In the dining room.

Mai Sakurajima had just sat down and lifted her glass of milk.

Through the gap of the half-open door, she happened to catch a glimpse of the tight embrace happening in the bedroom.

Her hand paused around the glass.

Then she rolled her eyes—hard.

Under her breath she muttered, "Ugh… first thing in the morning…," her tone carrying that familiar, habitual disdain.

However—

when her gaze fell on Nodoka Toyohama's face—tear-streaked yet shining with a light and joy she'd never seen before—that disdain softened in an instant.

A faint, genuine smile quietly tugged at the corner of Mai's lips.

She lowered her head and took a small sip of the warm milk.

She didn't look that way again,

just calmly savored a morning full of unexpected delight.

She knew that the girl who'd always lived under her mother's shadow, skittish as a frightened bird—Nodoka—had finally slipped the cage and found a sky of her own.

And all of this—

was thanks to the man who, at that very moment, was being kissed with clumsy but burning fervor.

She might gripe; she might roll her eyes.

But deep down, she was sincerely happy for Nodoka.

The air was rich with the toasty smell of bread and the syrupy sweetness of maple,

and carried a faint, elusive freshness that belonged to freedom.

…

The afternoon sun spread a gentle warmth across Shuchiin Academy's wide athletic field.

The rubberized track gave off a soft sheen.

From a distance came the shouts of club activities and the thump of balls colliding.

A silver-haired girl—Kei Shirogane—wandered aimlessly along the edge of the track.

A breeze lifted her silvery hair;

a few strands, impish, clung to her slightly furrowed brows.

Her thoughts fluttered like springtime willow catkins—drifting, messy, heavy.

"How long has it been since I last saw Rei Ao-senpai?"

Her last clear memory was a fleeting glimpse from about two weeks ago.

He'd been sitting by the window,

sunlight tracing the line of his focused profile.

She'd only dared to steal a few glances from afar, heart pounding, without the courage to go up and say hello.

After that, it was as if he'd sunk without a trace.

No more lazy silhouette sauntering down the hallway.

No sign of him leaning on the rooftop railing to watch the clouds.

Even the usual "storm center" around him—Utaha Kasumigaoka, Eriri Spencer Sawamura, and the rest—seemed oddly quiet.

Had he… already forgotten this unremarkable kouhai?

Did he think that brief exchange was nothing more than a trivial footnote in his endless daily anecdotes?

Or was he simply surrounded by too much brilliance—

the cool, moon-bright Yukinoshita-senpai,

the starry radiance of Sakurajima-senpai—

so that her tiny firefly glow had long since been swallowed by the vast river of stars?

The more she thought, the tighter her chest felt.

Kei Shirogane nudged a pebble with her toe without thinking.

Head down,

her blurred gaze fixed on the tips of her shoes.

Even the clamor around her seemed muffled, as if heard through a veil of water.

"Thud!"

Her forehead suddenly bumped into a firm chest, warm and faintly damp with post-exercise sweat.

"Ah! S-sorry! I'm so, so sorry!"

Kei jolted back to herself,

springing away like a startled rabbit and bowing deeply in a rush to apologize for spacing out.

Her silver hair fell like a waterfall, hiding her suddenly flushed cheeks and flustered eyes.

Great, just great!

Walking without looking and crashing into someone!

How rude can you get!

"Kei?"

A low, familiar voice sounded above her head—so familiar it made her heart quiver—laced with a hint of helpless amusement.

Kei snapped her head up.

She fell into eyes deep as a night sky.

Sunlight outlined his clean jawline.

Sweat slid along his temples, dampening the few strands of black hair across his forehead.

He wore a dark tracksuit that showed off a tall, lean frame,

and he was looking at her now with one brow slightly raised, a teasing glint in his gaze.

"R-Rei Ao-senpai?!"

Her voice trembled with disbelief.

Her eyes flew wide, as if she were seeing an impossible mirage.

"It's me."

The corner of Rei Ao's mouth lifted in a faint arc.

He reached out, as naturally as anything, to brush aside a stray strand of silver hair stuck to her forehead.

His fingertip grazed her smooth skin, leaving a tiny, tingling spark.

"Daydreaming while you walk? That's dangerous on the track. What if someone else ran into you?"

There was a trace of scolding in his tone, but even more concern.

The spot he'd touched felt like it had caught fire, heat racing up to her ears.

Kei's heart hammered so hard it was about to leap out of her throat.

Her mind went blank—

all that remained was his face so close and that low, pleasant voice echoing in her ears.

He… he was still here!

He hadn't vanished!

A flood of joy crashed through and swept away all her gloom and spiraling thoughts.

Kei parted her lips.

She wanted to explain why she'd been spacing out.

She wanted to ask where he'd been these days.

She wanted to tell him… that she'd missed him.

But a thousand words jammed in her throat

and finally came out as a mosquito-sized, "S-sorry…"

Rei Ao looked at her—so nervous she didn't know what to do with her hands, face burning—and the smile in his eyes deepened.

He couldn't help wanting to tease her.

He straightened his face on purpose and leaned in a little closer.

"What, a short time apart and you don't recognize your senpai anymore?"

"No!"

Kei yelped like a cat whose tail had been stepped on,

shaking her head so hard her silver hair swished.

She rushed to explain.

"I—I just…"

"Pfft…"

Rei Ao laughed, amused by her over-the-top reaction.

His big hand landed on her soft crown, warm and affectionate, and he rubbed,

ruffling her neatly combed silver hair into a cute mess.

"Just messing with you. Look how adorable you get when you're nervous."

"Mm…"

The warmth on her head—and that word "adorable"—turned Kei into a steaming kettle.

Her cheeks flushed so red they were about to drip;

even the tip of her small nose went pink.

She instinctively hunched her shoulders,

yet she couldn't help savoring the heat of his palm,

so she simply ducked her head, letting him muss her hair as little animal-like whimpers slipped out.

The shy, sweet sight put Rei Ao in a great mood.

He drew his hand back,

and, looking at the cute little ahoge he'd created atop her head, suddenly remembered something.

"Right—didn't I say I'd invite you over sometime?"

Kei's heart skipped a beat.

Her head snapped up,

amethyst eyes wide with shock and a touch of incredulous hope.

"How about after school today? Are you free?"

The invitation left him as naturally as breathing.

"Eh?! T-to your place?!"

Her voice shot up an octave in sheer disbelief.

The jolt wiped her thoughts clean.

Her head buzzed, and the only words left flashing across her mind were: "go to senpai's place"!

I-Isn't this moving way too fast?!

I'm not ready yet!

~~~

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