The next day, or rather the 96th day I kept trying to pretend she wasn't there. That her timer didn't matter. That her smile didn't stir something I didn't want to name.
But Hikari… she made it hard to forget. She didn't talk as much as before, but she was always *there* — in the seat beside me, in the classroom air, in the corner of my vision.
I didn't know if I was annoyed or… something else.
---
Whispers started circulating around the class.
I wasn't surprised. I heard them all the time.
"Why is she always with him?"
"She's too friendly for someone like that."
"He's just weird. Probably has issues or something."
I kept my head down.
I didn't care what they thought. Not until now.
Because now, their words were aimed at someone else.
Someone who didn't deserve it.
---
After lunch, I passed by the back stairwell and heard a voice — soft, but sharp in its honesty.
"I just think you should be careful, Hikari," one of the girls said. "He's not like the others. He never talks. He always looks like he's somewhere else."
"I know," Hikari replied. No hesitation.
There was a beat of silence.
"But I don't think that means I should ignore him," she added. "He's not scary. Just quiet. Maybe too quiet."
I left before I could hear more.
I wasn't supposed to care.
---
After school, I packed up my bag slower than usual, waiting for the classroom to empty. I didn't want to run into her again. I didn't want to feel anything again.
But fate had a cruel sense of timing.
As I stepped through the school gate, I heard her voice.
"Kazuki!"
I turned my head slightly. She was jogging toward me, her schoolbag bouncing against her shoulder.
I sighed quietly and kept walking. She caught up in a few strides and fell in line behind me, walking just a little slower than me, as if she knew I didn't want her there… but was staying anyway.
"You're always in such a hurry," she said, almost teasingly.
I didn't answer.
"I've been wondering…" she added after a beat. "Those lenses you wear. Are they prescription? You're always squinting."
"They're… for light sensitivity," I muttered. It was a lie. One I had told many times.
"Hmm," she said. "But you only wear them during the day, and only take them off when writing."
I tensed slightly but said nothing.
"Interesting," she continued with a soft hum. "You always look like you're trying really hard *not* to see something."
I stopped walking.
She nearly bumped into me.
"…Why do you keep talking to me?" I asked quietly.
She blinked.
"I'm not exactly good company."
Hikari tilted her head slightly, then smiled.
"Because you're the only person in class who looks like they've stopped living," she said, not unkindly. "Everyone else laughs, jokes, complains. You just… sit there. Like you're already gone."
That hit deeper than I expected.
She wasn't done.
"I thought maybe, just maybe, if I talked to you enough, I could pull you back."
Her eyes were steady. Not mocking. Not pitying.
Just *real*.
I looked away.
We walked the rest of the way in silence.
But for once… it didn't feel awkward.
It felt like something was beginning to crack.