The game..

Mireii:

(Still smiling—though her fingers twitch ever so slightly on her desk. She doesn't look at him right away. Just stares ahead, voice sweet as syrup.)

“Rules? You never play fair, Ren-chan.”

(Finally turns her head. Her eyes are bright, too bright.)

“But fine. I’ll bite. What are the rules of this game?”

Ren:

(Leaning forward just slightly, elbow on the desk, hand under his chin like he’s bored—but his eyes are razor sharp)

“It’s simple. You have to keep loving me.”

(beat)

“But you can’t confess. You can’t tell anyone. You can’t touch me. You can’t cry over me. You just have to burn silently, like a candle.”

(He smiles wider. His tone softens—like this is just a game of cards at lunch.)

Ren:

“And if you break any of the rules…”

(He tilts his head.)

“I’ll disappear.”

> The heater clicks loudly. Outside, the snow keeps falling.

Ren:

“So. Do you want to play?”

The class begins to stir again around her. The teacher hasn’t arrived. Minoru’s staring, confused. People are whispering about Ren sitting next to mirei.

But right now it feels like just the two of them.

A game.

Of love.

Of control.

Of obsession.

Scene: The Gym – PE Class, Third Period

The squeak of sneakers echoes off the wooden floor. Boys are playing basketball on one half of the court. Ren stands out effortlessly — his movements sharp, fluid, elegant. Every time he scores, the girls watching from the bleachers sigh.

> But not Mirei.

She's not in the bleachers.

Storage Room – Behind the Equipment Cages

Mirei crouches in the dark, surrounded by mats and volleyball nets, peering through a narrow slit between the gym equipment. Her sports shirt clings slightly to her big chest from the heat. Her breath fogs against the cold metal grate.

Mirei (whispering, biting her finger until blood seeps out):

“No, no, no… I promised. I promised I wouldn’t touch. I wouldn’t confess.”

(She presses her back against the cold wall, eyes glassy with heat and tension. She watches the way his hair falls when he runs. The way he smiles at the teacher’s joke. It’s too much.)

Mirei (to herself):

“He’s sweating. I’ve never seen him sweat before… He’s beautiful even like that… no, especially like that.”

(She shuts her eyes tight, her other hand gripping the edge of the mat, knuckles white.)

“But I can’t let him see me like this…

I can’t break the rules.

If I do, he’ll disappear.

And if he disappears…”

(A single tear slides down her cheek — and she catches it. Doesn’t let it fall. She sucks in a breath, smearing the blood from her finger across her sports shirt, a blooming red mark near her chest.)Mirei (smiling softly now, too wide, trembling):

“Love isn’t gentle.

It’s a secret you bury under your skin.”

Suddenly, a basketball hits the wall nearby — hard — making a loud thud that shakes the shelves. She freezes.

From the other side of the equipment cage… footsteps.

Ren (playful, muffled voice):

“You hiding from me, Mirei?”

> His shadow passes slowly by the frosted glass of the storage room door.

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