(CONTINUED FROM CHAPTER 6)
The Mounagiri Gakuen shone with sparkle. The breeze blew softly across the hills.
The golden yellow light illuminated the lush, green hills.
Kodo ran from home to school with excitement and a sense of warmth as he rushed through the long gates of Mounagiri Gakuen.
He thought of yesterday — Tamara's warmth. Her presence had turned his school of isolation and wisdom into a temple that surrounded his heart with golden, warm threads.
Finally, someone I can share space with...
Kodo's thoughts glistened with happiness and joy. Gentle golden threads faintly emerged from him — still not realised by Kodo.
He entered Class 11A.
Some classmates still radiated black threads at him — cold glances, sharp edges. Some gave off blue threads — sympathetic, pitiful.
But the air felt lighter. Tamara was there, sitting at her usual place.
But this time — something felt off. She was surrounded by people.
The Tamara Idol Club, they called themselves with pride.
Kodo quietly walked to his corner, set down his bag, and gave off a faint blue thread.
A sense of longing.
Tamara sensed it, even though her fan club buzzed around her.
She teased, eyes glinting,
"It seems like a lovely day today, doesn't it, guys?"
She threw a grin toward Kodo.
Ron, one of her hardcore fans, jumped up.
"Yes, Megami-Sama! It is marvellous today!"
Inside, he was fantasizing: "Yes, it's the kind of day I'd take you out on a date."
Kim suggested,
"I suggest we ALL go to a movie together — with Lady Tamara's choice, of course."
But in his mind: "She should go with me, like a movie date."
Kodo wanted to say something.
But the words clung to his throat.
He sat, elbow under chin, other hand frantically flipping sketchbook pages. His teeth clenched.
Tamara gave a slight laugh inside herself.
Then she said, playfully,
"What do you think, Rohan... mmm, no — Kodo?"
The entire group turned to stare at him.
Kodo felt weakened.
Like the cosmos had landed on his shoulders.
The gravity of the moment bent him inward.
Tamara could sense the purple-blue threads pouring out of him. He was getting overwhelmed.
She signaled silently — a quiet nudge:
Harness it. Bring your threads to your heart. Weave your own world.
Kodo tried. He really did.
But every time he gathered the threads, his core memories wrecked them.
Still... he mustered enough breath.
"I... I think I'll just spend my... free time at home.
Thanks... thanks for c-consider... considering me."
His body shook. A stammer. A silence.
The gang burst into laughter.
"He's like a little kid!" they shouted in chorus.
A few pointed fingers at him and laughed.
A few even wiped away tears of joy.
Kodo felt ashamed. He gave out pulsating blue threads. He thought he should curl himself up. He hung his head, biting his upper lip, and shook his head a little.
Tamara saw the scene unfolding and realised Kodo was being overwhelmed. She realised she had to douse the blue threads of Kodo and the black threads of her devoted club fans.
Her voice — low, sharp but with gentleness:
"Why laugh?"
"He tried. Laughing at another person's weakness — that's pathetic."
Her golden threads — vibrant as the sun — burst around Kodo, wrapping him instantly.
They softened the cosmos on his shoulders.
She tried to douse the black threads blooming from her own fans.
Kodo lifted his head up, still teary-eyed, but this time with courage.
"YES, I want to spend time with all of you.
Please include me in your activities.
But not as a member of that club, though."
He stuck out his tongue — just a little, playfully.
The gang went silent.
Then, one by one, murmured apologies. They muttered that they were only joking, not trying to humiliate him.
Tamara nodded at them, engulfed the area with golden threads. She said fun and games should never be at the expense of another person's dignity.
Kodo then observed, for the first time:
Faint gold threads from them.
Kodo knew he might have made it harder for her club fans.
He stood up, extended his hands, signalled a thumbs-up and gave a small laugh.
The club fans relaxed.
Tamara felt relieved that Kodo had come out of his comfort zone.
That evening, the group went out for a stroll. Laughter echoed down the path. Tamara remained the centre of attention, as always.
But Kodo walked among them.
He felt — from the depths of his chest — something he hadn't in a long, long time.
It felt good.
He felt like he belonged.
Tamara noticed, and she was glad.
She had never seen Kodo this relaxed.
But then — suddenly — something shifted.
Tamara froze in her tracks, as if she sensed something.
A presence — something black, sinister — slithered toward the group.
She sensed it before anyone else.
Everyone stopped, confused.
Kodo felt it too.
A strange black aura — dense and cold.
He moved instantly, reaching her, shaking her shoulder gently.
She blinked — then returned to the present.
She gave a small thumbs-up.
But somewhere in the shadows, something whispered:
"What...? The boy moved? Impossible..."
It slithered away into the dark.
Tamara shook her head and smiled faintly.
The group resumed walking, unaware.
But only two of them truly knew:
Something was watching.
And it had begun to whisper.