The evening light faded fast. The sky turned bruised purple and the first chill of coming night crept beneath the leaves.
Shoya lingered just beyond the garden gate, fingers gripping the strap of his bag tightly. He wanted to call out to Naomi—to ask more, to break the silence that had wrapped itself around them—but the words wouldn't come. They always didn't.
The garden, with its ancient stones and twisted branches, felt less like a place and more like a quiet witness—holding its breath along with him.
He pulled his sketchbook from his bag and flipped to the page where he had tried to capture the last light—the shadows stretching, the curves of the sculpture silhouetted in gold.
The page was empty, save for a single line—unfinished.
A message buzzed in his pocket.
His heart skipped.
It was from an unknown number.
> "Not everything lost is gone."
Shoya stared at the screen, the words blurring beneath his eyes.
Waiting.
The word echoed.
His thoughts drifted back to Naomi's words about Kaori—lost but not disappeared.
What did it mean?
Shoya folded the phone, slipping it back into his pocket as the first stars blinked awake overhead.
He closed his eyes.
He took a deep breath.
And with trembling fingers, he opened his sketchbook again.
This time, he began to draw.
---
He didn't know how long he'd been sketching.
The world had blurred into a hush of graphite and nightfall. Lines took shape beneath his fingers—not perfect, not even fully clear—but raw. Honest. The way her voice had trembled when she spoke Kaori's name.
He barely noticed the soft crunch of footsteps on gravel getting closer until they paused.
A second of silence.
Then—her voice.
Naomi: ❝You're still here.❞
He flinched slightly, head lifting.
Naomi stood by the gate now, her silhouette framed against the dim lights of the building behind her. Her bag hung loosely from her shoulder. Her cardigan sleeves were pulled over her hands.
She didn't look surprised.
Just… tired.
❝I forgot my umbrella,❞ she added, as if needing a reason to be there.
Shoya blinked at her. For a moment, he said nothing. Then quietly:
Shoya: ❝It's not raining, and i didn't know you had an umbrella.❞
A tiny puff of laughter escaped her lips. She looked down at her feet.
Naomi: ❝I know.❞
They stood like that, separated by only a few steps and so much more. The wind picked up slightly, rustling the branches above. Somewhere, the song that had played earlier had ended, leaving behind a strange stillness.
Shoya gestured vaguely toward the bench.
Shoya: ❝You… want to sit?❞
Naomi: " i think i need to rest a little"
Then walked forward slowly, her steps careful, deliberate. She sat on the far end of the bench, leaving space between them. Her eyes didn't meet his. She watched the leaves swaying in the dark.
He closed his sketchbook gently and placed it on his lap.
Silence stretched.
Naomi broke it.
Naomi: ❝You said her name like you know her.❞
His breath caught.
Shoya: ❝Kaori.❞
He nodded slowly.
Naomi looked at him. There was something sharp in her gaze—but not cold. More like… something she'd been holding for too long.
Naomi: ❝People forget her. Even the teachers. Even the clubs. But… I hear her name in places where no one says it. Like echoes.❞
Shoya's fingers curled slightly against the cover of his sketchbook.
❝She was your friend?❞ he asked gently.
Naomi looked away.
A pause.
Then:
Naomi: ❝Not at first.❞
Shoya didn't push. Just waited.
Naomi's voice lowered.
Naomi:❝She talked to people who visited this garden, making friends with them. She first came to me and talked about random things then we became friends.❞
Her voice grew quieter, like she wasn't sure if she should keep speaking.
Naomi: ❝But then she started acting strange. Missing class. Saying things like… 'he's watching' or 'don't go to the quiet places.' I thought she was being dramatic.❞
Naomi:❝And then one day, she didn't come back.❞
A shiver ran through the air.
Shoya looked down.
❝Did you know why?❞ he asked.
She was quiet.
Then nodded.
Naomi: ❝I followed her once.❞
Shoya turned toward her, eyes wide.
But Naomi shook her head slowly.
Naomi: ❝I lost her at the old building. The one they sealed up near the west dorms. I was scared. I… I didn't go back.❞
A faint buzz came from his pocket again.
Another message.
He hesitated before checking.
> "Don't let her walk alone."
His chest tightened.
He looked at Naomi.
She wasn't looking at him. Her eyes were focused on a single dry leaf twisting in the wind.
❝Hey, Naomi…❞ he said softly.
She turned to him.
His voice caught—but he said it anyway.
Shoya: ❝Where are you trying to go now?❞
Naomi: " Home..!"
Shoya: " in which direction you are going?"
Naomi: " right then straight until i see a building named Hoshinotel Heights"
Shoya: " i know where it is, actually i go the same way why don't we go?! I mean if you are OK with it of course I didn't mean anything unusual i just wanted to walk you home this time sorry…"
Her eyes widened, just slightly.
The wind stilled.
She didn't smile.
But she didn't say no.
❝...Alright,❞ she whispered.
And they stood together.
Not close.
But not far.
And in that moment, for the first time, Shoya felt the silence change.
Like it was listening too.
They walked side by side, slowly, through the tree-lined path that curved behind the arts building. Their footsteps crunched against loose gravel, falling into a quiet rhythm—just out of sync, just like them.
Shoya kept his hands stuffed in his pockets. Naomi's cardigan sleeves hid hers entirely. The silence between them wasn't heavy now.
The lights from the classrooms glowed behind the windows as they passed, framing blurred shadows of students staying late. The world around them still moved. But in that sliver of walkway, time had loosened its grip.
Naomi spoke first.
Naomi :"...I see you like to draw a lot"
Shoya blinked. "Uh—yeah. I mean… sort of."
She glanced over. "Sort of?"
"I don't know if I'd call it anything serious. I just… try to catch things before I forget them."
Naomi hummed faintly. "Like what?"
He looked up at the branches above, then back down at the ground. "Expressions. Hands. Places where the light hits weird, i want to remember what i see and like "
She gave a soft nod. "You have problem with remembering?!"
Shoya hesitated.
Then nodded.
They passed the bike rack near the cafeteria. A cat darted between the wheels. Naomi watched it go.
Naomi: "...Kaori used to draw too," she said, almost absently. "But she was terrible at it. In the beginning but then she became really good "
Naomi: "She'd draw people in class, and they'd always look like potatoes. But she was proud of them anyway."
Naomi paused.
Then, after a moment, added: "I think that's what made her brave. She didn't care if it came out wrong."
There was a quiet between them again. But now it had something inside it. A story. A shared breath.
Shoya found himself glancing at her.
Shoya: "I… I don't think i have your number."
Naomi blinked again. "What?"
He rubbed the back of his neck. "Uhh… i said maybe if you don't mind it if i can get your number, maybe we need something …"
Naomi didn't speak. Just waited.
Shoya: " actually forget what i said sorry today im not on my right mind.."
He stopped walking for a second. Naomi slowed beside him.
Naomi's gaze was steady now, studying him.
Then she looked down. Pulled her phone from her sleeve.
"Nah I don't think it's a bad idea, you don't seem like a bad person afterall" she said.
Shoya just watched her
She handed him the phone. Her contacts screen was open—blank space waiting.
He stared at it.
Slowly, he took his phone out too.
They typed at the same time.
He named her "Naomi."
She paused a little longer on his.
Then quietly typed:
Shoya
When she handed his phone back, she didn't look at him.
But she said,
"If you wanted anything you can text me, you don't have to be shy."
He got nervous a little then said " ok thank you."
The wind blew through the leaves again.
And without thinking, Shoya said,
"Hey, Naomi…"
She looked up.
Shoya: " about what you said the other day in the garden, about disappearing thing actually i don't think it was a bad idea you didn't "
For the first time, she smiled.
Not fully.
They walked the rest of the way in silence. But it wasn't silence anymore.
It was something else now.
---
They reached where she stays and then said goodbye and parted ways
.
.
.
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To be continued in chapter 8