On a moonless night, the stars reigned supreme—millions of them spilled across the sky like a galactic river of silver and fire.
Meenda opened the fridge and grabbed two long cans of white hop-yeast beer.She hadn't meant to share them—just wanted something cold to sip alone.But when she stepped onto the rooftop, she found Gantsuke already there.And somehow, that made her feel… relieved.
"I don't think I've ever seen the stars this clearly," he said, not turning as he leaned on the waist-high wall.
"You talk like someone from another planet," Meenda said with a teasing smile as she stepped up beside him and handed over one of the cans.
"You brought this for me?"
"Not really. I meant to drink both," she shrugged. "But… I don't mind sharing."
Her dimple peeked through as she smiled—a quiet, unguarded moment of softness.Even in just a tank top, she glowed like a star herself.
She took a sip. The beer was bitter, earthy. Nothing like the expensive wines she used to sip at afterparties.But the coldness that slid down her throat gave her a strange sense of peace.
"I'm from Earth," Gantsuke said. "Back in the cities, the lights drown out the stars. You barely see anything."
He exhaled slowly, elbows resting on the wall.
She nodded. "Everyone else asleep?"
"Yeah," she answered softly."Today was a long one."
A gentle breeze lifted her hair, brushing it past her cheek.The wind carried the scent of the sea and the silence between them.
"My manager used to say I'd be a star," she said, eyes drifting up to the sky."One of those, maybe. Seen from somewhere far away."
She smiled sadly. "That's never gonna happen now."
The air turned cooler. She crossed her arms and hugged herself, feeling the weight of everything.
"I won't sing for anyone again," she said. "Not in this world."
Gantsuke looked at her—not just with sympathy, but something warmer. Deeper.The smile he gave her wasn't wide. But it was steady.
"Right here, you're already a star.To me. To all of us."
Her eyes met his. They were clear. Sincere.
"You mean that?"
"Absolutely."
She tilted her head up. He leaned just a bit lower to match her height.For a moment, it felt like the galaxy paused to listen.
"I sit here, beneath the stars," she began to sing.Her voice was soft and haunting—gentle as a breeze slipping down from the mountains.
"Beside someone I never knew,a stranger with a silent smile."
She touched his arm lightly. Her fingers barely grazed him, but it sent a chill through them both.
"Your smile burns inside memakes me want to say hello."
She sang just a few more lines. Then the silence returned.
But the silence felt alive.
Her words had pulled something from deep inside him. Something old. Something buried.
He lowered his eyes to hers, and she looked back without blinking.
Her gaze… was on fire.
He was the one who saved her—from zombies, from the Amun soldiers, from losing herself.
She stepped forward. He didn't move.
On her toes, she kissed him.
Their lips met slowly, with warmth—like a sunrise after too many long nights.
Her breath mingled with his.The taste of beer lingered, faint and sweet.
Neither of them rushed. The kiss deepened naturally—gradually—like waves finding the shore.
He wrapped his arms around her small frame, pulling her gently against him.Their hearts beat louder than the wind.
She exhaled near his ear. "I'm glad… you're here."
They held each other.
Beneath a blanket of stars, glowing like a million witnesses.
When the wind grew colder, Meenda whispered, "Let's go inside."
Gantsuke nodded.
And together, they went below—not as a soldier and a starlet,but as two people finally letting themselves feel again.