A fierce fight between two people who shouted at each other to die as the city was destroyed by a powerful explosion.

Jar… and suddenly it cracked without breaking.

The Broken Jar Theory claimed that human beings were like clay pottery—formed from clay not in body, but in essence. When the soul could no longer endure its wounds, the body responded by carving black fractures into the skin, as if the person were about to shatter. These cracks could appear anywhere and spread outward from the first point of emergence. Some scientists linked them to psychological trauma, believing that the body expelled overwhelming pain by creating a permanent black scar upon the flesh.

Some people removed them through cosmetic surgery. Others exploited them, using the marks to draw sympathy. That was why no one trusted or accepted those who carried them. They were hated signs in this world—symbols of weakness, humiliation, and lies. So most people hid them… as if shame itself could be stitched shut.

⸻

The sound of the clock ticking.

The alarm was about to ring when it buzzed for exactly one second at six a.m., silenced instantly by an eager hand. On the back of that hand lay a small black crack.

A fifteen-year-old girl sprang from her bed, eyes blazing with life, lungs filling with the thrill of morning. She released her voice into the house like a trumpet call.

Emily: Good morning.~

The entire house erupted in furious replies from distant rooms.

1: Shut up!!!

2: Go to hell!!!

Our heroine was Emily—short chestnut hair curling in soft waves, large dark eyes glowing with enthusiasm, petite despite her age, and carrying a personality that was cheerful, shy, and endlessly polite.

She dressed, brushed her hair, cleaned her teeth, washed her face, and finally stood before the mirror in her high school uniform with her backpack slung over her shoulder, admiring herself with a wide smile.

“I’m ready.”

Emily headed downstairs. Her mother was already in the kitchen.

“Oh, Emily, you’re up early.”

“Yeah, I’m so excited to go to school.”

“So this is your first day of high school ha. You’ve really grown up.”

Emily beamed as her mother handed her a lunchbox using her wooden prosthetic hand.

“There you go.”

“Lunch box! But I got up early to make it, you shouldn’t have bothered, Mom!”

“It’s okay, I wanted to get ahead. Besides, it’s the first day, don’t you want to go explore early?”

Emily: Yes! Thanks, Mom.

She grabbed the food and darted to the door, pulling on her shoes before rushing outside.

“Be careful, ask for directions if you get lost!” her mother called from afar.

Emily froze mid-step.

Minutes later she was back inside, leaning over the kitchen table while her mother traced a finger across an old paper map.

“Here’s the name of your school, Hester62. It’s a half-hour drive. Isn’t it too far for you to walk? Wait a minute, I’ll wake your brother up.”

Emily nervously: no no no wait Mom!!, that’s not necessary.

Too late.

She was already in the car beside her older brother, Elex, whose messy dark-brown midi hair made him look like a bomb about to explode.

“Wipe that stupid smile off your face, we’re not going to the park.”

Emily nervously: Okay.

“I didn’t go to bed until 4 a.m., so don’t you dare call me to pick you up after school. I don’t care if you crawl back or get lost, you’re on your own.”

“Okay.”

Elex blasted loud, obnoxious rock music. Emily stared out the window, forcing herself to stay calm while her heart raced.

“I’m finally going to go to a new school and make lots of friends! ..jida told me she’s going to another school to see her old friends. But I’m sure Lisa will be in school with me. I’m looking forward to our new adventure!”

She then began to fantasize about being a secret agent in disguise at the school, sneaking through forgotten laboratories and the abandoned library where she would uncover a mysterious letter declaring that she was the Chosen One. She was so deeply lost in her imagination that she couldn’t tell the difference between the annoying rock music stopping and Elex’s furious voice.

“OUT!!!!!!!!!!”

He practically threw her out of the car before speeding off in a cloud of noise. It turned out she had arrived. Emily’s eyes sparkled with triumph as she lifted both hands to the sky in the shape of a seven.

“I MADE IT!!!”

The school guard noticed her and walked over to greet her.

“Hi there!”

Emily straightened her posture with respectful shyness before replying,

“Hello.”

“Are you a new student?”

“Yes, I’m a first year student.”

“It’s still early, but I just opened the gate. I need ten minutes to put up the nameplate. Look for your name in a minute.”

“Thank you, sir.”

She stepped inside, the school towering before her despite its age.

“WOW It’s a big old school! That means more adventures!”

Her eyes glowed as she imagined secret tunnels and hidden rooms. She ran toward the classrooms first.

“Wow, it’s bigger than my old classes!”

Then she headed to the backyard.

Wow, they have a real garden inside the school!

At the corner of the garden she spotted a small gate choked with climbing weeds. Peeking inside, she discovered a long narrow pathway and gasped in delight.

“A secret pathway!!!”

The lock was sealed tight, but a tiny gap existed between the door and the wall—just big enough for a cat. Thanks to her small size, Emily squeezed through effortlessly and once again raised her fingers in the shape of a seven.

“Thank you, Lord, for giving me this body!”

She began walking along the path, classroom windows towering above her all the way to the top floor.

“It’s a wide pathway, but it goes past the windows of almost of the classrooms.”

She continued, gazing at the massive windows, when suddenly she felt a hand grab her from behind. She collapsed to the ground in terror and spun around—but no one was there.

“What was that? I felt like someone was behind me.”

She scanned the path again and again, heart racing, until she heard the sound of a man breathing behind her. She whipped around—nothing.

"GHOSTS!!!"

Panic surged through her and she bolted out of the passageway, only to be stunned by the crowds now flooding the front yard.

“Hah! When did the school filled up so fast? I have to find my class as soon as possible so I can save a table.”

She pushed toward the name board, searching desperately until—

Emily happily: “I found my name!”

Her excitement doubled when she saw another familiar one.

“Lisa is in school with me! And we’re in the same class, yes!!!”

Emily hurried through the crowd toward her classroom, and the moment she stepped inside, she spotted Lisa sitting at her desk, surrounded by girls laughing and chatting.

She then felt a rush of happiness when she saw Lisa. But the smile vanished the instant she noticed the girls sitting with her—the same diva girls from her old school.

“Diva girls… what are they doing here? Is it possible that they’re in the same class?”

Looking closer, she saw that each of them had hung her bag on the desk, all carrying the same red teddy bear charm as a symbol of their friendship. Her heart sank.

“damn it”

She forced herself forward and approached  her friend Lisa. who was laughing when she noticed her and jumped up.

Lisa: Emily!

Emily beamed and they hugged.

Lisa: You’re at Hester’s school! I thought you and Jida were going to the same school.

Emily: Well. Jida went to another school to meet her old friends. But for me, I signed up for this school because it’s closer to my house.

Lisa: Me too!

One of the girls cut in.

Girl 1: So are you going to ignore us any longer? Hello, we’re here.

Emily: Uh, yeah, I can see that.

Girl 1: That’s harsh.

Girl 2: Who would have thought we’d be in high school in the same class as Emily the Steelfoot?

Girl 3: Emily seems to be excited about high school, she bought a new pair of girly shoes.

Girl 1: Wow, those are really new shoes!

Girl 2: You’ve matured, Emily. We’re so proud of you.

They all burst into laughter while Emily’s face burned.

“Why do I have to be in the same class as them?..Calm down. I don’t want to cause a fight. I’m in high school now, I have to be more polite.”

The bell rang, ending her thoughts as students flooded in.

Emily: Excuse me, I have to find a seat.

Lisa: Okay.

Emily walked away slowly. When she glanced back, she saw Lisa sitting with the diva girls, their desks pushed together, while she herself found a lonely seat at the back of the classroom.

“We used to always save each other seats next to each other.”

Her gaze drifted to the girls beside Lisa.

“Why did she have to sit with those people?”

The morning passed quickly. When lunch break came, Lisa approached Emily’s table.

“Hey Emily, do you want to come with us? Let’s go explore the school.”

Emily’s eyes lit up—until the diva girls shouted from afar.

“Lisa, come on! What are you doing there?”

“We don’t have all day. Break is short. Let’s go.”

Her hope collapsed.

Emily: Maybe later, I’ll sit down and eat my food here.

Lisa: Are you sure?

Emily: Yes.

Lisa left with the others, leaving Emily staring down at her desk.

“Normally Lisa would have stayed with me if I didn’t want to go out.”

She opened her lunchbox slowly and found a small note from her mother inside: “smile.”

She remembered that her mom had made today’s meal and forced herself to start eating.

At the end of the day, while packing her bag, she overheard Lisa and the girls.

Girl 1: I’m going back today with my chauffeur, do you want me to drive you on my way, Lisa?

Lisa: Maybe later…my dad is picking me up today.

Girl 1: Oh, that’s too bad. Hey, Emily, do you need a ride? Who did you call?

“She doesn’t have a cell phone, remember? Phones corrupt minds.”

Everyone: Hahaha.

Emily: Haha, very funny.

She rushed out of the classroom, fists clenched.

“I promised myself I wouldn’t start a fight. Screw them.”

Tears blurred her vision as she hid in the garden until the school emptied. Then she walked to the front gate where the guard stood.

“I’ll have to rely on myself to get home today. I’ll ask where the public buses are.”

Emily: Uh, excuse me.

“Oh, so you’re still here?”

She nearly jumped when she saw Lisa standing beside her.

“Why are you still here?!”

“My dad said he was going to be a little late.”

“Oh, so that’s why.”

“I told him we’d give you a ride, too.”

Emily’s face broke into a strange nervous sweat. She avoided looking at Lisa.

“Also I called your mom and she said yes cuz you don’t have anyone to pick you up.”

“ohh MOM why !!!!…thank you, I love you.”

At that moment, Lisa’s phone buzzed.

“Oh, it’s my dad, he said he’s on the other side of the school, let’s go.”

“Okay.”

They started walking together when Lisa finally spoke.

“You’ve been getting upset all day. Is it because of Meg and the others?”

“You know I hate them.”

“They’re just joking around with you.”

“They’re bullies!”

“Emily, no one says they’re bullies except you. Don’t be so sensitive.”

“They make hurtful jokes at everybody while you’re laughing! The only reason I don’t hit them like other bullies is because you’re friends with them.”

“I’ve known Elle and Meg since we were kids. They love to joke around and don’t take anything seriously. That’s why I consider them my best friends.”

“I thought Jida and I were your best friends!”

“you too are my best friends but You can’t just make me choose between the two of you, it’s not fair!”

“Oh, I see, so how about you stay with them and bully our future classmates while I go make a normal friendship where no one talks trash to each other while I giggle?”

They stopped and faced each other.

“Ha! you mean im a bully? Emily, you and I have always fought bullies together. When did you start seeing me as part of the bully?”

“From the moment my best friend decided to hang out with the people who bullied me the most and hurt my feelings multiple time, just because they’re funny!!”

Emily turned away, her voice shaking with anger.

“I’m going back alone!! You don’t have to feel pity for me. I’m on my own and I’m not like the rest of you!”

A loud crash echoed behind her—Lisa’s phone had fallen and shattered on the ground. Emily turned just in time to see men dressed in black, wearing dark glasses, running toward them. One of them pressed an anesthetic cloth over Lisa’s face. Lisa stared at Emily in pure panic before they dragged her into a black vehicle.

Emily spun and ran.

“I have to call for help!”

But it was too late. The men were already there. Hands grabbed her, a drug was forced over her mouth, and her scream was swallowed by the chemical haze. As darkness devoured her vision, she reached forward with her cracked left hand.

The same thing happened in two other places that day—a boy was taken from an orphanage, another was seized and forced into a black car. Four lives vanished, racing toward an unknown fate.