Episode 7 – Umbrella Shares / The Umbrella War

Act II: Sunshine Between Us

The rain had returned, light and steady, as if it had missed them.

Yuki stood at the school entrance, umbrella in hand, waiting. She wasn't sure why.

But when Ren came jogging around the corner, hair damp and cheeks flushed, she knew.

"You waited?" he asked, surprised.

"I didn't feel like walking alone," she said simply.

He grinned. "Well, lucky for you, I've got enough charisma to carry two people through a drizzle."

She rolled her eyes, but she didn't leave.

They started walking side by side under their own umbrellas—until a gust of wind twisted Yuki's and nearly knocked it out of her hands.

Ren reached over. "Let's just share mine."

"Yours is barely better," she muttered.

"Still charmingly functional," he replied, lifting it higher so it covered them both.

Their shoulders brushed. She didn't pull away.

And then their fingers touched.

Not entirely accidental.

A pause.

Yuki looked down at their hands. The faint warmth of skin. The quiet stillness between them.

Ren said nothing, but she felt him glance sideways. His pinky lingered.

She didn't move.

Her heartbeat ticked louder than the patter of rain.

Later that afternoon, they gathered in the art clubroom—a quiet place for drying canvases and half-finished sketches. Yuki was arranging her paints when Mina barged in, dramatically wet despite her umbrella.

"I swear my umbrella is cursed," she huffed. "It keeps turning inside out like it wants to fly away."

"You should invest in a proper one," Ren said from the corner, casually sipping a juice box.

"Oh please," Mina shot back. "Like you know anything about umbrella maintenance."

"I'll have you know," Ren said, sitting up straighter, "I have shared an umbrella with Yuki. Successfully. No accidents. High-quality rain-walking experience."

Yuki flushed. "Don't exaggerate."

Mina grinned and leaned over her. "He shared with you? Yuuuuuki~ you didn't tell me that."

"It wasn't a big deal," Yuki muttered.

"Big enough that he's bragging about it like a third-grade science trophy," Mina teased.

"Excuse me," Ren said, hand on heart. "I believe I qualify for 'best umbrella partner' status."

"Oh really?" Mina crossed her arms. "Do you even know Yuki's favorite type of weather?"

Ren blinked.

Yuki looked away.

Mina smirked. "Didn't think so."

"Overcast, after rain," Takeshi said quietly from the corner.

They all turned.

He was sketching something, eyes still on his paper.

"That's when she paints the most," he added.

Yuki looked at him, surprised.

Ren raised an eyebrow. "Okay, one point to the quiet guy."

Mina turned it into a game. "Okay then! Umbrella War: who knows Yuki better?"

Yuki groaned. "Please don't—"

"What's her favorite flower?" Mina asked.

"Uhhh… snowdrops?" Ren guessed.

Yuki blinked. "...That's right."

Ren fist-pumped. "I remember seeing them in her sketchbook!"

"What's her favorite snack?" Mina fired.

"Custard taiyaki," Takeshi answered again, still calm.

Mina gasped. "That's also correct!"

Yuki stared. "How do you—?"

"You always buy them after tests," he said without looking up. "Especially when you're tired."

A hush fell.

Yuki suddenly felt like the only person in the room who hadn't been paying attention to herself.

Ren scratched the back of his neck. "Wow. Okay, Takeshi might be my final boss."

"Darn right," Mina said, gleefully narrating. "It's a two-way war for Yuki's heart!"

Yuki shot her a deadly glare. "I will throw you into the rain."

"Only if Ren's not protecting me with his umbrella," she teased, ducking.

The room burst into soft laughter—except Takeshi, who merely smiled faintly and went back to drawing.

Later, as the sky dimmed and club hours ended, Ren waited beside Yuki at the school gate again.

He didn't say anything about the "war," but she could tell it lingered in his mind. He looked more thoughtful than usual, watching droplets fall.

"Did you mind… what Mina said?" she asked.

He glanced at her. "About what?"

"About… the war. Between you and Takeshi."

Ren smiled. "I didn't know it was a war. I just thought I was… walking beside someone I liked."

Yuki stopped walking.

The street was quiet. Even the rain seemed to hush.

Ren turned. "Too much?"

She shook her head slowly. "No. Just… new."

He nodded. "We can keep it quiet. Like soft rain."

She looked at his hand.

She didn't take it.

But she walked beside him the rest of the way.

And when their fingers brushed again, she let them stay.