THEO'S POV (Continuing):
For a moment, we just stared at each other.
The cafeteria had gone dead silent around us.
No trays.
No whispers.
No movement.
Just tension.
Thick. Heavy. Ready to explode.
Then Hari let out a bitter, humorless laugh.
"Oh, right," he said, shaking his head. "I almost forgot who I was talking to."
His eyes turned colder.
"Theo Hayashi."
He said my name like it was poison.
"The one who doesn't care about anyone except himself."
I smirked.
"Still talking?"
"The one who drags people into hell just because he can."
My smile faded.
Hari took another step forward, and when he spoke again, his voice cut deeper than any punch ever could.
"Just like you did to Marco."
Everything inside me went still.
My vision sharpened.
The air around me seemed to distort.
For a split second, all I could hear was that name.
Marco.
A name I hadn't wanted to hear.
A name no one should've dared say.
"Hari...." someone whispered from the crowd in horror.
But he didn't stop.
His stare never wavered.
And that was enough.
Something snapped.
"HARI!"
The roar tore from my throat before I even realized I was moving.
I lunged at him and punched him hard across the face.
The impact echoed through the cafeteria.
Hari stumbled back, but only for a second.
Then he came right back at me.
His fist slammed into my jaw.
Pain burst across my face, hot and sharp, but all it did was fuel the fire already raging inside me.
I grabbed him by the collar and drove him into the nearest table. It crashed to the floor under the force, trays and drinks scattering everywhere. Students screamed and scrambled back, clearing space around us.
No one dared come close.
No one dared interfere.
They knew they couldn't stop us.
Hari shoved me off and swung again, landing a hit against my cheekbone. I tasted blood instantly.
I smiled.
A dark, twisted smile.
"You should've kept your mouth shut," I growled.
"And you should've learned how to be human," he shot back.
I punched him in the ribs.
He hissed in pain but retaliated with a brutal blow to my stomach.
We crashed into another table.
Chairs toppled.
Food splattered across the floor.
The entire cafeteria had become a battlefield.
I grabbed a fistful of his shirt and slammed him against the wall.
"You think you know everything about Marco?" I snarled, my voice shaking with rage. "You know nothing."
Hari wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and glared at me with pure hatred.
"I know enough."
His words hit harder than they should have.
"I know he trusted you."
My grip tightened.
"I know he suffered because of you."
"Shut up."
"I know he died because of you."
"SHUT UP!"
I slammed my fist into the wall right beside his head.
The crack echoed.
Students gasped.
But Hari didn't flinch.
He just looked at me.
Really looked at me.
And somehow that was worse.
Because there was no fear in his eyes.
Only anger.
Only blame.
Only truth I didn't want thrown in my face.
"You can beat people all you want," Hari said hoarsely. "You can hide behind your money, your father, your power...."
He shoved me back with all his strength.
"....but it won't erase what you did. To our friend."
For the first time, I hesitated.
Only for a second.
But it was enough.
Hari took advantage of it and punched me again, hard enough to send me stumbling sideways into a table.
The edge dug into my hip painfully.
I straightened slowly, wiping blood from my lip with my thumb.
Then I looked at it.
Red.
My eyes lifted to him again.
And I smiled.
Coldly.
Dangerously.
"Fine," I said, voice low and terrifyingly calm.
"If you want to play hero so badly…"
I rolled my neck, stepping toward him again.
"Then let's see how long you last."
And then I launched at him again.