Chapter 28: A Change in the Air

The school campus still retained the memory of last night's storm. Puddles sparkled in the morning sun, and the air was fresh with the scent of wet earth, faint but noticeable.

Haruto Kirigami strode through the hallway, his uniform damp. He had tried his best to dry it, but the storm had been too strong.

Some of his classmates observed.

"Yo, Kirigami, you got caught in the rain, huh?" one of them said.

Haruto merely nodded curtly, not even deigning to elaborate.

A few desks down, Nasaki Kitta came into the classroom. Her uniform was fresh and dry, her hair neatly styled as always. She glanced at Haruto for a fleeting moment before hastily glancing away.

Her friends, on the other hand, were not so restrained.

"Hey, Nasaki, why are you so dry while Kirigami's all wet from supposedly fighting the storm?"

Nasaki winced at the remark. "H-Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

One of the girls smiled wickedly. "You two were together yesterday, weren't you? But only him that got wet. Suspicious."

Haruto, catching part of it, shrugged and relaxed back in his chair. "It's nothing," he mumbled. "Just bad luck."

Nasaki's lips parted slightly, as if wanting to say something. But instead, she just nodded and sat down.

Haruto could still feel her gaze on him.

The lesson began, but Nasaki wasn't paying attention.

Her eyes kept shifting toward Haruto, who sat near the window, looking out absentmindedly.

Why did he do that?

She replayed last night's moment in her mind. How he had slipped off his blazer so quickly, covering her from the rain.

It wasn't something Haruto Kirigami would ever do.

He was aloof. Unapproachable. Someone who shunned extra contact.

And yet, last night, he had moved forward on instinct.

Her heart was strangely agitated. She wasn't accustomed to this sort of sensation—this heat in her chest whenever she reflected on him.

"Miss Kitta."

Nasaki snapped back to reality.

The teacher was staring at her, unimpressed.

"Care to answer the question?"

Nasaki stiffened, her mind completely blank. She hadn't heard anything.

A small chuckle came from beside her. Haruto.

He didn't look at her directly, but there was a slight smirk on his lips.

Nasaki flushed.

"Uh… I…"

The teacher sighed. "Pay attention, Miss Kitta."

Nasaki sank into her chair as some of her classmates laughed. She quickly glanced at Haruto—who, for once, looked amused instead of indifferent.

Great. Now he's enjoying this.

At lunch time, Haruto sat at his favorite place—by the window, away from the crowd.

He was expecting to eat alone, as usual.

But today was different.

Nasaki hesitated as she approached, lunch tray in hand. After a moment, she sat several seats away from him. Not next to him, but closer than normal.

Haruto raised an eyebrow.

"You lost or something?"

Nasaki rolled her eyes. "Shut up. I can sit wherever I want."

Haruto didn't complain. Instead, they ate in silence. It wasn't awkward—but it wasn't quite normal either.

After a few bites, Nasaki spoke.

"Yesterday's storm was wild, right?"

Haruto shrugged.

Nasaki smirked. "Yeah, yeah, tough guy. But you did look kinda cool, you know. Like a self-sacrificing hero."

Haruto paused mid-chew for a moment.

Then—

A faint reddish tint on his ears.

Nasaki saw it.

Her smirk grew wider.

Haruto clicked his tongue and turned away. "Don't say strange things."

She giggled. "I'm just telling the truth."

The chat didn't take long, but the tension earlier was gone.

Nasaki felt relieved.

Haruto… felt something else.

Just as lunch was ending, a group of classmates approached.

"Hey, Kitta, Kirigami! Help us out with the festival decorations after school?"

Nasaki blinked. "Eh?"

She wasn't against the idea, but she had planned to head home early today.

Before she could decline, Haruto spoke first.

"Sure," he said.

Nasaki's eyes widened.

Did he just… agree?

Haruto Kirigami—who always avoided unnecessary events—was willingly joining?

The others were similarly surprised, but they shrugged and applauded. "Great! We can use all the help we can get."

When the crowd departed, Nasaki turned to him.

"Okay, what was that?" she asked warily.

Haruto gave her a half-closed eye look. "What?"

"You never sign up for things like that. Why this time?"

He shrugged. "It's okay. I don't mind today."

Nasaki glared at him.

That wasn't really an answer.

But for some reason, it made her weirdly happy.

After school, the classroom buzzed with activity as students prepared for the upcoming festival.

Haruto and Nasaki were assigned to paint banners.

Nasaki, being more artistic, took the lead. "Okay, Kirigami, don't mess this up."

Haruto scoffed. "I should be saying that to you."

Their classmates chuckled.

"You two are oddly in sync today," one of them commented.

Nasaki rolled her eyes. "No, we're not."

Haruto just sighed.

But as they labored together, something quietly shifted.

Their standard joking was present, but with a warmth underlying it.

Nasaki wasn't teasing Haruto for sport now.

And Haruto… wasn't shoving her away.

At one point, their hands touched as each reached for the same brush.

Nasaki froze.

Haruto did as well.

For one instant, neither budged.

Then—Nasaki snatched up the brush and turned from her, faking that nothing occurred.

Haruto, on the other hand, simply stood by and watched.

His heart felt odd.

As preparations came to a close, Haruto found himself hanging around the class longer than he normally would.

He'd usually be the first one out.

Today, though—

He wasn't rushing anywhere.

He leaned on the desk, observing Nasaki laughing with their peers, smiling at what someone said.

She seemed really happy.

And without even realizing it—

Haruto was gawking.

Nasaki noticed him staring.

She didn't say a word.

She just smiled.

Not smirking. Not condescending. Just a quiet, soft smile.

Haruto's chest constricted. For the first time, he understood. He didn't dislike this.

Didn't dislike staying. Didn't dislike belonging to this world.

And most of all. Didn't dislike letting her in.

End of Chapter 28