The Next Week...
Hinata, Akio, and I had been hanging out a lot lately — so much that we'd become the top gossip across all the 2nd-year classes.
During recess, the class cutie, Ayaka, walked up to our table and sat down right next to Akio, smiling like she owned the place.
Ayaka: Oh hey, Akio.
Akio:(Confused) Ummm... hello? What are you doing here?
Ayaka: I just saw you here and decided to sit with you.
Akio: Well, I'm already sitting with Kiyomi and Hinata. How about you sit with your friends?
Ayaka: Well, I am sitting with my friends right now , but someone (she glared at me) shouldn't be here.
Hinata: You're right.
Hinata glared right back at her.
Ayaka: Kiyomi... leave.
Kiyomi:(Surprised) What? If I'm not wrong, the person who's supposed to leave is you!
Ayaka: No, it's you! Hinata and Akio are my friends, not yours, so—
Akio:(Interrupting) She's our friend, Ayaka. And Kiyomi's right, the one who should leave is you.
Ayaka's eyes widened, clearly not expecting Akio to say that.
Ayaka: Huh?
Akio: We were talking, and you interrupted. You sat down without asking, and Kiyomi was here first. So, please leave.
Ayaka: So you'd choose her over me, Akio?
Akio: I never said anything like that, Ayaka. But if you keep acting like this... maybe I will.
Ayaka gasped, her face twisting between disbelief and jealousy. She stood up abruptly.
Ayaka: This conversation is not over, Akio. (She stormed off.)
Kiyomi: Attitude.
Hinata: Such a drama queen. Might as well ban her from cheerleading.
Kiyomi: No, please don't. That'd be crossing the line — and overreacting.
Hinata: But she crossed the line first.
Kiyomi: Even if you do that, all the 2nd-year students would protest, and you might lose your position as assistant cheerleading captain.
Hinata: That's true, but I still won't sit back and watch her talk to you like that. She's cute, sure — but she treats others like trash. And that's not fair.
Kiyomi: Nao's just like her. Cute, arrogant, and proud. Way too proud.
Hinata: What can I say? Birds of the same feather flock together.
Akio: I'm looking at those birds right now, and they're sitting right in front of me.
I felt my face warm instantly. I turned away to hide my blush, pretending to focus on my food.
Kiyomi:(Trying not to smile) Akio-kun, you're such a goofball.
Hinata: Of course. Kiyomi and I have the same sense of humor.
As we laughed and talked, the thought kept crossing my mind — What did Akio mean by "maybe I will"?
He said it so casually, but every time I replayed those words in my head, my chest tightened a little. I told myself it didn't mean anything — it couldn't mean anything.
I don't do love. I promised myself I wouldn't.
But that tiny, annoying warmth in my chest wouldn't go away.
And the more I thought about it... the harder it became to convince myself that Akio was just a friend.