The silence stretched further.
Mei made a tiny sound in her throat and glanced up at him briefly before looking away again.
"Hm?" she asked softly.
Like she was trying to check if he was okay without fully asking.
His chest tightened.
Hana had died months ago.
Near the beginning of the semester.
Now winter break was close enough that people had already started talking about plans.
He had friends now. Actual friends. He ate lunch with people. Talked more. Went places after class.
The loneliness from the beginning of the semester had faded somewhere along the way without him noticing exactly when.
He should have moved on already.
Maybe part of him already had.
And still some part of him kept standing here beside Mei while looking sideways at Hana too.
If he rejected her now, things would change.
Mei would probably cry later when nobody was around to see it.
Or maybe she wouldn't cry at all, which somehow felt worse.
Lunch would become strange afterward.
