Silence filled the room, save for the faint ticking of a clock on the wall. Marina had just excused herself to the restroom, leaving Izumi alone in her massive collection room.
Izumi leaned back against the couch, still overwhelmed by everything he had seen.
(Man… She really is a huge anime nerd.)
His gaze drifted around the room until his eyes landed once more on the locked cabinet—the only thing in the room that seemed out of place.
Curiosity gnawed at him. Why had she reacted so strangely when I asked about it?
Without thinking, he slowly got up and walked over to the cabinet. His fingers traced over the polished wooden surface before noticing something—the lock wasn't fully closed.
"…Should I? what if she will angry at me?" he muttered to himself.
A few seconds of hesitation passed before curiosity won over reason.
With a small push, the cabinet door creaked open.
Inside, he found something unexpected. Not more anime merchandise. Not figures. Not posters.
Instead, there were a few neatly stacked photo albums and... a diary.
Izumi's brows furrowed as he pulled out the album and opened it. The first picture showed a young Marina—no older than ten—standing beside her father, Ashford.
But what truly caught his attention was the woman standing next to them.
"Her… mother?" Izumi whispered.
The woman had the same silver hair and elegant features as Marina, but unlike Marina's usual composed expression, the woman in the picture looked almost... distant.
He flipped through the pages. There were more pictures—some with Marina smiling brightly, some with her at school, but something was off. In most of the school pictures, she was always alone.
His heart ached slightly.
(Is this what she meant when she said she never had real friends…?)
Then, his gaze landed on the diary.
Izumi hesitated. This was too personal… but at the same time, his hands moved on their own. He opened the first page.
"Elementary School - Year 1"
"Today I made my first friend! Or at least… I thought I did. She borrowed my new crayons, but then she stopped talking to me the next day. Maybe I did something wrong?"
"Elementary School - Year 3"
"Everyone says I'm lucky because I'm rich. They act nice to me, but I know it's fake. When I forget to bring something, no one helps me. But when they want something, they suddenly act like we're best friends."
Izumi clenched his fists. She was used.
He flipped to a page from middle school.
"Middle School - Year 2"
"I tried making friends again. They were nice to me at first. But then they started asking for money. I thought they liked me for me, but they only cared about my family's wealth. I heard them say behind my back, 'Just be nice to Marina, and she'll buy us whatever we want.' So… I stopped trusting people."
A sick feeling twisted in Izumi's stomach.
Then, he turned to the most recent entry—dated just a few months ago.
"High School - Year 1"
"I thought high school would be different, but it's the same. Everyone either fears me or wants something from me. No one truly cares. But then… I met him."
Izumi's heart pounded.
"Izumi. He's clumsy and awkward, but… he doesn't treat me like I'm some goddess. He talks to me like I'm a normal person. I don't know why, but when I'm around him… I feel at ease. Maybe… just maybe… I can trust someone again."
"Izumi."
A sharp voice made his blood freeze.
He turned his head slowly.
Marina stood in the doorway, her face pale, her eyes wide with disbelief.
She stared at the diary in his hands.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then, in an instant, she rushed forward and snatched the diary away.
"Wh-What are you doing?!" Her voice trembled.
"I—Marina, I—" Izumi struggled to find the words.
"You… you read it, didn't you?" Her hands clenched around the diary as she avoided his gaze.
Izumi swallowed hard. "...Yeah."
Marina bit her lip. "You weren't supposed to see that."
"I know."
"Then why?!" Her voice cracked slightly, her usual calm demeanor completely shattered.
Izumi hesitated before saying softly, "...Because I wanted to know the real you."
Marina's breath hitched.
They stared at each other for a long moment, the tension thick in the air.
Finally, Izumi spoke.
"Marina... what you wrote in there—what you went through—it wasn't fair."
Marina squeezed her eyes shut. "Stop."
"But—"
"I said stop!" Her voice wavered, her body trembling.
Then, tears began to fall.
"Izumi… I…" Her voice broke as she gripped the diary tightly against her chest. "Do you know how lonely it is? To have everyone only care about your money? To never know if someone truly cares about you…?"
She took a shaky breath. "My mother... was always busy. I only saw her once a year. My father loves me, but he's never around either. And the kids at school—they only saw me as a walking wallet."
Izumi felt his heart clench. "Marina…"
She sniffled, trying to wipe her tears, but they kept falling.
"But you..." She lifted her head, her blue eyes meeting his. "You're different. You never treated me like a rich girl. You never cared about my money, my status, my looks… You care about me."
Before Izumi could react, Marina suddenly threw herself into his arms.
"...Please," she whispered, her voice raw with emotion. "Please stay with me. I really need a true friend."
Izumi's eyes widened.
(that was too fast. she is completely different from the Marina I know. so this is what she was hiding for this long time in her inside.)
Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. "You're not alone anymore, Marina. I promise. I will never do anything like those people that you met in the past. "
Meanwhile… Outside the Room
Behind the door, Marina's bodyguards, maids, and butlers were huddled together, listening intently.
"…Whoa," one of the maids whispered.
One of the bodyguards rubbed his eyes. "Damn it, now I'm crying too."
Then, suddenly, a deep voice whispered behind them.
"Shhh."
The entire group froze and turned around slowly.
Standing there was Ashford—Marina's father.
Tears glistened in his usually cold, sharp eyes as he watched the door.
"...Let them be," Ashford whispered.
For the first time in a long while, he saw something he had never seen before in his daughter—
Genuine happiness.
The maids and bodyguards nodded silently before slowly walking away, leaving the two inside to their moment.
To be continued…