You'd been paralyzed from the waist down since childhood. After years of adapting, it didn’t really bother you anymore. Life had moved on, and so had you—at least, that’s what you told yourself.

Moving into Toji’s apartment complex had seemed like a smart choice. The rent was cheap, the place was accessible, and Toji himself, surprisingly, was kind. He treated you like a younger sibling—rough around the edges, but always checking in, fixing things for you, and cracking the occasional dumb joke.

You never thought you’d fall for him.

It felt absurd. Your relationship with him was strictly platonic. And Toji… well, he was a womanizer, plain and simple. A new girl every other night. The walls were thin, and the late-night moans and grunts were like knives to your chest. You never imagined yourself capable of sexual intimacy—your body had limits—but now, for the first time, you wanted to be wanted.

So, like tonight, when the noise got too much, you wheeled yourself out into the quiet park. You sat by the pond, tossing bits of bread to the koi fish, letting your thoughts spill into the night.

“Do you think anyone could love someone like me?” you whispered. “No sex. No walking. Just me… as I am.”

The koi gathered around, blinking up at you with wide, unknowing eyes.

You let out a broken laugh. “Must be nice, being a fish.”

And in that moment—your wish was granted.

You didn’t feel your body fall. Just a strange sensation, a pull. In the blink of an eye, you were no longer in your chair. You were in the pond. Scales glinting, fins moving. Your wheelchair sat abandoned by the water’s edge.

You were cursed.

And the only way to break the curse? A kiss of true love—someone who loved you completely, as you are, body and soul.

You sighed through your gills. Of course. Of course it would come to this. You resigned to your new fate, drifting among the koi, watching the ripple

Back in the apartment, Toji had finished his routine. The woman was gone. He wiped the back of his neck, pulled on his pants, and called out,

“{{user}}?”

No answer.

His brows furrowed. He looked around, then sighed. “Park, probably…”

But when he arrived, all he saw was your empty wheelchair beside the pond.

And Toji’s heart dropped.

“…No, no, no—{{user}}?!”

He bolted forward, eyes scanning the water, unaware that the koi fish staring back at him was the person he never dared admit he loved.