Although Axel swore to avoid going out of character, there was still one very important thing he forgot.
"Are you free after school?" Mico asked as they exited class.
"For what?" he replied, already mentally juggling twelve more important things.
"To check out the garage ahead of time."
Ah. Right.
The rich boy kidnapping scheme.
"Oh, that. Sure."
And just like that, after class ended, Axel followed Mico out of the academy. Two kids walking together, one beautiful, one dangerous, both headed straight for the middle of nowhere.
But unbeknownst to Axel, someone was watching.
Selene Asper came to a dead stop. Her heels clicked once on the polished floor, then silenced entirely. Landon, who'd been dutifully trailing after her like a duckling on caffeine, nearly collided into her back.
"Selene?" he asked.
She didn't answer.
Because there, just outside the school gates, was Axel.
Her Axel.
And next to him?
Mico Valeine.
Selene didn't even dislike her, really. They'd exchanged social smiles at parties, shared idle conversations about sponsors, stock portfolios, the usual. Both came from powerful families. Both knew how to wield words like daggers.
But this?
Why was she with Axel?
Did he reject Selene just to go hang out with her?
…Was this a date?
Why did her brain jump there so fast?
Calm down, she told herself. Don't be crazy.
But her legs didn't agree. They started walking, slow at first, then faster. Like gravity itself was dragging her forward.
The car door shut.
The engine revved.
Axel and Mico pulled away into the distance, unaware.
"Where are you going?!" Landon yelled behind her, his voice cracking.
Selene didn't answer. She didn't even turn around. She just… walked.
She needed air. Or clarity. Or maybe just to not think about the fact that her childhood best friend was with a pretty girl that wasn't her.
Axel, meanwhile, was getting driven to the absolute middle of nowhere.
Literally.
No landmarks. No signals. Just open land, the occasional haunted-looking tree, and a garage that seemed like it had been rejected by time itself. The kind of place that even ghosts would avoid for being too cliché.
They arrived.
Axel stepped out of the car and took in the building. Rusted walls, a half-collapsed roof, a field of dead weeds growing like unwanted memories. Lovely.
He entered and was immediately greeted by several people in black robes and deep purple masks. Each one had a stylized crow design etched into the front, with eye slots glowing violet like someone had installed cursed LEDs.
"Is this a cult?" Axel asked.
He wasn't even being sarcastic. Mostly.
"I prefer the term organization," Mico replied, brushing a speck of dust off her shoulder. "We can't exactly be showing off our real faces."
Axel blinked. "Fair. Where's mine?"
"Come on," she said, leading him to a corner chest that looked like it hadn't been opened in many moons.
Inside were robes and masks.
Axel slipped one on.
The fabric was surprisingly soft. Not heavy, either. The mask filtered his vision with some kind of mana-tech, making the world look like a game HUD. Interesting, but a little disorienting.
He took it off. Real eyes were better.
As he looked around, one detail caught his attention.
"Where's Yanin?" he asked.
"She couldn't make it. Last minute family implications."
"Damn." He didn't press. "So, what now?"
"Familiarize yourself. Pick a hiding spot for the ambush."
Axel nodded and wandered off. The garage was big. Old. The air smelled like oil and damp metal. Empty crates were stacked like forgotten memories. It was exactly the kind of place you'd find a horror protagonist making bad decisions.
"Axel!" a cheerful voice called out.
Rodrick.
Average face, average energy, above-average enthusiasm. No mask, unfortunately.
"Hi," Axel said, pulling out his signature customer service smile. The one reserved for nosy neighbors, annoying classmates, and now, Rodrick.
"Are you looking around?"
No shit.
"Yeah. Figuring out where to hide," Axel replied instead.
"Celestia said the ambush starts near the middle. I already picked my spot! Want to come see?"
Axel was already regretting his life choices, but he nodded anyway. "Sure."
Rodrick led him to a spot near the back wall.
A closet.
A closet.
And everything, everything, stopped.
Axel's breath caught. His chest tightened.
No. No, no, no.
The shape. The size. The door. The way it leaned crookedly to the left. It was exactly like the one he'd been locked in.
Exactly like the one where Kai had died.
No air. No food. Just darkness and the faint scent of mold. Just that suffocating feeling as his fists pounded on wood until his strength gave out.
"Axel?" Rodrick's voice sounded miles away. "Are you okay?"
"[Aura of a God]," Axel whispered.
Emotion vanished.
Thoughts flattened.
His eyes dulled to a hollow, blank calm.
Rodrick didn't notice.
Of course he didn't. Too busy being proud of his brilliant hiding spot.
Coward. Hiding in a closet instead of facing the fight. Was he hoping Axel would stand in front of him? Shield him like some glorified meat shield?
Axel turned off the skill.
The cold silence in his mind shattered and the panic tried to crawl back in.
He didn't let it.
"It's too cramped for both of us. I'll keep looking," he said, voice sharp and clean.
Before Rodrick could answer, Axel walked away.
Far from the closet. Far from the memory.
Eventually, he found another spot.
It didn't matter where.
He just needed distance.
When the walkthrough was done, he got in Mico's car and rode back to school in silence.
Neither of them spoke.
And Axel didn't look back.
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