"They say fish only remember things for seven seconds. But I'm different. I'll protect you forever," Simone had said, teasingly calling me her princess.

That promise from our childhood was something only I remembered.

If the nine-year-old me had heard the 18-year-old Simone say, "I really wish you'd never been saved when you were nine. You should've just been left to die," he probably would've cried from the hurt.

But over the years, because of my hearing loss, I'd gotten used to people whispering behind my back.

So I accepted Simone's change in attitude without making a fuss.

After all, people changed as they grew up.

When I saved her back then, the Scott family had tried to make amends. Over the years, they'd given up nearly half of Scott Group's profits. That was already more than enough to show sincerity.

At the end of the day, we were even.

I was my own person, not someone's shadow, and I didn't need anyone else to survive.

So I looked up at my dad and said with certainty, "I've thought it through."

With my dad by my side, I changed my college plans from Movaia to Juville.

I thought I'd be up all night, but instead, I slept surprisingly well. I didn't wake up until almost noon. Still groggy, I instinctively checked my phone and found two new voice messages from Simone.

Her voice came through the speaker, edged with coldness.

"Justin, are you done throwing a tantrum? Unblock me already. You're an adult, stop pulling this childish crap.

"Ralph felt really guilty after you stormed out yesterday. He said he didn't know how to make it up to you. He even went up to the rooftop, threatening suicide. I barely managed to talk him down.

"There's still some time left in summer break. I'm planning to take him and a few friends to Hayville to go skiing and clear his head. Don't get jealous. Honestly, his suicide scare had something to do with you, too."

The sheer audacity of it made me laugh out loud in anger.

Ralph would never kill himself.

Back in school, he loved calling himself a real alpha male, always claiming he wasn't like those boring, studious guys.

No one had more dirty tricks than him.

For instance, four months ago, it was the birthday of my friend, Noland Lowe. He'd carefully picked out his outfit, set up the scene, and was ready to confess to the person he liked.

Ralph was the only one who refused to cooperate. The moment he entered the private room, he started cracking loud, suggestive jokes.

"Wow, Noland, you're really something. All that experience from dating, huh?

"Don't be shy. We're all friends here. What can't you say?"

When Noland got upset, he immediately raised his hands in mock surrender, then shifted the blame. "Seriously? You guys can't even take a joke?

"Fine, fine, my bad, okay? This is exactly why I don't like hanging out with you guys. Always so damn sensitive."

Another time, when everyone was grinding nonstop for the college entrance exams, exhausted to the bone, he went around snapping unflattering photos of people.

Then, he dumped them all into meme packs before posting them on the school confession page with a caption that read, "The heartthrob of our class. First come, first served."

It wasn't until everyone complained to the homeroom teacher that he finally backed off.

And I'd known for two years already that he joined the photography club as a "club assistant" just to get close to Simone.

I never took him seriously. Back then, I was arrogant. I believed that what was mine couldn't be taken so easily.

Now that he'd really taken her away, I accepted it.

It was my fault for misjudging people. It turned out I saved someone who never knew how to be grateful.

"Justin, if you have even a shred of conscience left, come apologize to everyone. Especially Ralph…"

Simone's messages kept popping up one after another.

I didn't even finish listening before I blocked and deleted her contact.

Outside my room, my mom was urging me to go shopping for winter clothes with her. "It gets pretty cold in Boraska. I'll take you to buy some thicker coats."

I nodded and agreed.

What I didn't expect was that after we finished shopping on the second floor of the mall and were about to leave, we ran straight into Simone and her group.

Among the seven or eight of them, Ralph stood out immediately in a black dress shirt.

He spotted me right away, walked over leisurely, and draped an arm around my shoulder as if we were close. "Justin. What a coincidence."

Ralph wiped at his eyes, though there weren't really any tears. "I felt guilty as hell about yesterday. I really did. I just didn't expect you to have such a bad temper. I treat Simone like one of the guys.

"Don't be mad, okay? It's all my fault.

"If I'd watched my boundaries, you wouldn't have left. Mrs. Gale, I was so overwhelmed with guilt that I nearly jumped off the roof, but please, don't blame—"

"Are you done?" My mom cut him off, her voice dripping with mockery. "Guys these days don't seem to know how to behave. Always acting like an innocent victim.

"My son didn't stoop to your level because we raised him to know his boundaries and not run his mouth. But what about your parents?

"You spend all day hanging out with groups of ladies. Do you even understand that there are boundaries between men and women? If your parents didn't teach you, then I will.

"Behaving like that? People online would call you… a total fake."

I laughed, then shoved him lightly and shot back, "You reek. And we're not close. Don't pretend we are."

Ralph froze on the spot. After taking in my mom's words, his eyes welled up instantly.

Yvonne Larkson immediately jumped in to defend him. "Mrs. Gale, do you have any manners? Ralph almost jumped off a building because of your son!"

I shot her a glance and remembered it clearly now. Yesterday, she was the one who said it didn't matter if I overheard. After all, no one would want a cripple, and Simone was generous enough to put up with me.

The thought made my stomach turn.

"Justin, I…"

Simone instinctively stepped toward me, reaching out as if to take my hand like she always did.

"Sim…"

At Ralph's soft call, and after seeing his teary eyes, Simone stopped. She pulled out a tissue to wipe his tears and couldn't help but say, "Mrs. Gale, what you said was too harsh. Ralph didn't do it on purpose.

"This whole thing was Justin throwing a tantrum, and it almost drove Ralph to harm himself. Ralph's still young. He just graduated from high school, only 19…"

"Only 19?" My mom raised an eyebrow, then smiled lightly. "If you call that young, then what about Justin who's only 18?

"They're both in the prime of their lives. Justin didn't do anything wrong, so how did he end up being framed as some villain who nearly drove someone to death?

"Simone, I still remember how you used to play with Justin when you were little, how you swore you'd protect him. But you've changed far too much. I'm truly disappointed in you."

Simone was left speechless. Even as she wiped Ralph's tears, her mind clearly wasn't in it anymore.

The others behind them probably couldn't think of any rebuttal either. No one spoke.

I found the whole thing pointless and reached for my mom to leave.

That was when Simone suddenly grabbed my wrist. She glanced down at the winter clothes in my shopping bags and said instinctively, "You don't need clothes this thick in Movaia…"

Then something seemed to click.

Her eyes lit up, and her grip tightened. "So that's it. You blocked me and threw this little fit, but you didn't mean it.

"You're getting winter clothes because you want to come skiing with us in Hayville, right?" She had convinced herself, and a small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "Alright, no more messing around. I'll book the tickets later. The flight is at 10:00 am tomorrow. We'll go together—"

"You're mistaken."

I yanked my hand free, interrupting her fantasy.

"I'm not going to Hayville with you. I'm going to Boraska. By the way, my hearing's been fine for a long time now."

The smug look on Simone's face vanished.