White gently placed the breakfast tray onto Miss Elsa's bedside table.
She was sitting upright in bed, her delicate frame softly outlined by the amber morning light filtering through the thin lace curtains. The stark hospital walls had finally been exchanged for the familiar comfort of her own room, but the atmosphere remained heavy with a quiet, devastating shift.
"Here you go, Big Sis. Your morning breakfast," White said softly, forcing a cheerful rhythm into his voice. "You're absolutely going to love it."
"Ah… Thank you, White," Elsa replied. Her voice was perfectly calm, carrying a faint, polite warmth that made his chest ache with a dull, persistent pain.
"Don't mention it at all. And remember, you can call out to me anytime if you need absolutely anything." He managed to hold a small, reassuring smile on his face before turning around to leave her apartment room.
It had been three days since Elsa had miraculously awakened from her deep coma—a turn of events that defied every medical standard known to the hospital staff. The specialized doctors had given her survival chances close to zero percent, yet here she was. Alive. Breathing. Fighting to recover her strength.
But the memory that had led her to cross that university barrier and jump remained an empty, dark void. It was a completely blank space where over a decade of shared fragments, struggles, and family history with White should have been securely anchored.
The cruel, unyielding price of White's desperate wish was now devastatingly clear: Elsa survived the lethal fall, but she did not remember him. Not a single word, not a single memory, not a single milestone.
She recognized Zen instantly, yes. But White's name was nothing more than an unfamiliar stranger to her lips.
White felt the crushing weight of that sudden silence every single time they tried, with extreme gentleness, to poke at her lost memories. Elsa, being naturally kind-hearted, apologized endlessly to him for forgetting—as if her inability to remember his face was a terrible crime she had actively committed against him.
Eventually, realizing the sheer psychological toll it was taking on her, they let the matter drop entirely. A fragile, broken peace settled over the household. It was infinitely better that she was here in the living world, White reasoned, even if she had completely forgotten the little brother who had lived for her smile alone.
Zen and Shu had become absolute pillars at Elsa's bedside over the last seventy-two hours. They visited her constantly between their classes, their intense concern for her well-being never fading for a second.
Elsa's physical wounds were healing remarkably well, but the hollow gap left behind in her memory… it ached all the more in the quiet hours of the night.
And Bell—ever radiant, ever oblivious to the existential tragedy surrounding them—brought a desperate light to the dark apartment. Her bright laughter and innocent, energetic chatter spread like pure sunshine through every single room she entered. In a way, she was the very reason Elsa was still breathing. She was the miraculous gift manifested from Aisha that kept White's hope alive.
White felt an endless, profound wave of gratitude for both of them, even as his own heart remained entirely heavy, locked away in his chest.
As he crossed the threshold to leave for his own room, a soft, echoing sound from the concrete stairwell stopped him dead in his tracks.
"Waaaaaittttt!"
He swung the apartment door wide open, and there she stood—a girl with flowing, raven-black hair and piercing blue eyes, dressed in her school uniform and clutching a massive, heavily packed canvas bag tightly against her chest.
"Phew! I made it just in time," she gasped out, a relieved, bright grin breaking across her face.
"Aris?" White asked, a thick thread of surprise running through his voice.
"The one and only," she declared proudly, her blue eyes sparkling with an immediate sense of familiar mischief. "I came straight from home this morning to deliver this to Elsa. The doctor said she needs plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables to recover, so I personally brought her these."
She leaned forward and handed him the heavy bag. It was completely filled to the brim with colorful produce, looking incredibly vibrant and smelling intensely fragrant.
"You know, it's completely unfair that you and my brother wouldn't let me see Big Sis at the hospital," she pouted, crossing her arms tightly over her uniform.
White chuckled softly, the tension in his shoulders dropping slightly. "Miss Elsa needs her absolute rest, Aris. If you saw her right now…"
Aris's eyes widened with a dramatic flash of mock horror. "Are you trying to say I'd be an absolute trouble to her?"
"No, no, of course not. You can see her a bit later. Right now, she's right in the middle of having her breakfast."
"Fine!" Aris grinned, her playful nature returning in an instant. "White, you're heading out to school right now, aren't you? I'll wait for you—go get ready quickly."
"I will," he said, a genuine smile touching his lips. "Don't just stand out there in the hallway; come wait in the living room. I'll be ready in a few minutes."
Her blue eyes twinkled with a sudden, mischievous energy. "Oh? Inviting a girl directly into your room? Do you perhaps like me that much, White?" she teased, letting out a sharp, giggling laugh.
White rolled his eyes toward the ceiling, feigning an immense amount of annoyance. "I'm actively closing the front door now."
"Wait, wait, wait! Don't you dare close it—I'm coming in!"
He let out a dramatic sigh, opening the door wider to allow her entry into the apartment.
Inside, Bell was sitting squarely on the living room floor, her small body completely absorbed in a colorful children's television show flashing across the screen.
"You still watch stuff like this, White? Seriously, grow up. You're a high school student now," Aris chided him with a playful, superior smirk as she looked at the cartoon.
Bell, hearing the voice, looked between the two of them with intense curiosity, her red eyes locked onto Aris before shifting back to White, silently asking her "Papa" for a proper explanation.
"Ah, well… Yes, I happen to really enjoy this show. Can you please keep it a total secret from the rest of the class?" he asked, putting on a hopefully desperate expression.
Aris tapped her chin, considering the request for a long moment, before White decided to strike an immediate bargain. "I'll treat you to some ice cream after school. Do we have a deal?"
She grinned victoriously. "I'd vastly prefer that brand-new café that just opened up near the school gates."
White let out a defeated sigh but nodded his head. "Alright, fine. It's a deal."
Turning away from Aris, he leaned down and whispered softly to Bell, pretending to turn off the television set so Aris wouldn't suspect anything strange. "Bell, head over to the bedroom for a moment; I'll be there in just a second."
Bell nodded her head eagerly, scrambling off the floorboards and running into the back room.
"Aris, please make yourself completely at home. If you need a drink or anything, feel entirely free to use the fridge. I'll be back shortly."
She offered him a bright smile and settled comfortably onto the living room couch as White made his way into his bedroom.
Bell was sitting quietly on his mattress, her wide, innocent red eyes completely filled with an abundance of unspoken questions.
"Papa, who exactly is she? Is she a friend of yours?" she asked softly, her small voice tilting up at the end.
"Yes," White replied gently, walking over to his closet to grab his school uniform jacket. "Her name is Aris. She's the younger sister of Zen—the guy with the bright yellow hair who came to see Elsa at the hospital. She's also a junior at our school."
Bell's small face instantly brightened with a clear sense of understanding.
"Now, for the real question," White said, stopping in front of her and looking down at her small form with deep affection, "what exactly am I going to do with you today?"
Bell tilted her head thoughtfully, waiting for him to continue.
"It's definitely not wise to leave you alone in the apartment, especially since Aisha hasn't been appearing much lately," White reasoned, thinking back to the silver-haired specter's warnings. "How about you come along to school with me today?"
Bell's sudden excitement was entirely infectious. She bounded up on the mattress, her arms raising into the air. "Yay! School with Papa!"
Together, White quickly packed his textbooks into his school bag, and the three of them set off out the door. Their morning walk through the suburban streets was filled with a constant stream of laughter and bright chatter, though Aris unfortunately had to abruptly dash back to her house halfway through the trip to retrieve an assignment she had entirely forgotten on her desk.
As White approached the massive iron school gates alone with Bell trailing beside him, he noticed a unfamiliar girl standing near the stone pillar. She was actively greeting passing students, a sly, knowing smile playing across her lips. White thought he had briefly seen her face somewhere before in passing, but his exhausted mind couldn't recall the exact location. Still, he felt a profound sense of relief that absolutely no one else on the street could see Bell—it made bringing her onto campus infinitely easier.
He glanced down toward Bell, who looked back up at him with a vibrant excitement clearly shining across her face.
But the exact moment he stepped past the threshold of the entrance, the girl by the pillar suddenly called out, her voice sharp and distinct.
"Whi…te? Right?"
He froze, turning his head slowly as his eyes locked directly into hers. "Did you… want something from me?" he asked hesitatingly.
An instantaneous, freezing chill ran straight down White's spine. His pulse began to hammer frantically against his ribs. Why on earth does she give me the exact same feeling as Aisha? Her presence… it's heavy. It's so incredibly heavy that my hands are starting to shake.
"You know, bringing a small child onto school grounds isn't exactly permitted by the school board rules," she said smoothly, her lips pulling into a mysterious, highly amused smile. Her short, pristine white hair caught the morning sun, and her deep, piercing brown eyes made her presence feel entirely unforgettable.
White froze completely in place, a massive jolt of profound shock running through his entire nervous system. "I… I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about," he replied, his voice tightening defensively.
Can she actually see Bell? his mind screamed in absolute panic. But how is that even possible? That doesn't make any sense. Up until this exact second, absolutely no one in the world but me has been able to lay eyes on her. Then how… how does she know?
The white-haired girl brought a delicate hand up to her mouth, letting out a sharp, piercing giggle that echoed against the stone pillars.
"Well, well, well… it truly feels like I've just caught a sneaky little rat who was trying to steal the school's cheese."
Her sharp, brown eyes flicked deliberately behind his waist, focusing entirely on the empty air where the little girl stood. "The small girl right there. The one with the white hair and the crimson eyes."
White's breath caught completely in his throat, the air turning to ice in his lungs. "How…? How can you possibly see Bell?" he stammered out, his voice trembling violently with a volatile mix of absolute disbelief and desperate curiosity.
She offered a slow, decisive nod, her dark brown eyes gleaming with a deep, secret understanding of the universe. "Yes, I can see her perfectly clear. Are you surprised, White?"
Her knowing, heavy smile suggested a terrifying depth of knowledge hidden far beneath the surface of her student exterior, and White realized with absolute certainty that their meeting at the gates this morning was no random coincidence.
"Who the hell are you?" he asked, his heart pounding like a trapped bird against his chest.
She stepped closer, closing the distance between them. Her presence felt both immensely commanding and entirely enigmatic, wrapping around him like a suffocating fog.
"Let's just say I happen to possess a very special gift," she whispered, her eyes locking into his. "The unique ability to see exactly what the rest of the world cannot. And this little girl beside you… Bell is absolutely no exception to my sight."
An absolute, paralyzing shiver ran straight down White's spine.
This girl was a complete, dangerous mystery… and with a sinking feeling in his chest, White realized he had just been forcibly drawn directly into her world.