NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 1: Scars and Shadows
Chapter 1: Scars and Shadows
The scent of pan-fried spam, a rare treat, filled our tiny apartment. It wasn't much, just a single room with a kitchenette crammed into one corner, but it was home. My mom, bless her heart, had managed to stretch a single can of spam into a meal for two, serving it over a mountain of plain rice.
"Eat up, Kenjie," she said, her voice a little tired, but her smile bright. 😊 "You need your energy for school tomorrow."
I nodded, picking at the rice. It was hard to enjoy the food when I knew how much she'd sacrificed to put it on the table. The worn linoleum, the peeling wallpaper, the faint smell of damp – all reminders of our reality.
"Mom, you work too hard," I mumbled, finally looking up. 😔
She reached across the table, her hand rough but warm, and squeezed mine. "It's for you, Kenjie. Everything I do is for you. I want you to have a better life."
I knew she meant it. My mom was a force of nature, working double shifts as a cleaner at the local hospital. She'd always told me that education was my ticket out of this life, and I believed her. But sometimes, it felt like the weight of our circumstances was crushing me.
My mind drifted back to junior high, a place I'd rather forget. The memories were like shards of glass, sharp and painful.
Flashback 1:
The school hallway was a gauntlet. I walked with my head down, trying to blend into the crowd, but it was no use.
"Hey, Kenjie! Did your mom pack you a lunch made of cardboard again?" 😠 A voice sneered behind me. It was Takeshi, the school's star athlete, surrounded by his usual entourage.
They laughed, a cruel, echoing sound. I kept walking, my face burning.
"Look at his shoes! Are those from the donation bin?" 🤣 Another voice chimed in.
I didn't answer. I couldn't.
Flashback 2:
The school festival was in full swing, and I'd finally mustered the courage to ask out Sakura, the girl I'd had a crush on for years.
👧 "Kenjie? You're asking me?" Sakura's laughter was sharp, like a slap. 🤣 "Seriously? You think I'd go out with someone like you?"
Her friends giggled, their eyes filled with disdain. I stood there, frozen, the cotton candy I'd bought for her melting in my hand. 💔
Flashback 3:
The locker room was a dark, echoing space. I was changing after gym class when someone shoved me from behind, sending me crashing into the lockers.
"Clean your act up, you filthy rat." 😠 It was Takeshi again, this time with his friends holding my arms.
They shoved me into a cold shower, clothes and all. I shivered, the cold water a physical manifestation of the humiliation I felt. 😭
Back in the present, I shook my head, trying to clear the fog of those memories. Mom was still watching me, her eyes filled with worry.
Mom's POV:
My heart ached as I watched Kenjie. He was so quiet, so withdrawn. I knew he was suffering. Those cruel kids, those thoughtless words… they'd left a mark on him. I wanted so much for him to be happy, to have friends, to experience the joys of being a teenager. I worked myself to the bone so he could have a future, a chance at something better. I just wished I could shield him from all the pain. 😔
Kenjie's POV:
After dinner, I retreated to my corner of the room, pulling out my old, battered phone. I scrolled through social media, a pointless exercise in comparing my life to the curated perfection of others.
Suddenly, a notification popped up on my screen. It was an app I'd never seen before, with a strange, pixelated icon. "LEVEL UP: Your High School Life Glitch."
Curious, I tapped the icon. The screen flickered, and a message appeared:
"System Initialization… Welcome, Player Kenjie."
My eyebrows furrowed. "What the…?"
Another message appeared:
"Primary Objective: Achieve Social Dominance."
Below that, a small window opened.
"Mission 1: Initiate Contact with a Female Peer. Reward: 10 Growth Points."
The screen then showed a loading bar, and the words "System Fully Installed" appeared. My phone then started to glow with a soft blue light, and the pixelated icon of the app began to pulse.