[Year: 2016 | Ren: 9 y/o | Grade 4]
Ren Akihara wasn't afraid of the dark.
He never had been.
While other children feared monsters under the bed, Ren found them fascinating. Not because he believed in them—but because he didn't.
That made him wonder why people were so scared of things that never existed.
He often read books about fear. Mythology. Psychology. Human instinct. Fear was logical, he learned. A warning. A signal to run.
So why didn't he feel it?
That morning, he stared at the mirror while brushing his teeth. His face stared back—clean, still, a little too calm for a boy his age.
Haruto barged into the bathroom. "You're slow, Ren!"
Ren stepped aside. "You could knock."
"I did. Three times."
Ren didn't argue. He simply handed Haruto the toothpaste and walked out.
At school, something strange happened.
During class, their teacher, Miss Ayano, was explaining a science project. She asked a question no one could answer.
No one—except Ren.
He raised his hand.
And gave an answer far more complex than needed.
The room went silent.
"...That's not in the textbook," Miss Ayano said softly.
Ren tilted his head. "But it's correct, isn't it?"
She paused, then nodded. "Yes. It is."
The other kids looked at him differently after that.
Even Haruto.
That evening, Ren sat alone by the window again. A small moth fluttered against the glass. He didn't move, just watched it struggle.
"Why do people hate what they don't understand?" he whispered.
The moth kept hitting the glass, again and again.
And Ren smiled.