They were inseparable as kids.
From kindergarten through middle school, Kana and Misa were the kind of duo teachers whispered about, always together, always laughing, always sitting a little too close on the school steps. They'd braid each other's hair in the homeroom, share secrets over juice boxes, and trade doodles in the backs of their notebooks. When one was sad, the other knew without a word. It was the kind of friendship that felt too strong to ever fade, like they were stitched into each other's lives.
Then came that day.
It was just a regular spring afternoon in gym class. Kana had been laughing, running laps with her usual clumsy charm, when her steps faltered. Misa still remembered the sound of her name being called right before Kana collapsed on the grass.
Everything after that blurred.
An ambulance, questions and adults moving too fast and too quietly. Kana was gone for days, weeks and then months. Misa sent messages, called and wrote letters, but nothing came back. She waited by the gates after school, hoping she'd just been sick, that she'd come back and that it was nothing serious.
But then, one day in early summer, Misa ran into Kana's mother at the grocery store. She looked thinner than usual and her eyes didn't hold the warmth Misa remembered.
"Oh… Misa, I should've told you. Kana passed away."
The words crushed something inside her.
And that was it.
A month later, Kana's house was empty. Her parents were gone with no goodbye, no funeral she was invited to and no closure.
Just a clean erasure.
That was four years ago.
And for years, she held that day in her chest like a cold stone, the day she lost her best friend, and the day no one gave her a chance to say goodbye.
Until now.
Until this moment, when the girl who was supposed to be dead stood just a few feet away very much alive.
******
Kana turned slowly, heart stuttering in her chest as her eyes landed on the girl standing just a few feet away.
Navy-blue hair. Slender frame. That uncertain, blinking expression.
Misa.
It hit her all at once, the years peeled back like old wallpaper, revealing a time when everything was easier.
Back then, Kana and Misa didn't need anyone else. Their worlds revolved around sleepovers, handmade bracelets, and a thousand whispered secrets under shared umbrellas. They'd grown up side by side, from the first day of school all the way into the storm of early adolescence. Misa had been the one to hold her hand during her first panic attack. Kana had been the one to defend her when she cried in front of the class. Together, they'd made everything feel survivable.
Until that day on the field.
Kana remembered the sting of sun on her neck, the sound of sneakers pounding across the dirt track, and Misa's voice calling her from the sidelines. Then came the dizziness, the sudden heaviness in her chest and her vision going black.
She woke up in a hospital.
And then… her life changed.
Doctors.
Tests.
Machines.
Words like "long-term care" and "uncertain prognosis."
Her phone buzzed with messages at first, Misa trying to visit, trying to understand, but her mother took it away. Told her she needed to "focus on recovery." The outside world slowly slipped away, like a dream fading in daylight.
She never meant to vanish. She never meant to abandon her.
But the worst part?
She never even got to say goodbye.
But now, seeing her again, in the middle of a crowded plaza, in this version of her life she never imagined, she suddenly realized how much she'd missed her. How much she still carried the shape of Misa in her heart.
How much she still owed her.
****
The two girls stood frozen, neither daring to speak, as if one wrong move would shatter the fragile reality in front of them. For a moment, all they could do was stare wide-eyed, breathless, trembling with disbelief.
Were their eyes playing tricks?
But then, without thinking, they both moved at the same time; a shared instinct rooted deep in their bones. They ran to each other, closing the distance like no time had passed at all.
Their arms wrapped tight around one another, and together, they collapsed to their knees on the pavement.
And they cried.
Tears of heartbreak.
Tears of relief.
Tears for everything lost, and everything found again in this impossible moment.
For a moment, there were no words. Only the feeling of home rediscovered in an embrace. And soon after, as they looked at each other, they laughed.
They laughed like they had been holding it all in for a long time. And as they did, they began to attract attention from other people around them, including Jane, who was just on her way back from the vending machine with drinks for herself and Kana, and Sarah, who had watched the whole event unfold not far from her store.
To avoid people asking questions, Sarah and Jane gently ushered the two girls to their feet and led them back inside the Linen & Love clothing store.
Sarah gave them space, and Jane quietly handed Kana her drink before sitting nearby, respectfully out of the way, giving the two girls time to talk. The back room smelled like fabric softener and lemon tea was warm, quiet, and safe.
Kana and Misa sat on the little sofa against the wall, still recovering from the shock. Kana wiped her eyes with her sleeve and let out a breathy laugh.
For a long moment, they said nothing.
Their hands were still clasped tightly between them, like letting go would make this all vanish. And then, finally, Kana spoke.
Kana: I used to dream about this sometimes.
Misa looked over.
Kana: Not exactly this. Not the store, or the moment. But… just going back to the way things used to be.
Misa didn't respond right away. Her eyes drifted to the floor.
Misa: Things got really complicated for me after you disappeared... I haven't really made new friends since then…
Those words hung in the air between them, a quiet echo. Kana swallowed hard and spoke again.
Kana: I'm sorry…
Misa shook her head slowly.
Misa: You don't have to be… It's not your fault. You didn't do anything wrong.
Another beat of silence came afterwards. Just the hum of the light and the soft rustle of fabric as Kana shifted in her seat.
Kana: After that day, everything became this… blur. Days bleeding into nights. I kept asking my Mom about you, but she kept saying that I needed to heal first. And then… one day, I just stopped asking… because I never heard from her again...
Misa listened attentively, then spoke so softly it was almost a whisper.
Misa: Your mother told me you died.
Kana stiffened.
Her fingers tightened slightly around Misa's.
Kana: She… said that?
Misa: I saw her in the store a few years ago... and then she told me that you were dead…
Kana's face faltered with a brief flash of pain and sadness.
Kana: I see…
Misa: I didn't know. I wish I knew you were still alive after all this time. I swear. I would've… God, I would've found you.
Kana: I know. You don't have to feel bad about anything. You're here now.
A long pause came afterward as the atmosphere around them absorbed the weight of their words.
Misa breathed in slowly, eyes shining as she broke the silence once more.
Misa: I held your name in my mouth for four years like it would disappear if I said it too loud. I kept seeing you in crowds. Hearing your laugh in empty hallways.
She let out a laugh, soft, sharp and a little bitter.
Misa: I even kept your seat open at lunch the rest of the year.
Kana blinked hard, wiping under her eyes with her sleeve.
Kana: You never stopped thinking about me…?
Misa: How could I? You're my best friend and no one's been able to take your place.
Another beat.
Kana: I wanted to reach out. I really did. But I didn't know how. When I finally got a new phone … I felt like too much time had passed and I thought you'd forgotten about me…
Misa: You didn't.
Kana sighed and then she continued.
Kana: But I was also afraid of trying to reach out to people. So I didn't bother at all.
Misa sat quietly as she listened to her friend speak, slowly beginning to understand what Kana had gone through during the past four years.
Kana: But then, I found something… Something that helped, people who helped.
Kana reached for her jacket pocket, pulled out her phone, and turned the screen toward Misa.
Her Twibbler page was open. LonelyGirl4556.
Kana: I made an account on Twibbler, kind of like a diary at first. But people found me, people who didn't know me but still cared. They made me feel... seen. Like maybe I wasn't just the girl stuck in the hospital ward.
Misa scrolled slowly, eyes scanning the page.
She saw posts about late-night thoughts, silly memes in the comments and the group chat that had been created by Rose just recently.
Misa: They really care about you.
Kana smiled faintly.
Kana: They do. All of them helped me through the worst nights and made living worth it.
Misa's eyes glistened as a soft silence followed. Her mind drifted to the memories she shared with Kana… and how much time she had lost with her best friend.
Misa: I want to really catch up with you.
Kana's face beamed.
Kana: Perfect. We're actually planning something. A spring hangout. In two days. Just a few of us, meeting for spring break at Yukimura Park.
She hesitated, then gently added:
Kana: I'd like you to come.
Misa looked down, her thumb brushing over the edge of the phone.
Misa: You really want me to be there?
Kana: Yes!! I want you to be there, and I want you to meet them, my online friends and I also want you to see the girl I've become.
Misa thought about this, then looked up.
And then slowly, she nodded and smiled.
Misa: Okay. I'll come.
Kana exhaled, a sound that was almost a sob, almost a laugh and they fell into each other's arms again, this time not out of shock, but something calmer.
Misa: We have so much to catch up on.
Kana: Yeah. But we've got time now.