It started off simple.
Naomi texted me that morning:
"Come over after school! I have strawberry Pocky and a new video game where you run a ramen shop while also solving magical crimes!"
Honestly? Peak Naomi.
So after classes, I grabbed my bag, waved goodbye to Kento (who was trying to balance two apples on his head for no reason), and took the train to her house.
It was raining again, of course.
Rain, apparently, was my new side character.
---
Naomi's House – 4:38 PM
Her mom answered the door in her usual floral apron, wiping her hands on a towel.
"Oh, Reika! Naomi just stepped out to pick up a package. She said you'd be early—go on up to her room and wait, dear."
"Thanks!" I said, smiling politely.
I wasn't too nervous. I'd been in Naomi's room plenty of times before.
Posters. Books. Plushies. A desk always covered in charging cables and empty ramen bowls. Pure chaos, perfectly Naomi.
So I headed upstairs, shoes quietly tapping on the wooden floor.
Opened the door.
Paused.
Because something was… different.
Her Room… and the Wall of Reika
First, it was the wall.
A collage of photos—dozens, maybe hundreds. All of me and Naomi together.
Laughing with boba. In school uniforms. At snack cafés. On field trips. Okay, fine. That wasn't that weird. Best friends take lots of photos.
But then I saw one where I was sleeping.
Clearly mid-nap, head tilted, mouth slightly open. I didn't even remember that photo being taken.
Then I saw the pillow.
No. Not a cute, decorative cushion.
A huge full-body, beanbag-style hug pillow—with a printed photo of my face. Smiling.
The kind of pillow you'd expect for a pop idol or an anime character, not a teenage girl who just wanted snacks and peace.
I took a slow step back.
Then another.
My brain was trying to form a thought that wasn't just "AAAAAAAAAA."
That's when the bedroom door creaked behind me.
Naomi stood there, holding a package in one hand and a bottle of strawberry soda in the other.
"Oh! You're here!" she said, beaming.
I stared.
She looked… completely normal.
Like she didn't just commission a body-sized plushie of my likeness.
I tried to smile.
"Oh no, I, uh—I just got a call. From my mom. Emergency errand. Can't stay."
Her smile faltered. "Really? But I got the new game! And you haven't tried the sweet chili crackers yet!"
"Next time!" I squeaked, grabbing my bag.
She tilted her head. "You didn't even sit down. Did you go into my room?"
I laughed very badly. "Noooope! Haha! Not at all! Why would I—nope!"
She blinked.
I waved. "BYE!"
And ran down the stairs like my shoes were on fire.
Ten Minutes Later – Under a Bus Stop
Rain pattered above me as I stood under the little shelter, heart still hammering.
I didn't know how to feel.
Was it… a joke? A weird birthday gift I forgot? A prank?
Or… was this another one of those strange future-me things?
Like maybe, somehow, Naomi knew more than she let on.
Or maybe… she was involved.
All I knew was that I couldn't unsee it.
The pillow.
The photo.
And the note I knew she had seen me hide in my pencil case last week.