The hallway was silent, the stillness broken only by the sound of my footsteps echoing off the walls. My mind was a storm of emotions—rage, disbelief, betrayal—all churning as I made my way toward the rooftop. It was always the rooftop, wasn't it? The place where everything came undone.
Piku. The name lingered in my mind, bitter as ash. All those years I'd looked at him, envied him, saw him as someone I could never measure up to. But he was hiding something terrible, something that had haunted me without my knowing. Piku was the reason Reika was dead. She'd dragged me into this cycle to see the truth—and I finally had.
The sky above was clouded, casting an eerie light over the empty rooftop. And there he was, standing near the edge, looking out over the school grounds with that same calm, untroubled expression. The same look he'd always worn, as if he were above all of us, untouchable.
But tonight, that look infuriated me.
"Piku," I called, my voice sharp, cutting through the silence. He turned, a look of surprise on his face.
"Oh, Takeru," he said, smiling, though there was a faint shadow in his eyes. "What are you doing here? You look… different."
I took a step forward, my fists clenched. "I know what you did, Piku. I know what happened to Reika."
His smile faltered, a flicker of something—fear, maybe—crossing his face. "Reika? Takeru, I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't lie to me!" The words ripped out of me, my voice breaking. "I know you were with her that night. The last person she saw. You killed her, Piku. And now, because of you, she's haunting me, trapping me in this endless nightmare."
Piku's face paled, but he didn't move, his gaze steady, almost pitying. "Takeru, you don't understand. You're not making sense."
"Stop pretending!" I shouted, the anger boiling over, my vision going red. "You were the one who took her life. You've been hiding it, letting everyone think you were this perfect friend, this perfect person. But it was all a lie!"
I moved closer, my fists trembling. A part of me expected him to fight back, to lash out, but he didn't. He simply stood there, a sadness settling over him, his expression a quiet acceptance. It only made my anger burn hotter.
"If you won't admit it," I snarled, stepping forward until there was only a breath of space between us, "then I'll end this myself."
He met my gaze, a flicker of fear finally showing in his eyes. "Takeru… don't do this. You're not thinking straight. This isn't—"
But his words were cut off as I drove the knife forward, a desperate, violent motion fueled by everything I'd held inside for so long. The blade sank into him, and for a moment, he simply looked at me, wide-eyed, his mouth opening as if to speak. Blood blossomed around the wound, staining his shirt, spilling over my hands.
He staggered, his hand reaching up to clutch at the wound, his eyes never leaving mine. "T-Takeru…" His voice was a whisper, barely audible, and then he crumpled, falling to the ground in a lifeless heap.
I stood over him, my breath coming in ragged gasps, the realization of what I'd done settling over me like a dark fog. But with that realization came a strange sense of relief, of finality. I'd broken the cycle. I'd confronted the darkness, faced the truth of what Piku had done, and put an end to it.
For the first time, the world felt… quiet. Free of the weight I'd carried for so long.
But then, a faint laugh drifted through the air, chilling, mocking. I turned, and there she was, standing at the far end of the rooftop, her form flickering like a candle flame, her eyes alight with that familiar, taunting gleam.
"Oh, Takeru," she said, her voice laced with amusement. "Did you really think it would be that easy? That killing him would set you free?"
I took a step back, my heart pounding. "What are you talking about? I did what you wanted. I killed him. He was the one who murdered you, the reason you're trapped here!"
She laughed again, the sound twisting through the air, cold and hollow. "Is that what you told yourself? That he was the one who did it? My poor, blind Takeru. You still haven't found the truth."
A knot of dread tightened in my stomach. "No… no, you're lying. It was Piku. He was the last one seen with you—everyone knew that. He's the one who—"
But as I spoke, fragments of memories began to surface, pieces I'd buried so deep that I'd forgotten they even existed.
Flashes of her face, smiling at me, laughing with me in a way that was different from how she'd been with others. Late nights spent talking, confiding in each other, a friendship that had started to feel like something more. And then, one night—a fight. A desperate, angry argument that had spiraled out of control, her face contorted with fear, with betrayal, as I…
"No," I whispered, stumbling back, my hands trembling as the memories clawed their way to the surface. "No, that's… that's not true."
She took a step closer, her eyes piercing, merciless. "You're starting to remember, aren't you? The reason I'm here. The reason you've been trapped in this cycle. It was never about Piku. He was just a piece of the story, a convenient scapegoat. The real darkness was always inside you, Takeru."
The world seemed to tilt, the rooftop spinning as the truth crashed down on me, suffocating, relentless. I hadn't envied Piku because he was perfect. I'd envied him because he was everything I couldn't be, everything that Reika had admired. And in my jealousy, my desperate need to keep her for myself, I'd…
I fell to my knees, my vision blurring with tears. "No… please, no…"
Her laughter rang out, echoing in the darkness. "Now you see, Takeru. Now you understand the truth you've been running from all along."
I looked up at her, my voice a broken whisper. "I… I killed you."
She nodded, her eyes hard, unfeeling. "You murdered me, Takeru. In a fit of jealousy, of rage. And now, no matter how many times you try to escape, I'll always be here, dragging you back, forcing you to face the truth."
The world around me began to fade, the rooftop dissolving into shadows, pulling me back, trapping me once again in the cycle I'd never truly escaped.
And as I sank into the darkness, her voice followed me, cold and unyielding, a reminder of the truth I could never escape.
"Welcome back to your nightmare, Takeru."
*Time reverts*