The afternoon sun sat warm and steady above the city, the wind mild, the sky clear. After finishing their drinks at Hoshikawa Coffee, Asa leaned back in his seat and exhaled.
"We should call the others," he said. "Ryuusei, Joutarou, Natsu, Kaito—everyone. It's been a while since we were all together."
Sakamoto nodded. "A group hangout might help you breathe. You don't need to talk. Just… be there."
Jousuke looked down at the table. He wasn't sure if he was ready—but the quiet ache in his chest was tired of being alone.
"…Yeah," he said. "Call them."
They gathered at the plaza first.
Natsu arrived running, scarf trailing.
"JOUSUKE!!! YOU'RE ALIVE!!!"
He immediately tried to tackle-hug him—Sakamoto held him back by the collar.
Joutarou came next, tall and calm, hands in pockets.
"…Good to see you back," he said, voice low but warm.
Kaito waved lazily, headphones around his neck.
"Man, you made all of us worry."
And Ryuusei?
He jogged up last, out of breath as always.
"Hah—sorry—my sister hid my shoes again—ah—anyway—bro, welcome back!"
Jousuke felt a small smile pull at the corner of his mouth.
They started walking.
No destination decided.
Just moving.
Together.
They ended up at a small arcade that smelled like popcorn and plastic tokens. Bright machines lit the space in neon patterns. Laughter, chatter, clattering buttons—it was loud, chaotic, alive.
Ryuusei dragged everyone to the racing games.
Sakamoto crushed all of them without saying anything.
Ryuusei screamed betrayal.
Asa high-fived no one but himself.
Natsu kept crashing into walls.
Kaito lost on purpose to avoid effort.
Joutarou played only once and left with the highest score until Sakamoto quietly beat it again.
Jousuke laughed.
Not big laughs.
Just small ones.
But real.
The kind that hadn't existed in him for weeks.
Next stop was a convenience store.
They bought onigiri, canned coffee, cheap snacks.
They sat outside on the curb, backs against a vending machine whose lights flickered like it was trying to stay awake.
The conversation drifted.
Stories from class.
Rumors about teachers.
Natsu complaining about waking up late.
Ryuusei insisting he definitely saw a ghost last week.
Jousuke listened.
He didn't need to speak.
He just existed.
And they made space for him to do so.
But inside his chest, emotions stirred:
Leah Boutsuki-san.
So gentle. So earnest. She always tried to meet him halfway, even when she was scared.
Rika Sakurai-san.
Brilliant. Direct. Someone who would protect what she loved fiercely.
Kaede Miyazaki-san.
Strong-hearted. Unyielding. Someone who ran straight into the storm if it meant reaching him.
Three feelings.
Three truths.
Three hearts—each sincere.
He had tried to hold them all in perfect balance.
But love doesn't work like that.
Asa's words echoed:
"Not the one who needs you most. Not the one who loves you most. The one you love."
Ryuusei kicked his leg lightly.
"You're spacing out," he said with a grin. "Too deep in thought. You okay?"
Jousuke blinked and looked up.
"…Yeah. Just thinking."
Joutarou drank from his canned coffee, his tone even.
"Thinking is fine. Just don't drown in it."
Jousuke nodded slowly.
"Yeah. I know now."
He looked at each of them.
The people who didn't demand anything from him.
Who didn't pull or push.
Who just held the space where he could breathe.
"Reciprocation…" he whispered, more to himself than to them, "isn't about who loves me the most."
They looked at him—but didn't interrupt.
"It's about who I… love."
Kaito leaned back, staring at the sky.
"And now you're finally saying it."
Ryuusei grinned—not loud, not teasing—soft.
"About time, dude."
Natsu nodded hard.
"Whoever you choose… we'll support you."
Asa clapped his hands lightly.
"That's your answer. Even if it hurts. Even if it scares you. It's yours."
Sakamoto finished for them, voice calm, final:
"Love is an action. Not a reaction."
The wind passed through quietly.
The moment settled like a gentle weight in Jousuke's chest.
He breathed in.
Deep.
Steady.
For the first time, the noise in his heart was starting to clear.
The ache was still there.
The confusion still present.
But the path—
The direction—
Had begun to form.
He didn't know the ending yet.
Monday would still come.
Tears would still be shed.
A heart—or two—would still break.
But now, he would walk toward that day not as someone running away—
—but as someone choosing.
The sky shifted toward sunset.
Warm orange washed over the street.
The boys eventually stood, stretching, heading toward the station.
They laughed again.
Argued.
Pushed each other playfully.
And Jousuke walked among them—
not healed,
not whole,
but moving forward.
Not alone.
The quiet answer in his heart grew clearer.
He knew who he loved.
He just had to say it.
Soon.