Rikka Crane

Rikka Crane was the pride of Westbridge University. At twenty year old, she was everything students admired—top honor student, Student Council President, humble, kind, and endlessly hardworking. Professors praised her dedication, while students respected her leadership. She always wore a warm smile that made everyone around her feel welcome. Including me. I'd been hopelessly in love with her since orientation day. She never acted like she was above anyone. She remembered everyone's names, helped struggling classmates study, and quietly volunteered at campus events. To me, she seemed almost too perfect. Until the night everything changed. It was my birthday, and my friends insisted on celebrating. "We've got a surprise," one of them grinned. They brought me to an upscale nightclub. "You only turn twenty-one once." I laughed nervously. "I'm not really into this." "Too late." The lights dimmed. Music filled the room as the club's most famous masked performer stepped onto the stage. Her movements were graceful and confident, yet strangely familiar. When the performance ended, she approached our private booth. "Birthday boy?" she asked with a soft smile beneath the mask. My friends erupted into cheers. "Take the mask off!" one of them shouted. The performer hesitated. Slowly... She removed it. Time stopped. "...Rikka?"