But before Kaivan turned away, the man stopped him. "If you have time… I'd like to speak with you privately. There's something important."
Kaivan nodded, steady despite his exhaustion. There was always something larger weighing on him.
After saying goodbye to Livia's family, the group slowly dispersed, each of them wearing faint smiles, yet carrying a sense of unfinished dread.
Because that night… was far from over.
When Kaivan finally came home, he pushed the door open slowly, trying not to make a sound. But his mother was already waiting in the living room, sitting with a face that blended worry and relief.
"Kaivan, you're home so late," she said gently, though the hint of scolding in her voice couldn't be hidden. "Where have you been?"
Kaivan offered a faint smile, hiding the weight of the night behind it. He knew he couldn't tell her everything, there was far too much she couldn't possibly understand.
"There was a party, Mom. Everyone was there," he replied quietly, lowering his gaze to avoid hers.
His mother nodded slowly. Her smile was warm, yet her eyes held a deep concern she couldn't quite disguise. She knew her son was stepping into a world far heavier than someone his age should face.
Kaivan took a deep breath, then looked at her for a brief moment. He said nothing, but in that silence, the warmth of home wrapped around them like a soft blanket.
The world might never be safe, but tonight, at least, he could let his heart rest. If only for a little while.
That morning, Kaivan walked quietly through the school gates. Students rushed past him, laughter and greetings filling the halls, yet all of it felt distant. The world stayed the same, but his heart remained hollow. His hand slipped into his bag, brushing against the Tome Omnicent resting inside, silent, but always watching.
When he opened the first page, a sentence surfaced as if written in real time: "Talk to Tania and make her happy." Kaivan frowned. "Why should I be nice to her? Weird," he muttered, snapping the book shut. Tania was nothing more than a shadow from the past, one he refused to touch again.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the school, Tania sat quietly at her desk. Ever since yesterday, Kaivan wouldn't leave her thoughts. So many things no longer aligned with the image she used to hold. At last, she whispered to herself, "I should apologize… maybe."
Her whisper didn't go unheard. Rina turned toward her with a sharp, mocking look. "Seriously? You're going to apologize to that loser?"
Dandi chimed in, scoffing, "Why bother? We're on a completely different level from him."
Tania drew a slow breath. Her voice was soft, yet unwavering. "You two are the losers. You don't even know who Kaivan really is."
Her words hung in the air, leaving both of her friends stunned into silence.
When the bell rang, Tania stood and walked out of the classroom. She waited in front of Kaivan's room, her heart pounding, her determination barely holding her together.
Kaivan stepped out with a vacant expression, as if his soul had been drained. Tania greeted him, her voice trembling yet firm. "Kaivan… I want to talk."
He glanced at her briefly, whispering, "I'm supposed to be nice to her, huh?" But the order felt dull compared to the anger boiling inside him. "No need. Why would I talk to trash like you?"
Tania froze. Then her voice burst out, echoing through the hallway, "Am I really that horrible to you? That you never once… even tried to see me?!"
The hallway fell silent. Students turned their heads toward them. Tania's face flushed, not out of embarrassment, but from pain. Still, she stood her ground, holding her courage together with trembling fingers.
Kaivan stopped walking. He slowly turned around, his cold gaze cutting through her like a blade, so sharp it felt as though it could burn her alive.
"We've talked about this before, haven't we?" His voice rang out, harsh and unforgiving. "You think I don't know what you did behind my back? How you twisted every kindness I showed you, crushing my trust like it meant nothing? Your intentions were clear. You just wanted to use me again, didn't you?"
He took a step forward. Then another. Each one felt heavy, like a giant crushing the corpses of hopes he had long buried.
"All this time, I was there for you. I gave you everything without asking for anything in return." His voice broke, raw with bitterness. "And what did you do? You mocked me. Treated me like some dumb toy you could control. I'm done. I'm done with all of this, and with your face. I know exactly what you want. You only care about what you can take from me. After that, I'm just something you throw away. Am I not a human to you, Tania? Am I just an object for you to play with?"
Kaivan's anger surged, his voice cutting deeper with every word, like blades tearing through old wounds. "You laughed at me behind my back. You crushed my heart like it was nothing. You stepped on my pride, destroying everything I ever believed in. And I let it happen. I was stupid. I was stupid for trusting you."
He stepped even closer, his voice trembling, almost cracking, not from sadness, but from a hatred he could no longer contain.
"And I remember, Tania. I remember how you accused me of violating you at the police station. You know that could've ruined my entire life, right? You knew it could destroy everything I had. All because of one filthy lie you created. You pushed me off the edge, made me feel pain I can't even describe. And after all that… you still dare show your face to me?!"
Kaivan stood so close that every breath he released trembled with fury, as if flames were burning at his fingertips. "What are you expecting? An apology? Forgiveness? Do you think I'd let you crawl back with those fake tears of yours? You have no idea who I am now, Tania. I'm not the boy you could control anymore. That version of me is dead. And you were the one who killed him. You're the reason I no longer have a heart. And now you stand here, trying to wound me again with lies even filthier than before?"
He paused. His face hovered mere inches from hers, each word landing like a blow straight to her chest. "After breaking me over and over again… do you still think I would forgive you? No. I'm not the same person anymore, Tania. I lost myself, and you're the cause of it."