Chapter Two: 歪み
Distortion rarely arrives with thunder. It begins as a silent misalignment in an ordinary afternoon—a subtle thread of discontent pulled until the quiet sanctuary of daily life slowly warps. When the boundary between a peaceful present and a lingering nightmare grows thin, even the softest warmth can feel like an illusion preparing to shatter.
The afternoon sun filtered through the windows of the school library, casting the golden ray of light and shadow across rows of polished oak tables. The air here was heavy with the dry conforting scent of old papers from the various books, punctuated only by the soft, rhythmic ticking of a wall clock,the occasional rustle of a turning page and the air conditioners that could make someone feels cold.
Miyuki sat at a table at the corner next to a window, a thick book with blank black-colored cover propped open beside her open notebook. Her mechanical pencil hovered over the grid paper, drafting various kind of mathematic formulas for the upcoming midterms. Yet, despite her immaculate handwriting, her concentration was out of the window. The glimpse of yesterday’s nightmare,the chilling sight of Takumi’s cold eyes and the suffocating echo of the crowd still lingered like a faint, persistent stain on the back of her mind. She's wondering why she still remember all of those.
A soft scraping of a chair broke her train of thought.
Someone pulled out the chair next to her and slid into it with casual grace. Miyuki turned her head to see a girl with short, shoulder-length green hair framing an expressive face with sharp same green color of eyes.
"Yuri-chan..." Miyuki whispered softly, her eyes brightening slightly.
Yuri leaned back, resting her chin in her hand with a mischievous, lopsided smile. "Look at you, our honor student, grinding away for exams days before anyone else even opened a textbook. Truly an inspiration to us slackers.
Miyuki let out a quiet, breathless laugh, setting her pencil down.
Yuri glanced around the quiet study room, her bright eyes sweeping over the scattered books before landing on the empty chair across from Miyuki. "Speaking of which... I don't see a certain 'knight' around. I thought I'll see him next to you by now."
"Takumi-kun?" Miyuki points her finger toward the entrance door. "He went to buy us drink. He said I looked like I needed some break."
Yuri let out an appreciative sigh while shaking her head. "Man, talk about a dream boyfriend. Always attentive, never complains even once, and literally brings drinks to your table. You really struck gold, Miyuki-chan."
Miyuki looked down at her notebook, tracing the edge of the paper with her thumb. The praise was so familiar to her, everyone said the exact same thing. Everyone saw Takumi as the gold standard of partner, the childhood friend turned lover. Yet, as the words settled into her chest, a strange, hollow friction stirred beneath her ribs.
"He is considerate, yes." Miyuki murmured, her voice dipping lower, carrying a weight that immediately caught her friend's attention. "He really is. But..."
Yuri's playful demeanor vanished in an instant. Her eyebrows knitted together as she tilted her head, her sharp green eyes locking onto Miyuki. "But? What does 'but' mean?"
Miyuki hesitated, her fingers tightening around her pencil. The thought had been hovering in her mind like smoke for months, fragile and ugly, but voicing it aloud felt dangerous. "It's just... sometimes, I wish he could be a little more... romantic."
Silence fell over the table, heavier than the quiet of the library around them.
"More romantic, you said?" Yuri echoed slowly, her voice devoid of its earlier teasing. " All of those things he did weren't romantic enough to you?"
"No! Not like that!" She waves her hands panickly.
"I mean..." Miyuki take a deep breathe while her mind trying to find words that didn't sound ungrateful.
" Our relationship... it feels like it's going nowhere. We've known each other for ten years. We walk together, we eat together, we study together. It’s comfortable, but it’s so predictable. It feels more like we're an old married couple or just routine habit. Great, it is by no doubt. It just... stays the same."
"Stop right there."
Yuri’s voice was flat, carrying an abrupt authority that made Miyuki freeze. Yuri sat up straight, placing both hands flat on the wooden table.
" Miyuki-chan." Yuri said, her eyes dead serious. "I am going to speak to you with brutal kind of honesty. I’ll openly admit that I have to no real-life relationship experience. I've never had a boyfriend. Yours is literally the first real relationship I’ve ever witnessed up close."
She leaned in closer, dropping her voice to an urgent whisper.
"But I have read enough novels, watched enough dramas, and listened to enough idiots talk around to know exactly what kind of crap you are putting yourself on right now. You are walking straight down a path toward something you will regret for the rest of your entire life."
Miyuki blinked, taken aback by the intensity in Yuri's tone. She's about to open her mouth before Yuri raise finger before her face.
"I know, Miyuki-chan. I know." Yuri cut her off, her gaze piercing. "You're bored because things are peaceful. You're confusing stability with stagnation.
Yuri pause to take a breathe " Do you have any idea how rare it is to find someone so kind like Takumi-kun nowadays? Someone who genuinely respects you and love you, and prioritizes your well-being without ever complain or even lose the smile on his face? Someone like him is as rare as diamond."
Miyuki lowered her eyes, her throat feeling tight.
"A good relationship doesn't run by magic, Miyuki-chan. It runs on effective communication." Yuri continued firmly, her voice softer now, but no less stern. "Don't ever take his kindness for granted just because it comes easily from him. If you feel like something is missing, talk to him. Tell him what you want to say. Don't just sit here bottling everything inside you and resenting him for not reading your mind or not acting like a male lead in some trashy clearly-driven-by-self-fulfilment-fantasy story."
Before Miyuki could form an answer, footsteps approached from the carpeted aisle.
Takumi stepped into view, holding two cans of green tea. He smiled warmly as he noticed Yuri sitting at the table. "Ah, Yuri-chan. Good evening. Did you come to study too?"
Yuri’s sharp expression dissolved back into her smooth, casual grin so fast it was almost terrifying. She scraped her chair back and stood up in one fluid motion. "No no no, just passing through to tease our little bird here. But since you're back, I’ll give you two sweethearts your 'them moment'."
She slung her tote bag over her shoulder, but as she stepped past Miyuki, she paused. Leaning down near Miyuki’s ear, Yuri whispered sharply, "Remember what I said. Don't be stupid."
Miyuki sat frozen as Yuri offered Takumi a quick wave and vanished down the row of bookshelves.
Takumi set one of the cold cans down beside Miyuki’s notebook, condensation immediately forming beads on the painted metal. He pulled out the chair Yuri had just vacated and sat down, letting out a soft sigh of relief.
"What were you two talking about earlier?" Takumi asked, opening his own can with a quiet *crack-snap*. "You both looked pretty serious when I walked up."
Miyuki stared at the bead of water trickling down the side of her green tea can. Yuri's warnings echoed loudly in her ears, clashing violently with her own lingering, restless desires. She looked up at Takumi’s bright, open face—a face completely devoid of malice or suspicion.
"It's nothing serious." Miyuki said, offering a small, quick smile. "Just talking about the exam."
Takumi didn't probe further. He simply accepted her answer with a gentle nod, pulling his own history notebook toward himself. "Ah, right. The modern history section is going to be brutal this term. Let's go over chapter four together..."
Miyuki picked up her pen, forcing her eyes down to her paper. But inside, the silence between them felt heavier than ever.
---
Miyuki found herself standing in front of the full-length mirror in her bedroom. She's now tying a delicate silver necklace on her neck. She was dressed in a stylish, off-the-shoulder crimson blouse and a dark skirt...
An outfit she didn't remember buying, yet her reflection moved with eager, fluttering excitement.
Her heart pounded with a thrilled, electric-like anticipation.
"Miyuki!" Her mother's voice calls up. "Are you going out on a date? Is Takumi waiting for you?"
Miyuki glanced at her reflection. A cold, dismissive smirk touched her lips,a expression that felt utterly foreign, yet her body executed it without resistance.
" Yes! He told me to meet at the town!" she called back brightly, stepping into her high heels without answering her mother's follow-up question. She grabbed her handbag and swept out the door, her heart racing with an intoxicating excitement.
She hurried down the sunny, bustling streets of the commercial district, her heels clicking rhythmically on the pavement.
Standing near the fountain in the central plaza was a young man. He had messy blonde hair, broad shoulders, and wore a high-end black jacket. He leaned against the stone edge with an arrogant, effortless posture that practically demanded the attention of every passerby.
" Masato-senpai!" Miyuki called out, her voice dripping with sweet affection.
Ren looked up, a sharp, possessive smirk spreading across his face. He stepped forward and wrapped an arm casually around her waist, pulling her close. "You kept me waiting, Miyuki."
"Sorry." she giggled, leaning into his touch without a second thought, slipping her fingers into his.
They walked hand-in-hand through the crowded shopping streets, laughing, browsing boutique windows, sharing a cup of gelato. Miyuki felt a thrill she had never experienced before which is a fiery, unpredictable energy that consumed her completely.
Then, the air went dead cold.
"Miyuki-chan?"
The voice was quiet, cracked, and trembling with sheer disbelief.
Miyuki stopped in her tracks. She turned around slowly. Standing a few paces away, holding a small paper bag from a local bakery, was Takumi. His eyes were wide, fixed on their intertwined fingers. His face was completely pale, his chest heaving as if he couldn't process the visual reality before him.
"Takumi...kun..." Miyuki murmured, though her voice lacked any warmth.
"What... what is this?" Takumi stepped forward, his knuckles white around the bakery bag.
"Miyuki-chan... who is this? Why are you holding his hand?"
Before Miyuki could speak, Ren casually stepped in front of her, shoving Takumi back with a hard, disdainful palm against his chest. Takumi stumbled back onto the concrete.
"Back off, loser!" Ren sneered, looking down at Takumi like a pest. "Can't you see it now? Miyuki doesn't love you anymore. She's with me now."
Takumi ignored Ren entirely, his eyes wildly searching Miyuki’s face. He scrambled to his feet, lunging forward to grab Miyuki’s free wrist. "Miyuki, tell me this is a joke! What are you doing with him?!"
*SMACK.*
Ren’s fist flew in a swift and mercilessly brutal motion, connecting squarely with Takumi’s cheekbone.
The force of the blow knocked Takumi sideways, his body crashing hard against the brick wall of a nearby store before collapsing onto the pavement. The bakery bag tore open, spilling pastries across the dusty ground.
Pedestrians gasped, a crowd rapidly gathering around the scene, murmuring in shocked excitement.
"Get your hands off her, you creep!" Ren roared, stepping over Takumi and raising his voice so the entire crowd could hear. "Everyone in school knows about you! Miyuki told me everything! She told me how you stalk her, how you manipulate her, how you've been abusing her for years!"
Miyuki gasped, her eyes widening in horror.
She tried to open her mouth to deny what that blonde guy said, but her tongue felt glued to the roof of her mouth. Her throat refused to produce sound.
Takumi pushed himself up on trembling hands, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He looked up through his disheveled hair, staring directly into Miyuki’s eyes. His gaze was torn open—a agonizing mixture of devastation, betrayal, and absolute terror.
"Miyuki-chan..." Takumi choked out, his voice cracking. "Tell them... tell them that's not true... please..."
The crowd was watching her. Dozens of eyes burned into her skin. People were already pulling out their smartphones, pointing camera lenses at Takumi’s bleeding face, recording every second.
*Say no!*
Her mind screamed.
*Tell them what that guy said isn't true!*
Instead, as Miyuki looked down at the broken, bleeding boy who had loved her for ten years, a cold, terrible force took control of her muscles.
Slowly, deliberately... Miyuki gave a small, hesitant nod.
The crowd erupted.
"Disgusting!"
"Look at him, abusing a girl like that!"
Flashes blinded her vision. Shouts, curses, and malicious laughter echoed around Takumi like a demonic chorus. Takumi didn't scream back. His eyes is just stared at Miyuki, his eyes dead, his soul completely crushed as the entire world turned into a mob that dragged him down into an inescapable, living hell.
The scene fractured.
The crowd vanished, replaced by the heavy, dim interior of a luxury hotel room. The curtains were drawn tightly against the outside world. The air was thick with the scent of heavy perfume and cheap wine.
Miyuki was lying on a plush, white bed. Ren was looming over her, his hands pressing into the mattress on either side of her head, his arrogant smile dark and triumphant.
"You looks so precious." Ren whispered, leaning down.
Miyuki lay there, completely paralyzed, staring at the ceiling as a deep, abyssal despair of the guilt filled her chest. She had traded stability for excitement, and in return, she had destroyed the only person who had ever truly cherished her.
As Ren leaned closer, a low, distorted sound began to resonate through the dark room which is a voice, echoing as if spoken from the bottom of a deep well, reverberating directly inside her skull.
*...yuki...*
*...Miyuki...*
Miyuki’s eyes snapped wide open.
A violent, involuntary gasp tore from her throat as her upper body jerked upward.
Her heart was hammering against her ribs like a sledgehammer. She was drenched in cold sweat, her hands trembling so violently she nearly knocked over her pencil case.
She was sitting at the wooden study carrel in the school library.
Beside her, bathed in the soft, painting-like golden and orange glow of the setting sun streaming through the windows, was Takumi. He was sitting in his chair, looking at her with a gentle, slightly amused expression, his hand hovering near her shoulder where he had just lightly tapped her.
"Miyuki-chan?" Takumi asked softly, his voice full of warmth. "Are you alright? You were like having a bad dream."
Miyuki stared at him, her chest heaving, her eyes wide with lingering terror. She reached up with a trembling hand, touching her own face, then looking down at his unharmed cheek, his neat uniform, his completely whole, unblemished skin.
"Takumi-kun..." she rasped out, her voice frail. "Did I... did I fall asleep?"
Takumi smiled gently, reaching over to softly pick up her mechanical pencil and place it back on her notebook. "Yeah, you slept quite deep earlier. I didn't want to wake you because you looked so exhausted, but..." He gestured toward the large window, where the sky had turned a deep, bruised shade of indigo and sunset purple. "...the library is about to close."
Miyuki sat motionless, staring at him through the dimming light, the phantom echoes of her terrible betrayal still screaming in her head.
The shadows stretched long and thin across the linoleum flooring of the third-floor corridor as Miyuki and Takumi stepped out of the library. The school was quiet now, the ambient bustle of the afternoon fading into the tranquil, cool solitude of twilight.
They walked side-by-side toward the shoe lockers, the rhythm of their footsteps echoing softly against the concrete walls. Miyuki’s mind was still heavy, wrapped in the suffocating lingering shock of her weird dream. Every time her gaze flicked to Takumi, to his smooth jawline, his gentle eyes, his unbruised skin, a sharp pang of irrational relief washed over her, followed immediately by a strange, unsettling dread.
Suddenly, Takumi stopped mid-step, bringing a hand up to lightly touch his forehead.
Takumi turning to her with an apologetic smile. "I totally forgot. I left the printed reference sheets for chapter five in the Literature Club room. I need to grab them before they locks up the club door."
They turned down the quiet corridor leading toward the club wing. The evening sun cast a deep and bloody crimson hue through the tall windows, painting the wooden floorboards in shades of dark coral and amber. When Takumi slid open the door of the Literature Club, the room was dimly lit, illuminated only by the dying daylight filtering through the glass.
Takumi quickly stepping past the rows of desks toward the far corner where several tall wooden cabinets stood against the wall.
Miyuki pulled out a chair near the front desk and sat down, resting her hands in her lap. She watched Takumi as he leaned over, rummaging through stacked folders and loose papers, his expression completely absorbed in his task.
"Good evening, Asahina-san."
A smooth, calm voice broke the silence.
Miyuki turned her head. Sitting at a desk near the far corner which is a spot so shrouded in shadow she hadn't noticed her at first who is belonged to Tachibana Mio, the club president. Her short, neatly trimmed brown hair framed a face that was unreadable, her dark eyes reflecting the fading orange light of the sunset.
"Tachibana-senpai," Miyuki said, adjusting her posture slightly. "Good evening. I didn't realize you were still here."
Mio closed the thick book she had been reading with a soft, decisive *thud*. She rested her chin in her hand, her dark eyes locking onto Miyuki with an intensity that made the air feel suddenly thin.
"I was just reviewing some club budget reports." Mio said smoothly. She tilted her head, her gaze shifting briefly toward Takumi, who was still busy digging through the back cabinet, before returning to Miyuki. "You two are always together. It's quite remarkable, really. How long have you officially been dating now?"
Miyuki blinked, caught off guard by the personal question from someone who usually kept her distance. "Ah... Takumi-kun confessed his feelings to me last year, near the end of the spring term."
"Oh? Is that so?" A faint, polite smile touched Mio's lips, though it didn't quite reach her eyes.
"Congratulations, belatedly. You two really do look sweet together. A picture-perfect childhood
romance."
"Thank you..." Miyuki offered a polite smile, though an odd tension began to twist in her stomach.
Mio leaned back in her chair, steepling her fingers. "Though... if you don't mind me saying... I couldn't help but overhear a little bit of your conversation with your friend in the library earlier today."
Miyuki’s breath hitched slightly. Her hands tightened in her lap. "You... heard us?"
"Only a few words at best." Mio replied casually, her voice dropping into a soft, almost conspiratorial cadence. "The library is very quiet, after all. And... well, I couldn't help but think about what you said. About what you said about feeling like things are a bit going to nowhere."
Miyuki felt her face heat up with embarrassment. "I... I was just..."
" No need to defend yourself, Asahina-san." Mio interrupted gently, her voice smooth like silk wrapped around steel. "In fact, I completely understand what you feel. Takumi is indeed a brilliant boy, truly. But he is entirely dedicated to becoming a novelist. When a boy has a dream that big, his mind is rarely in the present moment."
Mio leaned forward slightly, her dark eyes glinting in the dim light like needles sinking into soft velvet.
"It must get so boring for you sometimes, doesn't it?" Mio asked, her tone dripping with weird feeling oof empathy. "To sit beside someone who is constantly lost in his own head? To have him be so focused on his manuscripts... that he simply has no energy left to focus on you? To make you feel special?" She poke her finger to Miyuki's chest.
Miyuki ignored the bold contact which she instead stared at Mio frozen. The words hit a precise and sensitive nerve deep within her heart, a nerve she had been trying so hard to ignore.
"I mean" Mio continued as she shrugs her shoulder, her voice practically a whisper, "how many times has he had to cancel a date or shorten your time together just because he needed to write?"
Miyuki, oblivious to the suspicious vibe from one year older lady before her, swallowed hard. The memory of yesterday afternoon and several other afternoons before it surfaced involuntarily.
"He... he did have to cancel our date yesterday." Miyuki admitted quietly, her eyes dropping down to her uniform skirt. "He got so caught up with his draft that he forgot..."
Before Mio could push the needle any deeper, the sound of rustling paper filled the room.
" Found them!" Takumi’s voice broke through the oppressive atmosphere as he walked back toward the front of the room, holding a thick stack of printed manuscript pages in his hand. He look between Miyuki and Mio with a joyful bright smile. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Miyuki."
Mio’s expression instantly transformed back into a picture of polite, responsible club leadership. She turned toward Takumi with a seamless, effortless transition.
"Ah, Tendou-kun." Mio said, standing up from her desk. "Before you two leave, could you do me a quick favor? I left the master key for the club door in my classroom on the second floor. Could you run down and grab it for me from my desk drawer?"
Takumi didn't hesitate for a single second, not even ask why Mio didn't try to get it herself. "Oh, sure! No problem at all, Tachibana-senpai. I'll be right back."
"Thank you." Mio said warmly.
Without a second thought, Takumi set his manuscript papers down on the front desk and darted out of the club room, his footsteps rapidly receding down the corridor.
The moment the door slid shut behind him, the warm aura in the room vanished completely.
Mio turned around, stepped over to the chair next to Miyuki, and sat down directly beside her.
Miyuki stiffened slightly, feeling the air grow cold once more.
" Asahina-san," Mio began, her voice low and intimate. "You look so exhausted. It's painful to watch a girl as sweet as you suffer in silence, feeling unappreciated in a relationship that has lost its... what people call it? Oh yeah! Flavour."
"Tachibana-senpai, I'm not—"
" You're so easy to read, like an opened book." Mio cut in, her expression softening into a look of deep, motherly concern that felt unnervingly calculated. "You deserve passion, Asahina-san. You deserve to be chased, to be desired, to feel the excitement that a young girl should feel, you know."
Miyuki sat in silence, her defenses weakening under the gentle, persistent weight of Mio’s words. Her face slowly relaxed, the tension in her shoulders melting into a quiet, vulnerable melancholy.
Seeing Miyuki's guard drop, a subtle, triumphant spark flashed deep within Mio’s dark eyes.
Mio reached into her blazer pocket, pulled out her phone, and quickly ask Miyuki to take out her phone. She then typing something and a message pops on Miyuki's phone.
"What is this?" Miyuki asked, looking down at the message which is a phone number
"It's a contact number for someone I know." Mio said, her voice dropping into a soft, enticing whisper. " This guy someone who understands relationships very well. You know? someone who knows how to treat a girl as they deserved, how to give her the excitement and devotion she truly deserves. If you ever feel lonely, or if you just want to talk to someone who actually pays attention to you... give him a message."
Miyuki stared at her phone, her mind racing. "I... I don't know if I should..."
"Just keep it," Mio said smoothly. "There's no harm in just having a contact, is there? Think of it as a safety net for your heart."
Before Miyuki could respond or return the paper, the club room door slid open once again.
Takumi walked in, holding a small canvas bag in his hand. He was slightly out of breath, his cheeks dusted with a light flush from running down the stairs.
"Here it is, Tachibana-senpai," Takumi said, setting the bag on her desk. "Is this the one?"
"Yes, perfect." Mio said, stepping back toward her desk with a graceful, polite smile. "Thank you so much, Tendou-kun. You really are a lifesaver."
"It's no trouble at all." Takumi said, picking up his manuscript pages from the front desk. He turned to Miyuki, his eyes soft and filled with simple, uncomplicated affection. He points his thumb to the opened club door.
"Ah... right!" Miyuki said hastily, slipping her phone deep into her blazer pocket before standing up.
" See you later, Tachibana-senpai."
" See you later, you two. Take care on your way home," Mio called out softly, her eyes lingering on Miyuki's back with a quiet, lingering watchfulness as the door closed.
---
The walk home was unusually quiet.
The evening sky had turned into a dark, indigo canvas dotted with faint stars. Streetlights flickered to life along the suburban sidewalks, casting long, overlapping shadows ahead of them as they walked side-by-side.
Takumi talked casually about his progress on the fifth chapter, his voice light and filled with genuine excitement about the narrative structure he was building. But Miyuki barely heard the details. Her mind was entirely consumed by the quiet poison Mio had planted in her head.
*“When a boy has a dream that big, his mind is rarely in the present moment...”*
*“It must get so terribly boring for you...”*
*“You deserve passion... to feel the excitement that a young girl should feel...”*
Miyuki’s hand rested inside her blazer pocket, her fingertips lightly tracing the edges of her phone. Every word Mio had spoken felt like a mirror held up to her deepest, most shameful insecurities. Was she really taking Takumi for granted, like Yuri had warned? Or was she simply starving for something Takumi could never give her more?
"Miyuki-chan?" Takumi’s voice broke through her spiraling thoughts.
She startled slightly, pulling her hand out of her pocket. "Yes?"
Takumi was looking at her, his expression filled with quiet, gentle concern. They had reached the gate of her house. "You've been really quiet since we left the club room. Is everything okay?"
Miyuki looked into his warm, clear eyes. There was no malice in him, no deceit, only the pure, uncomplicated care of a boy who had watched over her for ten years.
A sharp pang of guilt stabbed through her chest.
She simply shakes her head softly while forcing a soft, convincing smile to her lips.
"Just... thinking about the midterms."
Takumi’s face softened into a relieved smile. He reached out, his hand hesitating for a fraction of a second before gently patting the top of her head—a familiar, comforting gesture from their childhood.
"Don't push yourself too hard. Make sure you get a good night's sleep tonight, okay? Enough sleep is
important to make your mind sharp."
Miyuki nods.
"See you tomorrow, Miyuki-chan." Takumi turns his back on her while he wave his hand. Which Miyuki wave her hand
"Goodnight, Takumi-kun."
---
Later that night, the world outside was dead silent, wrapped in the darkness of night time.
Miyuki lay on her bed, clad in her soft cotton pajamas. Her room was dark, illuminated only by the faint, pale moonlight filtering through her lace curtains and the blue glow of her smartphone screen held above her face.
The soft, rhythmic chime of an ongoing phone call echoed through her phone's speaker.
"—and so I think I'll finish the rewrite by Thursday," Takumi’s voice came through the line, sounding slightly muffled and sleepy. A soft yawn escaped him over the speaker. "Ah, sorry... I guess all of this made me tired."
"It's okay, Takumi-kun," Miyuki said quietly, resting her head against her pillow. "You've been working really hard."
"Yeah... but it's totally worth it." Takumi chuckled softly. His tone turned gentle, dipping into that warm, familiar comfort that had been her anchor for as long as she could remember.
" Say..."
Miyuki could hear the voice at the other end of line is getting energetic a bit.
" If this novel earned me an award and being published and being bestseller, maybe I stand at the stage, holding a award. Then, you will stand beside me while I thanking you for all your support then we will see our picture together posted everywhere at social media.
Miyuki is simply chuckles. " I sure it will happen, Takumi-kun."
"Alright, Miyuki-chan. It's getting late. I'll see you at school tomorrow morning, okay? Don't stay up too late."
"Okay. Goodnight, Takumi-kun"
"Goodnight, Miyuki-chan. Dream of something nice, like me for example."
*Click.*
The call ended. The screen faded back to her lock screen wallpaper which is a photo of the two of them standing together under the cherry blossom trees during last year's spring festival, both smiling brightly at the camera.
But it's still 8 in the night.
Miyuki lay in the dark, staring at the lit screen as the silence of her bedroom rushed back in to consume her.
*“Dream of something nice...”*
Her chest felt hollow, empty, and strangely restless. The quiet predictability of their night call...
The same structure, the same gentle tone, the same routine left her feeling completely unfulfilled.
Slowly, as if guided by an irresistible, dangerous whisper inside her mind, Miyuki open up the
messaging application to check the message that was sent by Mio earlier.
Miyuki typed the phone number. She navigated to the "Add Friend" menu, typed the phone number into the search bar, and pressed enter.
The screen loaded for a brief second before pulling up a user profile.
Miyuki stared at the screen, her heart suddenly leaping into her throat.
The profile picture displayed a young man standing against a neon-lit city backdrop. He had messy, styled blonde hair, sharp features, and an effortless, arrogant aura that radiated a cool, dangerous confidence. He was looking away from the camera, a faint, condescending smirk on his lips.
Miyuki’s eyes widened slightly. He was undeniable handsome, the kind of dangerously attractive boy who looked like he stepped straight out of a modern fashion magazine.
Then, her eyes drifted down to the contact name written directly below the display photo.
Masato Ren
The moment those name registered in her brain, the blood drained completely from Miyuki’s face.
Her breath hitched in her throat, her hands shaking so violently that the smartphone nearly slipped from her numb fingers.
The room seemed to spin around her. In an instant, the pale moonlight in her bedroom dissolved, overlaid by a sudden, blinding flash of disjointed memories. The bustling plaza, the arrogant smirk, the brutal punch shattering Takumi’s face, the flashing camera around Takumi, and the sound of her own voice giving that terrible, silent nod that ruined Takumi's life forever.
The blonde boy in the photo... was the exact same boy from her dream at the library.
