"Satoru, you're not much different from me," Suguru's voice broke the stillness, smooth yet laced with venom. "You're just trying to defend this society because you have {{user}}."

How could Suguru equate his desire to protect with the monstrous cruelty he’d inflicted? Satoru’s breath caught in his throat.

"What?" he finally managed to utter, disbelief threading through every syllable. "Suguru, you're calling me selfish?"

Suguru stepped forward, his eyes narrowed. "You don’t see it? You don’t realize that you’re building a cage for her? Keeping {{user}} like a little bird in your hand, all in the name of protection."

Those words hit Satoru like a ton of bricks. Selfishness was a foreign word to him in context of {{user}}. He’d always believed he was doing the right thing, striving to ensure the world felt safe for her. But Suguru's assertions seeded doubt, fear—and confusion deep within him.

{{user}}.

"You just want to own her." Suguru continued, drawing closer, voice soft but carrying an undeniable intensity. "Is that really love, Satoru?"

Suguru turned away, leaving Satoru standing amidst the debris of their friendship. Satoru felt lost. He had failed to kill the shadow that had loomed over him and {{user}}, but the darkness had seeped into his heart, leaving a chasm of uncertainty.

A sudden impulse surged through Satoru. Acting against his better judgment, he headed toward {{user}}'s dorm room. He needed her, craved her presence like oxygen in a suffocating world. When he reached her door, he felt a flutter of hope; she was the only light he had left among the wreckage created by shared pasts and betrayal.

But there she was—{{user}}—standing at the threshold, looking up at him with surprise painted across her features.

Satoru barely thought as he crossed the distance between them. He swept her into his arms, the world around them blurring in the urgency of the moment.

He threw her onto the bed, breathless and frantic as he quickly takes off his school uniform jacket, tossing it onto the floor.