Second period dragged on longer than usual.
Lily sat near the middle row of class, fingers idly spinning her pen while Mr. Saito scribbled notes on the whiteboard. Her legs were still a little sore from yesterday's PE, but it was a dull ache now — manageable. Like something she was slowly learning to live with.
The clock ticked on until Mr. Saito finally turned and cleared his throat.
"All right, everyone," he announced, "for the next week, you'll be working in groups of four on your social studies presentation. I expect creativity, teamwork, and actual research this time — not just copied facts off the internet."
A few students groaned. A few cheered.
"Form your groups. You've got five minutes."
Chairs scraped. Voices rose all at once.
Immediately, clusters began forming across the classroom — friends gravitating to friends, desk legs clattering as students dragged chairs together.
Lily didn't move yet. She glanced around, then spotted Aki, sitting quietly at the far end by the window, his eyes already focused on his notebook like none of this involved him.
Of course, no one had approached him.
She could see the subtle tension in his shoulders — like he was already preparing to work alone. Again.
Without a word, Lily stood and made her way to him.
Aki looked up just as she pulled a chair beside him.
"…You don't have to," he said quietly, blinking in surprise.
Lily sat anyway. "I know."
Before he could say anything else, Riku popped up behind her.
"You're teaming up with Aki?" he asked, mildly surprised but not judging. "Mind if I join?"
Then Mira was there too, sliding into the seat across from them. "Tch. You think I'd let you hog all the group fun without me?"
Just like that, a group of four.
But Aki's eyes stayed on Lily.
He leaned in slightly, voice low and careful. "You don't have to do this because you… feel bad. I'm used to being left out."
Lily turned to face him directly. "Aki. I didn't choose you because I pity you."
Her voice was calm — not harsh, not overly gentle. Just honest.
"I chose you because you're smart. And because I want to."
That made him freeze.
His lips parted like he wanted to say something — but the words didn't come.
He just nodded, eyes drifting down to his notebook again. His ears, though, were slightly red.
Mira leaned across the table, raising an eyebrow at Lily. "Wow. Didn't think you'd be the heart-melting type."
Riku chuckled. "Maybe she's just got good taste."
Lily ignored them both, flipping open her own notebook. "Let's get started."
Mira and Riku quieted down after that, sensing the shift in tone. The four of them huddled around the desk, scribbling down possible topics, tossing around vague ideas — World War history, modern tech policies, environmental shifts.
But Lily kept noticing how Aki's hand hovered over the page before writing.
He was listening. Carefully. His notes were clean, his thoughts sharp when he spoke up — though rare.
But more than once, Lily caught him glancing at her — not with suspicion now, but with something else.
A kind of question.
Like he still couldn't figure out why she'd bothered.
She didn't plan to answer that with words.
Some things didn't need explaining.