“Did you plan on never telling me?”

Rutger Baylan had decided to ignore the girl who lived next door. She was overly curious and talked too much.

He should have ignored her completely, but on an impulse, he reached out his hand and asked her to run away with him. He simply hated the idea of having a meal with both families, and Anita just happened to be in front of him at that moment. He had a bad feeling that she might tattle to the adults, so he suggested she come along.

As soon as they left the neighborhood, a guy who seemed to have a grudge against Anita appeared. Apparently, she had been diligently making enemies, despite her quiet appearance.

That wasn’t the first time something like that happened.

Anita Rodel was someone he just couldn’t ignore, no matter how much he tried. Not because Rutger was an unusually nosy person—anyone would be frustrated just looking at her.

Why did she need a treehouse when she wasn’t even homeless? And if she was going to build one, she should at least use it properly. The girl couldn’t even climb a ladder without wobbling.

The moment Anita fell from the ladder and crashed into him was, without a doubt, one of the most memorable moments of his life.

“S-Sorry. Are you okay? There’s a bump on your forehead…”

He blinked in a daze. He had tried to catch her as she fell, but somehow he ended up underneath her.

Oddly, the world seemed darker. It was definitely daytime, but his dazed gaze landed on a shadow blocking the sunlight. As his eyes traveled up, they met a face filled with surprise.

Anita’s gaze made him strangely uncomfortable. When her hand reached toward his face, Rutger reflexively swatted it away.

His gaze kept drifting to her wide, surprised black eyes and the hand awkwardly hovering in the air. Her obsidian-like eyes glistened as they stared at him, and for some reason, his fingertips felt tingly.

It was probably because of her hair. The strands of black hair that tickled his cheek felt like iron bars trapping him, making him feel stifled.

Rutger, in an uncharacteristically kind gesture, tucked her hair behind her ear. But the moment his hand withdrew, the hair slipped back down, falling over her face again.

“Move.”

Unable to shake off the strange feeling of suffocation, Rutger shoved Anita away rather roughly.

“Ah.”

Anita let out a dazed sound as she rolled off onto the grass. The sunlight, which had been blocked by her, poured over him as her figure tumbled on the ground. Guilt surged within him, and he quickly stopped her from rolling further.

“You okay?”

“…”

“Hey.”

Anita lay on the grass, neither looking at him nor answering. She seemed upset, which was understandable—he had pushed her without explanation. He knew he should just apologize, but the words wouldn’t come out. His lips moved for a while, but when he finally spoke, the words that came out were far from what he intended.

“Well, who told you to climb the ladder anyway? Always doing something dumb.”

“…”

“What did you say earlier? You were going to live up there? Stop saying stupid things. How are you going to stay warm? Where will you wash up? What about security? Do you think you’re the only person who knows how to climb a ladder?”

“…”

“Just sleep in your room. It’s not like you’re homeless.”

Anita still didn’t say anything. She must’ve been just as surprised as he was. Rutger wondered if he’d been too harsh on her.

“Can’t we just tear down that treehouse?”

Even so, Rutger felt he had to get his point across. As clever as she acted, she was careless at times. He would bet everything he owned that she’d slip off that ladder again one day. He was just about to seriously suggest to Mrs. Rodel that they take it down when Anita stomped on his foot, hard.

It seemed she had snapped out of her daze after the fall.

***

“I’m bored to death.”

Finian, slouched over on a wooden crate in the clearing, yawned as he spoke. He was in the same class as Rutger, and since they shared most of their courses, the two had quickly become friends.

“Aren’t you?”

Finian poked Rutger, looking for agreement, but Rutger wasn’t listening. Up until recently, Anita Rodel, who used to frequent his garden and act all friendly, seemed to be avoiding him for some reason.

“What does it matter?”

“Huh?”

Rutger muttered as he stared at the dirt beneath him. Shouldn’t it be a good thing that she was avoiding him? Anita Rodel was an annoying and bothersome neighbor, after all.

“Wait, why is that guy here?”

It wasn’t until Finian’s voice, laced with clear hostility, reached his ears that Rutger looked up. Among the group entering the clearing, one face was familiar.

The other guy seemed to recognize Rutger too. For a moment, the two of them exchanged sharp, assessing glares. Not wanting to admit defeat in the silent stare-off, Trey finally turned his head casually toward his own group and spoke up.

“You should’ve seen how that punk ran away.”

It seemed Trey had conveniently forgotten the fact that he had been lying on the ground when Rutger had left. As Rutger silently stared at him, Trey’s irritation grew, and he raised his voice even more.

“Did you hear? That punk’s dad isn’t his real father. Figures…”

“What did you say?”

Trey flinched. Just a moment ago, Rutger had been far away, but now he was suddenly right in front of him. The fierce gaze that locked onto Trey’s eyes brought back memories from long ago. He still couldn’t shake the frustration of remembering how Rutger had beaten him and left him sprawled on the ground like a fool.

“So what? Did I say something wrong?”

Trey, trying to cover his unease, puffed out his chest and faced Rutger.

“Go ahead, hit me.”

Of course, he didn’t mean it. But with so many eyes watching, backing down now would have been humiliating. Rutger stared at him with icy eyes before grabbing him by the collar.

“Hah! You really want to… Urgh!”

Rutger’s fist slammed into Trey’s face, leaving him in shock. Staggering, Trey clutched his cheek, his face frozen in disbelief at the unexpected blow.

“Hey, that’s enough. You’ve made your point.”

Finian, who had been watching with a calm expression, finally stepped in to stop him. Trey’s group, showing no loyalty to their friend, had already disappeared.

Despite Finian’s intervention, Rutger hooked Trey’s legs out from under him, sending him crashing onto the ground, landing hard on his backside.

“Are you crazy?”

Realizing he was at a disadvantage, Trey finally shouted in desperation.

“This is why people say things about you…!”

But Rutger paid no mind and stepped closer to the fallen Trey, ignoring his words.