CHAPTER 4

After class ended, the hallway buzzed with energy. Students gathered, chattering loudly as they made after-school plans. Laughter, footsteps, and casual goodbyes echoed across the corridors.
Rika Hayami stood at her desk, fixing her hair while talking to her friends. They were heading to the mall to hang out—nothing big, just a little shopping, some sweets, a few selfies. Typical.
She was just about to sling her bag over her shoulder when a firm voice called from behind her.
“Hayami. You’re on cleanup duty today.”
She stopped mid-step and turned.
It was Miss Kawaguchi—their homeroom teacher. Late twenties, modest height, chestnut-colored hair tied into a bun. Her beauty was mature and precise, much like her teaching. She was known for being excellent at her job… and terrifying when she got angry.
Rika flinched slightly. “Eh? Today? Are you sure?”
Kawaguchi raised a brow.
Rika’s protests faded quickly. She knew better than to test her luck when that brow arched.
“…I’ll do it quickly,” she mumbled, sighing.
Her friends groaned and waved her off.
“Just catch up with us after!”
“Don’t take too long!”
Rika nodded with a small scowl. “Yeah, yeah…”
Twenty minutes later, she dusted the last windowsill and dropped the rag in the cleaning bin.
She jogged down the hall, annoyed. The others were probably already taking photos and messing around at the arcade.
“Seriously, why today of all days…” she muttered.
Rather than going through the main street, she decided to take a shortcut—a narrow back path that wound past a park she barely noticed most days.
The sun hung low in the sky now, casting long shadows across the buildings. A quiet breeze followed her steps.
As she passed the playground surrounded by high decorative fences, she slowed.
Children ran and laughed inside, the metallic clatter of the jungle gym mixing with high-pitched joy. The fence itself was ornate—intertwining leaves and vines in steel, painted to look almost like a forest gate.
That’s when she saw him.
Ren Asakura.
Standing outside the fence, unmoving. His head slightly lowered, arms at his sides. From a distance, it almost looked like he was… watching the kids.
Rika narrowed her eyes.
“…What the hell is he doing?”
Her first thought—instinctive and harsh—was suspicion. Is he seriously creeping around watching kids play?
She felt her fingers twitch near her phone, debating if she should say something—or even call someone.
But then… she saw it.
His hands.
They were trembling.
Not the kind of shake that came from cold or fatigue. No… it was something deeper. He tried to clench them, hide them in his sleeves—but they wouldn’t stop. His shoulders were tight, lips pressed together.
Then his face turned, just slightly.
Not toward her. Just downward.
And what she saw made her freeze.
He’s terrified…
Biting his lip, he turned away from the playground—quickly, like he couldn’t stand being there for another second—and walked off without a word.
Rika stood still, rooted to the spot.
Her chest felt… strange.
She looked back toward the playground.
Just kids.
Laughing. Sliding. Playing tag.
Normal, happy kids.
So why… why was he shaking like that?
Before she could think any deeper, her phone buzzed—a message from her friends, asking where she was. She clicked her tongue, turned away, and ran.
But even as she walked faster toward the station…
Those hands…
That face…
They wouldn’t leave her mind.
Ren stood in the entryway of his quiet home, towel slung over his damp hair. Steam still lingered faintly from his bath.
He changed into a high-neck long-sleeved shirt and dark brown pants—simple, clean, and modest. It covered the faint bruises and bandages, and made him feel like he could at least look normal from the outside.
He stared at his reflection in the mirror for a moment, eyes dull and distant.
Then he left.
No message. No plan.
Just silence.
And the weight of something he couldn't name—following him into the night.