Leo had never been particularly good at confrontation.
He preferred quiet corridors to crowded stages, preferred understanding glances to spoken declarations. But tonight—after everything—he knew silence was no longer an option.
And neither was running.
---
The courtyard behind the school was nearly empty.
A few stray crickets chirped from the hedges, and the soft hum of streetlights painted long shadows across the gravel.
Yuki arrived first.
She wore her favorite hoodie over her uniform, hands tucked into the sleeves like armor. Her hair was loose, slightly windblown.
"You wanted to talk?" she asked, voice light but eyes serious.
Leo nodded. "Thanks for coming."
She tilted her head. "Is this an intervention? Are you about to confess to secretly raising cats on campus?"
Leo cracked a smile. "I wish it were that simple."
Before he could say more, Hana arrived.
She jogged up, her duffle bag slung over one shoulder, still in her club uniform.
She glanced at Yuki, then Leo.
"Okay," she said. "Let's do this."
Leo took a deep breath.
"I know things have been... weird."
Both girls looked at him.
"I've been avoiding it," he admitted. "Because I didn't want to hurt anyone. But I think, by doing that, I've just made things worse."
Yuki crossed her arms. "Weird is one word for it."
Hana raised an eyebrow. "And?"
Leo hesitated.
"I care about both of you," he said slowly. "You've been kind to me in ways I don't even think I deserve. You've made my life brighter, easier to breathe. But… I've been pretending not to notice that things were changing."
Silence.
Yuki was the first to speak.
"You're talking about Rin."
Leo flinched. "I'm talking about all of us."
Hana stared at him. "Then say it, Leo. What do you want?"
The question hit like a punch.
He didn't answer right away.
He looked up at the sky.
The stars were faint tonight—blurred by city light, just barely visible.
"I don't know," he admitted. "I want to protect everyone. I want to be fair. But that's not how this works, is it?"
Yuki's voice was soft. "No. It's not."
Leo turned to her. "You're amazing, Yuki. You're smart, and funny, and you make everything feel lighter. When I first got here, you made this place feel like less of a battlefield."
She looked down. "Then why does it still feel like I lost?"
"You didn't," Leo said. "This isn't a game."
She smiled, sad and sharp. "Feels like one."
Then Leo turned to Hana.
"Hana, you're probably the strongest person I've ever met. Not just physically. You walk through the world like nothing can break you, but I know you still feel it. I see it."
Hana's jaw clenched.
"I never wanted to compete," she said.
"I know."
He looked at them both.
"I love Rin. But that doesn't mean what I feel for either of you is fake. It just means my heart already chose. And I'm sorry if that hurts. I hate that it hurts."
Yuki took a deep breath. "Well. That's honest."
Hana looked away. "Pain's better than uncertainty."
They stood there in silence.
No one moved.
Then Yuki laughed—a short, dry sound.
"God," she said. "I hate you a little right now."
Leo nodded. "That's fair."
She sighed. "But I'll get over it. Maybe."
Then she stepped forward—and hugged him.
Tight. Brief.
Then gone.
She turned to Hana. "Walk me back?"
Hana glanced once more at Leo.
Then nodded.
"Yeah."
---
Leo stood alone for a long time after they left.
The air smelled like autumn.
He felt like something had closed—and something else had cracked open.
Maybe it was guilt.
Maybe it was clarity.
Maybe it was both.
But whatever it was, it felt like the truth.
And the truth, at least, didn't lie.
---
Back in her room, Rin sat at her desk, rereading the same sentence for the third time.
Her phone buzzed.
Leo: I talked to them.
Rin: Are you okay?
Leo: I think so. No more running.
Rin: I'm proud of you.
He smiled.
Then he put the phone down.
And finally, exhaled.