"Let's break up."
Henry's voice was so low, almost drowned out by the sound of rain tapping against concrete.
On the rooftop of the university dormitory, the sky hung low and grey. Rain fell steadily, soaking the two boys standing near the railing. The campus below blurred into a mess of scattered lights and distant shadows.
Rexy blinked. "What?"
Henry didn't repeat himself. He stood still, rain sliding down his hair, his expression unreadable.
"What are you saying?" Rexy laughed awkwardly. "Is this a joke? You're not funny, you know."
Henry turned to face him slowly.
"Why so sudden?" Rexy demanded, his voice rising, realising Henry was indeed being serious.
"Did I do something? If you're upset, we can talk. You always overthink things."
As Rexy stepped closer, Henry raised a hand, feeling sick of this person he had loved so much...
"Sigh… Rexy," Henry said softly. "Do you really not know why I'm ending this?"
Rexy froze at that.
"No. I don't," but he answered immediately. Maybe way too quickly.
Because, he knew...
He knew why this was happening.
"We were fine yesterday. You're just tired, right? Come on, let's go eat after this."
Henry stared at him for a long moment, filled with dissappointment at that dismissal.
"I hate liars," Henry said at last. "But I still gave you a chance...I was so dumb."
Rexy's smile cracked.
"Henry, what's wrong with you tonight?"
Henry didn't turn to Rexy.
"Let me tell you something," Henry said. "Just listen."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Rain splashed against the screen as he unlocked it, but he could care less as even he was already half soaked by the harsh rain that's invading their space.
"There was a boy," Henry began calmly, "who loved someone with his whole heart. He trusted him. He believed every excuse, every smile."
Rexy swallowed as Henry chuckled.
"That boy had a younger sister," Henry continued. "And the person he loved met her by accident. At first, it was curiosity. Then interest. Then desire."
Rexy shook his head. "Henry..."
Henry ignored him.
"But the boy didn't want to let go of what he already had," Henry said, his voice growing colder. "So he lied. He used his twin brother as an excuse. And he thought no one would ever find out."
Henry pressed play.
Rexy's voice came through the speaker, clear, unmistakable to both of them.
"I know it's wrong… but I can't stop thinking about you."
The phone trembled slightly in Henry's hand, but his voice didn't.
Rexy staggered back. "That's- that's edited."
Henry swiped again.
Another recording played.
This time, Max's, Rexy's twin brother's voice.
"I can't keep silent about this. Rexy is a scumbag. I already warned you. But I guess your sister is also one. The two are having an affair in secret. I admit I covered for them at first but then I found out he had pulled me into that mess so no. I am not fucking your sister. It's Rexy himse-"
The recording cut off.
Rexy's face drained of color.
"Your brother," Henry said quietly, "he confirmed my supiciouns so easily."
Rain fell harder and the two stared at each other in silence for a minute.
Rexy laughed, breaking the silence first.
"So what? You think you understand everything now? I was confused! I never planned for this!"
"You planned enough," Henry replied.
He locked his phone and slipped it back into his pocket.
"Now you know why I'm breaking up with you."
Rexy stepped forward again. "Henry, wait-"
"No, I am disgusted by you. You fooled me for so long. Get lost, Rexy."
Henry ordered and tried keeping his emotions in control.
For a moment, Rexy looked like he might argue. Then thunder rolled, loud and violent, and he turned away rather quickly, running toward the stairwell, cursing under his breath.
Henry let out a sigh in relief.
When Rexy disappeared, Henry walked to the edge of the rooftop and slowly sank down, his back against the wall. Rain now completely soaked through his clothes, but he didn't move.
"I am all alone again," he murmured. "Grandma… what should I do?"
He tilted his head back, letting the rain strike his face for a while, then decided to get back inside because why would he let himself suffer for a man that hurt his feelings?
But when he finally tried to stand, his foot slid.
"Oh-!"
The wet concrete offered no grip at all. His body lurched sideways, balance completely lost and,
he fell hard.
His head struck the ground with a dull, sickening sound, that gave Henry chills because he knew...
It's bad.
Pain detonated instantly and his vision shattered into white and black as his breath was knocked from his lungs. He tried to gasp, but only a broken sound came out.
His fingers scraped uselessly against the slick rooftop as his body refused to respond.
It hurt.
Too much...
A sharp ringing flooded his ears, swallowing all other sound. The world spun violently as rain blurred his sight.
Henry curled slightly on the ground, trembling, unable to scream, unable to move, feeling miserable.
The rain continued to fall, cold and steady, on him, making the pain worse but then everything numb, his consciousness slowly getting stealed away.
Gradually, the unconcious body of Henry began to fade, his outline blurred, edges dissolving into the rain-soaked air, breaking apart into countless droplets that melted into the storm.
Within moments, the rooftop was empty.
And, Henry was gone.
Just like that...From that world...
....
Pain came first.
A heavy, crushing ache pressed down on the back of his head, dragging him upward from darkness.
"…Hng…"
His throat felt dry. His voice barely existed as he felt cold grass pressed against his palms.
...Grass?
He forced his eyes open.
Leaves swayed above him, unfamiliar in shape, their shadows shifting slowly with the wind. The air smelled damp and raw, nothing like rain-soaked concrete.
A tree...
He was now lying under a tree, on grass...
"Didn't I…?" The words slipped out hoarse, unfinished.
His memories rused back, the voice of Rexy, the rain, the rain falling on the rooftop.
And then...the pain.
A sharp sting snapped him fully awake as he reached behind his head.
It was wet and sticky.
He brought his fingers in front of his eyes.
Red.
Blood.
His breathing hitched. His heart began to pound, fast and uneven.
Of course that fall was bad but...it didn't make him hallucinate, did it?
He tried to sit up. Dizziness crashed over him, his vision darkening at the edges. He barely managed to stay conscious with that pain.
This obviously wasn't the dormitory.
The ground was dirt. Uneven. The tree above him was thicker, older, its leaves unfamiliar.
"Where… is this?"
A faint ringing lingered in his ears, as if something had passed through him and not fully left. His chest felt tight, heavy in a way he couldn't explain.
He tried to remember how he got here, but every thought slipped away before it could settle.
The pain was making him lose it again...
"…Did I pass out?"
The explanation felt thin.
His stomach twisted.
This wasn't campus.
This wasn't a hospital either, obviously...
Even his body felt strange. As if it didn't quite belong to him from the way he felt he can't control his breathing. It felt deliberate, like something he had to remember how to do.
"Am I… dreaming?"
Henry felt dumb with that question coming up because he is in hell of pain and he is definetely awake.
Maybe...the head injury gave him hallucinations...
Or, he had finally gone crazy.
His hands trembled as he grabbed the tree trunk beside him and tried to stand as his legs started shaking violently beneath him.
That was such a bad decision.
A sudden pulse of pain exploded through his head and he gasped, vision blurring completely.
His strength completely drained away, he slid bad onto the ground, eyelids getting shut again.
'Ah...I don't want to die li-'
Before he could think further, it was all darkness in front of him and he lost to it.
He lost conciousness...