April, 1939
Oliver was sixteen when he entered high school.
The four years after the bridge incident had been long, quiet, and painfully lonely. In middle school, no one became his friend. His classmates didn't bully him, but they didn't talk to him either. They avoided him, whispered about him, and kept their distance.
Oliver didn't try to change that.
He had already decided, somewhere deep inside, that he didn't deserve friends.
Loneliness and guilt slowly changed him.
He spoke less.
He slept less.
He smiled less.
But one thing never left him.
The guilt.
And the memory of Yui.
He never found out what happened to her after she transferred schools. He didn't know where she went, whether she was happy, whether she hated him, or whether she even remembered him.
But he remembered her.
Every day.
To Oliver, life had become something he simply had to endure.
⸻
By April 1939, the country itself was changing. The Nazi party had risen to power, and there was tension everywhere. People talked about war, about the future, about politics, about fear.
But Oliver didn't care about any of that.
The world could burn, and he probably wouldn't look up.
⸻
On the first day of high school, Oliver entered the school building without even looking at it. He didn't look at the students, the walls, the windows, or the courtyard.
He just looked at the ground and walked.
His hair was messy, like he hadn't bothered to comb it in days. His clothes were clean enough but looked worn and careless. His eyes looked tired, like he hadn't slept properly for weeks.
He entered the classroom quietly and walked to the last bench.
He sat down and stared at the floor.
He didn't count how many students were there.
He didn't look at anyone's face.
He didn't care who sat next to him.
His mind was filled with the same old thoughts, the same old regrets, the same old memories he could never escape.
⸻
After a while, a teacher entered the classroom.
All the students stood up to greet him.
Oliver stood up too, but he didn't look at the teacher. He just stared at the floor until everyone sat down again.
The teacher smiled and spoke in a calm voice.
"So, congratulations everyone. It's our first day. Looks like everyone is here… hmm, maybe someone is absent. Oh well, it's the first day, she will come later. Anyway, let's introduce ourselves. I'll start."
He turned to the board and wrote his name.
"My name is Charlie Muller. I am thirty-eight years old, and I will be your class in-charge."
One by one, the students began introducing themselves. Some spoke confidently, some nervously, some joked, some tried to impress others.
Oliver heard none of it.
He was sitting there, lost in his own thoughts, staring at nothing.
When his turn came, someone called his name.
He stood up slowly.
He didn't look at the class.
He didn't look at the teacher.
He didn't look anywhere except the floor.
"My name is Oliver Shepherd."
That was all.
He sat down again.
For a moment, the classroom was quiet. Then the teacher started clapping politely, and the rest of the class followed, some sincerely, some just because they had to.
Oliver didn't react.
⸻
After the lecture, during lunch break, Oliver sat alone in the cafeteria with a tray of food he wasn't really eating. He just stared at it, occasionally moving the fork around.
Most students were sitting in groups, talking loudly, laughing, planning things.
Oliver sat alone at a corner table.
He was used to it.
After a few minutes, two boys walked toward his table and stopped in front of him.
"Uhh… hello," one of them said.
Oliver slowly looked up.
The two boys looked about his age. One had short hair and very sharp eyes, the kind of eyes that looked like they were always observing everything. The other had longer hair and softer features; it was honestly a little hard to tell whether he looked more like a boy or a girl.
The sharp-eyed boy smiled slightly.
"Hello. Oliver, right? My name is Robert, and this is Tom. We're in the same class as you."
Oliver didn't say anything. He just looked at them silently.
Robert continued talking, not bothered by the silence.
"Well, to be honest, we're having a bit of difficulty making friends. Our interests are… different from most people." He laughed softly. "And you looked like you were in a similar situation, so we thought we'd come and talk to you."
Oliver kept staring at them for a few seconds.
Robert smiled again and said, "I'll take your silence as permission. Can we sit?"
He didn't wait for an answer. He and Tom sat down across from Oliver.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then Tom suddenly leaned forward slightly and looked at Oliver's tray.
"You're not eating," Tom said. "If you don't want that bread, can I take it?"
Oliver looked at the bread, then pushed the tray slightly toward Tom without saying a word.
Tom smiled. "Thanks."
Robert rested his elbow on the table and looked at Oliver carefully, not in a rude way, but like he was trying to understand him.
"You don't talk much, do you?" Robert said.
Oliver finally spoke quietly. "No."
Robert nodded. "That's fine. Tom talks enough for three people anyway."
Tom immediately protested, "Hey! That's not true."
"It is true," Robert replied calmly.
Tom looked at Oliver and said, "Don't listen to him. He thinks he's very smart just because he reads too many books."
Robert sighed. "I am very smart because I read too many books."
For the first time in a long time, Oliver almost smiled.
Almost.
Robert noticed but didn't say anything.
"So, Oliver," Robert said, "what do you usually do after school?"
"Nothing," Oliver replied.
Tom said, "Perfect. We also do nothing. You should do nothing with us."
Oliver looked at him, confused.
Tom continued very seriously, "Doing nothing alone is depressing. Doing nothing with friends is fun."
Robert nodded. "That is surprisingly logical."
Tom looked proud. "Of course it is."
There was a small silence again, but this time it wasn't uncomfortable.
Oliver didn't realize it yet, but for the first time in years, he was sitting at a table where no one hated him, no one feared him, and no one expected anything from him.
They were just talking.
And somehow, that felt strange.
But not unpleasant.
⸻
At the end of the school day, Oliver was walking back home.
But this time, he wasn't looking at the ground.
He was looking forward.
He was thinking about Robert and Tom, about their strange conversation, about how they sat with him without asking questions about his past, without judging him.
For the first time in many years, Oliver thought something he hadn't thought in a long time.
Maybe… I can move forward.
Maybe I can leave the past behind.
He didn't know that the past was not finished with him yet.
The next day, Oliver went to school again.
This time, his head was not lowered toward the ground.
He was walking normally, looking ahead. He had combed his hair, his clothes were cleaner, and he looked more alive than he had the previous day.
For the first time in years, he was not walking like a man carrying chains.
When he entered the school building, he actually looked around. The high school building was nothing extraordinary—just long corridors, large windows, old walls, and noisy students.
But somehow, Oliver found it… interesting.
He watched students talking in groups, laughing, arguing, running through the corridors. It was all very normal, very ordinary.
And strangely, he felt pleased just looking at it.
When he entered the classroom, he immediately saw Robert and Tom sitting at the last bench. They noticed him too and waved energetically.
Oliver walked toward them, and when he reached the bench, the three of them greeted each other like normal teenagers, shaking hands and exchanging small jokes.
Soon they started talking again like yesterday—simple humor, random topics, meaningless but comfortable conversations.
After a while, Oliver remembered something from the previous day.
"You both said yesterday that your interests were different," Oliver said. "What did you mean by that?"
Robert and Tom looked at each other and smiled.
Robert spoke first.
"Well, I'm interested in the medical field. Nothing strange about that, right? But I specifically want to become a psychiatrist… a brain doctor."
Tom leaned back in his chair and said,
"And I'm interested in crime and law. Again, not strange. But I want to become an investigator… maybe a detective."
Both of them looked at Oliver, expecting him to laugh or say it was weird.
Instead, Oliver's eyes widened slightly and he said quietly,
"Wow… that's amazing."
Robert and Tom looked at each other again, surprised.
Tom smiled. "You're the first person who didn't laugh when we said that."
Robert nodded. "Most people say we're strange."
Oliver replied softly, "Strange doesn't mean bad."
For a moment, neither Robert nor Tom said anything.
Then Robert suddenly asked, "So, Oliver… do you have a girlfriend?"
Tom immediately leaned forward. "Yes, very important question. We have no luck in this department, but you're a good-looking guy, so we're curious."
Oliver immediately started blushing and waved his hands nervously.
"No! No, definitely not!"
And right at that moment, the classroom door opened.
A girl entered the classroom.
For a moment, the entire room seemed quieter.
She had fair skin, long black hair tied in a ponytail, and dark eyes. She walked with calm confidence, but there was also something gentle about her presence.
She looked around the classroom, scanning the faces one by one.
Then her eyes stopped.
She had noticed Oliver and his friends at the last bench. From where she stood, she could only see Oliver from the back, so she wasn't completely sure.
But then a huge smile appeared on her face.
Without warning, she ran toward him.
Before Oliver could even react, she jumped onto his back.
Oliver lost balance immediately and fell forward, and the girl fell with him.
The entire classroom went silent.
Tom and Robert just stared, unable to understand what had just happened.
Oliver was on the floor, completely confused. The girl quickly got up and looked at him.
"Oliver, right?" she said.
Oliver slowly looked up at her.
The moment he saw her face, his eyes widened.
His jaw dropped.
His heart started beating so fast he could hear it.
His hands began trembling.
His eyes filled with tears before he even realized it.
He felt like he might cry at any moment.
Because the girl standing in front of him was—
Yui.
Yui Alexander.
Yui tilted her head slightly, not understanding why Oliver was looking at her like that.
No one spoke for a few seconds.
Then Robert suddenly broke the silence.
"Huh… No girlfriend, huh? Looks like we have very bad luck, Tom."
Tom nodded seriously. "Yes, very bad timing. Maybe we should leave these two alone."
Before Oliver could stop them, both of them stood up and walked away.
"Wait—" Oliver said, but they were already gone.
Now it was just Oliver and Yui.
Oliver slowly stood up and looked at her again, still unable to believe what he was seeing.
"Yui…" he said quietly.
"Yes, Oliver," she replied softly. "Maybe we should sit. We have a lot to catch up on."
They sat down at the bench. Oliver sat normally, but Yui leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table and her cheeks on her hands, looking directly at him with a small smile.
Oliver tried to speak.
"S-so… um…"
Before he could continue, Yui said:
"Thank you for saving me that day."
Oliver froze.
He had not expected that.
"Y-you knew?" he asked.
Yui nodded.
"Yes. I heard from our teachers later. They probably never told anyone in school because it might have caused problems for you. So… thank you again for saving me that day. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you back then."
Oliver suddenly raised his voice, almost panicking.
"No! I should be the one apologizing! I bullied you too, Yui! I saw them bullying you every day at the bridge for two years, and I did nothing. I just ignored it. I'm sorry for everything! You showed me kindness, and I was a coward who only thought about himself. I know I don't deserve forgiveness, so please punish me, Yui. Please punish me for my sins. I am the biggest piece of trash. Do anything you want. I deserve it."
Yui just stared at him quietly.
Then she spoke softly.
"Yes, Oliver. Everything you said is true."
Oliver lowered his head.
"But," she continued, "the coward and the bully Oliver died the day he picked up that rock to save me."
Oliver slowly looked up.
"You changed that day," she said. "So the Oliver who caused me harm is gone now. What is left… is my savior."
And she smiled.
That smile hit Oliver harder than any punishment ever could.
He wanted to hug her at that moment more than anything in the world.
But he didn't move.
Just then, the classroom door opened and the teacher entered.
"Alright, kids, back to your seats."
Yui stood up and started walking back to her seat, but before leaving, she turned around and leaned slightly toward Oliver.
"Let's go somewhere after class," she whispered.
Oliver's face turned red again. His heart started beating fast, but he nodded quietly.
Yui smiled once more and went to her bench.
Oliver slowly lowered his head onto the desk and covered his face with his hands.
He had just seen the most beautiful smile in his life again.
And for the first time in many years, he felt something lift from his chest.
The guilt that he had carried for so many years…
was finally gone.
What remained now—
was only,
His Love For Her.
Chapter Ends
To be Continued