Three years ago…
A fourteen-year-old Risa sat in her classroom, her chin resting on her desk as she observed her classmates.
She noticed two girls smirking and exchanging glances in her direction.
"Ughh."
"I'll deal with them later; it's too early for this," she told herself.
"Hey guys, Mr. Martin's coming," a girl on lookout warned the class.
Everyone chatting and moving about quickly fell silent and rushed to their seats.
"Okay, students, I've graded your papers from the other day," Mr. Martin announced as he entered the classroom.
The whole class turned to look at Risa, who sat in the far-right column at the back—a window seat.
Annoyed, she got up and tried to leave the classroom, but the teacher stopped her at the doorway.
"Risa."
"It's been seven months."
"You've shown no progress—in fact, you've completely regressed," Mr. Martin continued.
This ticked her off. She tried forcing her way through, but he held her back firmly.
"A score in the single digits is unjustifiable. Just forget about graduating in three months," he chastised her.
Her classmates began to giggle among themselves.
"What a complete waste of a human life."
"Not even my six-year-old sister would do this poorly."
She had garnered quite a bit of animosity from her peers, for various reasons.
A boy turned to his friend. "You know, I was totally into her, but man… with a character like that, I doubt she could even make a living by selling herself."
The comment drew a ripple of low laughter. Some students smirked, others wore faintly amused expressions, and in the lingering silence, there was an unmistakable sense of approval.
Chuckling, his friend replied, "Might have carried that one a bit far there, bud."
Risa stood in silence in front of the teacher, who allowed such remarks. She wanted to retaliate but actively suppressed her anger.
"Move!" she said, but the teacher didn't budge.
From the rows behind, a girl, Jean, muttered to her friend, Dawn, "I bet she totally likes Isaac."
Another voice, Gina, chimed in, "Right? She's always messing with him."
"Is that so?" Dawn kept in thought.
Isaac, seated in front of them, caught their conversation.
"No way she does… right?" he thought, completely flustered as he glanced at Risa.
She looked back at him, her glare filled with so much hate that Isaac could almost feel it suffocating him, causing him to flinch.
"Move!" she repeated.
This time, Mr. Martin let her leave. He returned to his desk and threw her paper into the bin before sitting down.
Ding, dong. Ding, dong.
The bell chimed through the halls.
"It's already lunchtime, yet she hasn't returned," Isaac muttered, stretching his arms as he stood. His stomach growled, deciding for him.
He wandered down the hallway toward the cafeteria, only to spot a figure coming from the opposite direction. Risa.
"Guess she's still here after all."
A faint smile tugged at his lips.
The moment she noticed, Risa's teeth ground together. Her stride sharpened into something closer to a march.
THUMP!
Their shoulders collided hard enough to send Isaac's phone tumbling from his hand. It clattered against the floor, a hairline crack splitting across the screen.
"Ehh—didn't see you there, Mr. Hero Boy." Her grin was razor-sharp. "I really ought to pay more attention to where I'm going."
Isaac picked up the phone, brushing it off. The damage was minor. Still usable. He chuckled softly, letting the moment slide.
"That calm face. That smile. Always smiling, no matter what."
Her nails dug into her palm. She hated it. Hated him.
RING. RING. RING.
The cracked screen lit up in his hand. Dad.
Isaac blinked, thumb hovering over the answer button.
"Dad?"
The sight of the name made her twitch. The grin stretched wider, uglier. She stepped forward, her shadow swallowing the glow from the screen.
Before he could react—
STOMP!
The phone crumpled under her heel with a sickening crunch, shards scattering across the tiles.
Isaac froze, stunned.
Risa tilted her head, her tone dripping with mock sweetness. "Oops. Guess I almost lost my balance. Luckily your phone was there to break my fall."
She walked past without another glance, leaving him in silence with the ruined pieces at his feet.
"Heh—she's done worse… right?" Isaac muttered.
"She poisoned me before, after all... hehe."
"Risa had transferred seven months ago, and I wasn't sure why exactly, but it seemed she hated me—well, more than anyone else at least. I was sure she had her reasons."
"So the least I could do was put up with it, just as long as it helped her, even a little bit. Because… if I truly wanted to be a hero, enduring this loss should be nothing."
Pressing on further, Risa fell to her knees. She got back up—tried to walk but fell again. Her rugged breath and barely open eyes said it all.
"I'm... too hungry," she muttered, clutching her stomach.
She forced herself to push on, staggering along the walls of the hallway. As she continued, two shadows dimmed her vision. It was her classmates Dawn and Gina.
"My, my, what a rare sight," Dawn smiled, her eyes glinting with amusement.
"How long had it been since we'd crossed paths? Outside the classroom, that is," Gina added, her tone sharp but playful.
Risa tried to force some strength, but collapsed to her knees, her face planting onto the floor.
"Haha! Such a fitting pose," Gina laughed.
"For a piece of shit like you," her tone switched to dark.
"You didn't seriously think you could get away with treating everyone like we were beneath you, did you?" Dawn added in a serious tone.
DUD!
Dawn pressed her foot as hard as she could against the back of Risa's head, forcing her face deeper into the cold floor.
Risa groaned in pain as the floor bruised her face.
"You did pretty well hiding from us," Dawn said, her voice low and cutting.
"Avoiding us all this time… honestly, it was frustrating, but... ohh, it was so worth the wait." Her grin stretched wider, cruel and unrelenting.
Meanwhile...
Isaac wiped his hands clean and leaned back in his chair, letting out a loud belch.
A few heads in the cafeteria turned, faces twisting in disgust at the sound and smell.
"GROSS!" they all thought in unison.
"Ah… nothing like a carton of milk to wash down this dry lunch," he muttered, ignoring the glares and murmurs around him.
Within seconds, his stomach began to growl. Isaac's face fell, realizing exactly what was about to happen.
FARTTTTTTT!
The sound echoed through the hallways, sending everyone scrambling for the quickest escape from the cafeteria.
"AHHH—why did I drink that milk?!" Isaac screeched.
"I'M LACTOSE INTOLERANT!" he shouted, clutching his stomach.
He bolted down the hallway, weaving between students, lockers, and stray backpacks.
"Not now! Not now! Please, not now!" he groaned, nearly tripping over a trash can.
Up ahead, a crowd had gathered. The bathroom was right there, but curiosity dragged him toward the noise instead.
"You really thought you could get away with everything?" Dawn hissed, voice cold and sharp.
"Humiliating everyone, ruining projects, making us suffer... all while smiling. Well, now it's your turn."
Gina stepped forward, fist cocked, and drove a punch into Risa's ribs. She doubled over, gasping.
"Every smirk, every sneer—you made us suffer, and now we're returning the favor!"
Dawn kicked Risa's side, sending her sprawling onto the floor. Pain shot through her body, but her attackers showed no mercy.
Gina's knee slammed into her stomach as she tried to push herself up.
"This is payback for every time you made us feel small!"
Risa's breaths came in ragged bursts. Her body burned, but even in pain, her eyes flashed with something—anger, defiance, maybe disbelief.
Gina grabbed a handful of Risa's hair, yanking her upright. The sharp tug sent a jolt of pain ripping through her scalp and neck. She cried out, trying to push herself down, but Dawn and Gina held her fast.
"Not so fast," Dawn sneered, gripping her shoulders to steady her.
"Time to face us properly."
Risa struggled, her hands clawing at their arms, trying to find purchase on the floor, but every movement only pulled harder on her hair, sending searing pain up her spine. Her knees buckled, and she whimpered, desperate to collapse back down.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?!" Isaac's voice echoed through the walls.
"And you—less-than-human scumbags standing around, letting all this happen." He lashed out at the students standing around.
"Ehhh? You're seriously defending this thing?" Gina said mockingly before dropping her.
Risa's eyes flicked to Isaac-just for a moment-before she slumped unconscious to the floor.
Isaac didn't respond, instead walking over and standing between them.
"Damn, were you really this much of a pushover, Isaac?" Dawn looked at him, disappointed.
"Not that I care about you or anything, but she treated you worse than she did anyone else here," she continued.
Isaac drew a shaky breath.
"Y-you're right," he admitted, then raised his voice, forcing conviction into it.
"But a hero doesn't turn a blind eye to someone who clearly needs help!"
Dawn stood there in silence.
"He's still on about that?"
She cringed a little.
Gina blinked at him, then barked a laugh.
"A hero? What are you, five?" Her tone dripped with mockery. "Grow up, idiot."
Gina leaned forward, her grin sharp.
"Besides... if we did kill her, I'm sure we'd be doing everyone a favor."
The room erupted—not in gasps or protest, but in muffled chuckles. Someone snorted. A few exchanged amused looks. Isaac's stomach lurched.
His eyes widened. They were all smiling. Smiling at her words.
"You... you guys..." his voice faltered, then hardened. "...you're no better than her."
Frustrated, Dawn let out a breath. "Whatever, the mood's totally spoiled, I'm leaving."
She turned around and started walking away, Gina following close behind. The bystanders began taking their leave as well.
Dawn started remembering her conversation with Jean and Gina earlier that day.
"I bet she totally likes Isaac."
"Right? She's always messing with him."
"It's... it's not the other way around, is it?" she muttered as she glanced back at Isaac while continuing to press ahead.