"I was so scared back then…"
Ellie's vision trembled as she stared at the blood spreading across the grass.
"When I saw Alan getting beaten to death by Bob."
The memory never faded.
The sound of fists.
The way he didn't fight back.
"Thank God the teacher came in time… but…"
Her fingers tightened.
"It was already too late."
Even after he was sent to the hospital—
No news came back.
No confirmation.
No denial.
Just silence.
"So everyone believed he was dead."
Bob never got punished.
Money moved.
Voices were silenced.
The school accepted it.
And Alan… disappeared.
"I spent every single day thinking about him."
Waiting.
Hoping.
"I refused to believe he was dead."
Eight years passed.
"I'm fourteen now… living my life…"
"But my wait for a dead person never ended."
Then one day—
A new boy transferred in.
His name was Alan.
She hadn't gone to school that day.
But she heard the rumors.
"He beat Bob."
For some reason—
That made her smile.
She tried to approach him many times after that.
Her feet wouldn't move.
Her heart would.
"What if he's the same Alan?"
But she was afraid.
"What if he isn't?"
Because if he was—
"He would recognize me."
That's what she believed.
So she stopped trying.
Until that day in the hallway.
When she saw him standing with Daniel.
Something stirred inside her.
Without realizing it—
She walked up to him.
"You're Alan, right?"
She forced a lie.
"Sorry… you just have the same name as someone I know."
It wasn't convincing.
She only wanted to see his reaction.
But the boy in front of her—
Didn't react.
No warmth.
No shock.
No recognition.
She convinced herself.
"He's not him."
So she let him go.
"I accepted he was dead."
Tears streamed down her face now as she looked at the boy bleeding in front of her.
"Then why…"
"Why does this feel like him?"
"Why is he standing in front of me like that?"
---
Alan's grip tightened around the wakizashi.
The blade trembled in his hand.
He pushed it away.
Nel staggered back.
Nel: Hah… looks like the untouchable Alan isn't so untouchable anymore.
The smirk faded when Alan looked at him.
Cold.
Steady.
Alan: Don't be cocky.
His voice was low.
Alan: I just got distracted by something I shouldn't feel anymore.
He stepped forward.
One kick.
Nel's blade snapped in half as the impact sent him crashing backward.
The remaining attackers rushed in.
But this time—
Alan didn't hold back.
No wasted motion.
No hesitation.
Precise.
One strike each.
Bodies hit the grass one after another.
Silence returned to the field.
Alan turned.
Ellie stood frozen behind him.
Alan: Are you hurt?
His hand pressed against his left rib.
Blood seeped through his fingers.
Alan: Anywhere?
Ellie couldn't answer.
Her vision blurred.
Alan's knees buckled.
Ellie: Alan!
She rushed forward and caught him before he collapsed completely.
His head rested against her lap.
Alan forced a faint breath.
Alan: …I'm fine.
Ellie: You're bleeding!
Her tears fell onto his face.
Ellie: Why…?
Her voice trembled.
Ellie: Why did you hide from me?
Alan blinked.
Alan: I told the truth that day… when I fought Bob—
Ellie shook her head.
Ellie: I wasn't there!
Her grip tightened on his shirt.
Ellie: I didn't know!
Her voice broke.
Ellie: Do you think I would have avoided you… if I knew it was you?
Alan's eyes widened slightly.
He hadn't thought about that.
He thought she didn't recognize him.
He thought she moved on.
He thought she was better off.
Alan: Ellie… I'm sorry.
Ellie looked at him through tears.
Ellie: You don't look sorry at all.
Her voice rose.
Ellie: Why do you look like the most empty person in the world?
Why don't you show anything anymore?
The words pierced deeper than the blade had.
Alan's mind drifted.
Hospital lights.
White ceiling.
The fear he felt that night.
The decision he made.
To never be weak again.
To never be scared again.
To never depend on anyone again.
He studied.
He trained.
He erased.
For three years.
Somewhere along the way—
His emotions became unnecessary.
Or so he thought.
Alan: Ellie…
His voice was quieter now.
Alan: I may not show it… but I'm serious. I didn't know you were—
Ellie shook her head gently.
Ellie: It's okay.
Her tears softened into something else.
Ellie: I'm just… so glad you're alive.
Before Alan could respond—
She leaned forward.
And closed the distance.
Her lips pressed against his.
Time stopped.
For the first time in years—
Alan felt something.
Not pain.
Not control.
Something warm.
Something familiar.
When she pulled back, she stared at him.
Ellie: Alan…?
Her voice softened.
Ellie: You're…
A tear rolled down from the corner of his eye.
Alan blinked slowly.
Confused.
The warmth.
The ache.
The memory it carried.
A whisper escaped him.
Alan: …Mom?
The feeling.
The one he buried the night he almost died.
The one he locked away when he decided to never be weak.
It wasn't weakness.
It was love.
---
To be continued.