The courtyard felt unusually quiet for lunchtime.
Not silent.
Not empty.
Just… tense.
Like the school itself was exhaling through clenched teeth.
Students drifted around in clusters, talking too softly, glancing too openly. The festival rumors were no longer sparks. They were fire. And the flames now had a name:
Sayaka.
Eadlyn walked toward the fountain to drink water, but paused when the whispers sharpened.
"He's the one she held hands with—" "I heard she waited for him after the fireworks." "What's going to happen to Hiroto?" "Hiroto's going to lose it…"
The last line made Eadlyn stop.
Hiroto?
He turned.
A boy leaned against the sakura tree near the walkway.
Tall. Athletic. Hair slightly damp as if from morning swim practice.
Expression tense enough to crack.
Hiroto Sakamura — top swimmer, top grades, top campus heart-throb.
And Sayaka's silent admirer since middle school.
Their eyes met.
Hiroto pushed off the tree.
"Greyson," he said quietly. "We need to talk."
No hostility.
No false politeness.
Just pain wrapped in control.
Eadlyn nodded. "Alright."
They moved behind the sports shed — a place where students went when conversations needed privacy. Or when pride needed hiding.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Hiroto finally broke.
"I've liked Sayaka since middle school," he said, voice low and steady.
"She's… my entire reason I pushed myself. My grades, my achievements—I always wanted to stand beside her someday."
Eadlyn didn't interrupt.
Hiroto clenched his fists.
"When I saw the pictures from the festival… when I heard the rumors…"
His voice cracked — barely, but it did.
"It felt like everything I'd been working toward slipped out of my hands."
Eadlyn exhaled.
He didn't mock.
He didn't lecture.
He didn't minimize the boy's feelings.
Instead, he spoke with a calm, gentleness — but with the spine that made him Eadlyn:
"Hiroto," he said quietly, "are you in love because your feelings grew with her… or because you made her the center of your worth?"
Hiroto blinked.
"And if you feel this strongly…"
Eadlyn continued, voice steady, "…do you want her because she makes you happy, or because you believe you can make her happy?"
Silence.
"I'm not attacking your love," Eadlyn added.
"I'm asking what kind of love it is."
Hiroto swallowed. "Is there a difference?"
"There is," Eadlyn said.
"It's the difference between love that anchors…
and love that cages."
Hiroto's breath hitched.
"When someone truly loves…" Eadlyn continued, eyes soft but unwavering,
"…their biggest fear isn't losing the person —
it's seeing the person become unhappy, even if they stay."
Hiroto's voice trembled.
"So… you're saying I should give up?"
"No."
Eadlyn stepped closer.
"I'm saying love isn't proven by holding on.
It's proven by how deeply you want them to shine —
even if it's not with you."
Hiroto stared.
Eadlyn didn't blink.
"Tell me, Hiroto," he said gently.
"Do you love her enough to let her choose her happiness… even if her choice isn't you?"
Silence.
Then—
A soft, broken sound.
Hiroto looked down, covering his eyes with his hand.
"I… want her to be happy," he whispered.
"But I don't want to disappear either."
Eadlyn nodded.
"That's not weakness," he said.
"That's human."
Another silence—this time calmer, softer.
Hiroto inhaled deeply.
"…Greyson," he said, voice steadier, "if she chooses you…I won't stand in the way. Not out of defeat."
He looked up, eyes clearer.
"But because I want to become someone she'd be proud to have known—even if I'm not the one she ends up with."
Eadlyn's expression softened.
"That," he said, "is what real love sounds like."
Hiroto exhaled shakily… then gave a small, sad smile.
"You're not what I expected, Greyson."
"I get that a lot," Eadlyn said dryly.
They both chuckled — a strange sound in the middle of a quiet storm.
Just then—
A voice crackled behind the shed:
"…Rin, move left—LEFT, not right—
Manami, your whisper is too close to the mic—
Ken, stop breathing like a dragon—"
Hiroto and Eadlyn stared at each other.
And around the corner, like clowns exiting a tiny car—
Ken (trying to look invisible but failing),
Manami (holding a rolled-up schedule),
Rin (holding her phone up like a reporter),
and Ichigo (wearing headphones, a portable console in hand).
The four froze.
Rin muttered, "Abort mission… we got caught."
Ken scratched his head.
"Uh… surprise?"
Manami sighed, giving up on pretending.
"We came to… handle the rumors.
Make sure things don't go south."
Ichigo didn't look up from his console.
"I said stay low, not stand in a straight line like NPCs."
Eadlyn blinked, stunned.
Hiroto laughed for the first time that day.
"You guys… were here the whole time?"
Rin raised two fingers sheepishly.
"We couldn't risk anyone twisting your conversation into drama."
Ken nodded firmly.
"We were ready to step in if fists flew."
Manami added, "Or if crying happened."
"It did," Hiroto admitted, rubbing his eyes.
"We recorded everything," Rin said proudly.
"You what?" Eadlyn choked.
"For evidence," she clarified.
"Proof that you weren't fighting. Proof that Hiroto took the mature route. We'll leak it if needed."
Ichigo finally looked up.
"I already drafted three counter-rumor strategies," he said calmly.
"One involves memes. It's bulletproof."
Everyone stared.
Even Hiroto.
"…who is he?" Hiroto whispered.
Rin sighed.
"Our stealth cheat code."
Ichigo went back to his console.
"I'll take that as a compliment."
Eadlyn looked at his friends —
Manami organizing logistics,
Rin controlling information,
Ken ready to defend,
Ichigo strategizing like a cold genius…
All working behind the scenes for him.
And something warm flickered in his chest.
He wasn't carrying the rumors alone. He wasn't navigating the tension alone. He wasn't walking this year alone.
They had chosen him —
not because he asked…
but because he mattered.
Late Evening
Back home, Eadlyn wrote:
Diary:
They fought for me today.
Not loudly.
Not violently.
But in the quiet, protective way real friends do.
I think love doesn't only come from romance.
Sometimes it comes from the people who stand behind you
before you even realize you needed them.