Shattered Petals

The Instructor

Mei’s POV

Theatre Arts always carried a special kind of noise — laughter that echoed down the hallway, the heavy thump of drums during practice, voices reciting half-memorized lines. Even before Benjamin entered my life, the department felt alive, like the heartbeat of the campus.

But the day of their induction ceremony, everything shifted.

I remember standing in the back of the auditorium with Suki and Rina. The hall glowed amber from the stage lights, and students filled the rows like restless waves. Then the instructors for the induction walked in, and among them was him.

Benjamin.

Tall. Calm. His eyes were sharp in that quiet, intentional way some artists had — like he saw the world as scenes waiting to be performed.

The moment I saw him, it was like my breath caught mid-step.

Suki noticed.

“You like him,” she whispered loudly.

Rina nudged her. “Shh! She’s shy.”

I wanted to disappear into the chair, but it didn’t matter — the teasing was already beginning.

Later, after the ceremony, I found myself drifting toward the field where Theatre Arts students rehearsed. At first it was coincidence… then it became a pattern. Every day, after classes, I found myself near that field, pretending to scroll through my phone while secretly waiting for him to laugh, or mess up a line, or simply breathe in my direction.

He never noticed me.

But my friends did.

“Go and talk to him,” Rina urged one evening.

“No. Never.”

Suki sighed dramatically. “Then let’s help you. Mei crushes hard but freezes. Let’s unfreeze her.”

I wanted to protest, but fate had other plans. Days later, after too much teasing and one extremely embarrassing moment involving Suki yelling “Benjamin! Mei thinks you’re cute!”, I caved.

I approached his friend instead — a quiet guy named Haru — and asked for Benjamin’s number.

Surprisingly, he gave it to me.

And that night… everything started.

His first message:

Benjamin: “Hi… Haru said you wanted to talk to me?”

My hands trembled as I typed back.

And from that moment, we talked. The conversation flowed so easily that even I was shocked. He was funny without trying. Calm but playful. He remembered things I said. He asked questions. He made me feel seen.

For the first time in a long time… I felt light.

Even Hana noticed.

“Who are you texting by 11 p.m.?” she asked one night.

“Benjamin,” I said, unable to hide my smile.

“Oh? He must be something to make you laugh like that.”

She studied me with an unreadable expression. Then she reached out her hand.

“Give me his number.”

I blinked. “Why?”

“I want to text him. I want to be cool with him. If he’s this nice, I should know him too.”

I hesitated.

She knew I liked him. She knew he made me happy.

But… she was my friend.

So I trusted her.

I gave her the number.

And that was the beginning of the storm.

⸻

At first, everything was fine. Benjamin and I continued to talk, and Hana occasionally mentioned chatting with him.

But then… Benjamin changed.

He became demanding — asking for food, for little gifts, for favors. I always told him no. I didn’t have money to give. He said it was fine, but his texts slowed. His tone dulled. The spark faded.

Around this time, Hana went home for a short visit.

When she returned, she stood in the doorway holding a small bag.

Rina asked, “What did you bring for us?”

Hana shrugged. “Nothing. I only bought things for Benjamin.”

I froze.

“For Benjamin?” I repeated.

“Yeah. He asked.”

She said it so casually that the room tilted a little. And later, when Benjamin came over with his friends to collect the gift, the way he complimented Hana — her hair, her voice, her smile — made me shrink inside myself.

I didn’t say anything.

I didn’t argue.

I didn’t claim him.

But Hana didn’t stop.

Each time he complimented her, she turned to me.

“Mei, don’t get angry o! Benjamin is just joking!”

“Mei, should I hug him? Will you be okay?”

“Mei, hope you won’t fight me because of him.”

Every word she said—to him, to me, to anyone who listened—painted me as a jealous fool.

And the worst part?

Everyone believed her.

Even Benjamin.

After he left, he texted me:

Benjamin: “Don’t be upset about Hana. We’re only friends.”

I replied:

Mei: “You owe me nothing. Do what you want.”

But his message still stung.

Not because of him.

Because of her.

And for the first time, I began to truly fear Hana.

Not as a friend.

But as a person capable of something darker.

— “The Invitation”

Mei’s POV

Benjamin eventually left campus with the other instructors, and just like that, the entire arc faded into memory. I moved on faster than I expected — his charm dissolved into something hollow once I realized what he wanted.

But Hana… she didn’t move on at all.

She kept calling him.

Laughing with him.

Texting him.

Bragging about him.

Almost like she needed me to watch.

I learned to ignore it. Exams were coming, and I was focused. Life moved forward.

Then Yuto appeared.

It started innocently — a few jokes, light conversation, then deeper chats. He was bold, playful, always calling me “Mei-chan” like we were in some teenage romance drama. For months he begged me to visit him at his university.

I refused each time.

Because I already knew Hana would want to follow me.

And something inside me whispered not to trust her in situations I couldn’t control.

When Yuto later invited me to a party and insisted I bring my friends, I agreed — then canceled. He bought tickets for all of us, and I still canceled because exams were draining me. He was angry. We argued. We reconciled.

Eventually, I agreed to visit him — with Suki, Rina, and Hana.

But of course… Hana refused to travel home like she originally planned.

She tagged along.

Something in my chest tightened the moment she did.

⸻

We arrived at Yuto’s university late — too late to return home. His friends welcomed us, smiling a little too eagerly. The atmosphere was warm, electric, a little chaotic.

That night, the games began.

At first it was harmless — card dares that barely made sense. Then it escalated.

Truth or Dare.

Alcohol.

Bold dares.

Kissing dares.

Touching dares.

Everyone drank or played along. I wasn’t fully engaged; no one directed anything at me. I just laughed weakly, pretending to enjoy myself.

Then the dare shifted to Hana.

“Pick someone to kiss,” Yuto’s friend said.

She looked around.

Then she pointed straight at Yuto.

My chest cracked open.

They kissed.

Not a quick peck.

A real kiss.

My breath vanished, my stomach twisted, and tears pricked my eyes. I stared, numb, trying to pretend it didn’t matter — trying to pretend the room wasn’t spinning.

Everyone acted like nothing happened.

Even Suki and Rina.

When Hana was dared again to pick someone to kiss and let him touch her, she once again chose Yuto.

Right in front of me.

And he didn’t hesitate.

I felt something inside me break fully this time.

The humiliation was worse than the heartbreak.

I texted Summer, shaking, telling her everything.

She comforted me while Hana laughed in another room.

⸻

Later that night, I tried to cook noodles for everyone. Suki followed me to the kitchen. I was too drunk, too heartbroken, too dizzy to stand properly. My hands shook. Tears fell into the bowl.

“You’re crying,” Suki whispered.

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not.”

But she didn’t say anything about Hana.

She didn’t defend me.

She didn’t tell me I deserved better.

She just cooked the noodles and pushed me back toward the room where Hana and Yuto were whispering to each other.

I lost appetite. They ate. Hana avoided me entirely.

And that night, she didn’t sleep in the same building with me. She, Suki, Yuto, and one of his friends slept elsewhere — without telling me.

It hurt more than I wanted to admit.

⸻

The next morning, Suki and Hana returned to our house to get clothes. They left without waking me. I stayed behind with Rina and Yuto. For someone who kissed Hana twice, Yuto suddenly became extremely bold with me — touching my arm, leaning too close, even trying to pass something to me with his mouth.

I pulled away.

By the time Hana returned, Yuto had already stepped back and pretended like nothing happened.

She didn’t apologize.

She didn’t explain.

She didn’t even look me in the eyes.

I spoke to her only because I needed clothes.

Hours later, the tension thickened. Yuto got angry with me over something small while I drank too much at his friend’s place. I decided to return home the next day. I didn’t even sleep at Yuto’s room that night — I slept somewhere else entirely.

Hana?

She went out with Yuto.

Without telling anyone.

Again.

The next morning, I found out she didn’t return until late. No apology. No explanation.

Just secrets.

⸻

When Rina and I finally returned home, Suki and Hana stayed behind at Yuto’s school for two full weeks.

When they came back, everything changed.

Hana and Yuto were suddenly dating.

She had a boyfriend.

She cheated on him.

She hid it from us.

She flaunted it when she finally told the truth.

She even asked me to return clothes she borrowed from Yuto.

And every chance she got, she rubbed her new relationship in my face — despite knowing how deeply she’d hurt me.

Worse, she began body-shaming me.

Comparing us.

Competing with me.

Spreading rumors that I was competing with her.

Telling people I envied her.

Telling her parents I was a bad person.

Posting indirects on social media about “fake friends.”

Everything spiraled.

Everything burned.

And I realized something terrifying:

Hana wasn’t just careless.

She wasn’t just insensitive.

She was dangerous.

And I knew…

One day, all of this would explode.

And when it did, none of us would be the same.