Scene: Friday Night – 8:45 PM
The city buzzed beneath a velvet sky, windows glowing like stars, but the school rooftop remained silent. Cold. Still.
Aika climbed the final step of the stairwell and pushed open the rooftop door.
Her breath caught in the chill air.
She was alone.
Just like the note had said.
Her footsteps were quiet as she crossed the rooftop, her black hoodie drawn up to hide her face, her hands stuffed in her pockets.
But her eyes?
Dead sharp.
She stopped at the center. The same spot where the last Polaroid had been nailed.
Wind whipped her hair across her face. She didn't move it.
"I'm here," she said flatly. "What now, coward?"
Silence.
And then—a flicker of movement.
A figure stepped out from behind the storage unit. Slowly. Like they wanted her to see them. To feel it.
Aika's spine tensed.
Black hoodie. Mask. Phone in hand.
They raised it, snapped a photo.
The flash burned her vision.
She flinched.
The figure tilted their head.
Like they were... curious.
Or amused.
---
Scene Cut: Meanwhile – Ren's Apartment
Ren's phone buzzed once.
Then twice.
Unknown number:
> "You let her come alone. Bad move, Prince."
Ren's eyes widened.
He jumped up, grabbing his jacket.
"Sh*t."
---
Scene Cut: Kaito's Room – Same Time
Kaito was halfway through decoding phone data when something hit him—the rooftop note. Aika hadn't mentioned it again. Her chat with him earlier had been too casual.
Way too casual.
He yanked out his phone, speed-dialed her.
No answer.
Then—
> ERROR: Number not reachable.
"What the hell?!"
He threw on his coat and bolted.
---
Back on the Rooftop – 9:00 PM
The masked figure finally spoke.
Low. Distorted.
"You ruin everything, you know."
Aika didn't blink. "Who?"
"You."
They stepped closer.
"You were never supposed to be part of the story. You were never supposed to matter."
Aika's voice cut sharp through the dark. "Then stop hiding and tell me who you are."
The figure stopped. Tilted their head.
"I will."
They pulled something from their pocket.
Not a weapon.
A photograph.
Aika's eyes widened.
It was her.
As a child.
Next to a boy.
He was smiling.
But someone had scratched his face out with black ink.
The masked voice whispered—
"Remember me now?"
Scene: Rooftop – 9:03 PM
The wind howled between the fences, pressing cold against Aika's back as she stared at the photo.
Her lips parted, but no words came out.
The boy in the picture—the shape of his face, the setting—it stirred something. A memory she didn't want to dig up.
Her fingers curled into fists. "Who are you?"
The masked figure took another step closer, head cocked like a broken doll.
"You don't remember me... but you ruined me."
Another distorted voice crackled—this time from a small speaker clipped to their hoodie.
> "She was supposed to be mine. You were supposed to be mine. But then you laughed."
Aika blinked.
Laughed?
Her mind scrambled through blurred schoolyard images, forgotten faces, forced smiles.
Then—like a single flicker in a blackout—a moment.
A boy with too many love letters shoved into her desk. Aika, embarrassed. Pressured. Cornered by her friends to give him a chance. She had finally turned him down—publicly—after he wouldn't stop.
He had looked so normal then.
Quiet. Too quiet.
She remembered now.
Not his name.
But the look in his eyes when she walked away.
"I didn't ruin you," she said coldly. "You broke yourself."
The speaker hissed.
> "They all chose you. Even him."
The figure raised their phone—another photo appeared on the screen.
Kaito.
Laughing with her by the vending machines.
Then it flicked again—
Ren.
Staring at her from across the classroom.
The figure's voice warped in anger. "I watched them. They never looked at anyone else like that."
Aika stood straighter.
"So this is about jealousy?"
The figure didn't answer.
Instead, they turned, backing toward the fence.
"I'll remind you. Bit by bit. You'll remember everything. And when you do... they won't be there to protect you."
Then—
A sudden bang.
Something small hit the ground—a smoke bomb.
Gray fog exploded around her.
Aika coughed, stumbled back.
By the time it cleared—he was gone.
But the photograph?
Still in her hand.
---
Scene Cut: School Gate – 9:08 PM
Ren skidded around the corner, chest heaving.
"Aika!"
Kaito followed seconds later, phone out, already scanning the feed.
No signal.
"She turned off her location," he said, panic under the surface.
Ren growled, shoving open the stairwell door. "She wouldn't do that unless she had a reason."
---
Scene: Rooftop – Minutes Later
The rooftop door slammed open.
Ren and Kaito rushed out—and froze.
Aika stood in the middle of the rooftop.
Alone.
Holding the photo in one hand. Smoke curling at her feet.
Ren's heart dropped. "Aika...?"
She didn't turn around yet.
Just stared at the city beyond the fence.
Then, in a voice like stone:
"He's not done."
She turned, eyes dark, but calm.
"And I think I know who he is."
---Scene Cut: Late Night – Kaito's Apartment
Steam curled from three mugs on the low table. The apartment was small but clean, lit with a soft golden lamp and faint lo-fi music from a Bluetooth speaker in the corner. Aika sat on the couch, legs tucked up, arms wrapped around her knees.
Ren stood near the window, staring out like he expected the stalker to be watching from the shadows.
Kaito leaned forward on the carpet, sipping his tea. "So… who is he?"
Aika took a deep breath.
"I don't know his name. Not really. But I remember him."
Ren glanced back, brow furrowed.
"Middle school," she said quietly. "There was this guy who kept following me around. He'd always 'coincidentally' be nearby—at lunch, after club practice, even near my house once."
Kaito's eyes narrowed.
"He sent me letters. Small gifts. Once, he put a flower crown on my desk and ran."
Aika's lips pressed tight. "I didn't know how to say no back then. Everyone told me to just date him already. So… I did. For a week. But he got intense. Possessive."
Ren's voice was sharp. "Did he touch you?"
"No," she said quickly. "Never kissed. Never even held hands. I broke it off the moment he started calling me 'his.' He… didn't take it well."
Kaito leaned forward. "How bad?"
Aika stared into her tea.
"He told everyone I cheated on him. That I led him on. He made fake messages. Even had a meltdown in front of the whole class. It was humiliating. I transferred schools after that."
A heavy silence fell.
Then—Ren spoke, low and dangerous.
"Give me a name."
"I don't know," Aika admitted. "He always signed things as 'T.' But he looked different now. Older. Stronger."
Kaito set his cup down. "Then we dig. Yearbooks. Transfer records. Security footage."
Aika looked between them—Ren practically vibrating with tension, Kaito calculating and calm—and for once, she smiled.
"This is insane," she muttered, voice light. "You guys are acting like some kind of bodyguard duo."
Ren finally cracked a grin. "We're the hot ones. It's our job."
Kaito: "Speak for yourself. I have both brains and bone structure."
Aika rolled her eyes. "Please. You two can barely survive gym class."
But the laughter faded quickly.
Because in the middle of the table—
Was the Polaroid.
Their faces, caught together on the rooftop, a blurred silhouette looming behind them.
And on the back?
> "LEVEL TWO BEGINS NOW."
---
Scene Cut: Unknown Location – 1:13 AM
A dark room.
Walls covered in photos.
Polaroids. Notes. Scribbled timelines.
A giant red circle around one blurry photo of Aika.
The stalker sat in the center. Alone. Mask in his lap.
He whispered to himself, voice shaking.
"They forgot. But I never did."
On a torn yearbook page, one name was circled three times:
Aikawa Aika.