Chapter 22: We Met in Silence So the World Wouldn't Hear Us Break
The rooftop was empty.
It always had been theirs, even when it wasn't.
The door creaked open just past sunset.
Yumi turned.
And there he was.
Hood up. Eyes low. Hands shoved deep into his pockets like he wasn't sure they belonged anywhere anymore.
She didn't run to him.
She didn't cry.
She just said, "You came back."
He nodded once.
"I told them everything," he said, voice rough.
She waited.
"They said it was 'brave.'"He scoffed. "It wasn't. It was necessary."
He stepped forward.
Slow.
Measured.
One… two… three steps.
Now he was close enough to smell her shampoo.
Close enough to see that she'd been biting her lip raw.
"You got suspended for me," he whispered.
She smiled — soft and sharp. "You'd do the same."
"No," he said, eyes lifting."I'd burn down more than a file cabinet."
They didn't kiss right away.
They just looked.
Like they were trying to memorize this version of each other.
The version that survived.
"You scared me," she murmured.
He touched her hand.
"I scare myself."
Yumi stepped forward, until her forehead touched his chest.
His arms hovered — unsure.
Then folded around her.
Tight.
Too tight.
Like he wasn't hugging her.
Like he was holding himself together with her body.
"I still have your hair tie," he whispered into her hair.
"I still have your hoodie."
He laughed. Just once. Breathless.
"You never gave it back."
"I never planned to."
And then?
She leaned back just enough to look up at him.
He looked down.
Their mouths were inches.
Then half.
Then none.
The kiss wasn't gentle.
It was urgent.Mouths clashing.Breaths tangled.A gasp. A sigh.Like they were making up for every second spent apart, every word left unsaid.
When they finally pulled apart, they were both shaking.
"Still scared?" she whispered.
His answer came in a voice so low it cracked:
"Only of losing you."