The morning sun had risen, and a gentle wind blew across the rooftops. People were stepping out of their homes—adults heading to the office and teenagers making their way to school.
In one of the apartments, a boy named Akira was putting on his school shoes. Dressed in his uniform, he was getting ready to leave. After tying his laces, he turned and called out, "I'm going to school. Don't forget to eat breakfast—it's on the table."
There was no response. Still, Akira didn't seem bothered. His expression remained neutral, as if silence was something he was used to. He opened the door and stepped out of the apartment.
As he walked down the corridor, a door nearby opened. A young woman stepped out. She looked to be in her twenties—not young enough to be a college student, but still youthful. She wore a shirt and tie, clearly dressed for work.
Akira's face lit up when he saw her. "Good morning, Yumi-san!" he greeted cheerfully.
The woman, Yumi, glanced at him with a smile of recognition. "Good morning. Off to school?"
Akira stepped closer and replied, "Yep, heading to school. But—" He raised an eyebrow playfully. "What about my offer? I was expecting a yes. After all, who could reject a lovable boy like me?"
Yumi cringed slightly, then replied, "I already told you—I'm not interested in younger boys. You're like a little brother to me."
Akira froze, shocked. "You can call me anything, but not 'brother'—please, that sucks."
Yumi chuckled as she walked toward the elevator. "I'm getting late for work," she said.
Akira reached out, trying to stop her. "At least let me come with you!"
Yumi gave him a kind smile. "Young people like you can handle the stairs."
With that, the elevator doors closed, and Yumi was gone.
Akira sighed and muttered, "God, I'm on the sixth floor." He glanced at the staircase. Just looking at it made him tired—but he had no choice. He then climbed down the stairs.
After a while, the school gate was buzzing with students arriving for the day. Among the crowd was a student with blonde hair. He didn't look like a foreigner, but his unusual hair color caught the attention of many.
Whispers spread around him.
"Why is his hair blonde? He doesn't even look foreign," someone said.
"I bet he's just trying to act cool or something," another added.
A few nearby students laughed quietly. The blonde-haired boy's expression turned uneasy—his nerves were clearly getting to him.
Then, from somewhere in the crowd, a familiar voice called out, "Oi, Suo!"
The boy looked up. Running toward him was Akira. He came to a stop right in front of Suo, bending over slightly with his hands on his knees, clearly out of breath.
"Ugh… running all the way here was such a hassle," Akira panted, taking deep breaths.
Suo gave a small smile and asked, "Did you wake up late again?"
"Yeah," Akira replied. "Anyway, did you find out where our class is? It's our first day of high school, after all."
Just as Suo was about to answer, he noticed the stares. Nearly everyone around was watching them—more specifically, watching him. Feeling the weight of their gazes, Suo said, "Let's just go inside."
Akira looked confused but nodded. "Okay."
They walked into the building, but the attention didn't stop. Suo could still feel the eyes on him, making him more self-conscious. Then Akira suddenly said, "Suo, what the hell? You didn't even answer me, and now you're just staring at everyone."
The sudden call-out snapped Suo back to reality. Flustered, he replied, "Ah—sorry, I stayed up late last night. I'm just a little tired."
Akira's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait—you stayed up late?!"
Suo blinked. "Why are you so shocked?"
Akira leaned in, clearly scandalized. "I didn't think you of all people would get into that kind of stuff. You were such a nerd! When the hell did this happen? And why didn't you tell me?!"
Now it was Suo's turn to be confused. "Wait—what are you even talking about? What stuff? What did I get into?!"
Akira leaned in and said, "Don't act dumb—just tell me, who is he?"
Suo froze for a moment, blinking in confusion. "Wait a minute... are you saying you think I got a girlfriend?"
Akira frowned. "Of course not! I meant a boyfriend! What else would I be talking about?"
Suo raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what the hell?"
Akira scratched his head. "Weren't you gay?"
Suo looked stunned. "I'm not gay! Who told you that?!"
Akira's jaw dropped. "You—you're not gay?!"
Suo narrowed his eyes. "Since when did you think I was gay?!"
Akira replied without hesitation, "Since the day we became friends. At first, I even thought you were a girl… but then I checked your weenie and confirmed you were a guy. So I figured you were just gay. I never brought it up 'cause I didn't want things to get awkward. Besides, I support gender equality—as long as no one keeps yelling their choice in my ear."
Suo stared at him, stunned. "I can't believe you actually thought I was gay all this time…"
Akira shrugged. "Who wouldn't? Anyway—did you check where our class is?"
Suo blinked, then said, "Oh, right. This is our class."
He pointed to a door above which a sign read Class 1-B.
Both of them entered the classroom. As soon as they walked in, a few students turned their heads—mostly because of Suo's bright blonde hair.
It didn't take long before a group of girls approached him.
"How is your hair so blonde?" one asked curiously.
"Are you a foreigner?" another added.
"I bet one of his parents is foreign," a third chimed in.
Suo gave them an awkward smile and replied to a few of their questions. "Uh… no, I'm not a foreigner. And yeah, it's my natural hair."
"Wow!" one girl said, her eyes wide. "Then it's a miracle! You're so lucky!"
Akira stepped in between Suo and the group of girls, flashing a confident smile. "Hello! I'm his friend. If you want, you can ask me some questions too—I don't mind answering."
But the girls didn't even glance at him. They completely ignored Akira and kept chatting with Suo.
Meanwhile, a few of the boys in class started getting visibly jealous. One in particular—Ryuji Kurogane, a guy with piercings on his lip and a sharp glare—looked especially irritated by the attention Suo was getting just for showing up.
"Tch. Natural, my ass," Ryuji muttered under his breath, scowling in Suo's direction.
Soon after, the teacher entered the room and clapped his hands to get everyone's attention.
"Alright, settle down. Let's start with introductions. One by one."
Each student stood up to introduce themselves. When it was Akira's turn, he rose with a casual grin.
"My name is Akira Tsuda, and I look forward to making a good relationship with everyone."
Then he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Aaaah… that sounded so cheesy. Like I'm some kindergarten kid or something."
The class burst out laughing, but the teacher wasn't amused.
"That's enough," the teacher said firmly. "Sit down. I'll let it slide since it's your first day."
"Okay," Akira said, still smiling as he sat back down.
The teacher sighed, then pointed to the final student. "Next—and last."
Suo stood up straight and spoke calmly. "Hello, my name is Suo Yamazaki. I'm 15 years old, and I look forward to studying with all of you."
The teacher raised an eyebrow. "What's with your hair?"
Suo replied politely, "Oh—about that. It's natural. I was born with it. It's caused by a rare medical condition."
Ryuji scoffed loudly from his seat. "Just say you dyed it yourself, girly boy."
Suo kept his composure. "No, it's really natural."
Ryuji leaned forward with a mocking smile. "What, are you gonna cry now? Did I expose your little secret?"
The class started laughing again, but before it got out of hand, the teacher slammed a hand on his desk.
"That's enough! Ryuji Kurogane—one more word and you're going straight to the principal's office."
Ryuji didn't say anything else, but the smug grin stayed on his face. He looked proud, like causing trouble was just another win in his book.
Akira was clearly irritated by Ryuji's attitude. He suddenly stood up and said loudly, "What about your piercings? You look more like a girl than Suo does. I bet you're one of those high school punks who squats in alleys doing nothing, yelling 'garra garra' all day."
The whole class burst into laughter. Even some of the quieter students couldn't help but chuckle. Ryuji's face turned red with anger. He slammed his desk and stood up.
"You wanna fight, you little fucker?!"
Akira remained seated, calm and unfazed, resting his arm casually on his desk. But before anything could escalate, the teacher stormed over and shouted, "Enough! Both of you—out. Now."
Reluctantly, Akira and Ryuji were sent out of the classroom.
Later that evening, as the students were leaving the school building, Akira and Suo walked side by side.
"You really shouldn't have said those things," Suo said quietly. "I wasn't mad… I'm used to it."
Akira stretched his arms behind his head and replied, "Don't think I did it for you. I just didn't like his face, that's all."
Suo smiled faintly. He could tell Akira was lying—and that he had been angry when Ryuji insulted him.
"Of course you didn't," Suo said with a light tone.
Akira glanced at him and clenched his fist. "I said I didn't do it for you!"
As they were talking, they noticed a crowd gathering outside a narrow alley across the street. People were whispering and craning their necks to see something.
Both Akira and Suo looked over, curiosity piqued. Akira stood on his toes and peered over the heads in front of him. His eyes widened.
"There's… a dead body," he muttered.
Suo managed to get a glimpse too. "Whose body is that?" he asked.
Voices buzzed in the crowd.
"People keep dying like this lately... I wonder who's behind it."
"Could be a serial killer," someone said grimly.
"I heard the bodies are in horrible shape—like some wild animal tore them apart and ate their flesh."
Another person shuddered. "What…?"
Here's a rewritten version of your scene with enhanced intensity, more natural dialogue, and heightened suspense during the chase and final reveal:
Akira stepped back from the crowd and said casually, "We should probably leave. There's no point in just standing here staring at a corpse."
Suo glanced at him, frowning. "Don't you care? Someone died, Akira."
Akira's face remained unreadable. "If I knew the guy, maybe I'd feel something. But I don't. And if there is some animal or psycho running around tearing people apart, we should worry about staying alive, not playing detectives."
They left the scene and walked down an empty road, the sky growing dim with early evening shadows. The silence was interrupted by the sound of footsteps—several of them.
From a side alley, a group of rough-looking punks emerged, blocking their path. Leading them was Ryuji Kurogane, lip piercings gleaming under the fading light, a twisted grin on his face.
"Well, well," Ryuji said, cracking his knuckles. "Look who we have here. What was your name again? Oh right—Akira. Why don't you say that shit again now?"
Suo tensed. "Akira… let's just go. Now."
But Akira smiled, slowly cracking his fingers one by one. "Oh? You want me to repeat it?" He stepped forward, pretending to square up. "You want to hear what I said this morning?"
Suo looked around nervously. "Akira, we really need to leave—"
Akira leaned toward him and whispered, "I have a plan. Just trust me."
Then, with a loud shout, Akira turned back toward the punks. "Why the hell would I repeat myself, you little bitch?!"
And without warning, he spun around and took off running.
Suo blinked. "Wait—what?!"
As he turned to look, the punks were already charging toward him.
Akira yelled over his shoulder, "My plan is—RUN FOR IT!"
Suo gasped, eyes wide. "You're insane!" But his survival instinct kicked in. He spun on his heel and bolted after Akira.
The chase began.
Suo caught up with him, panting. "I thought you were actually gonna fight them! Are you crazy?!"
"You think I'd fight five guys with bats?!" Akira shot back. "I'm reckless, not stupid!"
Behind them, Ryuji's voice rang out. "Get back here, you little rats!"
Akira glanced over his shoulder. "We need to move faster. I'm not in the mood to get my face rearranged today!"
The two sprinted through the narrowing backstreets, ducking under wires and hopping over trash cans. Finally, after several blocks, they turned a sharp corner into a quiet, dimly lit alley and stopped to catch their breath.
They bent over, gasping for air.
"Agh… those punks," Akira wheezed, "can't even keep up. What a bunch of clowns."
Suo, still catching his breath, said, "If they were really that weak—"
He didn't finish.
Both of them froze. They heard something, and their eyes locked straight ahead.
Something was standing in the alley.
It moved.
Its shape slowly emerged from the darkness—a grotesque creature, about the size of a large dog, but with long, thick limbs bent unnaturally. Its back was hunched, its legs too long, and its arms dragged across the concrete. Its whole body looked malformed, as if it's some monster came out of hell.
Akira took a step back. "Wh… what the hell is that?"
Suo opened his mouth to respond—but before he could speak, the creature snapped its head toward them.
Its face was nightmare fuel: no eyebrows, skin stretched tight over a bald skull, wide, unblinking eyes, and an impossibly large mouth filled with jagged, bloody teeth.
The stench of rot hit them like a wave.
The alley fell dead silent—except for the low, guttural growl coming from its throat.