Lunch break.
The classroom buzzed with life.
Lunch boxes opened.
Voices overlapped.
Laughter echoed in every corner.
For the first time in years—
Itsuki wasn't sitting alone.
---
Yuna Aizawa stretched her arms lazily.
"Okay~ after lunch, I'm going home early."
Itsuki looked at her.
"…Same."
Ren Fujimoto blinked.
"Huh? Why?"
Itsuki scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"My aunt will be waiting."
Yuna smiled softly.
"That's kinda sweet, actually."
Ren immediately smirked.
"Oho~ family man."
Itsuki rolled his eyes.
---
A few minutes later—
Itsuki and Ren stood on the rooftop.
The wind blew gently.
Itsuki's hair moved slightly with the breeze.
The sky felt… open.
Peaceful.
For once.
---
Itsuki leaned against the railing.
"…By the way."
He glanced sideways at Ren.
"You and Yuna…"
Ren blinked.
"What about us?"
"You two look good together."
Itsuki smirked slightly.
"Planning to date?"
Ren immediately shook his head.
"NOPE."
He leaned back casually.
"We're childhood friends."
Then his expression softened slightly.
"…But what you said during your speech…"
Itsuki looked at him.
"…It reminded me of something."
---
Flashback.
A younger Ren stood in a classroom.
In front of him—
a girl with long, beautiful hair.
Yuna.
She held something nervously in her hands.
"…Ren."
"Will you…"
"Marry me in the future?"
Her voice was soft.
Hopeful.
But Ren—
completely misunderstood.
He laughed.
"Ohhh! Roleplay game?!"
Before she could react—
he grabbed scissors from the desk.
"Then I'm the barber!"
SNIP.
Her long hair fell to the ground.
Silence.
Yuna stood frozen.
Her eyes slowly filled with tears.
---
Back to present.
Ren sighed deeply.
"…Yeah."
"I messed up badly."
Itsuki stared at him.
"…Bro."
"That's worse than a crime."
Ren groaned.
"I KNOW."
---
Itsuki folded his arms.
"At least now you've grown up."
Ren nodded slowly.
"…But she never grew her hair back."
Itsuki paused.
"…Wait."
"So that's why she has short hair?"
Ren looked away.
"…Yeah."
---
For a moment—
both of them stayed silent.
Then suddenly—
Itsuki spoke quietly.
"…What I did…"
His voice became low.
"…was worse."
Hotaru's face flashed in his mind.
The bandage.
The blood.
The silence.
Ren looked at him seriously.
"…We were kids."
"But now we're not."
Itsuki didn't respond.
---
Then—
Ren suddenly pointed downward.
"Yo."
"Look there."
Itsuki leaned forward slightly.
Below—
near the school pond—
Hotaru stood alone.
Feeding fish quietly.
Her long silver hair moved gently in the wind.
Sunlight reflected in the water around her.
She looked…
like someone from another world.
---
Itsuki's breath slowed.
"…She's beautiful."
Ren immediately smacked his shoulder lightly.
"Oi."
"Stay away from her."
Itsuki frowned.
"…Why?"
Ren crossed his arms.
"Use your brain."
"She's rich."
"She came in a BMW, bro."
Itsuki blinked.
"…Seriously?"
Ren nodded.
"She's like some princess from the sky."
"And we're just…"
He pointed at the ground.
"…people from here."
Itsuki stayed quiet.
---
"…I've known her since childhood."
Ren looked at him.
"But because of some mistakes…"
"…we got separated."
Itsuki's eyes softened slightly.
"…When did she become rich?"
Ren shrugged.
"No idea."
"Rumors say her family moved and got crazy rich."
---
Itsuki looked at Hotaru again.
Maybe…
her mother took her far away after everything…
The thought stayed in his mind.
---
"YO!"
A loud voice interrupted everything.
Yuna suddenly appeared behind them.
"You two are hiding here?!"
Ren laughed.
"We were having deep emotional talks."
Yuna rolled her eyes.
"Shut up."
Then she grinned mischievously.
"Let's skip school."
Both boys froze.
"…What?"
Yuna crossed her arms confidently.
"Today was just the entrance ceremony."
"No real classes."
"And look—"
She pointed toward the gate.
"Students are already leaving."
Ren's eyes sparkled.
"…You're a genius."
Itsuki sighed.
"…This feels illegal."
Yuna grabbed both of their arms.
"Too late." "Let's go."
---
A few minutes later—
the three stood outside a small karaoke place.
Ren pumped his fist.
"THIS IS WHAT YOUTH LOOKS LIKE!"
Itsuki looked tired already.
"…I regret coming."
Yuna pushed him inside.
"Too bad."
---
Inside the karaoke room—
colorful lights flashed.
Music played loudly.
Energy filled the room.
Yuna handed the mic directly to Itsuki.
"YOU FIRST."
Itsuki blinked.
"…Why me?"
Ren grinned.
"Because you gave that emotional speech."
"Now entertain us."
Itsuki sighed deeply.
"…Fine."
He grabbed the mic.
Closed his eye.
Took a long breath.
Then—
he started rapping.
---
His voice wasn't perfect—
but it was real.
Raw.
Emotional.
He rapped about loneliness.
About regret.
About pain.
About trying to become better.
---
The room slowly went silent.
Even Ren stopped joking.
Even Yuna stopped smiling.
Because for the first time—
they heard not just words—
but a boy trying to move forward.
---
When the song ended—
silence remained for a second.
Then—
Yuna clapped softly.
"…That was beautiful."
Ren nodded.
"…Yeah."
Itsuki scratched his head awkwardly.
"…Don't make it weird."
But inside—
for the first time in years—
something felt… lighter.
---
Outside—
the sky slowly turned orange.
A new chapter of life had begun.
Not with pain.
But with noise.
With laughter.
With stupid decisions.
And maybe—
with healing.
---
✨ End of Chapter 9 ✨