The streets were silent.
Only the faint glow of old streetlights broke through the darkness, stretching long shadows across the empty road.
A black-haired boy wandered beneath them without direction.
His footsteps were slow, almost mechanical, as if his body had forgotten the meaning of purpose.
He looked exhausted.
Like a sailor who had drifted across an endless ocean, surviving only on the hope that land still existed somewhere beyond the horizon.
Or perhaps...
Like a child who had wandered too far from home and could no longer remember the way back.
He simply kept walking.
No destination.
No reason.
Then—
Thud.
He bumped shoulders with an orange-haired high school student.
For the briefest moment, their eyes met.
One second.
That was all it took.
An unfamiliar weight tightened around the black-haired boy's heart.
His breath caught.
"..."
He instinctively turned around.
The orange-haired boy was already walking away.
No hesitation.
No reaction.
Almost as though the encounter had never happened.
The black-haired boy stared at the empty street, unable to understand why his chest felt so heavy.
He had been searching for something for as long as he could remember.
Something he couldn't name.
Something he couldn't even describe.
Yet...
The moment their eyes met...
It felt as though he had stepped closer to that answer.
And at that very moment—
One life quietly found its purpose...
While another unknowingly stepped closer to its end.
---
The morning bell echoed through the school halls.
Students chatted excitedly as they hurried into their classrooms, filling the building with laughter and conversation.
None of it reached Ryan.
With his bright orange hair standing out among the crowd, he walked through the hallway with empty eyes.
He ignored the laughter.
Ignored the greetings.
Ignored everything around him.
Without a word, he entered his classroom and took his seat by the window.
Beside him sat a girl with snow-white hair tied into a neat ponytail.
Juliet.
"Morning, Ryan!"
Her cheerful smile could brighten almost any room.
She was friendly, outgoing, and effortlessly popular. Even on the way to class, several students had greeted her, yet the first person she chose to talk to was always the same.
Ryan.
She leaned toward him with a gentle smile.
"How are you today?"
Ryan looked at her for a brief moment before answering in a flat voice.
"...Morning, Juliet."
That was all.
Juliet forced a smile.
"...Same as always."
She looked away, pretending not to be bothered.
But deep inside, disappointment quietly settled in her heart.
No matter how many times she reached out...
Ryan always seemed farther away than yesterday.
The final bell rang.
Students streamed out of the school, laughing as they made plans for the evening. Within minutes, the once-crowded hallways began to empty.
Juliet packed her books into her bag.
Then she heard it.
Laughter.
Not the cheerful kind.
Mocking laughter.
Her expression darkened.
"...Again?"
Without wasting another second, she rushed outside.
There they were.
Ryan stood surrounded by the same group of boys.
One of them shoved him hard enough to make him stumble backward.
Another laughed.
"I can't believe this guy still comes to school."
"What a loser."
"You'd think he'd learn by now."
Ryan didn't fight back.
He simply stood there, his expression as lifeless as ever.
Juliet clenched her fists.
"Stop!"
The boys turned toward her.
She marched straight between them and Ryan.
"What is wrong with you?" she demanded. "Why do you keep picking on him?"
The leader smirked.
"Well, look who's here."
He glanced at his friends before grinning.
"Ryan's personal bodyguard."
The others burst into laughter.
Juliet ignored them.
"If you're looking for someone to fight, fight someone your own size."
The leader stepped closer until only a few inches separated them.
"And what are you going to do if we don't?"
For a split second...
Fear flashed across Juliet's face.
She knew she couldn't win.
She knew they could easily push her aside.
But even so...
She didn't move.
The leader shoved her shoulder.
She stumbled to the ground.
Before anyone could react, she pushed herself back to her feet and stood in front of Ryan once again.
This time, she spread her arms wide, shielding him with her own body.
Her hands trembled.
Her heartbeat thundered in her ears.
Yet her voice remained steady.
"I'm not moving."
"If you want to hurt him..."
"You'll have to go through me first."
Silence.
The boys exchanged confused looks.
The leader clicked his tongue.
"Tch."
"Forget it."
He turned around.
"Let's go."
The group walked away, laughing as though the whole thing had been nothing more than entertainment.
Only after they disappeared did Juliet let out the breath she had been holding.
"Whew..."
She placed a hand over her chest and laughed nervously.
"I was honestly terrified..."
Before she could say anything else—
Ryan spoke.
His voice was cold enough to stop her in her tracks.
"How many times do I have to tell you?"
"I don't need your help."
Juliet blinked.
"...Ryan..."
"Stop interfering in my life."
Every word struck harder than the last.
She lowered her eyes before quietly replying,
"But... I couldn't just stand there."
"They always hurt you."
"If you don't want to fight them, then let Damian know. He'll definitely—"
"Enough."
Ryan's sharp voice cut through the air.
His lifeless eyes locked onto hers.
"Don't tell Damian."
"I'm fine."
"This doesn't bother me."
"...It's helping me."
Juliet froze.
"...Helping you?"
Ryan looked away.
"You wouldn't understand."
Juliet tightened her grip on her school bag.
"I just..."
She forced a weak smile.
"I wish I were stronger."
"If I were... maybe I could actually protect people instead of just shouting at them."
Ryan let out a quiet laugh.
Not because he found it funny.
Because he found it pathetic.
"You know what I hate the most?"
Juliet remained silent.
"People who dream about becoming strong..."
"...but never take the first step."
"They fill their heads with motivational speeches."
"They tell themselves they'll change someday."
"They imagine becoming heroes."
His voice grew colder.
"But tomorrow never comes."
"They keep living inside their own fantasies."
"And eventually..."
"They become nothing."
He looked directly into Juliet's eyes.
"If your actions never match your words..."
"Then your words are worthless."
Juliet couldn't answer.
She wanted to argue.
She wanted to tell him he was wrong.
That she wasn't weak.
That she really wanted to become stronger.
But...
No words came out.
Because somewhere deep inside...
She wondered if he was right.
Ryan walked past her without another glance.
Juliet remained standing there alone.
Watching his back disappear into the fading light.
For reasons she couldn't explain...
It felt as though the distance between them had grown even greater.
Meanwhile
From across the street...
The black-haired boy watched everything.
Ryan's empty expression.
Juliet's unwavering determination.
The silence that lingered after every word.
He hadn't looked away for even a second.
Something inside him was trembling.
"...What is this feeling?"
His hand slowly pressed against his chest.
His heartbeat echoed loudly in his ears.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
The sensation grew stronger with every passing moment.
It wasn't pain.
It wasn't fear.
It was something he couldn't explain.
As Ryan disappeared into the distance, fragments of memories flashed through the boy's mind.
A lonely road.
An endless journey.
Sleepless nights.
A life spent searching...
Searching for something he could never name.
He had wandered for so long that even the reason for his journey had begun to fade.
Yet today...
After meeting that orange-haired boy...
Something had changed.
His knees suddenly gave way.
He collapsed onto the cold pavement, breathing heavily as though the weight of the world had fallen onto his shoulders.
"...Hah..."
"...Hah..."
Tears rolled silently down his face.
He didn't understand why he was crying.
He had forgotten the last time he had shed tears.
But now...
They wouldn't stop.
His heart was screaming.
Not in pain.
In recognition.
He looked toward the road where Ryan had disappeared.
His lips trembled.
"...So that's why..."
For the first time in what felt like an eternity...
His empty eyes reflected hope.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
Small.
Fragile.
But real.
The answer...
The reason he had wandered without purpose...
The reason he had endured countless lonely days...
The reason he had refused to give up...
It had been standing right in front of him.
Barely above a whisper, he spoke the words that would change everything.
"I..."
"...found it."
The evening wind carried his voice into the empty street.
But one question still remained.
What... had he found?
And why...
Did the fate of that broken orange-haired boy seem to be connected to it?
To be continued...