never to forget what happened on that ship, or the friends they had lost.
