The lunch break had barely begun when Camila found herself summoned to the principal’s office, a situation that put her on edge. As she entered the room, the imposing figure of Principal Cronin, seated regally behind his desk, met her with a penetrating gaze, analysing her every nuance.

“You’re in the same homeroom as Silus, aren’t you, Camila?” he inquired, his tone carrying evident authority.

This wasn’t the first time Camila had been questioned about Silus, and the repeated inquiries were beginning to unnerve her. “Um, yes, I am.”

“How is he in class?”

“What do you mean?”

Cronin clarified his intentions, leaning slightly forward, “I mean, is he doing well academically, or is he facing any difficulties or challenges?”

Camila took a moment to choose her words carefully, trying to maintain a neutral stance. “I don’t interact with him much, but as far as I can tell, he seems to be doing fine.”

Just as their conversation was underway, a polite knock at the door heralded the arrival of another visitor. Principal Cronin, his gaze briefly flickering towards Camila, granted permission for the newcomer to enter.

Standing beside the staff member was Jared, who had come with a purpose of his own. As Camila exited the office, she passed by Jared, her eyes ablaze with a potent mixture of anger and contempt—a soundless reaction born from the countless torments he had put Silvia through. Jared could feel the intensity of her anger in the daggers she shot from her eyes, leaving him mystified by her glare.

 

After receiving Principal Cronin’s permission to leave school early, Jared embarked on his journey to a neighbouring institution. The impressive sign, reading ‘Rosecrest College for the Gifted’, loomed before him, casting an aura of academia and excellence. As he approached the grand gates, the resonating bell from within signalled the conclusion of the school day, its sound fuelling his growing anticipation.

Jared couldn’t help but linger near the entrance, his heart pounding with both eagerness and trepidation. Her watched as Rosecrest students poured out, silently beseeching fate to bring Silvia into his path. Impatience gnawed at him with each passing moment until he decided to take action.

Approaching a nearby student with a sense of urgency, he seized her shoulder abruptly, leaving her startled and bewildered by his sudden intrusion.

“W-who are you?!” she stammered.

Jared, consumed by his singular purpose, skipped any pleasantries. “Do you know anyone named Silvia who goes to this school?”

“Silvia? As in Silvia Arias? S-she left some time ago to study abroad.”

The revelation struck him like a bolt of lightning, and he struggled to process the shocking information. “What?”

The girl, having answered his question, made her escape from the awkward encounter, muttering to herself about Jared’s strange behaviour, “What was his problem?”

Jared’s mind was in shambles. “What the hell is going on?”

Turning away from Rosecrest in a disorderly conduct, his footsteps meandered aimlessly, leading him on a path of uncertainty. Lost within the whirlwind of his inner turmoil, he collided with a passerby engrossed in their phone, the impact causing the person’s device to slip from their grasp and shatter upon hitting the ground. An instant surge of ire coursed through the individual.

“What the hell?!” the person exclaimed in frustration.

Jared, still ensnared by his internal chaos, remained unresponsive, his gaze fixed on some distant, unseen point. Although, he was vaguely aware of the person he had collided with—Camila.

Camila, on the other hand, had zero patience for his oblivious behaviour. She glared at him with frustration, holding up her damaged phone as evidence of his carelessness. “Watch where you’re going. Look what you did to my phone!”

Jared remained locked in his own world, his vacant stare unfocused and detached from his surroundings.

Camila’s efforts to get through to him were in vain as she attempted once more, growing increasingly provoked. “Hello?!”

With a dismissive gesture, Jared brushed her aside, his steps slow and mechanical as he continued to wander further away without uttering a single word.

Camila’s agitation reached its peak, and she muttered under her breath, “What the hell is wrong with him? This is the guy you’re friends with, Silvia? I don’t like him.”

 

Jared returned home, his despondent demeanour not escaping the watchful eyes of his family members. They observed him in sombre silence as he walked past them, his lack of acknowledgement a testament to his troubled state. He headed straight for his bedroom, where he shut the door with a thunderous thud.

Inside the confines of his room, Jared collapsed onto the floor, the dim light filtering through the curtains casting an eerie atmosphere. As he contemplated his past actions and dissected recent events, an extreme sense of remorse settled over him like a heavy shroud. “If Silvia has actually been Silus at school this entire time…” He gripped his hair tightly in frustration, his head buried in his lap.

A pained whimper escaped his lips as he came to a horrifying realisation. “Fuck, that means I’ve been hurting her.” The weight of his action pressed upon him, and he was left to grapple with the consequences of his thoughtless behaviour.

The room seemed to close in around him, the oppressive silence broken only by Jared’s ragged breaths as he wrestled with the guilt and mayhem in his heart.

 

The following morning, Silvia impatiently loitered in the school hallway, her eyes occasionally flicking to her phone to check the time. The bell for homeroom was on the verge of ringing, and there was still no sign of Dane.

“Where the heck is Dane? Is he running late?” she muttered to herself.

Just then, Jared materialised in the hallway, catching Silvia’s attention as he emerged from the crowd. At the same time, Aiden arrived at school, his gaze laser-focused on Jared as he approached Silvia.

Contrary to their expectations, Jared glanced at Silvia and then quickly averted his gaze, seemingly disregarding her for the second day in a row. Silvia was left puzzled by this abrupt change in behaviour—it was becoming increasingly apparent that Jared had made a deliberate decision to keep his distance.

Aiden stood beside Silvia, his hands casually tucked into his pockets. “Looks like he’s not bothering you anymore.”

“I... I guess?”

“Where’s Dane?”

Silvia didn’t bother turning to face him. “Probably running late.”

Aiden, sensing her reluctance to engage with him, studied her carefully from head to toe. “Still not gonna acknowledge me?”

Confused by his question, Silvia finally turned to him, her eyes searching for answers. “What are you talking about?”

Aiden paused for a moment, then simply said, “Don’t worry,” before walking away, leaving Silvia to wonder about his cryptic remark.

Silvia shook her head, muttering to herself, “What was that about? Strange guy…”

 

The uneventful day passed quickly, and before she knew it, late afternoon descended upon Silvia as she dedicated herself to her part-time job. She diligently wiped away the clinging dust from the shelves, her mind drifting through the corridors of memory to the days when Jared used to be a regular presence in her life.

With each sweep of the broom across the floor, her thoughts were consumed by the absence of Jared from her life. She couldn’t help but wonder what had transpired to provoke this sudden and profound change. Silvia had grown accustomed to their frequent interactions, and his unexplainable disappearance brought her down, casting a shadow over her day.

As the final minutes of Silvia’s shift at Twinkle Toys reached, she stepped out of the store’s entrance, only to be greeted by the unexpected sight of Jared waiting for her. Her face brightened with surprise, and she hastily approached him, a cheerful smile playing on her lips.

“Jared, I thought you weren’t going to show up today,” she exclaimed, her voice filled with genuine delight.

But the urgency in Jared’s eyes quickly dampened her elation. He wasted no time with pleasantries and immediately got to the heart of the matter. “I need you to tell me the truth, Silvia.”

Her smile faded. “What truth?”

“Your brother, Silus…” Jared continued, his expression troubled. “Have you been disguising as him at school?”

Silvia took a step back, her eyes widening in shock. “What makes you say that?”

“That wound on your face.” He pointed to the fresh scab on her lip. “You got that from the prick who punched you at school, didn’t you?”

Silvia’s hand instinctively moved to her injured lip as she realised that Jared had connected the dots.

“I also went to Rosecrest to see if you were there, but apparently you’re ‘studying abroad’.”

Silvia acknowledged the impossibility of changing his mind. “Jared, I can explain.”

Jared’s temper detonated. “Why didn’t you tell me in the first place?!”

His raised voice rattled her. “I-I need you to calm down.”

“Do you know how guilty I feel now that I know I’ve been hurting you this entire time?!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

He raked his fingers through his hair in frustration. “For fuck sake!” He began to make his leave, his steps taking him further from Silvia.

Frightened by the intensity of the interaction, Silvia desperately reached out to stop him. “Wait, you didn’t give me the chance to explain!”

She reached for his wrist, but Jared forcefully pulled away and stormed off, leaving Silvia standing there, utterly dismayed by the sudden turn of events. In a panic, she pulled out her phone and called Dane, who picked up on the first ring.

“Silvia, what’s up?” he voiced.

Her voice quavered with anxiety. “J-Jared, he found out.”

“Found out?”

“He found out I’m Silus at school.”

“What?! How?!” Dane was clearly concerned.

Silvia bit her nails from the stress. “I-I don’t know, but it seems like he figured it out on his own.”

“Did you talk to him about it?”

“He left before I could even say anything.”

“Damn it, you think he’ll spill anything?”

“I-I don’t know. The fact that I can’t even predict his actions is what I’m afraid of. I don’t know what kind of person he is anymore.”

Dane, recognising her frightened tone and heavy breathing, calmed himself down for her wellbeing. “Alright, don’t stress too much. We’ll talk to him first thing in the morning at school.”

“Y-yeah, you’re right.”

“Rest up, okay?”