“Hey, do you know about the Fairy Tree?” Aika asked me.

  I looked up from my book, hands trembling—though I didn’t know why.

  Why…does that sound so familiar?

  “I don’t…think so.” I whispered, doubt lining every word. I tugged nervously at the fraying ends of my hair.

  Aika’s lips curled into an excited smile as she perched gracefully on her desk, her hair flowing down her shoulders like a river of sunlight.

  She rested her chin on her palm, eyes gleaming with knowledge.

  “It is said that the Fairy Tree is the home of the fae people. A little abode full of mystery.” She began, her voice hushed as if revealing a forbidden secret. “They say it thrives on magic. It looms over a ke of mirrors, branches swaying even when there’ s no wind. Its leaves, whispering secrets and tales, grant three wishes to their owners. But you can’t pluck them—only the fae can.”

  She crossed her legs as her smile shifted into something darker, shadows dancing across her perfect face.

  “Otherwise…” Aika’s eyes met mine, something unreadable lurking behind her pyful expression. Something hollow. “You’ll be cursed.”

  …

  Fairy Tree, Fairy Tree, hush and sigh,

  Three small wishes, breathe and die.

  Pluck a leaf and call it mine,

  Seal my soul in twisted twine.

  …

  I sighed, closing my English notebook with a dull thud.

  Aika was getting way too obsessed with these rumors. Her imagination ran wild with every foolish legend, every half-baked myth floating through the school halls.

  But this one—this tale of a tree, of wishes and curses—echoed through my mind.

  Wishes, wishes, wishes…

  I had a wish once, didn’t I?

  Why can’t I remember what it was?

  I rested my chin on my hand, my eyes absentmindedly gazing around the cssroom. Sunlight wrapped around the room like a halo. The air was tinged with dull chatter and the occasional scraping of chairs against the floor.

  Aika was the center of it all, a blooming flower of effortless beauty. The world seemed to hang on her every word. Time seemed to stop when she ughed, and it felt as though the sky itself leaned a little closer just to see her smile.

  The school beauty. The top student.

  Everyone adored her.

  But me? I was a dull shadow blotted out by Aika’s light. A ghost against her graceful figure.

  Yet, for some reason, Aika always chose me, sought me out in a room full of adoring eyes.

  Out of pity? Maybe.

  But, she was still my best friend.

  And I couldn’t imagine life without her.

  No one could.

  I gnced around. Rei was watching her.

  He looked mesmerized by Aika’s every movement.

  His dark eyes took in her every detail, a shadow of a smile grazing his lips. And yet, something about it looked more sad then admiring. Like he was uneasy, or even guilty.

  When he noticed me staring, his gaze hardened. Masking his emotions, he scowled and turned away.

  I ughed softly and rolled my eyes.

  What was his deal anyway?

  Then, Aika rose from her seat like a butterfly taking flight.

  It was subtle—but I noticed it.

  Her smile faltered. Her eyes dimmed, as though something had reached inside and taken her light.

  Suddenly, a violent tremor overtook her body. She grabbed her seat for support, exhaling a sharp, pained breath.

  The color and warmth from her skin drained away.

  She looked so fragile, like a doll about to break.

  Something was wrong, very wrong.

  “Aika?” I called out, unease ced in her name.

  A cold wind blew from somewhere unknown, ancient and whispering.

  “I knew it, they told me I’d be cursed…” She muttered.

  My breath hitched as I watched her fall.

  A sharp gasp echoed through the room as her body crumpled.

  I stood from my desk, panic cwing at my ribs.

  I wasn’t going to make it.

  Her head was dangerously close to the edge, she was going to—

  Just then, arms wrapped around her slender figure, hesitant but determined.

  But, they were not just any arms.

  Rei’s arms.

  The one boy who hated Aika had caught her, saved her.

  The boy who always kept his distance, ignored her, gred at her—now held her like she was something precious.

  “…Rei?” I whispered. “Why?”

  He froze for a moment, his expression unreadable. But, something flickered in his eyes as he gnced over Aika’s limp form. Emotions that were everything but hatred, worry leaking through his mask.

  “R - Rei, what are you doing?” I asked, voice trembling.

  “Would you rather I let her fall?” He snapped, avoiding my gaze as he held Aika tighter, hands trembling.

  Rei cleared his throat, shaking off whatever had clouded his thoughts.

  “Haru, we should get her to the clinic. Now.”

  I nodded, swallowing my fear.

  As we rushed through the hallways, I could feel Aika’s body growing colder and colder; her warmth gone as if something had reached inside her and taken it, leaving her empty, wrong.

  …

  Colder, colder—only the dead lose their fire.

  Darkness creeps, the fmes expire.

  Frozen hands, the night grows dire.

  Why am I trapped in fate’s cruel pyre?

  …

  “I - I can’t hear her heart.”

  The words hit like ice water, stealing the breath from my lungs. My own heart faltered, stomach twisting tightly into knots.

  We stopped our frantic run.

  “What do you mean?” I asked, my voice thin, as though saying it out loud would make it real.

  Rei’s jaw tightened, his eyes again filling with something unreadable.

  “I - I can’t hear it. Her usual fluttery beat, so alive… it’s gone, just gone.” His fingers trembled where they rested against Aika’s wrist.

  My hands shook, sweating. I resisted the urge to throw up and scream.

  I felt my soul leave my body.

  My vision darkened and my mind swam.

  Gone, gone, gone…

  Why did you leave me?

  “No, no, no,” I whispered, the sound barely making it out of my lips. “Y - You’re lying…”

  “What?”

  “YOU’RE LYING!” My voice echoed through the empty halls, high-pitched and desperate. The coldness of it spreading across my skin. “She’s not dead, she can’t be. She - She was okay this morning. She was okay, wasn’t she?”

  Rei’s grip on Aika tightened, soft but protective. His lips parted but no words came.

  “I - I’m not lying,” He said, voice hoarse and hesitant. “I wouldn’t lie about something like this.”

  “Yes, you are.” My throat, no, my heart, ached. “You hate her. You’ve always hated her. You - You want her to die.”

  My words shattered something in Rei.

  His usual cold mask cracked.

  Something broken bled through. Someone confused, someone whose emotions were too much for him repced the Rei I knew.

  “You think I want this?” He whispered, small and raw. “I don’t want her to die!”

  He swallowed hard, gaze dropping to Aika’s still figure. He pulled her closer to his chest and let out a sharp sigh.

  “I never hated her. You can never understand.”

  Before I could apologize, he broke into another run, faster this time—as though trying to escape the weight of my accusation.

  I chased after him, holding back a sob, holding back a scream.

  Because, if I let it out—if I let myself believe—

  Then Aika might truly be dead.

  …

  Deny, deny, cling to hope,

  Fragile threads, too weak to cope.

  Death’s embrace is cold and true,

  An end for me, an end for you.

  …

  “She’s not dead.”

  The clinic nurse’s words shattered the fear in my heart. My breath hitched and, before I could stop them, I felt tears stream down my cheeks. Warmth flooded my veins—sunlight, hope, something I thought I had lost.

  Beside me, Rei let out a sharp, shaky breath, hands clenched into trembling fists. His cold eyes gleamed with unshed tears and mixed emotions—relief, grief…worry.

  The nurse frowned and muttered something to herself, something we couldn’t hear.

  “The bad news is…I have no idea how this happened.” The nurse continued, voice heavy with uncertainty and confusion. “You said that she was completely fine until she colpsed, correct?”

  I nodded, swallowing hard.

  “She has no record of any long-term health issues.” She gnced at Aika’s sleeping form, shaking her head in disbelief. “And, yet, whatever happened…it’s keeping her unconscious. There’s no telling when she’ll wake up.”

  Worry tore my heart in two. I turned to Aika—pale, unmoving, too fragile for this world. She was alive, but for how long?

  “You should get back to your cssroom.” The nurse said gently. “I’ll contact her parents and have her transferred to a hospital.”

  Rei exhaled, slow and unsteady.

  He cleared his throat.

  “Okay,” he said, his voice a whisper of anxiety.

  Giving a final, hesitant gnce at Aika, he walked out, shoulders tense, fists clenched.

  “W - Wait!” I called, voice cracking as I rushed to follow.

  …

  You’ve escaped this time, faltering light

  But shadows dance in the dead of night

  Death is patient, cold, and true,

  It waits in silence—watching you