Chapter 35 – The Dead Boy Returns
Five days after the funeral—
the Watson mansion no longer felt alive.
It felt… paused.
Like grief itself lived inside the walls now.
The house stayed too quiet.
Too careful.
Even Keigan and Keiren stopped making noise.
And somehow—
that hurt the most.
JJ sat on the balcony railing outside Keifer's room eating cold fries from a takeout box while watching the rain quietly.
Because apparently life was cruel enough to keep raining lately.
Keifer stood nearby leaning against the wall silently.
Still dressed in black.
Still grieving.
But less shattered than before.
Now he looked angry more often than broken.
Dangerous healing.
The worst kind.
JJ noticed immediately.
"You're thinking too much again."
Keifer glanced toward her.
"You say that while eating fries for emotional support."
JJ pointed one fry dramatically.
"These are comfort potatoes. Respect them."
A tiny smile appeared on Keifer's face.
Tiny.
But real.
That counted as progress now.
Then footsteps approached quickly.
Percy burst onto the balcony looking pale for once.
Actually pale.
"Meeting," he said immediately.
Aries appeared behind him equally tense.
"Now."
JJ frowned.
"What happened?"
Percy looked toward Keifer strangely.
"…it's about the masked guy."
Silence.
Keifer straightened immediately.
JJ's stomach tightened.
Because ever since that night—
the boys who saw his face had been acting weird.
Secretive.
Disturbed.
Like they were carrying something impossible.
And now apparently—
they were finally saying it aloud.
---
The Truth Nobody Wanted To Say
Everyone gathered inside Angelo's office downstairs.
Angelo stood near the windows silently.
Cold as always.
But even he looked tense.
Cin.
Felix.
Rory.
Endrix.
David.
Calix.
Eman.
Denzel.
All looked deeply uncomfortable.
Keifer crossed his arms impatiently.
"Start talking."
Nobody moved immediately.
Finally Rory muttered:
"…you're gonna think we're insane."
"I already think that," Keifer answered flatly.
Felix rubbed his face tiredly.
"No like actually insane."
JJ frowned harder now.
"What did you all see?"
Silence.
Then slowly—
Denzel spoke.
"We know who the masked man is."
Keifer immediately looked up sharply.
"So who is he?"
Nobody answered instantly.
Because saying the name aloud somehow made it real.
Then finally—
Cin whispered:
"…Yuri."
Silence.
Complete silence.
The room stopped breathing.
Keifer laughed once immediately.
Cold.
Disbelieving.
"Not funny."
But nobody laughed with him.
Not one.
And suddenly—
his expression changed.
Because they looked serious.
Too serious.
Aries straightened sharply beside Percy.
Angelo's eyes narrowed slightly.
JJ looked between all of them confused.
"…who's Yuri?"
That question hurt the room instantly.
Because the boys looked like someone ripped open old wounds.
Keifer answered quietly.
"Our best friend."
---
The Boy Who Died
Rain.
A highway.
A cliff.
Blood.
Metal crushing.
The memories hit all three boys instantly.
Percy sat down slowly like his legs stopped working.
Aries looked away sharply.
Keifer stayed completely still.
And JJ realized immediately—
this wasn't just some friend.
This was someone they never recovered from losing.
Percy finally spoke quietly.
"Two years ago… we were driving back from a competition."
His voice sounded distant now.
Like he wasn't in the room anymore.
"It was raining so hard we could barely see."
Aries continued calmly.
"Then a truck hit us."
JJ's chest tightened immediately.
Keifer stared blankly ahead now.
"The car spun off the road."
Silence.
Percy swallowed hard.
"The impact threw me, Keifer, and Aries out first."
Aries' jaw clenched.
"But Yuri…"
Nobody continued for a second.
Because apparently even now—
it hurt too much.
Keifer finally finished quietly:
"The car went over the cliff with him inside."
JJ slowly sat down now.
Listening carefully.
"There was a river below," Aries explained softly. "Violent currents. Impossible to survive."
Percy laughed bitterly.
"They searched for days."
Keifer's eyes darkened.
"But they never found his body."
Silence again.
JJ looked toward the others slowly.
"…and you think the masked guy was him?"
Rory immediately answered:
"It WAS him."
Felix nodded firmly.
"I saw his face clearly."
"So did I," Endrix added.
"We all did," Denzel finished quietly.
The room felt heavier instantly.
Because there were only two possibilities now.
Either—
they were all hallucinating.
Or—
a dead boy came back.
---
The Door Opens
Then suddenly—
a knock echoed through the office.
Everyone froze.
Angelo looked toward the guards outside.
One entered quietly.
"…he's here."
Silence.
Percy immediately stood.
Keifer's heartbeat visibly changed.
JJ noticed because his hands clenched instantly.
The guard stepped aside slowly.
And someone walked in.
Red hair.
Sharp eyes.
Black hoodie.
Calm expression.
Alive.
JJ's breath caught immediately.
Because she recognized him instantly.
The boy from Holy Saint School.
The one who saved her from Cyrus.
And beside her—
Keifer stopped breathing entirely.
"…Yuri?"
The red-haired boy looked at him quietly for a moment.
Then smiled faintly.
"Missed me?"
Percy immediately punched him.
Hard.
Everyone startled.
But Yuri just accepted it without fighting back.
Percy's eyes were already wet.
"You idiot…"
His voice cracked badly.
"You absolute idiot—"
Then suddenly Percy hugged him tightly instead.
Aries looked completely stunned beside them.
Even Keifer looked shaken for the first time in days.
Yuri hugged Percy back quietly.
"…sorry."
Keifer finally moved forward slowly.
Like he still wasn't fully believing this.
"You died."
Yuri's eyes darkened slightly.
"That was the plan."
Silence.
Everyone stared.
JJ frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Yuri looked toward all of them calmly now.
Then finally spoke.
"The truck crash wasn't an accident."
Instant tension filled the room instantly.
"It was arranged."
Keifer's expression turned murderous immediately.
"By who?"
Yuri smiled bitterly.
"My clan."
JJ blinked.
"…your WHAT?"
Yuri ignored the question.
"My relatives wanted control of the Hanamitchi leadership. My father refused."
His voice stayed calm.
Too calm for someone describing murder attempts.
"So they decided removing the heir would weaken him."
Percy looked horrified now.
"They tried killing you?"
Yuri laughed softly.
"They tried killing all of us."
Silence.
Then quieter:
"The truck driver was paid."
Keifer's fists clenched instantly.
"And the river?"
Yuri leaned back against the wall slightly.
"I survived the fall."
Everyone stared.
"The river carried the car downstream. I escaped before it sank."
JJ looked genuinely shocked now.
"But why disappear?"
Yuri's expression changed completely then.
Colder.
Darker.
Dangerous.
"Because if I returned immediately— they would try again."
Silence.
"So I disappeared."
Rory whispered slowly:
"…for two years?"
Yuri nodded once.
Then his next words changed the atmosphere entirely.
"I stayed in the shadows removing threats from my clan."
JJ frowned.
"…removing?"
Yuri looked directly at her.
"I killed them."
Silence slammed into the room.
Not dramatic silence.
Terrified silence.
Yuri's expression never changed.
"They targeted my mother. My little sister. My father."
His eyes darkened dangerously.
"So I removed every single relative involved."
JJ realized then—
this boy wasn't normal.
Not anymore.
Not after two years surviving alone.
Not after becoming whatever this was.
Keifer stared at him quietly.
"You became an assassin for your own clan."
Yuri shrugged slightly.
"I became necessary."
Nobody knew what to say after that.
Because standing in front of them—
wasn't the cheerful best friend they lost two years ago.
This was someone sharper.
Colder.
Deadlier.
A boy who disappeared into darkness and came back carrying blood on his hands.
And somehow—
JJ noticed one terrifying thing immediately.
Yuri looked at violence the same way Keifer now looked at revenge.
Like both of them were already halfway into becoming monsters.
Yuri leaned back against the wall quietly while the room still struggled to process everything he had revealed.
Dead for two years.
Alive in shadows.
Murder.
Clan wars.
None of it felt real.
JJ kept staring at him carefully.
Because unlike the others—
she didn't know the "old Yuri."
She only knew the dangerous masked boy who appeared out of nowhere and vanished just as fast.
And now that same boy stood in front of her casually talking about surviving death.
Honestly?
Her life had officially become insane.
Cin suddenly pointed dramatically.
"So wait— you're telling me we all cried for two years while this man was alive doing action movie side quests?!"
"Cin," Aries muttered tiredly.
"What?!" Cin defended himself. "I had emotional damage!"
For the first time—
Yuri actually laughed softly.
Small.
Real.
And suddenly Keifer froze slightly.
Because that laugh—
that was familiar.
Painfully familiar.
Like hearing a ghost sound human again.
The room quieted.
Then JJ spoke suddenly.
"…Holy Saint School."
Yuri's eyes moved toward her immediately.
JJ narrowed hers slightly.
"The one who stopped Cyrus."
Silence.
Everyone looked between them instantly.
JJ stepped closer now.
"That was you, wasn't it?"
Yuri stayed quiet for a second.
Then sighed softly.
"…yeah."
Percy blinked.
"WAIT WHAT."
JJ crossed her arms immediately.
"You disappeared before I could even thank you."
Yuri shrugged slightly.
"You looked like you had enough problems already."
JJ stared at him harder.
"You literally appeared out of nowhere, beat up an entire group, traumatized Cyrus again, then vanished like Batman."
Cin immediately pointed again.
"THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN SAYING."
Nobody listened to him.
Keifer however suddenly looked dangerous again.
"You touched JJ?"
JJ blinked slowly.
"…excuse me?"
Keifer crossed his arms.
"You carried her away from Cyrus."
Yuri raised one eyebrow lazily.
"She was bleeding."
"She's still my future--"
JJ immediately smacked Keifer's arm.
"Finish that sentence and I'll remove your ability to reproduce."
Cin whispered emotionally toward Felix:
"They're healing through threats again."
Felix nodded.
"Nature is beautiful."
Yuri watched the chaos quietly for a second.
And for the first time since entering the room—
his expression softened slightly.
Because despite everything…
this still felt like home.