The sky outside was a sheet of dull gray, with heavy rain drumming steadily against the windows. Noboru sat on the tatami floor, the cool surface pressing against the back of his legs as he leaned forward toward the low table. The television flickered with color in front of him, but he wasn't really watching—his eyes drifted occasionally to the sliding door, his thoughts half-lost in the white noise of the downpour.
Then the doorbell rang, cutting sharply through the quiet.
He blinked and sat upright. "Who could be outside in this kind of weather right now?" he muttered, rising to his feet.
He grabbed an umbrella from the rack, slipped on his sandals, and padded quickly to the door. The floor beneath him creaked slightly with each step. As he opened the door and raised the umbrella, his chest tightened.
"Uh, Naomi? What are you doing here? You came here to look for me? But this weather is really bad. Come in," Noboru said, stepping aside and holding the umbrella over her head until she stepped in.
Naomi's blazer was damp, and her socks made a faint squelch against the entryway tiles. She looked straight at him, her face unreadable, strands of her hair sticking to her cheeks.
He handed her a towel and a clean T-shirt from his drawer. "Hopefully, you don't catch a cold. What were you thinking coming out in this rain?"
Naomi pressed the towel against her neck before lowering it slowly. Her expression didn't soften.
"I came here to tell you that I'm disappointed and annoyed with you," she said flatly.
Noboru stiffened. "What do you mean?" His voice caught slightly as he met her gaze.
"You don't think that I've noticed? Everything I hold dear, everything I'm passionate about and dedicate all my time and effort to—you decide to take up as well. Do you have fun making a mockery of my ideals and dreams? You know how serious I am about track, so why?" Naomi's words were calm but each one struck with precision. Her arms remained stiff at her sides, knuckles lightly white from the tension.
"Wait, it's not like that, I—"
"Then why do you do everything half-assed? I hate people like you. Don't bother talking to me again. We're through." She reached for the umbrella, her fingers brushing roughly against his hand, and left without another word.
Noboru stood still at the door, water slowly dripping from the umbrella onto the floor behind him. His heart felt tight in his chest, his throat dry. The silence of the house only amplified the weight of her final words.
From that day on, Naomi and I didn't speak again.
The days that followed felt like they blended together. I showed up to school. I sat through classes. I walked home in silence. The usual noises around me—morning announcements, footsteps in the hallway, chatter during lunch—all sounded distant.
I honestly felt like my whole world had fallen apart.
Our encounter changed me, but not for the better. Though I stopped wasting my time thinking about her, I focused everything on studying instead. With time, I got accepted into Toshigawa Academy. But all that effort I put into trying to forget her was thrown out the window the moment I saw her again.
There she was. Right in front of me, on the first day of school.
Now, Noboru sat at his desk, elbows resting on the surface, head buried in his folded arms. The classroom buzzed around him—dull hums of conversation, desks shifting slightly, pencils tapping against wood—but his body felt heavy. His mind was racing.
Why the hell am I thinking so much about her all of a sudden? he thought. His fingers dug lightly into the fabric of his sleeve. I must be going insane. Or is it Nanaho's training regime getting to my head? I honestly don't know anymore…
He exhaled through his nose, trying to push away the tension curling in his gut.
"Hey, is it just me, or is Noboru really quiet today?" asked a girl near the back.
"Yeah, he looks really gloomy. I wonder if something happened," another girl added.
"You're right. He's usually loud and vulgar, going on and on about how great he is," Naomi remarked without looking up from her notebook. "Maybe he's just tired from all the training he does with the girls' track team. I mean, they have been giving him a whole lot of work, that's for sure."
"Or maybe he got tired of being so arrogant," said a girl from class 1O with a small laugh.
The laughter didn't sting him—he barely even registered it. But Naomi's voice hit differently.
If only she knew… Noboru clenched his jaw slightly. The reason I was able to keep up with those annoying girls was because every time I looked at her, she was looking directly at me.
His pulse quickened. The pressure behind his eyes built up like a dull ache. Damn. I can't take this torture anymore. I'll just get what I have to say off my chest.
He inhaled sharply through his nose, pushed back his chair, and stood up.
The classroom murmuring slowed as several students turned their heads.
"It's Noboru. I wonder what he wants," whispered a girl nearby.
Naomi, curious, lifted her gaze. Their eyes met across the classroom—his unwavering, hers cautious.
"Meet me on the rooftop during our lunch break. I want to talk to you," said Noboru, his voice firm, before returning to his desk.
There was a pause.
"I wonder what he wants to talk to you about," said a girl next to Naomi.
"Yes, me too. I'm curious. Could it be a love confession?" another added in a teasing tone.
"Will you go to the school's roof, Naomi?" asked Sachiko.
"I guess I have no choice. How would I know what he wants to talk about?" Naomi replied, glancing once more at Noboru, her expression unreadable.
When the lunch bell rang, Noboru was already on the rooftop. The wind tugged gently at his sleeves. He rested his palms on the metal railing and stared out over the school grounds. Students below moved like little figures in a diorama, unaware of the tension building above.
His breath was steady, but his chest felt tight. The sound of the rooftop door creaking open made him turn.
Naomi stepped out, her expression neutral.
"I'm here, just as you asked. Please make this quick," she said, her tone flat but not cold.
Noboru turned fully to face her, standing a few steps away.
He took a slow breath and then spoke, voice low and steady.
"Don't speak. Just listen and wait until I'm done."
"Uh, okay," Naomi replied, surprised by his sudden seriousness.
"I know that I was a nuisance to you in junior high," Noboru began. "I joined all the clubs and sports you did, and I didn't commit myself fully to any of them, which made you mad at me because you viewed it as me mocking your passions and hobbies.
"I want you to know that I'm fully committed to basketball now. And one thing is for sure—I didn't join those clubs to mock you. I joined so that I could be closer to you and enjoy all the things that made you happy."
The breeze picked up, shifting Naomi's hair slightly across her shoulder.
"However, after what you said to me when you visited my house that day, I just felt empty… as if I was a hollow shell, because I loved you and I was rejected before I even confessed. Even now, I still think about you from time to time, and that's because…"
He stepped closer. Naomi didn't move.
Noboru leaned in slowly and pressed a kiss to her forehead. The contact was light and brief, but it sent a jolt through both of them. Naomi's breath hitched, eyes wide.
"I'm still in love with you. I said all I had to say. My heart feels a bit lighter now. See you," he said, turning and walking away without another word.
Naomi stood there, motionless. Her hand touched the spot on her forehead where his lips had been. Her expression was unreadable, lips parted slightly, gaze still following him even as the door closed behind him.
The school day passed in a blur. As the final bell rang, Noboru was already lacing his shoes and slinging his gym bag over his shoulder.
"Yes, I am going to give it my all today while training with those stupidly endurable girls," he said with a grin as he walked out.
"Hey, Noboru, wait for me!" Shino called out, fumbling to close his locker.
"Not a chance, amateur," Noboru shot back, smirking.
"Can you please stop calling me that? Hey, Tetsuo, you coming?" asked Shino, grabbing his water bottle.
"Be right there. I have some notes left to copy in my book," said Tetsuo from behind his desk.
"Alright. See you on the court," Noboru called.
Elsewhere, Naomi sat with a few girls in the classroom. Her notebook lay open, but she hadn't written a word.
"Hey, Naomi, I've been dying to ask all day—what did you two talk about on the roof?" asked one girl, leaning closer.
"Yeah, I want to know too," another added, eyes wide with curiosity.
Naomi's hand drifted lightly to her forehead, remembering the gentle warmth from earlier. A faint blush rose on her cheeks.
"Nothing important, don't worry," she said quickly, looking away.
"Now I'm even more curious! Please tell me," the girl whined.
"I would," Naomi said with a small smile, placing her index finger to her lips, "but that's our little secret."
"Oh, come on, that's so lame!"