"Why did I yell like that?"
Kaito was regretting. At lunch, a trivial argument with a friend escalated into a big fight.
Hiyori gently asked. "What happened?"
"Nothing major. Just didn't return a book I lent."
Sora tilted her head. "Enough to yell about?"
"I don't even understand myself. I just suddenly exploded."
Leo joined. "There's an anger iceberg model."
"Iceberg?"
"What's visible above water is anger. But beneath the surface, other emotions are hidden," Leo explained.
Sora drew a diagram in her notebook. "Above water: anger. Below: anxiety, sadness, fear, loneliness..."
"What's beneath my anger?" Kaito asked himself.
Hiyori questioned. "When the book wasn't returned, what did you feel besides anger?"
Kaito recalled. "Felt I was treated lightly."
"That's closer to sadness," Sora pointed out.
"Sadness turned into anger?"
Leo nodded. "Anger is called a secondary emotion. A reaction to protect primary emotions—hurt or anxiety."
"Protect?"
"Showing sadness or fear looks weak. But anger looks strong."
Kaito understood. "So I unconsciously chose anger?"
"Exactly," Hiyori acknowledged.
Sora asked. "Any other stress lately?"
"At home, fought with my parents. About my future."
Leo analyzed. "Accumulated stress. Unresolved home stress exploded over the book incident."
"So the book wasn't the real cause?"
"Just a trigger," Sora explained. "Your anger threshold was lowered."
Hiyori gave an example. "Like a glass filling with water. Last drop makes it overflow."
"The fight with parents filled the glass almost full," Kaito realized.
Leo continued. "So you yelled over something you'd normally let go."
"Then what should I have done?"
Sora proposed. "First, know your emotional state. Notice 'I'm irritated now.'"
"Just noticing changes things?"
"Metacognition. Observing emotion can suppress impulsive reactions."
Hiyori added. "Then explore primary emotions. 'Why am I irritated?'"
Kaito practiced. "From the fight with parents, I felt unrecognized. That was sad."
"That sadness became anger," Leo confirmed.
"But my friend wasn't involved."
"That's exactly why you need to apologize," Sora said. "But don't blame yourself too much."
"Why not?"
"Emotions can't always be controlled. What matters is how you deal with them afterward."
Hiyori encouraged. "Apologize, explain, and apply it next time."
Kaito decided. "I'll apologize to my friend. Say I was really irritated about home stuff."
Leo cautioned. "But don't make excuses. 'I was irritated, but shouldn't have yelled.'"
"Acknowledge responsibility," Kaito understood.
Sora asked. "When feeling anger, how will you cope? Going forward."
Kaito thought. "First, step away. Take deep breaths."
"Good strategy," Leo acknowledged. "Time-out method. Cooling excitement."
Hiyori added. "Then explore primary emotions. 'What really hurts?'"
"And express appropriately," Sora continued. "'I'm sad to be treated lightly.'"
Kaito wrote in his notebook. "Anger coping: ① Notice ② Step away ③ Explore primary emotion ④ Express appropriately."
"Perfect," Leo acknowledged.
"But difficult. When angry, can't think of anything."
Hiyori empathized. "Difficult at first. But improves with practice."
Sora said, "Emotion regulation is like muscle training. Gets stronger with repetition."
Kaito stood up. "I'll go see my friend. Apologize."
"Courageous action," Leo acknowledged.
"I'll also share the real feelings beneath the anger."
Hiyori smiled. "Surely they'll understand."
Kaito left the classroom. Minutes later, he returned.
"How was it?" Sora asked.
"They forgave me. And said, 'Sorry I didn't notice too.'"
"I'm glad," Hiyori was relieved.
Kaito sat down. "I understand a bit why I got angry then."
Leo said, "Your self-understanding deepened. Next time, you can cope better."
Sora closed her notebook. "Anger isn't a bad emotion. It's a signal protecting something precious."
"But how you express it matters," Kaito learned.
"Yes. You can feel anger. But no right to hurt people."
The four looked out the window. Everyone has anger. But how to deal with it. That's growth.
"Thank you," Kaito said to the three.
Beneath anger, other emotions always hide. The courage to find them. That might be true strength.