chapter 14: The morning he vanished

Dear readers, this chapter has some recap of the previous chapter. Enjoy the chapter.

The soft morning sunlight filtered through the curtains, painting warm streaks across the floor. Hotaru's eyes fluttered open as she stretched lazily, her body still buzzing with the warmth of the celebration from the night before.

"Kai! What's for breakfast?" she called out, her voice hoarse from all the late-night karaoke they'd done.

Silence.

She sat up, frowning. Usually, by now, Kai would either be yelling at her to get up or blasting obnoxious music to annoy her awake. But today, there was nothing.

"Maybe he's still asleep?" she muttered, slipping out of bed. She shuffled toward his room, knocking lightly on the door. "Kai, wake up! Did you pass out from too much cake?"

No response.

A tiny sliver of unease crawled up her spine, but she shook it off. With a sigh, she opened the door — and froze.

The room was empty.

His clothes, his books, even his crumpled-up hoodie that always lay at the foot of the bed — all gone. The bed was made too neatly, like no one had slept in it at all.

Hotaru's breath caught in her throat. She stepped inside, eyes darting around as if the room itself could explain where he went.

On the desk, there was nothing. Not a note, not a message, not even his usual sarcastic sticky notes he'd leave behind to tease her.

Her heart started pounding. "Kai…?" Her voice was quieter this time, trembling with the weight of sudden fear.

She ran through the house — kitchen, bathroom, balcony — but every corner was the same. Empty. Silent. Void of Kai's presence.

Her legs gave out as she sank onto the living room floor, fingers digging into the carpet like she was trying to hold herself steady.

"As I thought…" she whispered, her voice breaking apart mid-sentence. "He left."

She wanted to scream, to cry, to punch a wall — but all she could do was sit there, numb and frozen.

This wasn't the first time someone had walked out of her life. It wasn't even the second or third.

But with Kai, it was different.

He was the first person who stayed long enough to see both her bright and broken sides — and didn't run away. Until now.

Her fingers curled into fists. "I'm not weak anymore," she said to the empty house. "I don't need anyone. I'll be fine."

She didn't even believe herself.

The quiet felt heavier than the sky itself. She turned her phone over in her hands, half-hoping for a message from him, even something as stupid as 'I forgot my socks, be back soon.'

But nothing came. Not even a missed call.

Her mind spiraled, grasping for explanations. Maybe he had an emergency. Maybe he was playing some cruel prank. Maybe—

But no matter how many excuses she came up with, the truth sat heavy in her chest.

He was gone.

And he hadn't planned to come back.

Hotaru forced herself to her feet, dragging her numb body into the bathroom to splash cold water on her face. The mirror showed a girl with wide, hollow eyes and a forced smile.

"You're fine," she told her reflection. "This isn't your first time being left behind. Don't be pathetic."

But her voice trembled.

The day passed in a blur. She went to class, answered questions like a machine, smiled at her friends, and even laughed at bad jokes. On the outside, nothing was wrong.

But inside, her thoughts screamed.

Where did you go, Kai? Why didn't you say anything? Why… why did you leave me like this?

That night, she sat in bed, staring at the ceiling. Sleep refused to come. The bed felt too big, the room too quiet, the shadows too suffocating.

In the kitchen, she found a small bottle of sleeping pills buried in the drawer. They were old — from a time when her insomnia had been at its worst — but still there.

She stared at the label for a long time.

Just one, she thought. Just tonight. Just to make it through this silence.

Her hand trembled slightly as she swallowed the pill. The haze settled over her quickly, numbing the sharp edges of her mind until everything blurred into soft gray.

If Kai's gone, it's fine. I was always alone before him. I can handle it.

But even in her half-dreaming state, she knew that was a lie.

And in the silence of that lonely night, the cracks in Hotaru's mask began to show.

~~~~~~~The end of chapter 14~~~~~~