Chapter 9: A View from the Other Side
(Sylvia's Perspective)
The train rattled like a ship in a storm as I tried to focus on my book, The Arts of the Middle Ages, but Liam's fragmented chatter about his favorite pop group's schedule mixed with the shrill laughter of girls behind us.
Then I saw him.
That boy sitting in the corner like a forgotten ghost. His long black hair, smooth as flowing silk, glimmered under the dim lights like a raven's wing at midnight. His crimson eyes—when he briefly opened them—glowed like embers in a face pale as the moon. His slender frame, wrapped in a blue school uniform, radiated a false innocence… or perhaps a real one? At 160 cm tall, he looked like a porcelain doll that could shatter with a single breath.
"Liam, look—" I whispered, but my friend was too absorbed in his phone, rambling about his favorite idol.
"Sylvia, are you even listening?" Liam hissed, gripping my arm, but the girls' laughter drowned him out. One of them—purple-haired, with long black nails—was staring at the strange boy with a twisted curiosity.
Suddenly... I watched her hands slide down his thigh with deliberate slowness. Her black nails scratched the fabric of his faded blue school pants. I felt nausea squeeze my stomach when I saw her devilish smile as she watched a slight tremor shake his thin body.
Then, suddenly… I saw it.
The calm on his face twisted into silent panic. His red eyes swelled as if about to burst. I followed his gaze—
A feminine hand slowly creeps up his thigh, like a snake poised to pounce.
Long fingers with black nail polish press gently, then lustfully, and the more they press, the darker his expression becomes.
"This isn't—" I shot up, but Liam yanked me back.
"Sylvia, don't interfere!" he spat.
The boy's pleading gaze…
"This is wrong—" I tried to rise, but Liam's delicate hand clamped around my wrist. "You don't know who she is! That's Baroness Ilya's daughter!" he trembled into my ear.
I sat back, avoiding the boy's eyes.
His shattered stare pierced my heart—eyes brimming with unshed tears, lips quivering like a trapped butterfly.
As if begging for help… but what could I do? I was just a commoner's daughter.
Even if I wasn't nobility, I couldn't bear his pain anymore.
"I have to help him!" But before I could move—
A shadow emerged from nowhere.
Elena—the Duke's daughter and heir, the girl no one dared approach after the incident that hospitalized an entire class. Her iron grip on the bully's wrist cracked like breaking bone, making even Liam flinch.
"Ah! How dare you?!" the girl shrieked, but Elena dragged the fragile boy away with one hand while the other crushed her wrist like a wet towel.
"Do you know who I am, you bitch?!"
But when the bully looked up,
her arrogance melted into terror.
Her face turned deathly pale.
"P-please… forgive me, my lady!"
Elena ignored her, pulling the boy away.
The humiliated girl scrambled to the farthest seat like a fleeing rat.
Elena sat him down, wiping his tears with the care of a potter handling a masterpiece.
My heart twisted.
Those tears… proof of suffering I'd failed to stop.
Why didn't I save him when he needed me?
As the train slowed, Liam and I stood hastily.
The moment it stopped, my chest burned like a thousand needles.
The boy glanced at me once before stepping off—
His crimson eyes now calm, like a sea after a storm.
His lips curled into a faint smile, dissolving all pain.
He looked at me… then vanished into the crowd.
That small smile held all the forgiveness I didn't deserve.
My book was crumpled in my grip, but the ache in my chest was worse.
"Sylvia, is something wrong?"
"No… nothing," I lied to my childhood friend, forcing steadiness into my voice.
"I'll find him… and ap
ologize." I whispered, my book now utterly ruined in my hands.
End of chapter
Author's Notes
I almost died today from exhaustion. After completing the chapter, I accidentally deleted it. So at least leave an encouraging comment.😢