—Come on, Hana, she murmured to herself. You can do this.

Or maybe you can't. The young woman may have been an outstanding figure skater, but when it came to walking on the snow-covered tulle, it was a different story altogether.

For several minutes now, the brunette had been walking cautiously on the roof of her house, praying that she wouldn't smash her head a few meters below.

She couldn't use the front door. Her grandmother was most likely in the kitchen preparing one of the only dishes her diet would allow her to eat, and her late arrival would not have gone unnoticed. Hana couldn't afford to be caught out so stupidly, so she had no choice but to sneak in through her bedroom window and then pretend she'd spent the afternoon there. This scenario was plausible, since the two hardly ever crossed paths when Hana came home from school, and the sixty-something never went upstairs to check on her. Every evening, she simply shouted her name from downstairs, asking her to come and set the table.

All she had to do was reach that damn window.

After a few last steps worthy of the greatest tightrope walkers, the skater finally reached her goal. Without wasting a moment, the brunette quickly stepped over the window frame before closing it- she then squatted down in front of the radiator to turn on the heating. Since she was always leaving her window ajar to allow her to return at any time, the room temperature rarely approached a pleasant temperature during the winter months.

—Are you kidding me, Hana?

At the sound of this voice, Hana's blood ran cold through her veins and her heart skipped a beat. The young woman straightened up completely and slowly swiveled in the direction of her desk chair.

There stood her grandmother, her features so distorted by hatred that she was barely recognizable. In the dim light of the desk lamp, she looked like a malevolent entity straight out of a horror movie.

She was in big trouble, and Hana wasn't about to forget it.

—What's the meaning of this? Shouted the sixty-year-old as she took a few steps forward. Where've you been? You've been skipping school again, haven't you? Do you think I'm a fool?

Hana opened her mouth, ready to deny the angry adult's words, but the latter didn't give her the chance.

—Don't even think about lying to my face, Hana, she spat bitterly. Do you really think I'd never find out?

As she spoke, the sixty-year-old tossed a stack of letters at her feet, which Hana recognized without even glancing at their contents; the school stamp gleamed on the envelope. These were the letters she had intercepted concerning her absences in class. In other words, proof that she didn't go to school very often.

—Does this help you remember? Mikoto attacked scornfully. Please explain. Immediately.

Hana didn't reply, stunned at having been caught red-handed. This day was bound to come, but she hadn't expected it to arrive so soon. Above all, she didn't expect the old woman to come and poke her nose into her affairs. For even if her vigilance had softened over time, she had hidden those letters well.

—I knew I shouldn't trust you, commented her interlocutor bitterly. And what's worse, I'm sure there's more! How many times have you hidden letters from school?

Mute and with her gaze fixed on her boots, the young woman didn't answer anything, which made Mikoto even more angry than she already was.

—Hand me your bag, she commanded in a tone that had no appeal.

As if her body had suddenly started moving again, Hana felt panic surge through her like a tidal wave. Unconsciously, her hand tightened on the strap of her bag and she took a few steps backwards. Her grandmother's gaze grew even darker.

—Hand me your bag immediately.

Hana didn't move, her eyes wide. She didn't even have time to pray for things to stop when her bag was violently snatched from her. The contents scattered across the floor. A sheet of paper crumpled. A pencil slid into the darkness of a corner. An eraser rolled to the foot of her bed. But none of these things caught the eyes of the two women. Their attention was focused on the small package that had just fallen from the bag's torn lining.

Silence fell. Both had just paled considerably. The shock was so great that the sixty-something's voice became calm as she spoke again.

—What are these?

Cigarettes.

—Hana. I asked you a question. What. Is. This?

—It's... not mine, half lied the young woman.

And just as Hana thought it couldn't get any worse, a ring bounced off her bag and rolled to her grandmother's feet, who bent down to pick it up. Despite her damaged eyes, she couldn't miss the engraving on it. Her eyes crinkled to allow her to read the inscription, then as she realized it was a first name as well as a surname, her mind made the connection with what her granddaughter had just said. Her eyes alternated several times between the silver ring and the cigarette pack, then drifted to Hana. Her eyebrows rose so high that a dozen more wrinkles creased his forehead.

—Keisuke Akaashi? The adult pronounced incredulously. Are there his? She asked, brandishing the ring before gesturing vaguely to the pack of cigarettes.

As every time her grandmother gave her a dressing-down, Hana waited in silence, her head riveted to the ground and her fists trembling along her body. She never dared to rebel, never dared to stand up against her. Responding would only have aggravated the situation. She didn't have the strength. So, as always, the brunette was content to endure every word, praying that everything would stop as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, her grandmother wasn't about to give up any time soon.

—First, you betray my trust by skipping class, and then you run away through the window to find this boy who's inciting you to...this sort of thing? The adult shouted before bursting into hysterical laughter. Who knows what filth he's got you smoking! Did you even think about the consequences this would have for your competitions?

Hana ventured a glance in Mikoto's direction, but seeing the pure hatred that seemed to have literally taken possession of every cell of her body, the brunette knew she was definitely in trouble.

She had never seen her in such wrath as now.

—I'm exhausting myself by trying to teach you good manners, and this is how you thank me? Vociferated her grandmother. How ungrateful you are! God knows what other nonsense you've let yourself in for!

—You probably wouldn't want to know. I don't think you could bear it.

The room fell dead silent. For the first time in her life, Hana hadn't been able to keep her thoughts to herself, and the retort had spilled out of her mouth without her being able to control it. Immediately, her eyes focused on her grandmother, who was just as surprised as she was by her unexpected outburst. For long seconds, they stared at each other, as if trying to determine whether they had simply hallucinated.

—I beg your pardon? Stammered the eldest Hoshino, her eyes as round as saucers. What did you just say?

—You heard perfectly well, Hana retorted flatly. Don't pretend you're any deafer than you already are.

Shocked, Mikoto didn't even seem to notice the insult. The seconds ticked by, and she remained speechless, unable to process what was happening. Her mind categorically refused to analyze her granddaughter's words. Or rather, it refused to imagine that they could have been the truth. She was far from stupid. She had guessed what was being referred to. She knew she shouldn't underestimate what Hana was capable of. Yet she simply couldn't conceive that she would have dared to do what she half-heartedly claimed.

—No, Mikoto whispered, not taking her eyes off her for a moment. No, Hana, you're not... you're only sixteen, you...

She paused, as if to give her granddaughter the opportunity to deny the facts, to say she was joking. But Hana didn't do any of that. Even worse. She looked at her almost with pride, her chin held high and the shadow of a petty smile on her lips. She looked like she was gloating. It was too much.

—My God, what were you thinking, poor girl? Exploded the adult, his face flushed with anger. Are you having fun being a harlot? Where's the little bit of common sense you had left? Good God! This boy must be over the moon to have managed to pervert a girl stupid enough to fall into his trap.

Hana clenched her fist. Although her guardian's opinion didn't really count, the insult about Akaashi had triggered her.

—You don't have any right to disrespect him and I like that, hissed the brunette through her teeth.

—Cause you think you're not disrespecting me? She retorted, taking a step forward. Aren't you ashamed of yourself for blurting out everything I've done for you? Do you think I enjoy having to take responsibility for your behavior?

Only a meter separated them. Her grandmother's gaze seemed as tempestuous as a thunderstorm. At this moment, if her eyes could shoot lightning bolts, there was no doubt that Hana would have been struck by lightning long ago.

—It seems like you're doing this on purpose to make me angry, but don't think I'm going to let this effrontery pass. Listen to me very carefully, Hana Ha-Yoon Hoshino. As long as I'm alive, I refuse to let you see that boy again. Don't you realize that he's just using you as a distraction? As soon as that womanizer finds someone better, he'll drop you at the first opportunity!

Hana's lip trembled with rage, but her interlocutor didn't seem to care in the least.

—I don't know what to do with you anymore, Mikoto snapped contemptuously. You don't know how to be grateful for all the sacrifices I had to make to take you in.

Hana couldn't believe her ears. A hysterical laugh escaped her as the conversation seemed so lunar. Her nerves were already frayed by her guardian's hypocrisy, but this was the last straw.

—And what exactly should I be grateful for? Asked the brunette in an icy tone. That I've been placed with a woman who hates her son so much she couldn't help venting her anger on her granddaughter?

The Hoshino family's conflicts had always been a taboo subject. When they were alive, her parents never spoke about it, even though the obvious could not be denied. Hana was only a child, but even back then, she knew something was up. On arriving at her grandmother's house, the young woman had immediately felt discriminated for it, even though she hadn't - yet - given her grandmother any valid reason for treating her the way she had.

—From the moment I arrived here, you've been unable to ignore your resentment of my father. You subjected me to it as if I were him, as if I were responsible for your inability to work out your differences. And what, now he's dead, you can't take it out on him anymore, so you've decided to take it out on me instead ?

But now that Hana had dared to open the Pandora's box, the demons weren't about to let the opportunity to get out pass them by. And there were many demons. A lot of them.

—You were never there for me, Hana commented spitefully. You've never had even a kind word to tell me. All you care about is that I obey your every word without flinching.

The young woman lifted her head and met her grandmother's gaze, frozen as a stone statue.

—You've never tried to get to know me, she continued in a calmer voice. You've never wondered whether I really enjoy skating, or whether I'm being forced into it just to carry on the Hoshino tradition. You know nothing about me, absolutely nothing. So how can you claim to know what's good for me?

The brunette sighed loudly, but didn't pause her tirade. Too much was weighing on her heart, and now that she'd finally found the courage to stand up for herself, she certainly wasn't going to stop there.

—You just hated me like you hated your son. You hated me from the moment you saw me, even though you had no reason to.

But despite this reproach, Hana was perfectly aware of her wrongdoing. She couldn't put all the blame on her guardian without at least taking her share of the responsibility.

—So yeah, I've done some stupid things. Yes, I've lied to you. Yes, I've skipped school and skating practice. Yes, I ate sweets on the sly. Yes, I snuck out of the house to go to parties. Yes, I drank and smoked more times than I have fingers to count. Yes, I had my first time with this boy when I didn't even know him and I was completely drunk.

The young woman's gaze hardened, as uncompromising as her tone of voice, as she continued.

—But no, Grandma, I'm not going to stop seeing him just because it bothers you. You're not in a position to make those kinds of decisions for me. How I decide to use my body is none of my business.

With a sudden gesture, Hana snatched the ring and pack of cigarettes her grandmother was still holding. The latter put up no resistance, far too taken by surprise. Her arm fell limply to her side.

—At least he's been there for me these past few months. He's done more than you ever have in the last three years. He's supported me in a way no one has never done before, even though he didn't have to. He listened to me cry for hours, and even though he doesn't particularly like to comfort people, he still did everything he could to console me. I trust him completely because he proved to me that he would never do anything in my disinterest, unlike some. He's one of the few people I genuinely like, if not the only one. He means a lot to me. I'll never let you take that away.

Hana fell silent briefly, her breath short and her eyes slightly clouded. She took a deep breath to calm the trembling of her hands.

—Without him, I don't even know if I'd be here to have this conversation with you. So maybe instead of insulting him like you did, gratitude would be more appropriate.

Like a confession, the young woman had said it in a low voice. But the room was so quiet, it was as if she'd just screamed at the top of her lungs. Through the tears she was holding back, Hana couldn't see Mikoto's expression. And she didn't want to. All she needed was to get away. Away from here. Just long enough for her to calm down properly, just long enough for her to get her mind right. She couldn't bear to stay in this place another second.

The words used tonight were not about to evaporate from their minds any time soon.

—I'm going to spend the night at Kazuya's, Hana said informally, quickly bypassing her grandmother. Just pretend I don't exist.

And before a reply could be formulated, the front door had already slammed.