The rain poured and the turbulent wind howled outside.
Contrary to the morning forecast which had predicted a clear day—at least, as far as Asahi could remember—the weather was horrid. The room was quite cold despite the fact that it was already March, and it almost appeared as if winter had made a second coming.
The cityscape outside was a sea of colorful umbrellas, hiding the faces of the soggy pedestrians from view. It was certainly one of those gloomy days where Asahi was reluctant to take a step outside. He would rather, if possible, spend the entirety of it relaxing in bed instead. Luckily for him, there was no school leading up to the year’s closing ceremony, which meant he was free to laze about to his heart’s content.
He rested his head against his pillow and closed his eyes, serenaded by the falling rain and raging wind. The image of a certain girl flashed across his mind—Fuyuka, who was going to visit her mother. Her words from the day before sprang into his mind. She’d told him that, although she may return late, she would still love to have dinner with him.
Wonder if she’s telling her mom about me right now, Asahi wondered. The thought made him smile.
He’d found that everything he did as of late involved her to some degree. If he were to describe it, it was like his world had started to revolve around her.
There’s no denying it—she’s become a big part of my life.
He opted to crawl out of bed for the time being and try to clear his mind. “Maybe I should go do some shopping...”
I’d honestly prefer to stay indoors and take it easy if I could, but...
He consulted his fridge, which remained cruelly sparsely stocked despite his desire to remain indoors. If he were only cooking for himself, he would’ve just thrown something together with what he had. Considering who his guest was, though, he wouldn’t settle for that.
In the end, his aversion toward cutting corners won out over his disdain for walking in a heavy downpour.
Asahi was planning to include eggs—her favorite ingredient—in the meal. The thought of Fuyuka enjoying his cooking and complimenting it for being delicious provoked his lips to curve into a smile.
Fully dressed and ready to go, Asahi was about to face the freezing weather when the cellphone inside his pocket vibrated.
He had received a new message. As he slipped on his shoes, he opened the messaging app and found a concise text from Fuyuka.
“Something urgent came up and I can’t make it to dinner tonight. I’m sorry.”
“Got it,” Asahi replied.
He sensed something ominous in the message, the first time in a while he’d felt this way.
A lighting strike illuminated the room in sharp white for an instant as a clap of thunder roared in the sky.
✦ ✦ ✦
＊
“Turns out Fuyu-Fuyu’s not gonna be here today,” Hinami said.
“Yup, looks like it. Got a couple of friends throwing a tantrum, saying it was a waste of time to come to school today,” Chiaki added.
It was a few days later at school. The closing ceremony had concluded, and Asahi and his friends had made their way to school to help with the graduation ceremony arrangements.
Lunch break had arrived before long, and the table they’d occupied at the cafeteria had a conspicuously vacant seat. Although the couple had been surprised when Fuyuka hadn’t shown up that morning, her absence had only truly sunk in when they saw the empty seat.
The reason for her absence had become the subject of gossip amongst the students. The leading theories ranged from the inoffensive—like catching a cold or attending a memorial service—to the outlandish and controversial. A surprising amount of people speculated that she’d simply overslept.
The truth was anyone’s guess, but it was obvious that all the students were worried about Fuyuka’s well-being.
“You haven’t heard anything from her, Asahi?” Hinami asked.
“Nope, radio silence. What about you?”
“Nada. I’m getting pretty antsy. Fuyu-Fuyu’s not reading, like, any of the texts I send her.”
“Same here. I’ve heard even the teachers don’t know what’s up,” Chiaki added.
Like with Hinami, Fuyuka hadn’t read Asahi’s messages.
It wasn’t out of the ordinary for most friends to go a handful of days without exchanging messages; Asahi would even argue that it demonstrated a degree of intimacy between them. However, what had been the span of just a few days had felt like months for Asahi, especially given their daily routine.
She would also always reply to Asahi—both in real life and through messaging—even if it was just small talk. Communicating with her had become a staple of his life. As he was confronted with the ominous feeling that it might be taken away, he didn’t quite know what to do with himself.
“Maaan, I wanna meet up with Fuyu-Fuyu soon! I miss her.”
“My Lady Hina, is the company of these two fine gentlemen inadequate for a lady of your caliber?” Chiaki teased.
“That’s not what I meant...”
Asahi knew precisely what she had meant, and he knew Chiaki was the same. The three of them together had been the standard... until Fuyuka had come into their lives.
“Hey, guys, why don’t we go check up on her? Maybe she got sick, or something,” Hinami suggested.
“I mean, we don’t know that for sure. Besides, let’s say she did catch something—it wouldn’t exactly be a good idea for all of us to go see her, would it?”
“Asahi absolutely destroying me with facts and logic!”
“Fair enough. Then why don’t you go alone, dude? Your place is pretty close to hers, right?” Chiaki proposed vaguely, as if he wasn’t aware that Asahi and Fuyuka were quite literally neighbors.
“Oooh, nice idea, Chii-pie! I’m sure he’s worried sick about Fuyuka too!”
Did he phrase it like that so others wouldn’t overhear and get the wrong idea? Maybe I’m giving him too much credit—something about that smirk doesn’t sit right with me.
“I’ll think about it,” he replied as he finished his meal.
His vague response happened to coincide with the chime of the bell, indicating the end of the lunch break.
✦ ✦ ✦
＊
Classes were over, and Asahi found himself standing before the door to Fuyuka’s apartment.
He’d resolved to try contacting her through the intercom today, even before Chiaki had suggested it. If she’d gotten sick, he intended to nurse her back to health, just like when they’d met. This time around, though, he believed she’d be willing to accept his help.
Asahi drew a deep breath and pushed the intercom, and a familiar dingdong rang out. A gust of chilly wind blew through the extended foyer, piercing Asahi’s rain-drenched uniform. Soon, he heard the door unlock with a click.
“You okay?”
As soon as he saw the state she was in, the ominous feeling that had tormented Asahi sprang up once again. He was able to tell at a glance that Fuyuka was affiliated with some sort of illness, though it didn’t seem physical.
The helpless girl standing across from him looked so fragile.
“I’m not okay...” she managed to squeeze out in a frail voice.
There was no need for any further words to be exchanged between them. Asahi extended his arm toward her and gently took her wrist in his hand. He silently led her by the wrist, and she followed.
Her face seemed similar to when they first met, but it was also somewhat different.