Hoshino POV
The teacher had just finished collecting everyone's exams and excused us for the day. Most students began to pack their things and file out of class. Luna and I, however, remained seated for just a little longer.
Well—I was seated. Luna was lying down face-first on her desk.
"Ughhhhh," she groaned. "I'm tireddddd."
As much as I wanted to poke fun at her, she—and all the others—had had a long week, so I decided against it for the time being.
"On the bright side, at least starting today, it's summer vacation, so you won't have to study for a while," I said, trying to cheer her up.
Luna paused, then sat up in her seat, blowing her hair away from her face.
"Yeah... I guess you're right. I'll focus on that…"
Suddenly, a bright smile broke across Luna's face, her hair regaining its vivid blonde colour as her smile widened.
"How about… summer break starts now!"
Before I could even ask what she was going on about, she pulled out her phone and hurriedly typed something out. In the next second, my phone buzzed in my pocket.
I pulled it out and glanced at the screen. Luna had just sent a message to the group chat asking if anyone wanted to hang out.
The responses came instantly. Sora, Remi, and Yu all agreed to come. Luna sent another text telling everyone to meet at the shoe lockers before putting her phone away.
"Hey," Luna said, turning to me with a sparkly grin. "Let's go! I don't want to stay here any longer!"
Without wasting another second, Luna grabbed the hood of my sweater and bolted out of the room, dragging me along with her. By the time we reached the shoe lockers, everyone was already there, gathered around Luna's locker.
"So," Yu said, leaning against the lockers. "What's the move? I'm kinda hungry, so I could use a bite to eat."
"Of course, the first thing you think about is food," I jabbed.
"Hey!" he said defensively. "We've had this conversation before. I just get really hungry! I haven't eaten in hours!"
I simply looked away from him. "Sure. Whatever you say."
Yu's frown deepened, but before he could say anything else, Sora interrupted with an idea.
"How about karaoke? We can order food there, too, and it sounds fun. What does everyone else think?"
"I don't mind," Remi said. "But why karaoke of all things? I didn't think you were the type to like that kind of stuff."
"Well—in the slice-of-life shows I watch, they always make it look fun, so I want to see what the excitement is all about!"
It was such a strange thing to say, but he was so innocent about it that none of us could bring ourselves to tease him for it.
Tsk. This is why I hate nice people.
Remi let out a loud sigh. "You know what? Forget I asked."
She looked around the group, counting heads. Once she reached the end—which was Luna—something shifted in her face.
"Say, has anyone invited Mei? She hasn't read the group chat, so maybe she hasn't seen the message yet. I'd feel bad if we left without even trying to ask her."
School had just finished, so she couldn't have gotten that far unless she ran home. But knowing Mei, that wasn't something she would do.
We all began to look around. My gaze swept through the aisles of students until it landed on the school entrance.
There, standing just before the curtain of rainfall, was Mei.
She was alone, and she didn't move. I didn't think much of it at first until a few seconds passed, and nothing changed.
…What is she doing?
Mei was always an anomaly to me— and while I could understand her to a degree, I could never tell what she was thinking. Yet, just by looking at her back, I realized something.
No—it wasn't a realization, more like a feeling. Something impossible to describe, but something that I was certain I'd felt before.
That's right…
It was the same feeling I had when I saw her in the alleyway after sports day had just ended.
...Almost.
It was similar, but at the same time, not quite there at all. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but compared to back then—even though we were still in school—it felt much more foreboding, if I could even describe it as such.
Before I even realized it, I'd already stepped away from the group and was walking toward Mei.
I should have told them that I'd found her, but I didn't.
Maybe they'd ask me questions, or maybe they'd get suspicious. It wasn't just them, either; there were still others around. Some were strangers, and some were Mei's friends who didn't know anything about our relationship. This would no doubt draw some attention, no matter how little.
Maybe it'd cause problems down the line, or maybe everyone would move on and act as if none of it happened.
There were many possibilities, but I didn't pay them any mind—and I didn't care.
Mei raised her left arm, slowly drawing it closer to her right—toward her wrist. By then, I was already right behind her.
My own hand reached forward, and I tapped her on the shoulder.
She stopped, froze for a moment, and spun around.
The moment we made eye contact, it felt as though my muscles had unraveled themselves around my bones, leaving me with a cold, hollow sensation.
Her all-enveloping black eyes bored into mine as she stared at me. They flickered for a brief moment, and by the time she had a cheery smile, they disappeared.
"Hello. What do you need, Hoshino?" she asked.
I adjusted at once.
With a tired yawn, I turned to the side and pointed at the group behind me. "We were planning on going out, and Remi wanted to invite you—or at least make sure you were aware it was happening."
Mei giggled softly. "Hihi, sorry about that. Once the exam finished, I was just so focused on leaving and never checked my phone."
"Well, if you want to go home that badly, you can."
While it might have come off rude, it was a genuine suggestion. There was no point in forcing her to go out if she didn't feel like it.
"No, it's okay," Mei said, shaking her head. "I could use a breather. Thank you for inviting me, Hoshino."
"No problem."
I turned around and gave the group a small nod, signalling that she'd agreed to come.
Seeing that, they rushed for the exit without a second thought. Once there, we made a mad dash toward Mei's car, got in, and then drove off to the karaoke place.
We talked on our way there, but no one asked why I'd gone over to Mei. They were probably too tired to think that deeply after exams—or, since I'd let her into my family's restaurant, the status quo they saw between us had changed. Either way, it worked for me.