The morning passed like a breeze, but for Izumi Ichikawa, every tick of the clock echoed louder than it should. His mind was still stuck on the rooftop lunch he had shared with Ayato Yamada yesterday. He tried to tell himself it was just a coincidence, a one-time occurrence. Maybe she was just being polite. Or maybe, he hoped, she wouldn't bring it up again.
But hope and reality didn't always get along.
As the bell rang for lunch, Izumi rose from his seat with the same routine pace, avoiding eyes, dodging loud voices, clutching his bento box like a lifeline. He turned toward the stairwell that led to the rooftop, unsure why he was even going there again. Maybe the wind helped him breathe. Or maybe...
When he opened the rooftop door, she was already there.
Ayato Yamada.
White-haired, green-eyed, sitting with her legs folded to the side, a brightly decorated bento box on her lap. She waved the moment she saw him.
"Ichikawa-kun!" she called cheerfully.
He froze for a second, surprised. Then slowly, awkwardly, he walked over and sat at a safe distance beside her.
"I didn't think you'd come," he admitted.
"I wasn't sure you would either," she said with a soft smile. "But I was hoping."
They opened their bentos in silence. The clatter of chopsticks and the cry of distant crows filled the air.
Ayato's lunch was a mix of rice balls, fried chicken, tamagoyaki, and colorful vegetables—each piece arranged with care. In contrast, Izumi's lunch was simpler—homemade, but clearly prepared without much flair. He felt self-conscious, noticing her glance at it.
"Did you make it yourself?" she asked.
He shook his head. "My sister did. She's... good at this kind of thing."
"Looks tasty," Ayato said, popping a piece of broccoli into her mouth.
Izumi nodded. "Yours looks... colorful."
Ayato laughed lightly. "That's my mom's doing. She thinks food should look like a festival."
Izumi didn't know how to respond, so he simply nodded again and focused on chewing. He was bad at conversations. Always had been. But Ayato didn't seem to mind the silences. In fact, she filled them gently, with small observations.
"Nice view, right?" she said, looking at the sky. "Feels like you can see the whole town from up here."
Izumi followed her gaze. It really was a nice view. The afternoon sun gave a golden hue to the rooftops below. A gentle breeze carried the scent of spring flowers, mixing with the distant scent of chalk and wood from the classrooms.
"Do you always eat here?" she asked.
He hesitated. "Yeah. Since first year."
"Because it's quiet?"
He nodded. "I don't like crowded places."
Ayato smiled. "I get that. But don't you get lonely?"
He paused. The question lingered, soft and sharp.
"Not really," he lied.
She didn't call him out on it. She just nodded thoughtfully, as if understanding more than he wanted to share.
Lunch continued quietly, but the silence between them felt warmer now. Like a soft blanket instead of a wall.
As the bell rang, Ayato stood up and stretched. "Thanks for letting me join you, Ichikawa-kun. Can I come again tomorrow?"
Izumi stared at her, unsure. Part of him wanted to say no—to keep his world simple. But the other part, the one that remembered her smile and her stories about cloud shapes, whispered something different.
"...Okay," he said.
She smiled brightly. "Great! See you then."
As she walked away, her white hair dancing behind her, Izumi felt something stir in his chest. Something unfamiliar.
A quiet heartbeat.
The afternoon sun mellowed as the breeze played with Ayato's hair, the white strands fluttering like silk threads caught in the wind. Izumi glanced sideways at her, then quickly looked back down at his bento box. A subtle, awkward silence had fallen between them again—but it wasn't uncomfortable. Rather, it felt... fragile. Like something delicate was forming between them, and any sudden movement might scare it away.
"You know," Ayato broke the quiet, poking her chopstick into one of her rice balls, "I didn't expect you to talk to me yesterday. Or today. You seemed like the type who'd completely ignore a girl like me."
Izumi blinked. "A girl like you?"
"Popular. Talkative. Shameless," she said with a small grin.
He didn't disagree.
"But I liked that you didn't push me away either." Her voice dropped slightly, turning sincere. "I was a little nervous, you know? Not many people give me their real selves. It's always pretending or flirting or showing off. But you... you're just you."
Izumi chewed his food slowly, unsure how to respond. Compliments made him uneasy. Especially when they came from someone as radiant as her. She was too bright. Too open. Too... real.
"I just don't like noise," he muttered eventually.
Ayato giggled. "Then I'm your worst nightmare."
A faint smirk tugged at Izumi's lips before he could stop it.
They sat together for a few more minutes, watching clouds drift across the sky. Occasionally, Ayato would point at one and make up a silly name. "That one looks like a sleepy cat," or "That's clearly a flying takoyaki."
Izumi found himself relaxing. Just a little.
As lunch neared its end, Ayato suddenly leaned forward. "Hey, Ichikawa-kun."
"Yeah?"
"Would it be okay if I joined you here again tomorrow?"
He hesitated. A familiar resistance rose in his chest, warning him to preserve his routine, his safety, his quiet.
But then he remembered the warmth of her presence, the unexpected calm she brought even with her chatter.
"...Sure."
She beamed. "Great! Then it's a date!"
He stiffened. "Wait, no, that's not what I meant—"
"Too late, you already said yes," she teased, standing up and brushing crumbs off her skirt. "See you tomorrow, Ichikawa-kun."
She walked away, humming a tune, leaving him on the rooftop with a strange flutter in his chest.
Izumi sat there for a few moments longer, staring at the empty space where she'd just been.
"What... just happened?" he muttered to himself.
The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch break.
He sighed, stood up, and followed the wind back to class—a little less alone than before.
Lunch break ended, and with it came a new wave of classroom buzz. The teacher re-entered, and the class began discussing literature, but Izumi could barely concentrate. His thoughts kept drifting to the unexpected turn of events with Ayato. She had initiated a conversation. She had laughed at his joke. And she'd even asked to eat lunch together again. These things didn't just happen to him. It was like a foreign drama playing out in real life.
When the final bell rang, Izumi grabbed his bag slowly, mentally preparing himself for a solitary walk home as usual. He didn't expect anything more.
"Izumi-kun!"
He blinked. Turning around, he found Ayato standing behind him again, her school bag slung over her shoulder, the soft hue of sunset filtering through the windows and casting a golden outline around her white hair. She smiled.
"Are you heading home?"
"Y-Yeah," he said, startled. "Why?"
"Can I walk with you? Just until the station."
Izumi hesitated. No one had ever asked to walk home with him before. He felt the awkwardness tangle in his chest. But Ayato was already walking beside him, taking his silence as a yes.
As they strolled through the quiet streets, cherry blossom petals floated in the air. Spring had truly arrived. The road was lined with trees in full bloom, the breeze soft and scented.
"So… what do you usually do after school?" Ayato asked.
"Read manga. Watch anime. Sometimes game," he admitted, a little embarrassed.
"That sounds peaceful. I've been reading this shoujo manga recently. It's about a quiet boy who secretly writes love letters to a girl in his class but never gives them to her."
Izumi looked at her. "That… sounds kind of sad."
"It is. But also beautiful. Because even without expecting anything, he still pours his heart out."
There was a silence between them, soft and thoughtful.
"You like stories like that?" he asked.
"I think I like feelings that don't need to be loud," she said. "Like when you care for someone quietly. That kind of love feels more real."
Izumi didn't know what to say to that. But somehow, her words stayed with him.
They reached the station. Ayato stopped, turning to him.
"Thanks for walking with me."
"Yeah… you too."
She tilted her head slightly. "Maybe tomorrow again?"
He nodded. Just slightly. And Ayato smiled like that tiny nod meant everything.
When he got home, Izumi sat at his desk, staring at the anime figure of his favorite character, Sakura-chan. But even she didn't hold his full attention today. His mind was still on Ayato. Her voice. Her smile. The way she said, "Maybe tomorrow again?"
He didn't know what was happening. But maybe… just maybe… his quiet days were really starting to change.