The sun dipped lower in the sky, casting long shadows over the empty court as laughter faded into the distance. Students drifted away, voices echoing into the golden hour.
But Kaiser Klein stayed behind.
Alone in the center of the court, he stared down at his open palm—still tingling with the memory of something he didn't fully understand.
When was the last time I felt like this?
Alive?
His fingers curled slowly. There was warmth in his chest. Lightness in his breath. A flicker of something dangerous and sweet—something he hadn't dared to feel in years.
Shinoa…
Then—
"Stop daydreaming, idiot."
The voice cut through the quiet like a blade—sharp, female, and startlingly familiar.
Kaiser's eyes narrowed. He turned sharply.
No one.
But instinct doesn't lie.
"Come out," he said, voice cool, steady. "I know you're there."
A shimmer passed through the air—then footsteps. Soft, deliberate.
And then, she appeared.
A girl stepped out from behind the gym wall, her long blonde hair catching the dying sunlight like it belonged to the sky itself. Her violet eyes shimmered with defiance and mischief. Her posture confident, almost royal.
There was no mistaking her.
"Did you seriously forget about me?" she said, folding her arms with a crooked smile. "I'm your childhood friend… Rukia Delim."
Kaiser froze.
Rukia?
His breath hitched.
She hadn't changed—only grown more radiant. More impossible.
He hadn't seen her since—
Before he could finish the thought, she crossed the space between them in a blur.
And without warning…
She hugged him. Tight. Familiar.
And then—kissed him.
Soft. Sudden. Real.
His body locked up, eyes wide—not from embarrassment… but disbelief.
The world blurred.
When she finally pulled back, her face lingered close, eyes gleaming with something dangerous.
"Miss me?" she whispered.
Kaiser couldn't speak. His heart thundered in his chest. His mind reeled with memories.
Because behind that kiss… were years of stories left unfinished.
Wounds unhealed.
And now, his past hadn't just returned—
It had collided headfirst with the fragile future he'd started to believe in.