Chapter 2: Escalating Shadows and Unheard Cries

Reading Settings

Translator: Soafp

---

That was the beginning.

Ever since that after-school incident when Yuki was teased by Yamada and the others, the bullying escalated—quietly, yet unmistakably—as if a cord had snapped. It began with being ignored.

Even when Yuki tried to talk to his classmates, no one responded. As if he didn't exist, they swallowed his words along with the air. His questions vanished without even stirring the atmosphere.

Next came the whispers. The moment Yuki left his seat, hushed voices would begin. His appearance, his mannerisms—his very existence became a target of ridicule.

Scribbles started appearing on his desk. Pages of his textbooks were torn. Everything was done in a way that left no clear evidence—clever, insidious tactics.

Mio saw it all. Yuki, sitting with his head down in the corner of the classroom. The cold gazes of Yamada, Ayaka, and the classmates who sided with them, surrounding him. Every time Mio saw this, she felt her heart sink like lead.

“Yuki…”

She whispered his name countless times in her mind. She wanted to call out to him. She wanted to intervene. She wanted to protect him. But the words always got stuck in her throat, never forming a single sound.

One lunch break, Yuki was eating alone. At the center of the class, Yamada was laughing loudly. His eyes suddenly turned toward Yuki.

“Hey, Sakurai. Why are you eating over there by yourself? Come over here!”

Yamada called out with a sneer. Yuki flinched but didn't look up.

“I said get over here! Even Hinata-san's watching you, looking all lonely.”

Mio's heart pounded violently at those words. Yamada was using her presence as a “license to bully.” He and the others were sure of it—sure that Mio wouldn't stop them, especially since she kept up her cold demeanor.

With a perfect smile on her face, Mio glanced at Yuki, who kept his head down. She could feel a silent plea radiating from his back.

But Mio laughed. Naturally, effortlessly, as if she were truly enjoying herself. Her laughter melted into the classroom's chatter, drawing no reproach from anyone. In that moment, Yuki looked up. Behind the black rims of his glasses, his eyes locked onto Mio.

For a fleeting second, they seemed to hold a spark of hope toward her. But when he saw her still laughing, that spark vanished. In its place was a deep disappointment—and resignation.

Yuki quietly picked up his lunch tray without a word and stood. Making sure not to attract attention, he left the classroom.

Mio could only watch his back as he walked away. His back no longer radiated any hope or plea for Mio. It was like a door completely closed shut.

---

From that point on, Yuki would leave the classroom as soon as break time began. Mio knew where he went—the Sakuramine City Library. He likely sought peace by reading or studying in that quiet space.

Mio visited the library a few times. She followed him discreetly, like a stalker. Through the window, she watched Yuki reading in silence.

Around him, time seemed to slow down, everything calm and still. Seeing him like that brought a small sense of peace to Mio's heart. Yet, she still couldn't muster the courage to speak to him.

The bullying grew even more cruel.

One day, a dead frog was left on Yuki's desk. The students gasped and stirred, but no one dared to touch it. The homeroom teacher rushed over, face pale, and cleaned it up, but the culprit was never found.

Mio watched in shock. She fought back the nausea rising from her stomach. Yuki showed no reaction to the frog. His expression didn't change.

He stared at it with emotionless eyes. That lack of expression pierced Mio deeply. Had his heart become numb to everything?

That afternoon after school, Mio was walking home with her friends, chatting idly. As they passed the row of cherry trees and the small park between Sakuramine High and the station, she saw Yuki sitting alone on a park bench.

He sat with his head down, and beside him lay a slightly worn paperback he always carried.

Mio's feet stopped without thinking.

“Mio-chan, what's wrong?”

A friend asked curiously.

“It's nothing,”

Mio forced a smile and tried to walk. But her body wouldn't move. Her gaze was drawn to Yuuki. His back looked terribly small and lonely.

As if he were completely cut off from the world.

At that moment, a memory from her childhood resurfaced vividly in Mio's mind—playing under the cherry trees in this very park with Yuki. A time before she ever wore a mask, when she was still innocent.

[Look, Mio! The cherry blossoms are like snow!]

Yuki had said, eyes sparkling. Beside him, Mio had laughed with all her heart. Back then, they weren't afraid of anything. The world before them was beautiful, and Yuki's presence was more precious than anything.

But now, Yuki no longer wore that smile. Mio knew that in his eyes, the affection once directed at her had vanished, replaced by deep disappointment and a sense of betrayal.

His heart had shut itself away into a darkness where even Mio's voice couldn't reach.

Mio clenched her teeth. At that moment, Yuki looked up and met her gaze.

His eyes no longer held even a flicker of hope.

Only cold indifference.

Mio's heart felt frozen. Yuki's gaze seemed to see right through her perfect exterior, exposing the ugly fear and desperate need for approval underneath. He would no longer be fooled by her polished smile. He knew the truth—that Mio had abandoned him to protect her own pride.

Yuki looked away, stood slowly, and turned his back on her. He walked deeper into the park. The farther he went, the smaller his figure became until he disappeared from sight.

Mio stood motionless. Her friends walked on, unaware. She felt as though she alone had been left behind in another dimension.

A cold wind blew, shaking the cherry branches. Though spring had long since passed, a winter storm raged within Mio's heart.

The flawless mask she had worn for so long was now undeniably starting to crack.