POV: RenLocation: Harunaka High — Class 2-A
When I walked into the classroom, I already knew what was coming.
The moment Astraea stepped in after me—dressed in the school's uniform, her silver hair neatly tied, her eyes wide with practiced innocence—the air shifted.
Boys whispered. Girls stared.But it wasn't just because she was beautiful.
It was because she walked straight to me.
The teacher introduced her casually.
"We have a new transfer student joining us today—Astraea Kirisawa. She's recently moved here to live with her adoptive brother, Ren."
That last word echoed in my ears.
Brother.
A knife I had handed her myself.
Astraea bowed softly, her voice smooth. "I look forward to studying with all of you."
Then she walked directly to the empty seat beside me—mine—and sat down without hesitation.
Of course, the seat on my other side?
Already occupied.
Airi.
She didn't say anything.She didn't have to.
She was smiling, but her fingers gripped the edge of her desk a little too tightly.
I looked down at my textbook and exhaled slowly.
Why didn't I just erase them?I could. I had. Countless times before. Entire timelines wiped clean.
Why not Airi?Why not Minako?
Why not even Astraea—when she first returned?
And the answer, quietly, unwelcomed, came back to me:
Maybe this makes me feel alive.
Maybe it was a lie.
But even lies—when repeated often enough—begin to feel like truths.
And this… the presence of them… the pressure of it all...
It made something in me stir.
Astraea leaned toward me, just enough so I could smell her lavender perfume. She passed me a folded timetable with our shared classes.
But her fingers brushed mine too long.Her eyes lingered too much.
Airi noticed.
Of course she did.
Still, Astraea looked at her and smiled sweetly, her voice as soft as snow.
"It's nice to meet you, Airi-san. Ren-kun mentioned you."
Airi returned the smile stiffly. "Did he?"
Astraea's hands folded neatly on her desk, head tilting. "He told me you always sit beside him."
Her tone was kind. Her words were not.
It wasn't a challenge.It was a claim.
And beneath the soft gentleness in Astraea's voice, I could hear something deeper. Something only I would recognize.
Possession.
The kind every girl around me had in some form.
But hers was quieter. Older.Sharpened by years of absence and wounds not yet healed.
The lesson began. The teacher droned on.
Airi kept glancing at me.
Minako, a few rows behind, watched like a hawk. Silent. Calculating.
And Astraea?
Astraea leaned close during the lesson to whisper a question about the formulas. Her breath touched my ear when she spoke. Her fingers brushed my sleeve. She smiled when our eyes met—too warm, too pure.
Airi shifted in her seat every time.
It was exhausting.
Two girls on either side of me.
One who loved the version of me I built to be lovable.
One who knew what I was beneath it.
And still chose to stay.
I rested my head briefly against my knuckles.
The world saw a boy quietly studying between two affectionate girls.
But I…
I sat in a cage of my own making.
And none of them could see the bars.
POV: RenLocation: After School — Street Toward Home
The sun had begun to dip low, casting long shadows across the pavement as we walked side by side down the quiet street.
Airi held my hand tightly, fingers laced with mine. She walked close, as if she feared the new presence behind us might steal me away if she left even an inch of space.
Astraea followed just behind, a soft hum in her throat and her hands folded behind her back. Her eyes roamed from the rooftops to the trees, the picture of innocence.
But I could feel her watching.
Not the world.
Us.
"You were amazing in class today," Airi said with a small smile, nudging my shoulder with hers. "Even helped her with Math like a good big brother."
I nodded, noncommittal.
"Hey, want to stop by my place for a bit?" she added, squeezing my hand. "Mom's working late again."
There was a faint flush in her cheeks, the kind that hinted at more than just snacks and homework.
I didn't answer immediately.
And that hesitation was enough.
Astraea's voice cut in, smooth and polite.
"Sorry, Airi-san," she said cheerfully, stepping closer. "But we should head back. Ren has study schedules tonight. Midterms are next week, remember?"
Airi blinked. "Well, it's just for a while…"
"He made a plan," Astraea continued, her tone still gentle, "and he's not the type to break routines. Right, Nii-san?"
Nii-san.
There was weight behind the word.
I gave a small nod. "She's right. I need to review a few chapters."
Airi's smile faltered just a touch—but she nodded, masking the flicker of disappointment with grace.
"Okay… tomorrow then?"
I leaned in and kissed her cheek gently.
"Tomorrow."
Her fingers lingered on mine for a moment before she turned away. But I could feel it—
She would remember this.And she wouldn't forget who stood between us.
We arrived home in silence.
Astraea walked in first, slipping out of her shoes like she'd done it every day for years. She stretched her arms high with a soft yawn and padded off toward the hallway.
When I followed her in, I found her already changed—wearing soft black shorts and a cream sweater that slid off one shoulder. Her long silver hair was untied now, cascading down her back like pale silk.
She looked at me from across the room and smiled faintly.
"Still pretending to be a good boy," she said under her breath.
I ignored it.
Our parents were already in the kitchen.
Or rather—the people who thought they were my parents.
Memory-modified placeholders. Happy. Predictable. Unaware.
"Welcome home!" my mother called brightly. "You must be tired. Astraea-chan, how was your first day?"
"It was lovely," Astraea replied sweetly, taking a seat at the table. "Everyone was so kind. Especially Ren-kun. He really looks after me."
My father laughed. "Well, that's what big brothers are for!"
I sat across from her, watching the performance.
She smiled. Laughed. Ate dinner like a normal girl. Talked about school, complimented the curry, and offered to help with dishes.
But beneath the calm—
Her eyes never stopped watching me.
Later that night, as I sat alone in my room under the dull glow of the desk lamp, I stared out the window into the darkening sky.
Airi would be lying on her bed, phone in hand, wondering.
Minako would be connecting invisible threads.
Astraea was brushing her hair in the next room, humming a song from a time I thought I'd buried.
And me?
I was here.Sitting in the center of a carefully arranged storm.
Still wondering why I let it all stay.