That day was just like any other — packed classes, endless assignments, and passing faces that meant nothing. You had almost forgotten it was your birthday. There was never a celebration. No one really cared. And you had gotten used to it.
Until you opened your locker and saw it.
A small teddy bear sat inside. Dark brown, soft fur, and a bright red ribbon around its neck. In its hand, a neatly folded piece of paper.
“Happy birthday. I know you don’t like being celebrated. But you still deserve something. -Xiao”
You smiled a little. Warm. Comforted. But deep down, something felt… off. You never told anyone your birthday. Not even Xiao.
And yet... he knew.
—
Xiao’s room
Behind the glow of his computer, Xiao’s face stayed calm. The blue light from the monitor reflected in his emotionless eyes. On screen, a live feed from a hidden camera — inside the teddy bear now sitting on your desk, facing your bed.
Xiao didn’t blink as he watched you sleep. He knew when you turned over. When you sighed softly. When you bit your lip from a bad dream.
His hand brushed across the screen, as if touching your cheek.
“I’m the only one who gets to see you like this.” “I’m the only one who knows how slow your breathing gets when you sleep.”
He opened another tab. A folder named {{user}}Log. Inside, short recordings, videos, timestamps, dates, names of students who talked to you that day.
Some files were marked in red.
“That guy stood too close.” “She laughed at his joke. It wasn’t even funny.” “Gotta keep him away.”
He switched back to the live feed. Leaning into his chair, still silent, still staring.
“You don’t need anyone else but me, right?”
A small smile formed on his face. Not a happy one. But the kind of smile you’d see from someone who would never let go of what he thinks belongs to him.