The final school bell echoed through the empty hallways like a fading memory.
Itsuki walked home slowly, his school bag hanging loosely from one shoulder. The evening sky had already begun turning orange, soft sunlight stretching across the narrow streets of the town.
When he reached his apartment building, he stopped.
The door was locked.
For a few seconds, he simply stared at it in silence.
No warm light.
No voices.
No smell of food waiting inside.
Just silence.
Itsuki lowered his head slightly, his fingers tightening around the strap of his bag.
His face twisted for a moment—as if he were about to cry—but he forced the feeling back down before it could escape.
"…Of course," he whispered.
He slowly sat near the entrance, resting his forehead against his knees.
The world felt painfully quiet.
Maybe… I shouldn't have bothered her.
The thought slipped into his mind naturally.
She couldn't see properly…
She couldn't even defend herself…
And because of me… she lost one eye completely.
Itsuki clenched his fists.
"And then I gave her mine…" he muttered softly.
His voice trembled.
"And because of all this… I lost my family too…"
The memory of the accident flashed briefly inside his head—the rain, the sirens, the unbearable silence afterward.
Itsuki took a long, shaky breath.
For a moment, he looked like he was about to completely break apart.
But instead, he stood up.
"…I'm hungry," he said quietly to himself. "I should make something before the food runs out."
---
The streets had grown colder by the time he started walking toward the small grocery store nearby.
As he crossed a narrow alley, something moved weakly near a cardboard box.
A tiny dog.
Small. Dirty. Shivering.
Itsuki stopped walking.
The puppy slowly looked up at him with tired eyes.
For some reason… it reminded him of himself.
Itsuki crouched down carefully.
"You got abandoned too?" he asked softly.
The puppy tilted its head.
Itsuki gave a small, bitter smile.
"Just like me…"
The puppy slowly walked closer, weak little paws tapping against the ground.
Itsuki gently picked it up into his arms.
"…Fine," he sighed quietly. "We can stay together."
The puppy licked his sleeve once.
"I'll make food for both of us," Itsuki whispered.
For the first time in weeks…
he smiled a little.
---
But the moment he arrived back at his apartment building—
he froze.
Several adults were standing outside his home.
His homeroom teacher.
The principal.
And two unfamiliar people wearing formal jackets.
Itsuki's expression instantly changed.
Fear.
The adults noticed him immediately.
"There he is," one of them said.
Itsuki instinctively stepped backward while tightly holding the puppy against his chest.
The woman from the child protection office slowly approached him.
"Itsuki," she said gently, "you can't continue living alone anymore."
His breathing became uneven.
"We're here to take care of you."
"No," Itsuki answered immediately.
The male worker stepped forward carefully.
"You're still a child. Living alone like this isn't safe."
"I said NO!"
Itsuki's voice cracked violently.
The puppy barked nervously in his arms.
The workers exchanged worried glances.
Then the man carefully grabbed Itsuki's arm.
"You need to come with us."
Itsuki panicked instantly.
"LET GO OF ME!"
The worker tried to calm him down, but Itsuki struggled harder, desperately trying to pull away.
"I DON'T WANT TO GO!"
His school bag fell onto the ground.
The puppy whimpered loudly.
The female worker knelt beside him.
"Itsuki, please calm down—"
"I'M FINE ALONE!"
Tears finally burst from his eyes.
"I DON'T NEED ANYBODY!"
The male worker gently pushed him down to stop him from hurting himself while struggling.
Itsuki held the puppy tightly against his chest even while lying on the ground.
Like it was the only thing he had left.
"Please…" His voice finally broke into sobs. "Don't take me away…"
---
And then—
"WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE DOING?"
A woman's furious voice cut through the air.
Everyone turned.
A tired-looking woman stood near the entrance gate, breathing heavily.
Plastic grocery bags hung from both of her hands.
Her clothes looked wrinkled from travel.
Her eyes were red from exhaustion.
But the moment she saw Itsuki crying on the ground—
her expression completely changed.
The bags dropped from her hands.
Food containers rolled across the pavement.
She immediately rushed forward.
"Move!"
The workers stepped aside in surprise as she quickly knelt beside Itsuki and pulled him into her arms protectively.
Itsuki froze.
The warmth felt unfamiliar.
The woman glared furiously at the workers.
"You call yourselves child protection?" she shouted. "You're forcing a crying child onto the ground?!"
The workers tried explaining.
"Ma'am, we received reports that the child has been living alone for over a month—"
"I KNOW THAT!"
Her voice shook angrily.
"I'm his aunt!"
The principal blinked in surprise.
The woman looked down at Itsuki, her expression softening painfully.
"I came as fast as I could…"
Her fingers trembled slightly as she touched his hair.
"When I heard my brother and his wife died… I left immediately."
Itsuki stared silently at her.
"…Aunt?" he whispered weakly.
She nodded slowly.
"It took me two days to get here," she said softly. "But I'm here now."
The child protection workers stepped back carefully.
The aunt wiped the tears from Itsuki's face before turning back toward the adults.
"From today onward," she said firmly, "I will take full custody of this child."
Silence filled the apartment entrance.
Itsuki could only stare at her while tightly holding the tiny puppy against his chest.
For the first time since his parents died—
someone had finally come back for him.
✨ End of Chapter 6 ✨