"Sometimes people see the outside first, but the heart already knows the rest."
The light coming in through the windows of the corridor had a soft, calming effect as it usually did, however, today it only reminded Yuu Hayasaka of how unreasonably awake he was. As a matter of fact, he was so restless that his footsteps reverberated quietly throughout the corridor of the school while he walked with his school bag hanging from one shoulder in a rather careless manner.
He was here earlier than he was used to. He didn't know the reason for it. Out of all people, he would never dare to think but ever since yesterday his sense of time has been very confusing. His thoughts kept drifting away and replaying the same moments, Hina waiting at the station, Hina giggling in his room, Hina sitting across from him at the table. It was almost as if the last ten years were some kind of a long pause because her presence came back so effortlessly.
He sighed softly.
(I'm overthinking it. Chill out.)
Yuu went to change into his indoor shoes and headed upstairs. During his walk, quite a few students greeted him and he acknowledged their greetings with a small nod. Nothing seemed to have changed, the class bulletin board, the flower arrangements next to the staff room, the banners announcing the upcoming track meet.
He got to the classroom door and for a moment, he hesitated before he opened it by sliding.
Some of the classmates were there already. They were sitting and chatting casually or simply waiting for the first bell. Aoi Minazuki was waving at him from her seat, her blue bob shaking slightly.
"Yuu, kun, morning!"
"Morning, " Yuu answered.
Ryou was sitting by the window, quiet and as usual, already absorbed in a book as if he was using the sun itself as a lamp. Miyako was busy at the teacher's desk adjusting the chalk and erasers with her movements being very precise and practiced. Everything was so normal that for a moment, Yuu thought that his restlessness was just in his imagination.
That moment lasted only a few seconds.
The moment the classroom door opened again, it happened.
The atmosphere in the room changed drastically, everybody became very quiet, as if some sort of a signal had been given. Some of the students turned their heads towards the door, their faces showing subtle signs of curiosity.
Yuu also turned his head.
"Good morning, everyone."
With a gentle smile, Hina Kashiwagi entered the classroom. Her long black hair was moving with the light breeze and the sun was reflecting in soft waves. Her eyes of a very deep red color were calm and modest and the way she was carrying herself, unhurried, composed, gentle, made her stand out without even trying.
The guys were like statues.
They had her already. They had met her the day before, had seen her talking with Yuu, had passing by her in the hallway. They knew that she was back. They had figured that much. But today, under the steady light that filled the classroom, something was different. Something vivid. Something undeniable.
"…She's really beautiful, " said someone whispering from the far corner of the room.
"Was she always like that yesterday? I didn't get a good look…" another whispered.
Aoi was leaning forward from her seat, her eyes glittering.
"Whoa… Hina, chan looks like she came straight out of a magazine today…"
Even Miyako stopped what she was doing.
Hina put her bag next to her desk not realizing that she was being looked at. Her face turned gentle when she saw Yuu.
"Good morning, Yuu, kun."
"Ah… morning."
He was trying to sound casual but his voice was a bit dry.
Some of the classmates looked back and forth between the two of them, silent questions appearing in their eyes. Yuu was pretending not to see.
Hina took a strand of hair off her face by tucking it behind her ear and sat down beside him. It seemed like it was natural, as if she had always been there. But at the same time, it felt unreal. Yuu was looking at her from the corner of his eye. She didn't seem to be nervous. Or maybe she was, but she was hiding it well behind that calm face.
The teacher came in briefly, gave a few announcements, then left for a staff meeting.
As soon as she left, a few boys, as if an invisible magnet was pulling them, moved toward Hina's desk.
"H, Hey, Kashiwagi, san."
"Good morning…"
"Uh… did you do something different with your hair?"
Hina looked at them blankly, a little bit surprised that they were suddenly paying attention to her.
"Eh? N, no… I didn't do anything special…"
"You really didn't? Because you look… um…"
"I mean, you're really…"
One boy coughed awkwardly. "Pretty."
Hina stopped. Her eyelashes quivered in a mild panic.
"Ah… um… thank you…"
Another boy brought himself a little closer.
"Are your eyes natural?"
"Where did you live before?"
"Do you need help with anything? I don't mind carrying your bag, "
Five boys were surrounding her suddenly. And then six. And then more.
Hina's back was straightened. She leaned back in her seat, and the growing number of faces crowding her was obviously making her uncomfortable.
"A, ah… um… I, I'm okay, "
The boy closest to her took another half, step forward without realizing that she was trying to get him to stop.
That was it.
Hina's reaction time was on the spot.
"C, can you please move back a little!?"
Her voice was not loud. It wasn't harsh. However, the sudden firmness of her tone made every boy freeze in place. It wasn't anger. It wasn't yelling. It was just the instinctive defensive push of the girl who used to chase down the boys recklessly on a playground hill.
The boys were immediately on their best behavior and straightened up.
"S, sorry!"
"We, we got too close, didn't we…"
"O, of course, we'll back up!"
Hina's face turned red right away.
"Ah… no, I didn't mean… I wasn't shouting… I just, I panicked…"
Her voice lowered due to the embarrassment she was feeling. She slightly covered her face with her hands.
Yuu smiled internally and let the air out of his nose.
(Yeah… she really is the same.)
Their appearance might be different but her honesty, and her instinctive reactions, have always been the same.
Aoi was leaning over her desk with a smile on her face.
"Hina, chan, you're beautiful, but the way you panic is the same as always."
"Eh…!? I, I don't panic that much…"
"You definitely panic."
"That's mean…"
"It's true, " Aoi laughed. "But it's cute, so it's fine."
Miyako was next with her arrival, her face being more gentle.
"Kashiwagi, san… if people stare at you like that, it's only because they are amazed. You look very calm and mature today."
"M, mature…?" Hina repeated, flustered. "I just… wore my hair down…"
"It suits you."
Hina's face showed a little heat. "Thank you..."
Ryou silently put a bookmark in his book and replied without looking at her face,
"People notice beauty. That is their nature. But the person inside shouldn't be changed so easily."
Hina looked at him with wide eyes.
"That is... a weird observation."
"It is still right, " Ryou confirmed.
Aoi spoke softly from the other side, "That is how he gives a compliment."
Hina was staring again. After that, she laughed quietly.
The lesson kept going as normal, but Hina was having minor incidents again and again.
When she wanted to make a hair tie of her loose hair, the elastic band was sliding off her hand.
When she was going to get the eraser, it was rolling off the desk in a perfectly tragic manner.
When after the group work, she got up from the chair and bumped her knee lightly.
Each time she made a small "Ah..." sound, the classmates around her seemed to relax.
(Still the same old Hina...)
Somehow, that was comforting.
By lunchtime, the noisy things that happened before had mostly died down. Students went back to their normal work, and only a few of them looked at Hina from time to time.
Yuu and Hina were going to the rooftop together, their steps as if they knew each other even after they had been apart for many years. Soon after they came out, the light breeze was touching their faces. The sky was clear, a soft blue without end.
Hina sat on the bench and after putting her bento on her lap, she let out a long breath.
"...The day was unfamiliar."
Yuu came to her side. "It was not so bad."
"I know that... but... people were staring all the time." She was putting back the strand of her hair once more. "I can't be used of that."
"You're looking different, " Yuu said. "But, in a good way. It's just... unexpected."
Hina was surprised and her eyelashes were shaking gently. "...Really, am I that different?"
"Yes."
"Oh..."
She looked down, and stared at her hands.
"...Is that a bad thing?"
"No, what?"
"It feels a bit scary. Like everyone is expecting me to behave in a certain way just because of my appearance."
Her voice was low and thoughtful.
"I do not want people to get the wrong idea of me just because I have changed externally."
Yuu was looking at her and then he responded.
"They will not."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because you are still you."
Hina was quite surprised and speechless. She looked at his face as if she wanted to confirm something from it.
"...Even if I happen to say socially awkward things?" she whispered.
"You are always saying socially awkward things."
"That is rude!"
"It is true."
Hina pouted her cheeks slightly. Then she laughed.
"But if you say it, it doesn't sound bad."
She looked up to the sky, the wind was not disturbed and went through her hair. The sun was reflecting on her and she looked like she could be a character of some silent spring postcard.
"…I'm really happy, " she said in a soft voice. "That we can go to school together again. Sit together. Talk like this."
Yuu, however, didn't look at her but away, before the warmth in his cheeks could be seen.
"...Yeah. Me too."
The wind was carrying a faint fragrance of flowers across the rooftop. It wasn't cold, but the wind was gentle and almost like a memory, as if it was greeting them to a place that they had shared earlier but had forgotten.
Hina was opening her bento.
"I made dinner a try today."
"Really? Cooking?"
"It's just a simple dish... but I just wanted to try."
She was showing the food to him, shy but at the same time a little proud. The food looked warm, vibrant, and seemed to be carefully done.
"The food looks delicious, " Yuu remarked.
Hina was blushing a little and smiled.
"I'm still..."
"You're great."
"...Thank you."
They both decided to eat in silence for a while, and they could hear from afar the noise of students from different classrooms and sometimes a bird flying past. The rooftop was always serene, but today it felt to be a little more than that.
"Yuu, kun, " Hina interrupted the silence suddenly.
", "Hm?"
"Do you think that people will change drastically within 10 years?"
Yuu stopped and thought before he answered.
"Yes, I think so."
"Even children like us?"
"Especially children like us."
Hina kept silent. Her hand was lightly touching the hairs at the end.
"...If I were to change too much, would you still be able to recognize me?"
Yuu replied immediately without giving it a second thought.
"I have already done that."
Hina looked at him.
There was a small smile that appeared on her lips. One that seemed a little relieved, and a little embarrassed.
"I'm glad, " she whispered. "Really."
The sky seemed more vast than usual.
They walked back to the classroom after lunch. The rest of the day went on normally with classes, group work, quiet talks, and so on. Now and then Hina would drop a pen cap or misplace a worksheet, and every time she did the entire row would look at her with a strange sense of familiarity.
Whether she was beautiful or not, elegant or not, she was undeniably the same girl.
When the final whistle blew, students put their things together and are ready to leave the classroom in twos and threes. Aoi came close to Hina when she was going out.
"Hina, chan, " she called.
"Hm?"
"Today, everyone was amazed. But in a good way."
"...Really?"
Aoi nodded her head."
"People don't change totally just because their looks. The things that matter stay the same. And frankly…" She grinned. "You being a bit clumsy makes you more approachable."
"Is that supposed to be a compliment?"
"It is, " Aoi laughed. "Don't be too anxious. Everything is okay with you."
Hina slowly blinked. "...Thank you, Minazuki, san."
Aoi said good, bye by waving off. "See you tomorrow, Hina, chan. Yuu, kun, too."
"Yeah, " Yuu agreed.
Aoi walked away down the corridor.
Hina exhaled a little, the tension was gone from her shoulders.
"Today was hard."
"But you managed well."
"Yuu, kun, " she said very quietly. "Thank you for being there."
Yuu was not quite sure how to respond, so he was scratching his neck.
"It's nothing, " he said.
Hina gave him a look that was soft.
"It's not 'nothing'."
For a short time, the corridor was quieter than usual. Hina's eyes were holding the kindness that she had always, combined with the maturity she didn't have when she was a child. It was both nostalgic and new.
"Let's go home, " Yuu said, clearing his throat.
"Yes."
They were walking together. The steps were light and the topics were simple but nice and warm.
The first day of school together had ended.
But to them, it felt more like the beginning. warm.
The first day of school together had ended.
However, for them, it seemed more like the start. warm.
The first day of school together had ended.
Yet for them it seemed more like the beginning of something that had been there for ten years waiting.
Aoi's Life Lesson
Beauty is not something that people immediately notice. Sometimes they only understand how much someone has changed after seeing them in a place that is significant. But the fact is the person inside doesn't change as much as we think, and that is what makes reunions feel genuine.