The school day had ended. Crimson streaks painted the sky as the sun dipped behind the old gym building. Behind the school, just beyond the vending machines and club storage rooms, a boy stood awkwardly beneath the fading light.
"...Kazuha-san, please go out with me," Ren said, his voice shaking slightly.
The girl in front of him didn't respond at first. She just stood there, twirling a strand of her hair, her expression unreadable. She didn't even look him in the eye.
Behind them, a few students had gathered out of sight—friends of Kazuha's. They watched from the corner, stifling giggles, phones halfway out of their bags.
Kazuha finally spoke, her voice cold and flat.
"You think you're at my level? You seriously had the nerve to ask me out?"
There wasn't even a trace of surprise in her tone. Just pure indifference. Like she'd heard this a hundred times before.
She was the most popular girl in school—no contest. Smart, beautiful, athletic. Even among third-years, she stood out. Ren wasn't even in the same class as her. Just the same year. Barely.
Kazuha turned around with a flick of her hair and walked away without another glance.
One of her friends looked back, sneering. "Haha… this nobody really thought he had a shot with our Kazuha-chan."
They laughed as they left. The sound of their shoes tapping against the pavement echoed in Ren's ears.
He stood there, eyes wide, throat tight, trying to hold back the tears welling up.
"…So stupid," he muttered.
Ren walked home alone, head down, dragging his feet as the streets slowly emptied around him.
Why is it always like this?
All he ever wanted was what everyone else seemed to have—someone who looked at him like he mattered. Someone who cared. Someone he could care about.
He still remembered the moment he thought maybe—just maybe—Kazuha liked him. One morning, she'd smiled at him in the hallway. That was it. Just one small smile. But to Ren, who had never experienced anything close to romance, it felt like a spark. Enough to give him hope.
Now, he wasn't even sure she'd been smiling at him at all.
"Man… I've never had a girlfriend. At this rate, I'll finish high school without ever getting close to one," he muttered to himself.
He recalled the other girls he'd confessed to—each rejection piling onto the last. Some rejections were awkward, some kind, some indifferent… but today's was the worst by far. The most humiliating.
And half the time, he only confessed because his friends hyped him up like it was a dare.
"Why would any girl go for me anyway? I'm not famous, I suck at sports, I'm barely average in class… I don't even look good. I'm just some guy who reads manga during lunch and talks about weird anime theories no one cares about."
He sighed deeply, his chest heavy.
"I'm home," Ren called as he entered the house.
His cousin Sayuri popped her head out of the kitchen. She was cute, cheerful, a year younger than him—and had been living with them for school. Her bobbed hair bounced slightly as she tilted her head in concern.
"Welcome back, Onii-chan. Huh? You look kinda... dead. Something happen?"
"It's just exam stress, probably," Ren lied with a fake smile.
She blinked, clearly not convinced, but nodded anyway. "Hmm…"
Ren headed to his room and closed the door behind him.
The moment he was alone, his body slumped forward onto the bed—and the tears finally came.
Night fell. The house was quiet except for the clatter of dishes downstairs.
"Ren! Dinner's ready!" his mom called out. "I made your favorite!"
"I'm not hungry," he replied from behind his door.
In the kitchen, his mom turned to Sayuri. "Did something happen at school?"
"I'm not sure, Auntie," Sayuri said softly, still worried. "He looked really sad when he came in."
Upstairs, Ren sat in the dark, staring at the ceiling.
He couldn't stop replaying the scene behind the school—Kazuha's voice, her look of disgust, the laughter of her friends.
He pulled the covers over his head.
"…Why does love feel so far away for me?"
Eventually, he cried himself to sleep—eyes sore, heart heavy.
Tomorrow was supposed to be just another day.
He had no idea his world was about to change.
Ren slowly woke up, rubbing his eyes groggily.
"That was... the best sleep I've had in a while," he muttered. "Maybe crying yourself to sleep really does knock you out."
His eyes were still adjusting. Everything was a little hazy—but something caught his attention.
A soft glow.
It wasn't from the window, or his phone, or the ceiling light. No... it was in his vision. Like a faint icon floating near the bottom-left corner of his sight.
He blinked a few times and rubbed his eyes harder. It was still there.
"Huh...? Maybe I just need to wash my face."
He stumbled to the sink and splashed water on his face, rubbing hard. Then, he looked into the mirror—and froze.
It was still there.
A tiny icon, like something out of a video game menu. Floating. Not on the mirror. Not anywhere around him.
Inside his vision.
"...What the hell is this?" he whispered.
He reached toward the mirror, trying to touch it, but his finger passed right through. Nothing changed.
But when he shifted his gaze left or right, the icon followed. Almost like it was linked to his eyes.
"Wait. Is this... inside my eyes!?"
His heart pounded. He stepped back, panicking slightly.
"Calm down. Calm down, Ren. Think. What is this?" He stared at the glowing icon again. "This is like… one of those system things, right? Like in anime? The ones with menus and stats..."
He tried to 'click' it mentally—nothing happened.
Just then, a knock came from the door.
"Brother! Wake up already! Aunt told me to make sure you're not late for school!" came Sayuri's voice.
"A-ah! Coming!"
He quickly threw on his uniform and rushed to the living room, still occasionally trying to poke the air in front of him like a weirdo.
Sayuri stood at the table with her arms crossed, frowning. "What are you doing? You look like you're trying to swat a fly."
"It's nothing!" Ren waved his hands defensively, avoiding eye contact.
But the moment he looked at Sayuri, something changed.
The floating icon now displayed something new—next to Sayuri, a horizontal bar appeared. It was glowing green… around the halfway mark.
"What the…"
He reached out to touch it.
"Stop doing weird stuff, Onii-chan! Eat your breakfast already! I made it for you!" Sayuri snapped, puffing her cheeks and placing her hands on her hips.
"A-Ah, okay okay! I'm eating!"
He sat down quickly. Sayuri sat across from him, still pouting.
As Ren ate, he kept glancing at the bar while chewing his food. Then his eyes widened.
"Whoa… This is actually good. Really good!" he said honestly. "Sayuri, you're an amazing cook!"
Sayuri blinked. Then smiled a little. Her cheeks turned pink.
"R-Really…? Hehe."
Ding.
The bar next to her name shot up.
It went from halfway to almost full.
Ren nearly choked. "It moved! The bar moved!"
"Stop staring at me and finish your food!" Sayuri shouted, flustered.
Ding.
The bar dropped—back down to below halfway.
"Eh!? It dropped!?"
Ren stared, stunned.
"So… it really is like a game. I do something nice, the bar goes up. I mess up, it drops."
Then, just as he swallowed his last bite, something new appeared before his eyes—a glowing pop-up in clear text:
[Love System Initialized]
Daily Affection Missions will now begin.
Ren's jaw dropped.
"A love system? Seriously?"
"I got... a system that helps with love life? Like, dating sim stats and stuff? But... I don't even have a love life!"
He let out a dry laugh.
"But maybe… that's about to change."