Chapter 2: A Background Character’s Morning
He stood up. His body felt heavier than usual, not from physical exhaustion, but from the chronic weight of despair.
He walked toward the mirror at the end of the room without passion, like an outdated program running on instinct.
There, his reflection awaited him. A figure with no distortion, no nose, no lips, no eyes.
Just a pale surface and brown hair that caught the faint morning light from the window. An eternal blank canvas. A sight that should be terrifying to anyone else, but for him, it had become routine. A painful reminder that he was just a background character in this world of romance.
He stood in front of the mirror, tilting his head left, then right.
"If only..." whispered the tired voice inside his heart.
If only there were eyes there—what color would they be? Would his eyebrows be thick or thin? What kind of lips would he have? Maybe a soft smile filled with meaning, or lips that stayed tight from constant weariness. A sharp nose or a small one? A strong jawline or a softer one?
He imagined faint laugh lines around eyes that didn't exist, wrinkles from thinking too hard, surprised expressions, angry ones, or even joy.
He tried to piece together a face in his mind, a complex image built from hopes that never came true. But the reflection stayed still, expressionless, and empty.
A bitter smile formed—though it was one he could only feel in the muscles that should have formed lips.
"...What now? Should I go to school and help the main characters get their happy ending again?"