Location: Kazuki's Inner Mindscape – The "Sanctuary"
A classroom frozen in time.Old desks. Dust in the air. A single cracked window.Blackboards filled with scribbles and stick figures of smiling families.
Aya stands in the doorway.
Waiting at the teacher's desk is Kazuki—but not the real one.
This version wears a white coat, like a prince from a romance novel.He smiles with flawless teeth and eyes that don't blink.
"You're not supposed to be here, Aya-nee."
Aya clenches her fist.
"Neither are you."
Introducing: Kazuki_Prime
A manifestation of Kazuki's "ideal self."The version that never got hurt, never felt alone, never had to grow up.He's smug, charming, and terrifyingly perfect.
"I've been keeping him safe," he says. "All these years.Why would you take that away?"
Aya: "Because he doesn't need safety anymore. He needs truth."
Kazuki_Prime tilts his head.
"And you think you're his truth? Just a clingy noona with too many crop tops?"
Aya: "Better than a fake memory in a lab coat."
Meanwhile – The Real Kazuki
Outside, in the Archive Room, Kazuki grips the ARIEL console.
He sees flashes—Aya in the dreamscape, his fake self looming like a final boss.
Kokoro narrates helpfully:
"This is psychologically fascinating.It's like watching a budget Inception remake with more sexual tension."
Natsuki-sensei hums.
"Ahh, young love and ego death. Adorable."
Back in the Dream
Aya finds a mirror—covered in dust.
When she wipes it clean, it doesn't show Kazuki_Prime.It shows the real Kazuki—flustered, awkward, smiling beside her with orange juice in one hand and a cheap bento in the other.
Aya smiles.
Kazuki_Prime winces.
"You think that's real? That's pathetic."
Aya:
"No. That's honest.And it's why I'm in love with him."
She says it.
Calm. Direct. No teasing this time.
The mirror glows.
Kazuki_Prime Begins to Break
"You'll regret this.Without me, he's weak. Lonely. Powerless."
Aya walks forward, into his space.
"And with you, he's not even himself."
CRACK.
The dream world begins to collapse.
Kazuki_Prime stares in horror as the fake classroom starts turning to static.
"He wanted me. I protected him."
Aya: "No. You buried him."
She raises her hand—
—and shatters the mirror.
Back in Reality
Kazuki gasps awake.
Aya collapses into his arms, drenched in dream-sweat, which is somehow worse than real sweat.
He looks at her—blinking, breathing, real.
"You… came back."
Aya: "I always will, dumbass."
Pause.
Kazuki:
"...Did you really say you were in love with me in there?"
Aya:
"Ugh, I was hoping you'd be unconscious longer."
They laugh.
Then freeze.
Because Kokoro is holding up her phone.
"Yes, I recorded it."
Later That Night – Rooftop Scene #TooMany
Kazuki stares up at the stars.
Aya lies beside him, her head on his arm.
"I feel lighter," he says. "Like I've been pretending to be me, and now I'm actually me."
Aya: "Gross. But accurate."
He turns.
"Do you really… love me?"
Aya smirks, eyes sleepy.
"Don't make me say it twice."
Beat.
Kazuki leans in. Soft. Nervous.
They kiss.
Real. Awkward. Perfect.
Epilogue Tag: Natsuki-sensei's Secret File
ARIEL detects an encrypted file labeled:
"Operation Daydreamer – Subject: Haruma Kazuki""Status: Phase 2 Complete.""Note: Emotional stability achieved. Prepare for the final unlock."
Final unlock?
ARIEL freezes.
Kokoro leans in over the terminal.
"Oh?He's still got one more fantasy to confront."