The Memoirs of a Broken Doll

It all began with a loud noise in her father's study. There were no screams, no warnings. Just the impact of her father's hand against her cheek. Akira Takashima, the perfect heiress, the emotionless woman, fell to the carpet, stunned. The taste of blood filled her mouth.

“ Liar! ” said her father, his voice filled with rage. “ You lied to us. That night... you said you were walking with Ren in the gardens... he was never there, and neither were you! ”

Akira looked up, her whole body shaking. Her mother was standing next to her, holding a tablet with disgust. On the screen was an image sent by Ryōma Shinomiya just a few minutes ago. It was an old, grainy photo taken by a private investigator months ago. It showed Mio, wearing Happy Burger clothing. It was Mio, the burger joint employee. The Bunny Girl. It was irrefutable proof. A simple peasant girl, a nobody, had stolen Akira's fiancé's heart, and she had covered it up.

“ You protected her own infidelity! ” her father shouted, grabbing her by the hair and forcing her to her feet. “ You have brought shame on this family! A maid is beating us because of your incompetence! ”

Without letting her speak, and without even letting her put on her shoes, her father dragged her out of the house and into the car. Their destination was the Shinomiya mansion. They were going to settle this once and for all.

Akira was thrown into the back seat. The door closed with an automatic lock. The car started silently. And in that silence, as Akira watched the city lights go by, her mind broke. The present faded away and she was dragged back into an abyss she had been avoiding for years.

Ten years ago

Akira had the idea of a child. She was hiding behind the stair railing, hugging a stuffed rabbit. But downstairs in the lobby, there were screams. “ I'm not your doll, nor your puppet! I have a life! I love music, I love painting! I don't want to inherit your damn company! ”

It was Aiko. Her older sister. Aiko was everything Akira wasn't. She laughed loudly, got her clothes dirty, and had a sparkle in her eyes that defied all evil. Aiko was a bit like Ren... they both loved freedom, even more than air. But that night, Aiko's freedom took its toll.

“ Enough! ” shouted her father. “ If you walk out that door, Aiko, you will no longer be my daughter. I will disinherit you. I will send you to a boarding school in Switzerland where they will teach you how to be a real lady! You won't leave there for ten years! ”

Aiko, with tears in her eyes but her head held high, took her mother's car keys. “ I'd rather die free than live in your stupid cage. ” Aiko ran out. The engine roared to life, and Akira ran to the window and watched the taillights disappear into the rain. That was the last time she saw her.

Hours later, the police had called the family. Aiko had lost control on a curve. She died instantly.

There was no public funeral. The Takashima family covered up the scandal. A tragic accident involving a young woman, said the newspapers. But inside the house, Aiko's death killed something else. It killed Akira's childhood.

From that day on, control over Akira became absolute. His parents, terrified that the madness of freedom would repeat itself, managed every second of Akira's existence. Don't talk like that, a lady doesn't raise her voice. Don't think about that. Art is for poor people. Don't feel. Emotions are weakness. Akira became the replacement. The Spare Doll. She learned to freeze her heart. If she didn't feel, it didn't hurt. If she was perfect, they wouldn't send her to Switzerland. If she obeyed, she would survive.

Five years ago...

The pressure Akira felt was unbearable. She was now thirteen years old. She was in the bathroom of a party hall during a boring gala. She had a bottle of pills in her hand. She had stolen them from her mother's medicine cabinet. She looked at her reflection. Her eyes were empty. Her skin was pale.

If I fall asleep now... I won't have to be perfect anymore, she thought. I'll be able to see Aiko. She was tired. So tired of being a trophy.

Akira went out onto the balcony to get some air before daring to do it, but there he found someone else. A boy his age, dressed in a tuxedo he seemed to hate, was hiding there, looking at the stars. It was Ren Shinomiya. Akira knew him only by sight; he was the heir to the rival family.

Ren looked at her and saw the bottle in her hand, which seemed to be shaking. Anyone else would have screamed or called an adult. But not Ren.

Ren approached her, gently took the bottle from her hand, and threw it over the railing into the dark bushes below. “ Don't give them the satisfaction. ” Ren said. His voice was somewhat dry for his age, but kind at the same time. “ What? ” whispered Akira, surprised. “ If you leave... they win. ” said Ren, looking into her eyes with a strange intensity. “ They want us to be their puppets. But as long as we breathe, we can annoy them. Survive, Akira. Just... survive. Someday we'll get out of here. ”

Ren left before she could answer.

But those words were her salvation. That boy... he saved me. From that day on, Akira decided to live. Not for her parents, but for that promise. She strove to be perfect, yes, but only to buy time. To wait for that someday. Ren became her guiding light. Although he grew cold and distant over the years, she never forgot that he was the only one who saw her pain and didn't judge her.

Present. 

A sob escaped from Akira's throat in the back seat. She remembered something else. Something recent. The image of a small dog at the entrance to the Shinomiya mansion. She remembered how she kicked it. She remembered the animal's pained look and how she continued walking coldly. I'm a monster, she thought, digging her nails into her knees. I've become like them. I kick the weak because I feel weak. Forgive me... Forgive me, Aiko.

I've failed.

The car stopped abruptly. They had arrived at the Shinomiya residence. The door opened and her father's hands yanked her out, breaking her thoughts and dragging her back into hell. They didn't wait a second. They pulled her by the arm, almost dislocating her shoulder, dragging her through the marble hallway to the main hall.

The Shinomiya family was already there, waiting for them.

Ryōma was red with rage. Ren's mother, a woman who always pretended to be elegant, had bloodshot eyes. As soon as they entered, the verbal attack began. “ You're useless! ” shouted Akira's father, pushing her toward the center of the room. " We raised you to be a queen, and you can't even control your man! “,  ” You have failed as a woman! “ Ryōma spat. ” If Ren sought out a peasant girl, it's because you weren't enough! You have no value if you can't keep him by your side! "

The words hit him hard. It was pure, unadulterated misogyny. They blamed her for Ren's decisions. Ryōma, furious, raised his hand to strike her, but stopped himself at the last moment. Even in his rage, he knew that hitting a partner's daughter could lead to legal trouble. “ Protocol... ” Ryōma growled, lowering his hand.

But his wife had no such restrictions. Ren's mother approached him and slapped him so hard that it echoed throughout the room. Akira fell to the floor, hitting his hip. The physical pain was unpleasant, but the humiliation was worse. He was on the floor, at the feet of the people who were supposed to be his new family.

While he was there, Akira tasted blood in his mouth again and closed his eyes. In the darkness of his mind, he heard something. He remembered the time he spied on Ren at the concert under the bridge. He remembered that melody.

Freedom.

That rock song echoed in his head. " I want to get up, his mind screamed. I want to yell at them. I want to tell them to go to hell. I want to be like Aiko. I want to be like Ren. "

She tried to move her arms to get up off the floor, she tried to open her mouth to defend herself... But she couldn't.

Ten years of conditioning weighed heavier than her will. Aiko's invisible chains, the fear of being abandoned, the terror of loneliness... crushed her. Her mind screamed, “GET UP, PLEASE!” but her body, trained to be a submissive doll, remained still, trembling.

That was when they heard the car approaching the main entrance. Naoki's car.

Ren had arrived.

“ Get up. ” his father shouted. “ Wipe that face. And you better not say a word. ”

Everyone regained their composure. Ryōma adjusted his shirt cuffs. Ren's mother sat down as if nothing had happened. Akira struggled to her feet, wiped the tears and blood from her face with her hand, and stood by the fireplace, waiting to see the only boy who had ever treated her like a human being walk in, knowing that he was about to fall into the same trap she had.

And the rest... is history.