Jiko gave a wry smile, trying to mask the fusion and flig emotions swirling within him. “You’re trying to make me even fatter,” he teased, attempting to lighten the suddenly charged atmosphere.

  “What?!” Julie excimed, her eyes widening in mock offense. She pyfully poked him in the arm, a gesture that sent a jolt of ued awarehrough him. “You look cuter with a little bit of a chubby face!”

  “Wait, what? No…” Jiko stammered, pletely taken aback by her pyful teasing. He wasn’t used to this kind of easy banter with Julie. Their past iions had always been strained, filled with unspoken tension.

  “Okay, okay,” Julie said, still smiling brightly, “but you *must* eat my cooking sometimes. It’s an order!” She punctuated her statement with a pyful wink.

  “Okay,” Jiko ceded, raising his hands in mock surrender. “I ’t *promise* anything,” he added with a pyful grin of his own, finally meeting her gaze.

  Julie beamed, clearly pleased with his relut agreement. Oher hand, the students milling around them were exging bewildered gnces and whispering amongst themselves. “Wait, what is happening?” one of them murmured, nudging their friend. “How is someone as beautiful and popur as Julie being so… sweet to Jiko?” Another added, “They barely even talk normally!.”

  Jiko noticed the stares, the whispers, and a chilling realization washed over him. Every a, every word, every seemingly insignifit iion in this imeline was creating ripples, altering the future he khis wasn't just a repy; it was a plete rewrite, and he was the one holding the pen. The weight of that responsibility settled heavily on his shoulders

  “I shouldn’t have gotten involved,” Jiko mutters under his breath, almost to himself. “It wasn’t my pce.”

  Julie tilts her head slightly, the brightness fading from her expression. “What do you mean?”

  Jiko looks down, trying to gather his thoughts, but his mind is rag too fast. “I mean… I wasn’t supposed to step ierday. That wasn’t meant to happen.”

  Julie frowns now, her curiosity piqued. “What do you mean? Are you saying it wasn’t your decision to help me?”

  Jiko hesitates, unsure of how much he should say. The weight of his words feels heavy in the air, but it’s too te to take them back. “I… I should’ve let it happen naturally. But I stepped in, and now things feel… different. Not the way they’re supposed to be.”

  Julie leans back, fusion written across her face. “What are you talking about? You helped me. You did the right thing. Why would yret that?”

  Jiko forces a smile, though it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “It’s plicated. Let’s just say… I was trying to proteething that wasn’t mio protect.”

  Julie frowns even more now, her gaze narrowing slightly. “What do you mean by that?”

  Jiko shakes his head, feeling the weight of his own words. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. Fet I said anything.”

  But Julie’s persistent, and her curiosity only grows. “No, wait—this sounds important. What do you mean you shouldn’t have gotten involved?” Her voice softens, but it’s clear she wants answers.

  Jiko sighs, running a hand through his hair. “It’s plicated… but it wasn’t meant to be my moment. It was meant for someone else—to help you. Someone who’s supposed to be part of your life.”

  Julie blinks, her expression shifting from fusion to something closer to uanding. “Oh. You mean…” She trails off, suddenly catg on. “You mean this was supposed to be… someone else.”

  Jiko nods slowly, his gaze fixed oable, uo meet her eyes. “Yes. It should’ve been him—my brother. Not me. He’s the one who was supposed to step in and help you. And now… now things feel different. The timeline feels like it’s bending.”

  Julie let out a long, ptive sigh, her gaze fixed on some unseen point in the distance. “I think,” she began slowly, her voice ced with a hint of , “you have… brother phobia.”

  Jiko blinked, pletely taken aback by the sudden shift in versation. “Brother phobia?” he repeated, a puzzled frown creasing his brow. “What in the world is that?”

  Julie turned her attention ba, her expression serious. “I’ve been you,” she expined, her tone being more analytical. “Especially yesterday, but even now… you’re stantly trying to elevate your brother, to make him seem like some kind of infallible hero. And everything *you* do, you immediately attribute to his influence, as if you’re just ag out his will. Like you’re a puppet on his strings. Jiko, you’re doing yourself a disservice.” She paused, her eyes searg his. “You’re doing everything of your own accord. Did your brother tell you to throw yourself in front of that dog?”

  “No!” Jiko responded quickly, the memory of the snarling dog fshing through his mind.

  “Exactly!” Julie excimed, her voice gaining strength. “So why are you stantly downpying your own as? *You* were the one who saved me. Not Tito. You acted bravely, instinctively. I think…” she hesitated, her brow furrowing slightly, “I think you might have some deeper issues reted to your brother. Perhaps… perhaps he’s been… trolling you? Brainwashing you, even?” Her voice dropped to a near whisper o word, as if she were unc a dark secret. “I won’t stand for it. I’m going to have a serious talk with him. I’ll tell him to give you some space, to let you live your own life.”

  Jiko was utterly bewildered by her intense pronous. Her serious demeanor and dramatic accusations were pletely ued. It was like watg a pletely different Julie, a Julie he had never seen before. This wasn’t just ; it bordered on an intervention. The future he knew, where Julie and Tito were destio be together, seemed to be unraveling before his very eyes. His brother’s future lover was currently preparing to wage war on his behalf.

  Jiko held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. “Okay, okay,” he said, trying to i a note of calm into the increasingly surreal situation. “Please, just… stop thinking such weird things. It’s really not like that. And yes,” he admitted, “I felt pelled to help you. It was my own decision. I’m sorry if I gave you the wrong impression.”

  Julie’s serious expression suddenly melted away, repced by a warm, pyful smile. She reached out and pyfully ruffled his hair, her tone shifting to one of lighthearted amusement. “That’s my boy!” she said, her voice full of pyful affe.