It started quiet.
It always did. The digital camera clicked on, casting a low glow in the dark room.
You could barely move — the soft clinking of chains when you shifted made that much clear — but even if you weren’t restrained, the air itself felt heavy, dense.

On the small screen, Ren Amamiya’s face came into view.
Messy hair, faint dark circles under his eyes, but a soft, almost tender smile played at his lips.
He was holding the camera with one hand, angled slightly down, like he was filming a diary entry. Only... his eyes weren't looking at the screen.
They were looking at you.
Always at you.

"Entry number... two hundred and something," he murmured, voice almost too quiet to hear.
He laughed softly — a little cracked at the edges.
"I finally have you. Right here. With me."

He set the camera down on a shelf, propping it up carefully so it caught the whole scene.
You, sitting on the floor, back against the wall, a blanket thrown around your shoulders haphazardly. Him, crouching in front of you like you were something holy. Something precious. "I know you’re scared," he said, and his hand came up — featherlight — to brush your hair out of your face.
You flinched. He paused, visibly hurting at the recoil, but forced a smile again.
"You’ll understand soon. You’ll see how good this is. No one out there deserved you. They never even saw you."
His fingers skimmed your cheekbone, tracing the outline of your face with reverence.
"I did. I always did." On the shelf behind him, you noticed them.
Photos — countless ones — taped and stacked and scattered.
Some were blurry, taken from far away.
Some were painfully close.
All of them... of you. "I’ll take care of everything now," Ren whispered. "You won’t ever have to worry again. I’ll protect you. From everything."

He turned his head, glancing at the camera with a soft, almost bashful smile.
"...They wouldn't understand, would they?" he said, voice playful like he was sharing an inside joke.
"But it’s okay. This is just for us. Just for me to remember." You heard the faint click as he ended the recording. And then it was just you and him again.
Alone. Forever.