Yuna sat there in silence for a moment, her gaze fixed on him.
Then, softly—almost like a whisper slipping through the cracks of her heart—she asked:
"Where's your smile, Kai?"
The words hit him like a knife.
No—like something worse.
His heart dropped.
All the way to the floor.
He lowered his eyes, jaw clenched, breathing uneven.
And then, for the first time in a long time, he let it out.
"My smile?" he echoed bitterly. "That person doesn't exist anymore."
He turned away from her, running a hand through his hair, his voice strained.
"That version of me died with the school days we left behind. With the nights we laughed without thinking. With that stupid innocence that made us think life was fair."
He paused, swallowing hard.
"Everything changed. And you know what hurts the most? That I can't go back. No matter how much I want to, it's impossible. I feel like… my heart is caught in a vice. Like someone's tightening it every day, just a little more."
Yuna looked down at her hands.
Then, with quiet resolve, she replied:
"I don't believe that."
Kai didn't turn around.
"I still see him," she continued. "That boy who helped everyone… who smiled like the world was still beautiful. I see him in the way you look at Hina. In the way you protect others, even now."
Her voice trembled.
"All of this… it changed in just a couple of months. But it didn't erase who you are."
Kai stood still for a long moment.Then slowly turned to face her, eyes dark with exhaustion—and anger.
"…Thanks for the kind words, Yuna. Really."
But there was venom under his tone.
"They don't change anything."
He stepped closer, bitterness surfacing in his chest like poison.
"You talk like you're still on our side. But don't think I haven't noticed how close you are to Rei. You chose to work with him, didn't you?"
Yuna's breath caught in her throat.
She wanted to speak.
To say it wasn't what he thought.
To say she had to.
But she couldn't.
Because she wasn't allowed.
Kai's voice sharpened, breaking into a near-snarl.
"You're part of this now. Whether you want to admit it or not. And to top it off…"
He looked at her with hollow, wounded eyes.
"…you fell in love with a killer."
Yuna froze.
Her lips parted, but no sound came out.
Her heart screamed a thousand truths she couldn't say.
But the silence between them was deafening.
And in that silence, Kai turned away again—Not because he wanted to.
But because staying there… looking at her… was a constant reminder of his peaceful days filled with laughters.
It was almost painful.
"Kai... I..." Yuna tried to say, but as soon as Kai looked deep into her eyes, she stopped.
His gaze was... different.
To Yuna, it seemed like she was speaking to a completely different person.
Kai sighed.
"Yuna, to be honest, I don't want to talk anymore, so, please, just let me rest. " Kai said, with a glimpse of sadness in his words.
"..." Yuna looked down on the floor, while resting her right hend on her chest.
Her heart was beating fast, probably from nervousness, who knows.
"Is there something else you want to say to me, Yuna?" Kai asked, with an almost cold voice.
Yuna kept looking down and turned around.
"No... it's okay. Don't worry about that. Good night. And please... don't forget who you are." Yuna said, with a broken voice, like she was on the verge of crying.
"Goodnight." Kai replied.
After that, Yuna walked away and closed the door.
She ran trought the corridors, in silence, with tears falling from her young eyes.
"Why...?" That was what she asked to herself, while going directly towards her room.
Kai, meanwhile, went directly to bed and closed his eyes, trying to sleep again.
"Who knows what's gonna happen tomorrow." He said, before closing his eyes.