“So, I was adopted all this time?” Isaac mumbles to himself as he strolls through the town, twirling his umbrella above his head like he’s trying to distract his own thoughts.

“Now that I look at it… we really don’t resemble each other at all. Haha.” He chuckles lightly, though the sound fades quickly.

He drifts into memories of his childhood, and a warm smile softens his face. “Thank you… Mom, Dad,” he whispers.

But the smile slips away as Risa pushes into his mind. Her voice. Her pain. Her cold glare. The whole situation sits heavily on his chest.

“I wonder what she’s up to…” he murmurs.

Something flickers at the edge of his vision. A shape. A silhouette. A presence that feels disturbingly familiar. His throat tightens.

“Risa?” he calls out, voice barely above a breath.

Then his eyes lock onto her fully, and everything inside him stops. A girl stands across the street, completely drenched, rainwater streaming down her hair, her clothes stuck tight to her skin. Her hands shake violently. And in that trembling hand is an object pressed directly against her neck. Isaac’s breath snaps into a sharp, ragged gasp. Sweat mixes with the rain as it trails down his face.

“STOP!” he screams, voice cracking as the word cuts through the rain.

He dropped his umbrella and rushed over without regard for the oncoming vehicles. Despite his repeated shouts, she hadn't averted her gaze. It was as if she couldn’t hear him at all. Without hesitation, Isaac grabbed the glass shard.  The edges dug into his palms. His face contorted due to the overbearing pain— his blood dripping to the ground, yet all his focus was set on stopping her.

“Dammit, I don't know what to do.” He panicked. “I can't forcibly take the shard and risk hurting her.” 

“RISA!” he shouted her name.

Her arms stopped forcing forward. Her head turned towards him revealing her sad empty eyes. Drip. A tear fell from her left eye.

Eventually tears started gushing down her face as her voice cracked. “Why? Why must I live with this?”

The shard fell to the ground shattering into smaller pieces. 

“WHY!? Why couldn't I have been born to your parents?” She blurted.

“Risa,” he lets out softly—at a loss for words.

Risa froze up realizing what she had just blurted out. Staring back at her was Isaac, with an expression so soft it's as if his face was melting. 

A feeling welled up within her; however, it wasn’t anger, what she was feeling was defeat. The one person she dedicated all her resentment towards was the one who cracked her shell. Realizing this she instantly bolted off.

“Risa! Wait!” Isaac called out, but she persisted ahead.

He chased after her—and it didn't take long before he started to catch up. Hungry, tired, and bruised— her body drew closer to the pavement. 

Thud! There she was–in Isaac's arms. He managed to catch her before she hit the ground. She was unconscious and terribly warm. There were hardly any cars passing by and the rain showed no signs of letting up.

Crouched over Risa’s body to shield her from the rain, Isaac carefully carried her over to the nearby bus stop. He laid her on the bench and stood by her side waiting for her to wake up.

Replaying in his mind was what Risa said earlier. “WHY!? Why couldn't I have been born to your parents?”

“Was it jealousy?” he wondered, “Was that why she acted like that all this time? It's fine, I won't pry, she's clearly carrying a lot.”

“You just can’t stop winning, can you?” The words crept from beside him.

He turned to his right to see that Risa had awoken. However, unlike in the infirmary he wasn’t angry, rather she looked slightly relieved.

“Sorry,” Isaac returned. 

“…,” they remained in silence for a moment.

Risa looked up at Isaac and broke the silence, “I guess I still can't stand your stupid face.” She pouted.

She relaxed her face and stared at the ceiling. The silence garnered Isaac attention. Suddenly, tears welled up in her eyes.

“I’m such a moron.” The tears came harder.

Taken aback by her remark, Isaac brought himself closer to her.

“What? No, you’re not.” He tried consoling her but was shrugged off.

“I lashed out at everyone, simply because I was angry at myself—angry at the life I was born into. I was so jealous of the relationship you all had with your parents—especially you Isaac.” She kept crying.

Isaac remained quiet as she starts again. “There was a very noticeable glow emitting from your family. “Why me? Why was I the one living like this. Why weren’t you experiencing the life I had.” These thoughts plagued my mind.”

“Risa,” Isaac  called softly. “I had no idea she's been carrying these feelings.”

After staring at her for a while Isaac wrapped his arms around her. She cried into him, trembling. He didn’t try to say anything, letting her get it all out.

After a while, she pulled back, sniffing. “I… I guess I’m still a moron,” she muttered.

“Not at all,” Isaac said softly.

They got up, rain dripping off their hair and clothes. The street ahead was lit up red and blue. Police. Crowds. And there, lying on the pavement… her uncle. While chasing after Risa he was hit by an oncoming truck.

Risa swallowed hard. Her hands shook. “Gerr... is dead?”

An officer recognised and approached her, asking questions. There was no one left. For the first time, she felt truly alone — and, strangely, a little free.

“It seems I'll be here for a while, you better head home to your parents,” she whispered. “I'm sure they're worried about you.”

“Yeah…see you tomorrow,” he replied.

Present day…

“Thank you, Risa.” Isaac  displays a gentle smile.

“Hmm.” She smiles back, removing her arms from his face.

“AND THAT'S EVERYONE!” a black vortex of smoke revealed Gemml and Rig. “Trial Two… BEGINS!”