Planet Earth –
The soft morning sunlight filtered through the tall glass windows of the library.
Adrian, twenty-two years old, sat hunched over an old wooden chair, his gaze completely absorbed in the words printed on the deep blue cover of the book.
He was an orphan—a boy abandoned by his own when he was just a child. But fate had granted him one chance.
On the strength of a scholarship, he had been admitted into California's most prestigious university—the very place where the wealthiest and most powerful families sent their children to study.
When Adrian read, it was as if the letters themselves came alive in his eyes.
For years, he had worked in a public library.
That was where he had gained an extraordinary mastery of knowledge—chemistry, civil engineering, electronic engineering.
His understanding of these subjects was so deep that even the professors sometimes fell silent in front of him.
But that same brilliance had become the reason for his isolation.
The other students—who had money and status, but little talent—resented him.
Whenever they had the chance, they tried to humiliate him, to push him down.
Adrian flipped to the last page of the book.
A faint weariness lingered in his eyelashes.
He rubbed his eyes with his fingers and took a slow, steady breath.
Closing the book, he placed it on the table.
He glanced at the clock—eight in the morning.
He knew he would have to walk to the university, just like every other day.
Stepping outside the library, he took the familiar path.
Moist air drifted from the dew clinging to the trees lining the road.
He walked at an unhurried pace until he reached the tall iron gates of the university.
Just as he was about to cross through,
a sharp car horn blared behind him.
Adrian turned around.
A gleaming white sports car was speeding straight toward him.
He quickly stepped back to the side.
The car screeched to a halt right beside him,
its tires skidding with a shrill screech against the pavement.
The front swung slightly as the brakes held.
For a few seconds, everything was still.
Then, the door opened.
A young man stepped out first—dressed in an expensive black coat, sunglasses covering his eyes,
the same air of arrogance Adrian had seen so often among the heirs of wealthy families.
Then the second door opened.
Adrian's eyes froze in place.
A young woman stepped out—
her hair was longer now, her face more mature, but he could never have failed to recognize her.
His breath caught in his throat.
The color drained from his cheeks.
She was none other than
his high school girlfriend.
The girl with whom he had once shared his purest moments of happiness.
The girl who, in the darkest days of his life, had lit a small lamp of hope in his heart.
Her eyes met his for the briefest moment.
For an instant, her eyelashes quivered.
But in the next second, she steeled her expression,
as if she wanted to deny any past that had ever existed between them.
Adrian stood rooted to the spot,
his hands faintly trembling.
Deep inside, all the old memories were rising again, unbidden.
Adrian stood frozen, the familiar face of the girl he once loved still imprinted in his vision.
The girl who had once smiled at him in the hallways, who used to hold his hand after class, whose laughter had made him believe that maybe—just maybe—someone cared about him.
But he had learned the truth the hard way.
She had never loved him.
She had only pretended—so she could make him do all her school notes, to use his brilliance for her own grades.
And when he no longer served a purpose, she had discarded him.
Because he was poor.
Because he was alone.
The young man in the black coat glanced at Adrian with a sneer.
"What's wrong, you idiot? Can't you walk along the side?" His voice was mocking, cold. "If you'd made me crash my car, I swear I'd have broken every bone in your worthless body."
He stepped closer, his polished shoes scraping against the pavement.
Before Adrian could react, the boy's hand shot out and grabbed his collar, yanking him forward.
Adrian stumbled, his heartbeat thudding in his ears.
The young man's other hand lifted in the air, his palm tightening into a fist, ready to strike.
Adrian didn't even flinch.
He had lost count of how many times he had been treated like this.
He simply closed his eyes, waiting for the pain.
But before the blow could land, a voice echoed sharply behind them—
"What's going on here?"
The young man froze.
Slowly, he turned his head.
A tall man in a grey suit was striding toward them—one of the university's professors.
His gaze was stern, the lines of disapproval etched deep around his eyes.
The young man hastily let go of Adrian's collar.
"Nothing, sir," he said, his tone suddenly polite, like a child caught red-handed.
"I was only telling Adrian he should watch where he's going."
The professor looked from the boy to Adrian.
His expression softened for a fraction of a second when he met Adrian's tired eyes.
Then he spoke quietly, his voice firm:
"Go on to your classes. Don't stand here."
One by one, the students began to drift away, muttering among themselves. Adrian lowered his gaze and turned, walking toward the main building without a word.
As he watched him go, the professor sighed under his breath:
"How much longer will these rich boys keep tormenting him?
Poor child… Adrian…"
The day passed in a blur of lectures and lab work.
Adrian sat in the back of every classroom, taking meticulous notes, barely raising his head.
No one spoke to him, and he didn't expect them to.
By the time the last class ended, evening shadows were spilling across the campus.
Adrian stepped out through the gates, a thin breeze stirring his hair.
He had to go to the public library first, to finish his shift.
Then he would return to the tiny, crumbling room he called home.
As he walked, he stared down at the pavement, thoughts swirling like dark clouds.
Will my life always be like this?
Will nothing ever change?
In his chest, a dull ache pressed harder and harder.
He clenched his fists, bitterness coiling in his throat.
Being born poor… is it a sin in this world?
I don't even have parents… I have nothing.
He didn't notice the tears burning behind his eyes.
He just kept walking.
By the time he reached the library, night had almost fallen.
After finishing all his duties—stacking books, cleaning shelves, locking the register—he stepped out into the cool night air.
He began the long walk back home.
The roads were mostly empty, lit only by the yellow glow of old streetlamps.
Lost in his thoughts, he never saw the headlights until they were almost upon him.
A car was racing down the street behind him.
The driver was drunk—barely conscious.
The tires screeched, swerving out of control.
Adrian kept walking, unaware, his mind replaying every wound he'd ever carried.
The impact came like an explosion.
The car slammed into his back, hurling him forward.
His body struck a steel pole with a sickening thud.
Something cracked inside his skull.
Bright pain flared, then faded to numbness.
He fell to his knees.
Warm, sticky blood streamed down his forehead, dripping onto the concrete.
For a moment, Adrian didn't understand what had happened.
His vision flickered—blackness creeping in from the edges.
When his mind finally began to register the truth, he let out a small, ragged breath.
A broken smile curved across his lips, stained with red.
"So… it's over."
"At last, I'm free of this life of pain… Now I can finally rest."
Memories came flooding back—the loneliness, the betrayals, the silent nights he'd cried himself to sleep.
Slowly, the strength ebbed from his body.
His breaths grew shallow, each one harder to draw.
In his final moment, Adrian's eyes glistened with tears he no longer had the will to wipe away.
And then, with a single soft sigh, he closed them forever.