Chapter 1: The Smile and the Lie

A busy city street at dusk. Neon lights flicker in shop windows. Pedestrians move in a blur, but Kenji Fujimura walks with deliberate anonymity ”head down, hands in pockets, eyes dull and empty.)

He isn’t noticed. That’s the point.

As he turns a corner, he bumps into someone hard

A girl.

She barely stumbles, but Kenji recoils like he’s been electrocuted.

Aoi Nakamura.

Her long jet-black hair sways as she regains balance, her deep blue eyes locking onto his. She tilts her head, amused.

Aoi: “Oh, sorry about that! Are you okay?”

Kenji’s throat goes dry. He can’t move. His brain screams to react, but his body won’t obey.

Kenji (inner monologue): Why now? Why her?

He tries to force words out, but all that comes is air. His face burns.

Aoi: (smirks, teasingly) “You’re kinda shy, huh? What’s your name?”

Kenji chokes on silence.

Aoi giggles, waves, and walks off.

Kenji stays frozen. His pulse pounds in his ears.

The panel zooms in on his hollow, tired eyes.

Kenji (inner monologue): It doesn’t matter. She’ll forget me in seconds.

But she won’t.

And that changes everything.

(Kenji steps into his home -warm, familiar, suffocating. The scent of home-cooked food lingers in the air.)

His mother, Sayaka Fujimura, smiles brightly.

Sayaka: “Kenji , you’re home! Perfect timing dinner’s ready. Oh, and we have a guest!”

Kenji shrugs off his hoodie and pauses mid-step.

His stomach drops.

At the dining table, Aoi sits casually, sipping tea. Her lips curl into a small, knowing smile.

Aoi: “Yo”

Kenji feels his entire body tense.

Kenji: Y-YOU?!?!

His mother claps her hands excitedly.

Sayaka: (beaming) “Aoi-chan’s mother and I were talking, and I thought why not have you two get to know each other? Maybe even Date”

Kenji nearly dies on the spot.

Kenji: (horrified) “Mom. No. Absolutely not.”

Aoi, still completely relaxed, sips her tea.

Aoi: (grinning) “Sounds fun. I’ll give it a try.”

Kenji stares at her, even more horrified.

His mother cheers in victory. Kenji groans, running his hands through his hair, muttering curses under his breath.

Kenji: (gritted teeth) “What the hell, Mom—“

But then Sayaka’s expression changes.

The room falls quiet.

Sayaka (softly): “I just want you to be happy, Kenji…”

Kenji’s fists clench under the table.

Sayaka: “You’re always alone.”

The words hit him harder than they should.

Kenji hates this.

But he hates seeing his mother sad even more.

He sighs, shoulders sinking in defeat.

Kenji: “Fine”

(Few days later they meet at the train station)

Kenji leans against a pillar, his hands buried in his pockets, his posture stiff.

He hates this.

He hates the idea of pretending.

He hates that he agreed to this.

And more than anything, he hates that Aoi doesn’t seem bothered at all.

She walks toward him, calm, effortlessly put-together, and completely unbothered.

A smile tugs at her lips when she sees him.

Aoi: (teasing) “Wow, you look like you’d rather be anywhere else.”

Kenji exhales sharply, his grip tightening inside his pockets.

Kenji: (flatly)”I would.”

Aoi chuckles.

Aoi: “Dark. I like it.”

Kenji blinks. That wasn’t the reaction he expected.

They board the train. Kenji chooses a seat near the window. Aoi slides in beside him, uninvited.

By the time they find and sit at a small cafe, Kenji realizes something unsettling.

He’s not just tolerating the date.

He’s starting to forget that it’s fake.

Aoi rests her chin in her hand, watching him with something unreadable in her expression.

Aoi: (smirking) “You’re not as bad at this as you think, you know.”

Kenji exhales, looking away.

Kenji: “You talk too much.”

Aoi laughs, taking a sip of her drink.

But beneath her playful exterior, something flickers in her gaze.

As the night comes to an end, they walk down a quiet street. The glow of streetlights casts long shadows, stretching their figures unnaturally across the pavement.

Kenji slows his pace.

He finally asks what’s been gnawing at him all night.

Kenji: (low voice) “Why did you agree to this?”

Aoi pauses mid-step.

Aoi: “What do you mean?”

Kenji turns to her fully. His eyes are darker now, unreadable.

Kenji: “You don’t know me. I’m nothing special. So why?”

For the first time that night, Aoi doesn’t have a response ready.

She opens her mouth, hesitates, then smiles just slightly.

But Kenji sees it now.

That smile isn’t real.

Kenji: (quietly, stepping closer) “That’s a lie, isn’t it?”

Aoi flinches.

Kenji’s eyes narrow, studying her.

Aoi inhales slowly, then exhales, her facade finally cracking.

She looks away.

Aoi: (softly) “Our parents pressured me into this.”

Silence.

Kenji closes his eyes. Breathes.

Then—

He smirks.

Kenji: “Fine.”

Aoi blinks, confused.

Kenji: (voice even, emotionless) “Just tell them the date went great, and we’ll pretend to keep this up.”

(Pause.)

Then, softer—almost bitterly.

Kenji: “That way, my mom won’t cry again.”

Aoi stares at him, stunned.

Eventually, she nods.

They exchange numbers.

Kenji arrives home.

His mother is waiting, eyes bright with hope.

Sayaka: “So?! How did it go?”

Kenji forces a small, polite smile.

Kenji: “It went well. We’ll go out again soon.”

Sayaka nearly jumps with joy, hugging him tightly.

Kenji pretends to laugh.

But his eyes are empty.

A high-end nightclub.

The air is thick with the scent of expensive perfume, alcohol, and the hum of low conversations drowned beneath deep bass. Neon lights flicker against polished glass, casting distorted reflections of the people inside.

At the center of it all, leaning casually against the bar, is Rei.

No one knows his real name.

No one needs to.

A woman — tall, beautiful, drawn by his effortless aura leans in, her manicured fingers lightly grazing his wrist.

Woman (smirking): “Haven’t seen you here before.”

Rei lifts his drink, whiskey swirling in the glass, untouched.

Rei (smirking back): “Then you haven’t been paying attention.”

She laughs, clearly intrigued. But Rei’s eyes are cold, distant, already somewhere else.

Not here.

Never here.

Because this place, this persona, is just another mask.

Then —a disturbance.

A group of thugs, loud, overconfident, the type that thrives on intimidation, shoves their way toward him.

Their leader, a muscle-bound fool with a cheap gold chain, slams a hand on the bar beside Rei.

Thug Leader (grinning): “Look at this pretty boy. Acting real smooth with the ladies, huh?”

Rei doesn’t react.

The woman beside him shifts uncomfortably. The thug’s men eye her like she’s a prize.

Rei sighs. Sets his glass down. He never came here for this.

Rei (calmly): “Walk away.”

The thug laughs.

The wrong reaction.

Thug Leader: “Or what? You gonna do about it you little shit”

The woman tenses, sensing something off.

Rei tilts his head, eyes flicking toward her. A silent command.

She gets up, hesitates, then disappears into the crowd.

Now, it’s just them.

A slow, predatory smile spreads across Rei’s lips.

Rei (softly): “I warned you.”

The next five seconds happen too fast for them to react.

A flash of silver.

The sound of slicing fabric.

A gurgled, wet gasp.

The thug leader collapses before he even realizes his throat has been cut.

His men freeze—a breath too late.

A knife buries itself into the chest of one thug, the handle still vibrating from the force.

Another drops instantly, his wrist snapped backward, his own blade plunged into his side.

Blood pools at their feet.

The last man standing falls to his knees, shaking.

Thug (whispering): “M-Monster…”

Rei steps forward, crouching down, tilting his head curiously.

Then, he grins.

The smile of someone who should not be smiling in this moment.

Rei (softly, amused): “Not a monster. Just bored.”

He grabs the man by the collar, dragging him closer.

The thug chokes on a scream.

Rei (whispering, almost playfully): “But you can entertain me. Just a little.”

The club’s music drowns out the last scream.

The night continues.

The drinks keep flowing.

No one notices the bodies left cooling in the alley.

Rei steps out, fixing his cuffs, adjusting his collar.

The mask is back in place.

But in the reflection of a puddle, Kenji stares back.

Expressionless. Empty.

And for the first time that night, he exhales.

“This is boring.”

He walks away.