Lena leaned against the school gate, her fingers aimlessly scrolling through her phone screen, though she hadn't read a single word for the past five minutes. Her thoughts spiraled around Luka's words—"You two are besties... but in a weird way." Distant yet close.
Her jaw tightened. Was that how people saw them? Like a paradox?
She imagined her classmates whispering behind her back, asking Umire what she saw in someone like Lena. Why is she hanging out with that weirdo? Isn't she just dragging you down?
The thought crawled under her skin like an itch she couldn't scratch. Her fingers gripped her phone tightly as the noise in her head swelled. To drown it out, she yanked out her headphones and shoved them into her ears. The bass-heavy beat slammed through her skull as she turned the volume up, chasing the thoughts with lyrics she didn't bother processing.
She stared at the crowd of students drifting past, their laughter like muffled static. They waved to friends, made after-school plans, and walked into the evening without a second thought. And—she-she was just waiting. For someone who always seemed to belong in every room but hers.
Until suddenly, the world shifted.
A gentle tug, and her right earphone slipped out. The beat cut in half, music in one ear, real life bleeding in through the other. She blinked, startled, then turned her head.
Umire stood beside her, holding the stolen earphone between her fingers like it was something fragile. Without asking, she tucked it into her ear, only to immediately flinch.
"God, Lena," she winced, yanking it back out, "you're gonna go deaf listening to stuff that loud."
She reached up and plucked the remaining earbud from Lena's ear, her fingers grazing her cheek. The contact was brief, but warm. Intentional.
"Sorry for making you wait so long," Umire added, her voice softening. "I was trying to get the others off my back." Then, just like that, she laced her fingers through Lena's and tugged her forward. "C'mon. Let's go to my place already."
Lena followed, almost stumbling at first, but didn't resist. Umire's hand in hers felt natural. Like something they'd done a thousand times—but still made her chest squeeze every time.
"Why do you always listen to your music so loud?" Umire asked as they walked through the school gates, their hands still linked.
Lena hesitated. "It… just helps me think. Or not think. I don't know."
"Hm." Umire didn't press further, but Lena could feel her eyes flicker toward her with curiosity.
After a beat, Lena spoke again, unthinking. "What were you guys talking about for so long in the classroom?"
Umire turned her head, brows furrowing slightly. "Nothing really. They just wanted to hang out. I told them I couldn't."
"…Did they ask why you were hanging out with me?" The question slipped from her lips before she could stop it, all her spiraling thoughts now laid bare in a whisper.
Umire slowed her steps, and Lena felt the pressure on her hand loosen.
"I mean…" Umire started—but then paused. "What were you talking about with Luka?"
The deflection was smooth, but not subtle.
Lena's throat tightened. Luka's words flashed through her mind. You two seem close but also kind of far... like there's something unspoken between you.
"Nothing much," she said, voice a little too sharp. A lie too thin.
Umire stopped completely this time. The silence between them thickened, heavy and awkward. Her hand grew limp in Lena's grasp.
Lena looked down at their joined hands. She didn't want to meet Umire's eyes—because she was scared of what she'd see there. Disappointment? Doubt?
But then, just when the silence became unbearable—
"Okay!" Umire said, suddenly chipper. Her grip on Lena's hand tightened again. "I know! Let's play the Question Game!"
Lena blinked up at her, caught off guard by the sudden mood swing. "The… question game?"
They walked, hand in hand, down the quiet street. Lena felt the warmth of Umire's palm sink into hers, grounding her in a way nothing else could.
"We take turns asking each other one question," Umire said, her voice lilting with mischief. "And the other person has to answer. If they don't, they have to do whatever the other person says. Let's play while we walk—I'll go first!"
Lena blinked, caught off guard, but smiled faintly. "Oh… okay."
The warmth spreading from Umire's hand made it harder to pretend she wasn't affected. Umire hadn't pushed her away earlier. She hadn't looked annoyed or asked her to back off. She hadn't treated her like a burden or a freak.
Not like her.
The memory of curly red hair and a voice laced with disdain flashed through her mind. But Umire wasn't like that. She was still here. She held on even when Lena leaned in closer.
"Hm, what to ask…" Umire tapped her chin in thought. "Alright—what's your favorite color?"
"My favorite color…" Lena echoed. It was such a simple question, but for a second, her mind went blank. Did she have one? She didn't think so. But when Umire looked at her—those dark eyes resting gently on hers—Lena's breath caught.
"Black," she said, surprising herself. "Pitch black."
Umire tilted her head, smiling. "Really? That's unexpected." Her gaze lingered, and Lena felt the way her heart skipped at those words.
"Your turn," Umire said. "Ask anything. I'll answer."
Lena hesitated. A hundred questions clawed at her throat. About Yuna. About what the others said in class. About them. But she swallowed them back.
Don't ruin it, a part of her warned.
Instead, an innocuous question tumbled out.
"What's your favorite thing to eat?"
Umire lit up. "Anything you make me!" she said with a soft laugh that made Lena's chest tighten. "But if I had to pick… that cookie you gave me the other day. It tasted super sweet, I loved it." She grinned and nudged her. "Okay, my turn again…"
The game continued as they wandered down the street. Simple questions. Favorite animal. Birthday. Favorite season. Lena found herself relaxing with each one, letting go of the heaviness she'd carried all day. The world around them softened, blurred—because everything was Umire and her questions and the space between their hands.
By the time they reached Umire's apartment complex, Lena was startled to realize they'd been talking the whole way.
Umire fumbled with her keys. "Can't believe your birthday's so soon," she mumbled, slipping the key into the lock. "I gotta find the perfect gift…"
The door creaked open, and Umire kicked off her shoes and stepped inside. Lena, following behind, felt that quiet pull again. She was beginning to learn the contours of Umire's world: the worn couch with a pink blanket, the potted plant near the window that always looked slightly thirsty, the sound of Umire's voice humming as she moved around.
It had become their pattern lately—ending the day at Umire's house. Every time Umire said they should go to Lena's instead, it somehow never happened. Lena didn't mind. Here, wrapped in the echo of soft laughter and safe silences, she felt like maybe the world could be a little less cruel.
Umire flopped onto the couch, tossing her bag aside like she was shedding the weight of the day.
"We should study," she said, grabbing her notebook. "That test's coming up fast."
Lena sat beside her, close enough for their knees to touch. "Yeah…" she murmured, pulling her notebook from her bag. She didn't say it aloud, but the truth bloomed quietly inside her: Umire made her want to try. To understand. To believe she wasn't just some lost cause barely holding on.
Lena nodded quietly and sank to the floor beside the low table in front of the couch, pulling out her books and notebook from her bag. The floor was cool beneath her legs, grounding her, as she tried to focus.
Umire rolled off the couch and crawled to the table with a soft thump of her knees against the wood floor. "Okay," she said, her tone shifting, eyes narrowing in mock-seriousness, "Let's get started."
Lena smiled a little without meaning to.
For the next half hour, the world narrowed to the rustle of pages, the scratch of pencils, and Umire's voice—gentle but firm—as she explained the steps of the equations. She leaned over to point at certain lines, her hair brushing against Lena's arm occasionally. It made Lena hyper-aware of every inch of space between them. It was shrinking, even if neither of them said it aloud.
And as they began studying together, heads bowed close, laughter slipping between flashcards and whispered explanations, Lena knew:
She didn't want this moment to end.
Not yet. Not ever.
"Try this one," Umire said, circling a problem. "But don't stress—I'll walk you through it."
Lena nodded, more confident now. Umire made things make sense. She made the numbers less threatening.
Then a timer beeped loudly from the kitchen.
"Oh! That's the food—I tossed something in earlier." Umire stood up in one smooth motion. "Be right back! Don't peek at the answers without me," she teased, disappearing into the kitchen with a soft laugh.
Lena watched her go, something warm tightening in her chest.
She looked back at the problem they'd been working on and, after a breath, picked up her pencil. I can do this, she thought. Slowly, she worked through it the way Umire had shown her—step by step. Her handwriting wobbled at first, but she didn't stop. And for once, the numbers didn't twist into knots. They lined up orderly. Legible. Achievable.
I'm getting it, she realized. I'm really getting it.
Then—Ding dong!
The sudden doorbell shattered her focus like glass. She froze mid-equation.
"Ahh! That's probably the groceries," Umire called from the kitchen. "They're early. Can you get the door for me, Lena?"
"Okay!" Lena set her pencil down, her pulse still steady from the math, but something in her stomach suddenly fluttered.
She walked toward the door, smoothing down her shirt without thinking, and pulled it open.
And froze.
Standing on the other side was Yuna.
Her short brown hair was neatly styled, and her hands were clasped in front of her bag. There was even a slight blush on her cheeks—like she'd been gearing up to say something cute, something maybe even vulnerable.
But the second she saw Lena—saw her—the blush evaporated. Her face twisted into something colder. Sharper. Her eyes narrowed.
"…What are you doing here?"
The question cut like ice.
Yuna's voice held no warmth. Just confusion. And something darker.
Lena blinked, heart thudding. She stood frozen in the doorway of Umire's apartment, the heat of the space behind her now feeling too warm, too close, as Yuna stared her down from outside.
"I…" she started, but her throat was suddenly dry.
Yuna took a step back, her lips tightening. Her gaze flicked past Lena, toward the sound of clattering dishes in the kitchen. She knew where she was. Who Lena was with.
And just like that, the unspoken tension that had been building all day cracked, thick and sudden, like the moment before a storm.