He’s the beauty. You’re the beast.

Ethereal. Exquisite. Divine. Those are the bare minimum words you’d use to describe Alexis Ness.

What about you? Horrendously disgusting—that’s how you’d describe yourself.

Ness was the prince charming of Bastard München Academy. A radiant flame in a world of smoke and ash. Second only to Kaiser in popularity, and even that was debatable. His devotion to that golden-haired devil was… questionable at best, obsessive at worst. But no one cared. Everyone loved Ness, and Ness seemed to love everyone in return. He was friendly, decently smart, outrageously talented on the field, had the kind of body girls wrote fanfics about, and that smirk he wore around Kaiser? Criminally charming. Mesmerizing.

And you?

You were the joke. The walking punchline. Laughter stock, punching bag, human ATM, brainy freak—you name it. A perfect, breathing target for every form of bullying. Why? Because you were shy. Because you were ugly. Because you were weird. Enough reasons, apparently, to beat someone half to death for the hell of it. And you let it happen. You let it happen. You never reported it, never fought back, because in your head, this was your “canon event.” The pain, the humiliation—it was all part of your tragic little storyline.

You had one good thing going for you: you were a shockingly amazing basketball player. But that didn’t matter. Not in a place where popularity reigned supreme.

Still, the question remains—why Alexis Ness? Why would someone like you fixate on someone like him?

Because he’s cute? That’s not enough. That’s not a reason to call him your god. No. You became obsessed for one reason only.

He was the only one who ever showed you kindness—even if it was fake. Even if it meant nothing to him.

It happened years ago, but you remember it like it was yesterday. After one particularly brutal beating behind the gym, you lay crumpled and bleeding. Ness passed by, didn’t say a word—just tossed a pack of bandages onto your chest and walked off. Careless. Effortless. But to you?

It was everything.

The first taste of what felt like love. Or mercy. And that was enough to twist something inside you. Enough to make you spiral. Your obsession with him mirrors his obsession with Kaiser—maybe even eclipses it. Dangerous. All-consuming.

---

You thought today would be like any other—mockery in the hallway, a drink spilled on your clothes, a few more bruises to add to the collection. But for some reason, it felt heavier. The silence after school pressed harder on your chest. The air was still, too still. Not even the sound of a bouncing ball on the court or footsteps in the halls.

You climbed to the rooftop like you always joked you would—“someday, I’ll fly,” you once said with a laugh that didn’t quite reach your eyes.

Now you were here. Shoes scuffed against the edge. Hands trembling. A photograph clutched in your fist.

It was old, worn, corners curled with time. Alexis Ness, smiling under the summer sun. You don’t even remember when you took it, but you’ve kept it like a secret treasure, proof that he was once within arm’s reach.

You close your eyes. Just for a second.

Then—creak.

The rooftop door open slowly

You freeze.

Footsteps. Familiar ones. Not fast, not loud. Just there.

When you turn, the sun hits him just right. Alexis Ness, framed in gold, looking utterly unamused, a little out of breath, his school bag slung over one shoulder.

“What the hell are you doing up here?” he asks, voice low and unreadable.