You ever say the wrong name and the whole universe seems to flinch?
Yeah—that's exactly what happened when Yuki called Prince Gabrielle "Taiyo."
And in that instant, the air around the takoyaki stall felt… off.
Like something cracked.
Alepou's entire demeanor changed. Her easygoing scowl stiffened into something colder—sharper.
She froze, eyes narrowing like a sniper catching the scent of déjà vu.
"Taiyo?" she said, her voice a slow knife.
Not loud. But the name carried enough weight to freeze the world around them.
"That's my brother's name," she muttered.
"Was."
Yuki blinked, confused—until her brain tripped.
An invisible jolt slammed through her thoughts like lightning across frayed wires.
Wait… what did I just say?
That name.
That feeling.
Why does everything ache all of a sudden—like I've messed up the timeline without knowing it?
She laughed weakly, trying to patch over the gash in the atmosphere.
"Uh, yeah! Just a nickname or something. He's got that bright vibe, you know? Taiyo means sun, right?"
Alepou didn't blink.
Didn't smirk.
Didn't buy it for a second.
"Don't play dumb, Yuki."
Her voice dropped—like thunderclouds before a storm.
"You're not the type to hand out random nicknames. My brother… used to talk about you. A lot."
She paused.
"But you two never shared a class. Hell, you barely even crossed paths."
Yuki's heart stopped.
No, not stopped—looped.
For a split second, she saw it—a blurred classroom, a boy's smile, a memory that didn't belong in this lifetime.
Prince Gabrielle, caught between the two girls, raised a nervous hand.
"Uh… okay, now I'm really confused. Who the hell is Taiyo?"
That's when it hit.
The migraine. The noise.
Something deep inside Yuki's skull screeched.
Like an old tape rewinding the wrong way.
Her fingers clenched the table. A wave of nausea twisted in her stomach.
Static. Flickers. Flashbacks that don't belong here.
Gabrielle flinched too—clutching his chest suddenly, like his heart had just misfired.
And for a moment, his eyes—golden, confused—flickered blue. Just once.
Alepou saw it.
Yuki saw it.
"The hell is going on…" Alepou whispered.
Yuki's mouth moved before her brain could stop it:
"You were Taiyo. Weren't you?"
Gabrielle's eyes widened. His lips parted to deny it—but nothing came out.
Just silence.
The world around them started to bend.
The sky overhead glitched for half a second—like a broken frame in a film.
No one else seemed to notice. But the three of them did.
Yuki gripped her head.
"Why do I remember things I've never lived?"
Alepou stared at the prince like she'd seen a ghost.
"What did you do?"
Gabrielle finally spoke.
Soft. Broken. Regretful.
"I think I made a wish... too big for this world to hold."
---
What the hell just happened?
Yuki accidentally spoke a name from another timeline.
Alepou's memories are starting to bleed through—ones she never lived.
Gabrielle isn't just a prince—he's a walking paradox.
Something—or someone—is tampering with time.
A crack in reality just widened.
> Welcome to the butterfly effect.
Once you remember… there's no going back