*We met at a concert venue. I ended up talking to the people sitting near me, and he was one of them.

We somehow clicked, and we talked on the way home too.

He was very bright and high-energy, but I noticed that he was actually acting and forcing himself to be cheerful.

I felt a shadow in him—the kind of person who, the moment they are alone, feels a sudden wave of exhaustion and escapes back into the world of their smartphone.

Loneliness from not being able to show his true self. A stubbornness that says he doesn't want to show it.

I felt like he was moving through the world wearing many different masks.

Somehow, he felt like me. Because he was tall and handsome, people around him fawned over him, and he played along.

After the concert, everyone went for drinks, but he was the only one I wanted to get to know. I'm not good with large groups, so I just listened to everyone and stayed quiet.

While watching him act all high-energy, I looked for a chance to talk to him one-on-one.

We all exchanged LINE contacts, but there was no one else I particularly wanted to see again. Intrigued by the mystery of his personality, I messaged only him.

When the conversation gets lively, he suddenly leaves me on read. If I leave him alone after that, he eventually reaches out again. There are unique gaps in his timing; just when I think we're getting close, he suddenly becomes cold and formal.

It took time to get used to it, but after looking things up, I realized he has a fear of intimacy and avoidant dependency.

He gradually started talking about his mentally fragile side, too.

His emotional walls are thicker than anyone's. However, I had a feeling that he liked me in a special way. I was confident that I wouldn't chase him, and that he wouldn't hate me or be strangely wary of me.

Two months after meeting, I finally managed to make a date with him.*

Nobody would ever accept the real me. You'll be the same anyway.