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Chapter 12: Drawn in the Dark
The next day, Kuro was back.
Smiling like nothing ever happened.
His hoodie was zipped halfway up, his bangs messily covering the faint tape on his cheek, and his fingers were still partially wrapped in fresh bandages. But his eyes?
Same brightness.
Same warmth.
Same voice saying, "Good morning, guys," like he hadn't vanished beneath a bleeding Sakura tree the day before.
He cracked a joke to Jason, teased Riku about his mismatched socks, and nodded to Sera with that usual fake-serious salute.
When he sat next to Eve, he didn't say much—he didn't need to.
Because under the table, where no one could see…
He held her hand.
Warm. Gentle. Slightly shaking.
But he held it.
For the entire class.
Eve never looked at him. She didn't smile. But she didn't pull away either.
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Later, after school, the group headed to the room Kuro had turned into their "hangout spot."
It was once an unused storage classroom near the west wing, but Kuro had cleaned it up—dragged in mismatched chairs, old posters, and even a rug that looked like it was stolen from a thrift store. Somehow, it worked.
The others talked lazily about their day, the latest rumors, and half-whispered guesses about the missing bullies. But Kuro…
Was drawing.
He sat at the corner of the room, hunched over a thick sketchpad, pencil dancing like his hand moved on instinct.
Jason peeked over.
"Whoa," he muttered. "Dude, you didn't tell us you could draw."
Kuro looked up and smiled, almost sheepishly. "Just a hobby."
But it wasn't just drawing.
It was detailed. Unnaturally so.
Dozens of sketches—page after page—all of the woods.
Twisted trees, jagged branches. Some bare, some covered in ash or petals. There were eyes in the dark. Symbols carved into bark. One sketch even showed the Sakura tree, but the blossoms were replaced with writhing shadows that looked like they were screaming.
Sera stopped flipping through and just stared at him.
"These… they look real. Like too real."
"They are," Kuro said simply.
Riku glanced up. "You mean you've seen all this?"
Kuro paused.
Then nodded.
"Not all at once. But I've felt it. In dreams. Or when I stare too long."
The room fell quiet.
Jason tried to shake it off. "Creepy as hell, man."
Kuro laughed a little. "Yeah. I guess it is."
But Eve noticed something.
Kuro had been drawing one specific tree over and over again—angled the same way, in different times of day, in different seasons. Always with a shadow near its base.
The Sakura tree.
And in one drawing—
There was a figure sitting under it.
Head down.
Humming.
Alone.
She looked at Kuro.
He wasn't smiling anymore.
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To be continued…