Every turn made her body lean with his.
Without realizing she held onto him tighter.
Closer.
For a moment everything disappeared.
The pressure.
The worries.
The loneliness.
All that remained was the sound of the engine.
The wind against her skin and that feeling.
New.
Intense.
Alive.
Jun stopped the motorcycle in front of her house.
He got off first.
Then reached for her.
His hand wrapped around hers as he helped her down.
Just a second longer than it should have.
Sayuri removed the helmet slowly and handed it back.
"Thank you… for the ride."
Jun didn't answer. He just watched her.
Quiet.
Unreadable.
She turned toward the door.
One step, two—
Something pulled at her.
A strange feeling, telling her to look back but she didn't.
Until—
"Sayuri…"
Her heart skipped.
She stopped and slowly… she turned.
Jun was already close.
Too close.
He didn't hesitate.
Didn't ask.
He kissed her.
Quick but intense.
As if it had been impulsive.
As if even he didn't understand why.
Sayuri froze, too surprised to react.
The world stopped and when he pulled away the silence between them felt
different...
A few weeks earlier…
Sayuri hit the ground before she even understood what had happened.
The impact knocked the air out of her lungs.
She looked up and saw a hand.
The sunlight hid his face.
But there was something there.
Something she couldn't explain.
A scent.
Warm.
Soft.
Familiar.
Like the pages of an old book mixed with candlelight on a quiet night.
Her heart raced.
"Be more careful."
His voice was low.
Calm and gentle.
She blinked and he was gone.
Swallowed by the crowd.
As if he had never existed.
"…What?"
She slowly stood up. Still dazed, Her chest tight.
Why…?
She didn't know him.
She had never seen him before.
So why did it feel like that...
At the university Sha talked with a friedn, Yume.
"Did you finish those sketches?"
Yume's voice pulled her back.
"…Kind of."
Yume laughed. "Same."
During class, Yume talked a lot about plans for Halloween, but Sayuri wasn't really there.
Her thoughts kept drifting.
Back to him.
That voice.
That moment.
After class, they stopped by the Bibliocafé.
The place was cozy.
Filled with the scent of books and coffee.
Sayuri walked between the shelves, her fingers brushing the spines.
"I love this smell…" she whispered.
It always calmed her.
But today, it wasn't enough.
On her way home, she passed through the park.
The rain had faded.
Soft light touched the flowers along the path.
"Dad!"
Her face lit up.
She ran toward him.
"I'm so glad I found you!"
But his smile didn't match hers.
"Sorry, Sayuri. I'm in a hurry."
Her smile faltered.
"Your mom and I have a meeting. We'll be home late."
A pause.
"There's money in the cabinet. Just order something."
Money.
Always money.
Never time.
"…It's okay."
A forced smile.
"Good luck."
He was already gone.
At home, the silence felt heavier.
She should have been used to it but she wasn't.
The next morning—
"Mom?"
Silence.
"Dad?"
Nothing.
Room after room, empty.
Her chest tightened.
On the table a note. She already knew. Even so… she read it.
Trip.
Work.
Money.
Her hands trembled.
Before she could finish, she tore it apart. The sound echoed.
Louder than it should have.
A few blocks away, Jun stepped into the garage.
Music blasted. Laughter filled the air.
Life moved.
"Jun, finally!" Kenji called.
"I got held up."
Jun grabbed the microphone.
Usually, that was enough. Music made everything disappear.
His father.
The pressure.
Everything.
But not today. Something felt off.
Strange.
Unfamiliar.
He frowned.
"…What was that?"
A fleeting image crossed his mind, that girl falling.
And for the first time in a long while, Jun felt something he couldn't ignore.