The crowd noise faded behind him as Kant walked down the narrow alley at the side of the school building. The air was cooler here, quieter. He needed it. Needed to breathe without the scent of perfume, smell of popcorn, sweat and laughter in his ears
He sat down on the grass , his knees stretched in front of him.His hands were stuffed in his pockets. He leaned his head on the wall, taking in the still silence and fading noises of the crowd far off.
"I wasn't expecting to see you again."
The voice froze him because he was shocked he still knew it too well.
Sylan.
Kant turned slowly, brows arched, jaw tight. He then stood up.
"Yeah?" he said bitterly. "Well, it'd be pretty damn weird if the mayor's son didn't show up to the town's most celebrated event."
He gave a sharp smile — the kind that didn't reach his eyes — and reached into his uniform satchel. He pulled out a small, worn light box and without another word, threw it on the ground between them.
It popped open.
Photos. Wristbands. Folded love letters.
All of them — pieces of them — spilled across the dirt and concrete like broken confessions.
"I want you to have them," Kant said, voice low but shaking. "I don't need them anymore."
Sylan stepped forward silently. He crouched, gathering the items, his fingers brushing the torn corner of a photo where they were both grinning under a cherry tree.
He placed it all gently back into the box and stood with it in his arms.
"A lot's changed since then," Sylan murmured.
"What changed?" Kant asked sharply.
"You know what changed," Sylan replied, gaze meeting his, pained but firm.
Kant scoffed. "The only thing that changed is you decided to get a girlfriend and start playing heterosexual fantasy boy like some baby fresh out of denial."
Sylan's brow furrowed. "Don't yell at me. You don't know anything about what I've been dealing with — my life, my decisions, my preferences."
"And you know mine?" Kant snapped, stepping forward. " You think I liked watching you leave without a word while I had to smile at the damn town like nothing broke inside me?"
"I had to leave, Kant!" Sylan said, the box trembling in his hands. "I didn't have a choice!"
"Well, neither did I!" Kant shouted back.
There was silence. Breathing. Just their hearts beating and all the words they had never said ringing in the alley.
"You must be really happy now," Kant muttered. "With a girl who doesn't care about anything. Who can hold your hand in public and take you wherever she wants."
"At least she's not hiding me!" Sylan snapped. "At least she's not scared of what Daddy will say. Or what the town will say. It was difficult because you were so afraid of letting anyone know about us."
Kant flinched. "I had responsibilities. People counting on me. You know what that pressure feels like?"
"I understood you" Sylan hissed. "You think I didn't have responsibilities too? I chose us — over and over again — but you couldn't do the same. You just stood behind your fears like they were walls I was supposed to climb for you."
"You'll never understand—"
"And you'll never understand how hard it was to walk away from someone you still love, but know you'll never be able to keep."Sylan retorted.
Kant was silent. Breath caught.
Sylan turned, walking toward the edge of the alley.
"What's her name?" Kant called after him, voice cracked and sharp.
No answer.
"What's her name, Sylan?!" he yelled louder, following him.
Still no answer.
"You like it, don't you?" Kant spat. "How she kisses you, hugs you, touches you—"
"Stop!" Bison finally snapped, whipping around. "How does that matter to you?!. We're over. that's what matters"
The silence after was suffocating.
Kant backed off a step. His face was red, eyes glassy. His nose pink, the tips of his ears flushed like the sky before a storm.
"I did everything I could," he whispered. "To keep what we had."
Sylan's face softened with sorrow — but only briefly. "Maybe you did," he said. "But it wasn't enough. It didn't feel safe,Kant. Not for me."
"I only asked for more time," Kant replied, voice shaking. "And you couldn't give me that."
"I did give you time," Sylan said. "But every time you said 'soon,' it turned into another excuse. Another lie. We just kept spinning in circles. And we both know it."
He turned again, slower this time, like the weight in his chest had finally settled.
"I don't want that anymore. And neither do you."
Sylan walked out of the alley, fading into the growing noise of the festival behind them.
Kant stood alone. His fists clenched. His mouth slightly parted, like he still had something left to say — but nothing came out.
With a sudden yell, he ripped the insignia headgear from his head and threw it to the ground, the golden wolf symbol plastered on it shattering against the dirt.
And he stayed there — surrounded by echoes.