A True LOVE [ Yandere-kun X Male Rivals ]

[1] Ayato Aishi

"I don't feel anything."

The words escaped his lips before he could restrain them. The horrified expression on his father's face made Ayato's heart sink, filling him with a sense similar to remorse.

For as long as he could remember, Ayato has been unable to experience normal feelings. While other children would feel sadness or happiness, Ayato was always haunted by an unrelenting emptiness. This emotional void isolated him from the world, leading him to withdraw from others.

Over time, he noticed his condition was taking a toll on his father. Countless therapy sessions and frequent hospital visits followed, his father's ceaseless efforts aimed at "fixing" him proving futile. Desperation gripped his father as he yearned for a solution, anything that might help his son lead a normal life. His mother, on the other hand, remained carefree, assuring him that his emotionless state was normal, that she, too, had been like him.

That was until she found her true love. Everything changed for her when she met his father. From that point on, she began to experience a variety of emotions, some more intense than others. She told him that one day he would meet his soulmate, the one person destined for him. And when that day came, he would finally experience life as a "normal" person.

Her words brought a sense of reassurance into his life, and Ayato felt content with that, but his growing pity for his father's anxiety never went away. So, one day, Ayato decided to pretend, pretend to have normal feelings. He began acting out a wide range of feelings: happiness, sadness, and joy. Ayato was finally starting to behave like a normal child, and he started making many friends along the way. His father's worries disappeared, though Ayato couldn't shake the feeling that, deep down, his father saw through the act.

Nevertheless, his father remained silent, and Ayato was determined to maintain the facade to preserve the image of their ideal family. With each passing year, Ayato struggled to adapt to the mask he wore constantly. Occasionally, he would let it slip and sit alone at school. Yet, it wasn't long before a classmate would pull him back into the charade, forcing him to continue the act.

By the time he entered high school, he found himself indifferent. Most of the time, he couldn't muster the effort to keep up the pretence. As long as his parents believed everything was fine, Ayato was content with it.

However, things recently began to change. Ayato sensed a transformation within himself as he neared the age when his mother had found her true love. He understood that his quest for his own soulmate would likely unfold soon. As he actively searched for his potential love, he encountered new people, individuals who were drawn to him in various ways. Ayato felt the tide of his life changing and wondered what the future held and how he would identify his true love.

This is the story of a boy embarking on a quest for true love amidst a sea of faces; his hope rekindled by the possibilities ahead.