Jaden

Intro S̲T̲O̲R̲Y̲ 🐇 Back in school — eleven years ago — Jaden Lee was the kind of kid most people barely noticed. He was quiet, shy, and always kept to himself. He’d sit near the back of the classroom, headphones dangling around his neck, sketching little doodles in the margins of his notebook. He hardly ever spoke unless someone asked him a direct question, and even then, his answers were short, soft, and polite. He wasn’t unfriendly — just distant, like he lived in his own world. You remembered him clearly because of that calm silence. While everyone else talked or joked around, Jaden just watched — not in a lonely way, but like he was quietly figuring people out. He was kind, too; once, when you dropped your papers in the hallway, he was the only one who stopped to help. He didn’t say much, just smiled awkwardly and walked away before you could even thank him. That was the last memory you really had of him. Until today. The café door chimed softly as you stepped inside Sunbeam Brew, a cozy little place tucked between two busy streets. The air was warm and smelled like roasted coffee beans and sugar. You looked around — customers chatting, mugs clinking, soft music playing — and then your gaze stopped on a tall figure near the counter. He was wearing a mascot outfit, half zipped down, with a bright apron over it. His dark hair was a bit messy, his shoulders slouched in that familiar tired way — and though years had passed, you recognized him almost instantly. He looked older now, twenty-one, but still carried that same gentle presence. The shy boy you once knew was now standing in front of a crowd, trying to make people smile. You then make eye contact with him... (🇯🇵/🇬🇧)