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  Why is bullying so common among school children?

  I once asked my superior that question during training. She was adult woman with a long career behind her, the kind of teacher whose presence filled a room without trying.

  Honestly, I hadn't thought much before speaking. The words just slipped out after I’d seen a group of boys corner and tease another kid earlier that day. So, it wasn’t some deep philosophical inquiry, just a casual thought voiced.

  But when she heard me, she paused mid review of the papers I’d submitted. Slowly, she turned, her gaze settling on me. I wonder what she saw there — innocence? Insincerity? Or just curiosity for an easy answer?

  Then, she smiled gently and removed her glasses, wiping one lens with a handkerchief as she spoke.

  “Children are like water, Karm.”

  “They take the shape of the vessel you pour them into. They reflect the world, reflect us. School is just like a miniature world. And in this little world, they’re still researching for themselves, through friendship, through rivalry. And yes, sometimes by lashing out and hurting others.

  That day, the staff room was empty except for the two of us. Her words echoed through that quiet space, sinking deeper the longer I sat there. My pen froze halfway across the page, and I turned to look at her fully.

  There was something I wanted to say then, something I’d always thought about but never put into words. After all, I’d had a front-row seat to it, when I was a school teenager.

  “But some of them are really evil, you know? They know exactly what they’re doing and still do it. Real scum, you know?” I muttered, giving her a sideways glance

  “My, my Karm… that’s a bit harsh, isn’t it?” she said with a little laugh, tilting her head. “If you want to be a teacher, you can’t go around calling kids scum, you know?”

  Then, she reached for her hair. A single clip held her bun together, and with a smooth motion she pulled it free. Her dark hair loosened, falling down her shoulders, catching the glow of sunset outside the window.

  For a moment, the whole room felt frozen, as if time had slowed. The sun dipped low, painting the sky in fading orange and the light caught on her face, her skin soft and warm under the glow, her red, plump lips glistening faintly in the dusk light. It turned the ordinary into something straight out of a youth drama.

  And then she smiled.

  How do you describe a smile like that?

  To me, it was like an autumn tree with every leaf fallen but one. That single, stubborn leaf clinging to the branch even as winds pestered to quit and winter crept closer. It had no reason to hold on. It was natural for leaves to fall. Everyone else had already let go. Soon, no one would even remember that it was there.

  And yet it stayed.

  That stubbornness, that quiet defiance, there was something achingly beautiful about it.

  Her smile carried that same feeling.

  And then she spoke and somehow, her words made it even more beautiful.

  “ Even if they act like scum,” she said, her voice low and smooth, “we can’t just give up on them. That’s our job isn’t it? To guide them back before they’re completely lost. To help the ones who are hurting… and the one who hurt others. If we don’t reach out our hand first, who will?”

  She turned, flashing me a smile that felt both kind and a little sad

  “Don’t you think a world where every child grows into a good adult would be a happy world?”

  I clicked my tongue lightly. “Um...I don’t think that’s possible, senpai.”

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  She laughed softly, a sound that warmed the air. “Fufu...maybe not right away. But you’ll never know unless you try, Karm. Isn’t that the reason enough?”

  …

  The next day, I saw her again, standing beside the same boy I’d seen being bullied. She was helping him pick up his books, saying something that made him smile through his tears.

  And in that moment, I whispered to myself: she really believes in it.

  When my training ended and I left that school, I carried that image with me. Her words, her smile lodged in my mind.

  Since then, I’ve tried, clumsily, haltingly to believe in what senpai said about reaching out.

  I knew I wasn’t brave. I didn’t have the courage, the empathy, or the will to save someone. It was impossible for me to think I could save anyone.

  But still…

  I wanted to smile like her. The unyielding smile, the kind a hero wears when they refuse to turn away.

  ────??────

  That’s why I had to move, even though doubt and reason chained my body to the floor, even though every rational thought in my head screamed at me to stay put.

  I had to move.

  I had to reach out.

  The world didn’t matter. Neither did hesitation.

  What if the bullying got worse? Screw it, I’d still stretch out my hand.

  What if she didn’t even want my help. Then screw me, but I still wouldn’t stop.

  There was no more room for hesitation. My mind was made up. There are things in this world that matter and things that don’t.

  And Kiyara was someone who mattered.

  Even If the universe itself had decided to drag her into ruin, then let the universe be damned.

  While the storm in my head raged, my body was already moving. My feet carried me to Kiyara’s desk. My hand shot out, gripped the interface cables below the desk and yanked them free with a sharp pull.

  With a sharp blip, every one of the hateful projections vanished. Silence swallowed the classroom.

  Dozens of eyes turned toward me. Some wide with shock, some sharp with outrage. But inside, I was calm.

  I had half expected this reaction anyway. Of course they’d stare, a boy suddenly running across the room and ripping out the cables of the school's projection desk, the same desk that functioned as both textbook and notebook, was bound to cause chaos.

  Especially when it happened while someone; no; the someone the heiress of Atmatek was being targeted.

  Yeah, I had probably just put Kiyara in an even more awkward position. I mean sure she wouldn’t want strange rumors about her floating around after this. But I couldn’t help myself. Not after reading those words. It ripped my heart into pieces.

  I had to –

  “Oi, how long you plannin’ to sit there, huh? Tryna sneak a peek under princess’ skirt or what?”

  The kick came from behind, snapping me out of my thoughts and sending me sprawling, straight to Kiyara’s feet.

  Damn it. Is this an ero flag?

  “Are Y–”

  A small sound cut through the silence. Soft, barely audible, like the chime of a bell on a veranda.

  I looked up. Kiyara was staring at me, hand outstretched like a scene from a painting – the Atmatek princess herself reaching towards like a divine figure offering salvation.

  It was happening.

  Except…it didn’t.

  “How long you plannin’ to stay down there, huh? Quit makin’ a scene already.”

  The voice came from behind, followed by a tug on my arm that yanked me back to my feet. My chance, gone in an instant.

  And the culprit? None other than the cute gyaru herself

  “You, hero boy,” she said, planting hand on her hip and tilting her head, smirk in place. “You can’t just, like yank out school cables n’trash the place, y’know? You gotta–”

  But before she could finish, the classroom door hissed open and the teacher walked in.

  Elizabeth immediately explained the situation to her. Within minutes, the teacher had called in the repair drones. The desk’s capable were restored, the system rebooted and the projections erased.

  Then of course, it was my turn.

  The teacher reprimanded me for “taking the situation into my hands” instead of reporting it to authorities. I was ordered to write a formal apology letter and attend a special guidance lecture on school rules and conduct.

  Great. I had one heroic moment and it earned me a detention.

  But none of it mattered. What really got under my skin, to the point I couldn’t stop staring was our class rep.

  The pink haired gyaru.

  Why the hell was she so calm?

  In my mind, she was prime suspect number one behind this morning’s stunt. Yet there she was, cool as ice, twirling a strand of hair like nothing happened.

  “Listen, Mr. Wanna-Be Hero,” she said, turning toward me with that sly grin. “I am so not responsible for whatever happened to your lovely princess this morning.”

  “You’re not?” I almost yelled but barely managed to keep my voice down. What the hell? Suspect number one was denying it?

  “So you did suspect me. How mean~!”

  “Well..” I trailed off. Okay, maybe I did judge her too fast. But she just had…bully vibes.

  “At least you didn’t deny the ‘lovely princess’ part,” she said, her grin widening. “ So you do like her.”

  Tch. Smart cookie. Is she even twelve?

  “Can you please not joke about that? I was just trying to do the right thing.”

  “Hmmm, really?”

  “Really.”

  “I’ll believe you if you say you like her.”

  “Uh. That’s easy. I—wait, that's not how it is!”

  And just like that, we went back and forth for the entire first lecture. For the second day in a row, I didn’t pay attention to class.

  But I learned one thing: I was wrong about Elizabeth — a.k.a the gyaru class rep. She wasn’t behind the incident. I could tell she wasn’t faking it either.

  Which meant there was someone else who was targeting Kiyara.

  But who? And why go after her from day one? And most of all, how the hell did they hack a secure interface so easily.

  ────??────