Chapter 4

James and I grew up together as childhood friends.

Because our families lived close by, we played together all the time as kids and were practically inseparable.

Back then, James's hearing was still fine, and he didn't need a hearing aid.

Every day after school, the first thing I'd do was go find him, and he never tired of playing with me.

Until that year when James was ten. He came down with a high fever, and due to delayed treatment, he was left with a disability. From then on, he had to wear a hearing aid to hear.

It was from that day that the once gentle boy gradually became unpredictable in his moods.

He grew quiet and withdrawn, often shutting himself in his room and refusing all treatment.

I tried to cheer him up, but whenever he saw me, he would throw things, lose his temper, and angrily tell me to go away.

Even at that young age, I could clearly sense that he didn't want to see me and even resented my presence.

But I'm not one to give up easily.

The more James pushed me away, the more I appeared before him, deliberately opposing him in everything.

As we grew older, he continued to distance himself from me.

And so he became the rival I was determined to challenge at every turn.