The Persistent Rival

The next morning, the air felt heavier than usual.

Ili walked across campus, hands shoved into his pockets, his gaze distant. A faint chill clung to the breeze, but the weight in his chest had nothing to do with the weather.

His thoughts drifted, fragmented pieces of something he couldn't fully grasp.

Conversations hummed around him—snippets of laughter, the scuff of shoes against pavement—but it all blurred together into meaningless noise. His mind felt cluttered, restless, yet strangely empty at the same time.

As he neared the library, a familiar voice cut through the haze.

His steps slowed.

Through the glass window, his gaze landed on a table near the front.

Kouko.

She sat with Mika and Rina, her back turned slightly toward him. Sunlight streamed through the windows, catching in the strands of her hair as she leaned forward.

Tatsuya was there too.

He was perched against the table's edge, one arm resting lazily on the surface, the other holding a coffee cup. His laugh rang out, light and effortless—too effortless.

Ili's stomach twisted.

Kouko smiled at something he said. Not forced, not hesitant—just… natural.

Ili's jaw tightened.

For a moment, he told himself he was imagining it. Maybe it was nothing. Maybe it was normal. But then he saw the way Tatsuya leaned slightly closer, his voice lowering, something conspiratorial in his tone.

Kouko hesitated.

Only for a second.

Her fingers brushed the rim of her cup, a fleeting, absentminded movement before she responded.

Ili's grip on his bag strap unconsciously tightened.

Why did that hesitation feel like it mattered?

His pulse drummed against his ears, a steady, rhythmic thud. He didn't know why he was still watching, why the sight of them—her—interacting so easily made something deep inside him coil uncomfortably.

His eyes flicked toward Mika and Rina.

They were watching too.

Not in an obvious way. But Ili saw the way Mika's gaze flickered between Kouko and Tatsuya, her expression unreadable.

Something about it didn't sit right.

The feeling gnawed at him, but he didn't have the words for it.

He turned away.

Forcing himself to move, his steps quickened, like he could outrun whatever was clawing at his chest.

But even as he left the library behind, the image remained.

Kouko smiling.

Tatsuya's confident posture.

The faint, barely-there hesitation in her hands.

And Mika's watchful gaze.

A weight settled in his gut, something just shy of memory, just shy of realization.

Like a whisper at the edge of his mind—one he wasn't ready to hear.

The afternoon sun filtered through the trees, casting shifting patterns of light onto the pavement.

Ili sat alone on a bench beneath the shade of a sprawling oak tree, his phone in hand. He wasn't really reading anything—his gaze flicked over the screen, his thoughts tangled in an unease he couldn't name.

The campus was quieter now, the usual noise settling into the lull of midday. It should have been peaceful. It wasn't.

Then—

A familiar voice.

"Hey, Ili!"

Kouko's voice.

Warm, but hesitant.

Ili looked up just as she approached, Mika and Rina at her side. And trailing just behind them—Tatsuya.

His steps were easy, confident, like he belonged there.

Kouko glanced at Ili carefully, trying to gauge his reaction. This was the first time they had come face-to-face since her birthday.

And—as far as she knew, this was Ili's first time seeing Tatsuya this week.

A thought nagged at her.

Did Ili… forget him?

The question shook her, even though she didn't fully understand why.

Because right now—it didn't feel like Ili was looking at a stranger.

Ili's gaze flicked to Tatsuya.

And for a second, something shifted.

His fingers curled slightly against his phone, tension creeping into his posture.

Kouko's breath caught.

This reaction—**this weight in his stare—**this wasn't how someone looked at someone they'd just met.

But it didn't make sense.

Ili had been fine yesterday.

He hadn't mentioned anything about Tatsuya. Hadn't reacted. Hadn't even looked like he noticed anything was wrong.

So why did it feel like he already knew?

Her fingers tightened slightly around the strap of her bag.

"We're heading to grab lunch," Kouko said. "Want to join us?"

For a moment, Ili didn't respond.

Tatsuya stood just behind her, watching.

His smirk felt like a challenge.

Ili's gaze flicked to Tatsuya again.

Something cold flickered in his eyes.

And then, he smiled.

Not warmly. Not easily.

Just enough to be polite. Distant.

"Thanks, but I'm good," he said evenly, holding up his phone. "I've got something to finish up."

Kouko felt it immediately.

The way he avoided looking at her.

The way he kept his tone careful, his words measured.

It was like he was pushing her away.

Her heart sank.

"Oh," she murmured, her tone quieter now. "Okay…"

She hesitated, shifting her weight, considering pressing him just a little more.

Then—before she could—

Tatsuya stepped forward.

Not toward Kouko.

Toward Ili.

"Not feeling social, huh?" Tatsuya's voice was light, too casual, carrying just enough edge to make it clear his words weren't innocent.

Ili met his gaze.

Cold. Unyielding.

For the briefest second, Tatsuya faltered.

A flicker of something uncertain in his eyes.

But he was quick—too quick—to mask it.

He laughed, shaking his head like Ili's silence was amusing.

"Relax, man," he said, voice laced with false cheer. Then—he reached out.

A firm clap on Ili's shoulder.

Not friendly.

A message.

Mika and Rina exchanged glances. Uneasy glances.

And Kouko…

Kouko tensed.

It was barely noticeable—the way her fingers curled slightly, the way her brows knitted together.

Something about this felt off.

Ili's body didn't react. But his eyes did.

In one smooth, deliberate movement, he raised his hand—

And slapped Tatsuya's hand away.

Quick. Unapologetic.

The impact wasn't hard, but it was final.

Tatsuya's smirk froze for half a second.

Just half a second.

Then—he laughed again. Louder this time.

Like he needed everyone to hear it.

"Alright, alright," he said, hands raised in mock surrender. "Didn't mean to upset you."

He said it like Ili was the one overreacting.

Ili didn't flinch.

Didn't say another word.

He stepped around Tatsuya and walked away.

His steps even. Deliberate.

But as he disappeared down the path, Kouko found herself still watching him.

Her chest tightened.

That look in his eyes when he had stared at Tatsuya—**so sharp, so intense—**it unsettled her.

It wasn't just coldness.

It wasn't just anger.

It was recognition.

But that didn't make sense.

Her grip on her bag tightened.

As far as she knew—

This was the first time Ili had seen Tatsuya this week.

And yet—he had looked at him like he had been waiting for this moment.

No. That's impossible.

She shook her head. Dismissed it.

But—

Her mind flashed back to her birthday.

To that moment when Tatsuya had leaned in, his voice soft, words hanging heavy between them.

Ili had been there. Had seen it all.

That week was over. So why did it feel like Ili still knew exactly who Tatsuya was?

Not just knew him—

But regarded him with the same unease Kouko herself had felt.

Kouko shifted uncomfortably, her gaze flicking toward Tatsuya.

He was laughing now, easy charm and casual confidence, like nothing had happened.

Mika and Rina were starting to relax, their uncertain glances fading into acceptance.

But Kouko…

Kouko couldn't shake the feeling that Ili had seen something she hadn't.

Or maybe—

Something she wasn't ready to see.

Her breath caught.

Why do I feel like—

Like there's something I'm not seeing?

The thought settled heavily in her chest.

And for the first time—she didn't know where she stood.