Yurugi

Rain remembered how, the previous week, he had «set Sakichi up» when the latter asked him to copy answers for a test.

Rain had verbally given him the answers to the questions Sakichi had asked — but deliberately gave all the wrong ones, so Saichi ended up with a low score. Meanwhile, Rain, as always, had one of the best papers in the class.

«So he remembered, huh? Wow, he's really holding a grudge,» Rain thought.

«Did you think I was so stupid I wouldn't realise you'd tricked me?» Sakichi said quietly — threateningly.

— «Well, yeah, looks like you were stupid enough to trust me and never even consider that I might be lying to you».

And… gosh. You're still holding onto this? How spiteful. «-, Rain replied, as always, calmly — without fear».

For which he received a punch to the jaw from Sakichi a couple of seconds later, making his nose bleed. But he didn't cry. Didn't beg for mercy.

He just… smiled faintly. A fake smile, like some kind of masochist. Even though he didn't like pain.

— «I'm flattered you're paying me so much attention. A personal meeting, no less… Wow. And it's so pleasant, as always».

After those words, he got a couple more blows — this time to the chest.

— «You… emotionless jerk. I didn't like you back in elementary school».

And now? I like you even less.

Sarcasm, fakeness, logic, coldness.

Is that all you know how to feel?

— «At least I'm honest with myself and with others. At least I don't pretend to be cool just to get more attention. I already get plenty of it — especially from you and your little gang».

At least I don't hide behind someone else's status, unlike some people. I deal with my problems on my own.

Sakichi decided not to talk anymore. He just kept hitting Rain. His friends joined in too. Haruka found a glass bottle somewhere in the alley and smashed it over Rain's head. Sakichi kept kicking him while he lay on his side in the snow in the alley. Then Shisu pulled a knife out of his pocket.

And started stabbing Rain with it. Blood flowed, staining Rain's clothes. The snow beneath him turned crimson. But he didn't resist. He couldn't.

When they finally stopped, he managed, with great difficulty, to sit up and lean against the alley wall, staring straight ahead. He could feel his vision growing hazy, blurring. But he still held on.

— «You know… Sakichi, why I think you're pathetic?».

You're always hiding behind your father. His status… his job.

You're, what, sixteen? But you act like you're six.

At your age, you're supposed to be going through adolescence — trying to grow up and be independent. But you can't do anything on your own.

What would you do if your father wasn't there? If he, say, died?

Although, no — don't answer.

I know you won't.

Truth is, no one's really afraid of you. Maybe someone with the same kind of logical thinking as me sees you as pathetic. If anyone's feared at all, it's just your father's status — and the fact that people might have to pay money because of it. Which, basically, is for nothing. For moral and physical damage? Are you really that fragile?

Mentally, yes, I know.

But physically?

It's just… laughable.

You're… worthless.

Rain said all this calmly, with a contemptuous smirk through the pain.

But a couple of seconds later, his eyes closed. The smirk faded.

Sakichi thought that was it. He went over to check whether Rain was still alive.

His hands were trembling slightly. He did realise, after all, what he'd done. He felt…

Guilt, maybe? But it was already too late.

Rain's hand groped around nearby and found a shard from that very bottle Haruka had found and smashed… and in one swift motion, he drove the shard into Sakichi's neck. Blood gushed from Sakichi's neck. Rain felt no guilt about it. None at all.

What did it matter what he did now, when he himself would die soon? He wouldn't be serving any prison sentence… And anyway, you could say Sakichi was the one who killed him first.

And so ended the lives of Rain Yurugi.

and Sakichi Darake.

The students, who didn't know what had happened in that alley, believed it was cursed.

Bloggers whose content relied on testing out paranormal phenomena and unverified urban legends claimed they heard footsteps behind them—as if on snow.

Even if they weren't there in winter, and even if they were alone.