Sae 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ

You realized something was wrong when Sae stopped looking you in the eyes while speaking to you.

"— Shall we train together today? —" you asked one afternoon, walking beside him.

"—Then—" he replied, without turning around. "—I arranged to meet with Eli."

That was not the answer.

It was the naturalness with which she said it.

You nodded. "Ah... okay."

During training, you saw them laughing. Eli spoke quickly and enthusiastically, and Sae listened intently, leaning slightly closer, as if every word mattered. You tried to remember the last time he had looked at you like that.

"—Sae, can you hand me the bottle?" you said from the bench.

He took a while to reply, "What?"

"Nothing...forget it," you said, getting up to look for her alone.

Eli glanced at you. "Is everything alright?" she asked.

"—Yes —"you smiled—. Always.

That night, in the room, the silence weighed more than any argument.

"—Sae—" you finally said. "Is there something wrong with me?"

He frowned, annoyed. "Why do you say that?"

"—Because you don't talk to me anymore. Because you don't look at me anymore." Because I feel alone even when you're here.

Sae sighed. "You're exaggerating."

Those two words hurt you more than you expected.

"I don't want to fight," you whispered. "I just... want to know if you still care about me."

Sae didn't answer right away. He looked away, uncomfortable. "This isn't the time for this."

You lowered your gaze.

That's when you understood everything.

"—Okay —"you said—." Sorry."

But it wasn't right.

And it wasn't your fault.

When Sae left the room to meet Eli, you sat on the bed, your hands trembling.

"I exist," you murmured. "Even though you can't see me... I'm still here."