Chapter 1: The Star That Answered

The hill behind Fujisawa Academy was the best place to watch the stars—or at least, that’s what Hikari’s grandmother had always said.

Hikari Aizawa tightened her scarf against the autumn chill, her breath fogging in the air as she climbed the familiar path. The grass whispered under her shoes, damp with evening dew. At the top stood a single wooden bench, its paint peeling from years of wind and rain. She traced the carved initials on the armrest—her grandmother’s.

*"Make a wish, Hikari. The stars listen better here."*

Her chest ached. Three years since Grandma’s passing, and the hollow space she left still hadn’t filled.

Hikari tilted her head back. The sky was clear tonight, a sprawling canvas of silver pinpricks. She fumbled with the star pendant around her neck—her grandmother’s last gift—and whispered the words she’d choked on for months:

*"Will I ever be loved? Or am I meant to be invisible forever?"*

A streak of light blazed across the heavens.

A shooting star.

Hikari’s breath caught. She squeezed her eyes shut, wishing so hard her ribs hurt. When she opened them again, the world looked... different.

Faint silver threads glowed in the air, connecting people below the hill—students walking home, couples holding hands. One thread, brighter than the rest, linked a laughing girl to a boy carrying groceries.

*What... is this?*

A sharp voice shattered her daze.

*"You’re blocking the path."*

Hikari spun around. A tall boy stood behind her, his black hair messy under the streetlamp’s glow. A single silver streak framed his scowling face.

Ren Kurosawa.

The school’s most infamous delinquent.

Her pulse spiked. Rumors about him ranged from *"he punched a teacher"* to *"he’s in a motorcycle gang."* Up close, he just looked... tired.

*"S-Sorry,"* Hikari stammered, scrambling aside.

Ren’s gaze flicked to the sky, then back to her. *"You here to stargaze?"*

*"Y-Yes."*

*"Hmph."* He shouldered past her—but not before Hikari saw it.

A shimmering silver thread, trailing from Ren’s wrist.

Her stomach dropped as she followed its path—not to her, but to the girl at the bottom of the hill.

Aya Fujisaki. Student council vice president. Perfect, popular, everything Hikari wasn’t.

The thread pulsed, bright as a heartbeat.

Hikari’s fingers curled into fists.

*So even the stars think I’m not enough.*

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