"I'm here. How long until you're back?"
Yuka Mito, who was busy with her part-time job, glanced down at her phone and froze when she saw the sudden message. It was from Haruto. The format, the tone she recognized it immediately. Every time Haruto came to her place, he would always send her the same line.
Standing in the restaurant kitchen, Yuka looked around at her busy coworkers. After hesitating, she quickly typed back, telling him she'd finish in about half an hour and be home in an hour or so.
"I see."
That was all Haruto wrote back. No complaints, no questions just that simple reply. But it was enough to unsettle Yuka.
Ten minutes later, she couldn't take it anymore. The restlessness in her chest kept gnawing at her until she finally asked the manager for leave. Without even taking off her work uniform, she grabbed her bag and rushed straight home.
Back at her apartment, Haruto was already inside. The place had grown more homely since the last time he'd been here. He sat quietly on her bed, lowering his head to inhale the faint scent lingering on her pillow. Then, as if wandering through a ritual of familiarity, he moved to her desk.
There was a hair tie resting there, with a few strands still caught in it. He picked it up, brought it close to his nose, and breathed in the faint trace of her fragrance. After carefully plucking away the loose hairs and tossing them into the trash, he set the hair tie back in place.
Curious, he pulled open her drawer. Neat, organized, everything in order so different from his own.
Once, his drawers had been like that too. But over time, clutter inevitably piled up. He'd clear things out once in a while, tossing what he didn't need, yet there always remained more than necessary. Like a hamster, hoarding little things just in case they might prove useful someday.
"She's not like me at all," he murmured with a faint smile.
Closing the drawer, Haruto leaned back in her chair, thinking about how to pass the time before Yuka came home and what they would even talk about when she did.
Before he knew it, the sky outside had darkened. Unlike the long days of summer, the evening had fallen quickly, and already the moon shone faintly above the rooftops.
Just then, his phone buzzed, pulling him out of his thoughts. It was his mother calling.
"Haruto?"
"Yeah, it's me. I'm outside, just want to stay out for a while. Don't wait for me I'll be home a little late."
"I understand."
Futaba, didn't press him. She didn't ask what he was doing or when exactly he'd return. Simply knowing he wasn't coming back yet, she turned instead toward the door. By this time, Mai would likely be home too.
When Haruto hung up, he slipped his phone back into his pocket just as footsteps sounded at the door.
The knob turned. Yuka entered, holding her bag, her eyes immediately finding him sitting at her desk.
"Haruto…" she breathed.
"Didn't you say an hour?" he asked.
"I asked for leave. It's not summer anymore the days get dark so quickly. I was worried you'd leave before I got back, so I came straight home. How's your health? Are you… okay?"
Concern filled her gaze as she set down her bag and hurried to his side. She hadn't visited him in the hospital, so she knew almost nothing about what he had gone through.
In September, she had suddenly lost contact with him. Only in October had they spoken again, when she learned he'd been hospitalized. Now, after all these months, it was the first time she'd seen him in person again.
"I've mostly recovered," Haruto assured her. "I can move around fine, just… no strenuous activity yet. I'll need some more time to rest."
"Your hair… it's gotten so long."
He brushed aside his bangs, which nearly covered his eyes. "When you're stuck in a hospital bed with nothing to do, your hair grows without you noticing. I should probably get it cut soon it doesn't really suit me like this."
He gave a self-deprecating laugh, saying he looked more like one of those gloomy manga characters.
"And you?" he asked gently. "How have you been these days?"
"School. Part-time work. Every day's the same."
"Even during break?"
"…Yes."
Yuka didn't know what else she should be doing. Though she had managed to claw her way out of her struggles, the calm rhythm of daily life still felt foreign to her. She didn't know what goals to chase so she simply kept working part-time, saving bit by bit.
Haruto slipped a hand into his pocket and pulled out a bank card, placing it in front of her.
She froze. It was a Tokyo-Mitsubishi card. She looked from it to him, her brows furrowing in confusion.
"After what happened recently, I realized I should prepare for the future," he explained evenly. "There's one and a half million yen in here. It should be enough to cover your living expenses."
"One… and a half million?" Yuka's eyes widened. Her lips parted, but no words came out.
"I.... I've already received so much from you," she stammered. "The five hundred thousand yen you gave me before I still have plenty left. I'm working too. I can manage my own living expenses."
"How much do you make each month?" he asked.
"…About one hundred and thirty thousand yen."
"And rent?"
Yuka fell silent. With her earnings alone, it was impossible to sustain her current lifestyle. But taking the card from him… the thought filled her with unbearable sadness. She didn't want to keep relying on him like this. She wasn't worth it.
Every time, he told her the same thing: that she deserved his help.
But she knew she hadn't done anything to earn it. Their meeting had been nothing more than chance. She had shared with him a story an ordinary story, nothing special. And yet, somehow, he had given her so much.
Each night before falling asleep, she wondered if she truly deserved it. What could she possibly do to repay him? When he had been lying in the hospital, she couldn't even help then. And now, he wanted to give her more…
"Mm—!"
Her eyes widened as Haruto suddenly leaned in, closing the distance between them. His arms wrapped around her, his gaze holding hers, gentle and firm all at once.
Her panic gave way to stillness. Slowly, she relaxed in his embrace.
Minutes passed. Five at least. By the time they parted, her lips were bitten red, her cheeks glowing faintly. She watched as Haruto slipped the card into her pocket anyway, leaving her heart tangled in conflict.
After months of lying in bed, even that brief kiss left Haruto breathless. He collapsed onto the bed with a dizzy grin, chest rising and falling.
"Three months in a hospital, and my body's gotten this weak," he muttered. "I'll need to take better care of myself."
"…Do you want me to help?" Yuuka asked softly, her hand curling faintly as though in hesitation.
Haruto paused, tempted. Three months two of them fully conscious had left him with plenty of pent-up energy. But after a moment of silence, he shook his head.
"After the holidays, maybe. You've got school tomorrow."
"…Are you sure?" she pressed, worry still clouding her eyes.
He couldn't find an answer.
Later, after leaving her apartment, Haruto felt lighter than he had in months. He walked slowly through the night streets, bought sushi at a nearby shop, and returned to his own apartment.
When he reached the darkened building, he blinked in surprise.
"No one home?"
Maybe his mother had gone shopping downtown. Or…
His gaze flickered toward the Kiyoura residence. Remembering what Koharu had mentioned earlier, Haruto frowned, lips pressing together as he climbed the stairs.
Inside, he fumbled for the light switch like a stranger in his own home. After three months away, even his apartment felt unfamiliar.
He placed the sushi on the table, opened the fridge, pulled out a drink then paused. After staring at it for a moment, he put it back and poured himself a glass of warm water instead.
For a moment, he considered messaging his mother to ask if she was at Kiyoura's house. But the thought exhausted him. He decided to simply wait until she came home.
Then a new message arrived.
"Did you get home safely?"
It was from Sayu Ogiwara, his neighbor upstairs.
"Just got back. What's up? —Love from Miyamizu Haruto ."
"…What's with the ending?" she replied a moment later.
"Nothing. So, what's up?"
His short, clean reply left Sayu at a loss for words. The suffix he'd added earlier did it mean something? Something she didn't understand? She couldn't figure it out.
Sayu felt her heart skip a beat. "Love from Miyamizu Haruto … does that mean he likes me?"
A strange warmth bloomed in her chest, making her inexplicably happy. But just as quickly, reality crept back in. Haruto already had a girlfriend. The warmth in her chest sank back down, leaving a quiet calm in its place.
"At school, no one knows we know each other. So it's fine if we act like strangers, right?"
After reading Sayu's message, Haruto glanced around his empty apartment. Without another word, he stood, slipped on his shoes, and left, closing the door behind him. He walked purposefully up the stairs to Sayu's apartment and pressed the doorbell.
Sayu, sitting in her room, had been staring at her phone anxiously. He hadn't replied to her last two messages, even the emojis she sent had gone unanswered. She bit her lip, her nervousness mounting.
"Is he upset? Should I go down and apologize in person? Would that be better?"
Ding-dong—
The sudden ring of the doorbell made her jump. She turned toward the sound, set down her phone, and hurried to the door. Peeking through the peephole, she saw Haruto standing there. Relief washed over her, and she opened the door.
"Haruto?"
Standing in front of her, Haruto gave a calm, polite smile.
"Can I come in?"
"Y-yeah, of course…"
"Thank you."
He stepped past her, and she closed the door behind him. Haruto's eyes swept across the room, and he couldn't hide a small note of surprise this was the first time he had ever entered Sayu's room.
"The layout of your room… it feels familiar," he said, looking around.
It wasn't exactly familiar—more like eerily similar. The desk, the chair, the bed, even the small appliances and furniture… it mirrored his own room almost perfectly.
The only difference was that her room held no trace of Haruto's belongings or daily items. Instead, it was filled with objects a girl would naturally have.
Sayu stiffened as she realized he had noticed. Her face flushed red.
"Th-that… I'm not very good at this kind of thing, so I… I just… copied your room a bit…"
She nervously raised her head, sneaking glances at his reaction from the corner of her eyes, her voice barely above a whisper.
Haruto's expression remained calm, but he couldn't help but note the meticulous effort she had put into it.
~~~~~~~~~~
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