The world was dark… but somewhere within that darkness, a memory sparked.

Emily blinked, confused. She was no longer in Lucian’s shadowy grip. Instead… she stood in the middle of a school rooftop, the sky above painted in soft orange hues of sunset.

“Where… am I?” she whispered.

A voice behind her — gentle, familiar.

“You always forget this memory… but I can’t.”

She turned.

There he was — Aiden Kurose. The real one. No mask, no powers… just a normal boy. Messy black hair, dark brown eyes that struggled to meet hers.

He smiled, awkward and shy. “You’re… here.”

Emily gasped, her eyes welling up. “Aiden…?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “I… wasn’t going to confess that day. I was too scared.” He laughed bitterly. “You know me, right? Average. Always scared.”

Emily stepped closer, trembling. “What is this?”

“A memory,” Aiden whispered. “The last one… before everything shattered.”

The scene played like a movie.

Aiden stood at the edge of the rooftop, hands clenched. “I liked you. A lot, Emily. I just… couldn’t say it. Every time I tried, I thought… why would someone like you ever look at me?”

Emily sobbed. “That’s not true…”

He smiled — the same soft, crooked smile she barely remembered.

“I used to follow you with my eyes… but never had the courage to speak. Until that day.”

The memory shifted.

Emily watched herself walk toward Aiden — headphones on, completely unaware of him staring.

“I thought… maybe just one time… I’d tell you. And maybe you’d smile.”

His voice cracked. “But then… everything went wrong.”

Suddenly — the sky darkened. The rooftop blurred. A shadow — Lucian — appeared behind Aiden.

“Do you know why I exist, Emily?” Lucian’s voice echoed through the memory. “Because he never spoke. Because regret rotted him until only I remained.”

Emily screamed, “No! That’s not true!”

Aiden turned, looking at his shadow. “I created him… didn’t I?”

Lucian grinned. “You did. Every ‘what if’, every silent moment… every time you looked away… created me.”

Aiden shook his head. “I didn’t want this…”

Emily reached out. “Aiden—”

He flinched. “I’m sorry… for not being brave. For not protecting you. For letting him be born.”

Lucian laughed. “And now… you’re dead. And I live.”

Emily’s knees buckled. “No… you’re still here… You—”

The world cracked again. The rooftop dissolved.

Before everything vanished, Aiden whispered, “I… just wanted to see you smile once… That would’ve been enough.”

Emily screamed his name — but he was already gone.