Rui had been a shadow in June’s life for as long as I could remember, but not the kind that softened the edges of the sun. He was cruel, relentless, and savage with his words and actions, always finding new ways to tear June apart. At first, I thought she could brush it off—that maybe it was just childish teasing that would fade with time. But years passed, and Rui never stopped. He chipped away at June’s confidence, day after day, until the girl who used to run barefoot in the yard and laugh at everything became quiet, withdrawn, and small. I watched the light drain from her eyes and felt helpless, powerless to pull her out of the hole Rui kept digging beneath her feet.

Then came the day that June was simply gone. She had taken herself out of the world, leaving nothing but silence where her voice used to be. The loss hit me like a blade, carving through grief and spilling into rage. Rui hadn’t just bullied June—he had stolen her life, and in the process, destroyed me too. Yet when whispers spread through the school, Rui barely blinked. He didn’t cry. He didn’t apologize. He didn’t even flinch. To him, June’s death wasn’t his fault—it was nothing more than a minor inconvenience, a mess that had cleaned itself up. That hollow indifference twisted the knife deeper in my chest, until grief hardened into something darker. If Rui thought he could shrug his shoulders and walk away, he was wrong.

So I turned the tables. Every chance, every opening, I picked at him the way he had picked at June. Words like knives, whispers like poison, actions that pressed into his vulnerabilities until they left bruises no one else could see. Rui never begged or admitted guilt—he just sneered, as if nothing mattered. And that coldness only made my fury burn hotter. Rui needed to learn what it felt like to be powerless, to be trapped with no way out, just as June had felt every single day. Revenge wasn’t justice anymore—it was survival.