The evening sky was painted in streaks of lavender and fading gold, the last rays of sunlight filtering through the windows of the Cosmic S.T.A.R. Club. The room was quiet except for the soft rustle of pages as Luna flipped through a heavy astronomy book. Her voice carried gently through the room, warm and melodic.
"And this one," she said, tracing her finger across a star chart, "is Lyra — the harp of Orpheus. They say its brightest star, Vega, shines even through heartbreak."
Beru smiled faintly, but her gaze wasn't on the book. She sat by the telescope near the open window, her chin resting on her hand. The cool air brushed against her cheeks as she stared up at the sky, eyes searching for the familiar constellations that had once filled her with so much wonder.
But tonight, something was different.
Her heart stilled as she caught sight of a faint, shimmering glimmer — not a star she recognized, not one from any constellation she'd memorized with Haruto during their long nights of sky-watching.
"Luna…" she whispered, her breath catching. "Luna, look!"
Luna looked up instantly, eyes wide behind her glasses. "What is it?"
Beru leaned closer, carefully adjusting the focus of the telescope. Her fingers trembled slightly as she fine-tuned the lens, the faint light growing sharper until it stood clear — a soft, golden orb, glowing against the deep navy sky.
"It's… a new light," she said softly, her voice trembling with awe. "It's not like any star I've seen before."
Luna pushed her chair closer and peeked through the telescope, frowning slightly. "Wait… that's strange. It's not on any of the charts."
She flipped through her book quickly, scanning pages of diagrams and notes. "It's not Vega, not Deneb… maybe it's a variable star? Or a distant planet reflecting light?"
Beru's excitement bubbled quietly beneath her calm. Together they compared positions, checked online databases, and consulted digital sky maps — and every time, the result was the same.
Nothing.
Whatever Beru had seen was new.
"Beru…" Luna whispered finally, her eyes widening. "You discovered it."
The words seemed unreal, echoing softly in the quiet room.
Beru's heart fluttered. "I… discovered it?"
Luna grinned, grabbing her hands. "Yes! You get to name it. That's the rule. Whoever identifies a new celestial body gets the right to name it."
For a long moment, Beru just stared at the faint light through the telescope, her eyes glistening. The soft glow seemed to pulse faintly, as though it were alive — distant, unreachable, yet strangely familiar.
She smiled sadly, her lips trembling as she whispered, "Then… I'll name it Haruto Star."
Luna blinked, caught off guard. "Haruto Star?"
Beru nodded, her gaze never leaving the sky. "It's… just like him. Bright. Beautiful. So far away that I can only see him, not reach him."
The silence that followed was soft, heavy with unspoken pain. Luna's expression gentled as she reached over and clasped Beru's hand.
"Beru," she said softly, "he doesn't deserve to dim your light. You're brighter than you realize."
Beru's eyes shimmered, but she smiled — a small, fragile thing. "Maybe… but it's okay. Sometimes, loving someone means admiring them from afar. Like watching a star — it shines for you, but it never truly belongs to you."
Luna said nothing more. She just squeezed her hand again, knowing words could do little to mend what the heart refused to forget.
The next day arrived heavy and gray. Clouds hung low over the school, and the corridors were filled with the usual noise — laughter, gossip, footsteps echoing against tile. Yet for some reason, everything felt distant.
When Beru walked into the clubroom at lunch, she immediately noticed the tension in the air.
Souta was pacing back and forth, his arms crossed. Tadao sat on a desk, chewing his lip nervously. Luna stood by the window, her expression tight.
In the middle of it all sat Haruto — head bowed, his fingers gripping the edge of his chair. The air around him felt different — heavy, confused.
Beru's heart thudded uneasily. "What's… going on?"
Tadao glanced at her, his usual grin gone. "Saya," he muttered. "She… broke up with him."
Beru froze. "What?"
"She said someone else confessed to her," Souta added, frustration sharp in his tone. "Some rich guy from another school — apparently his family's super influential. Saya said she wanted to 'think about her future,' whatever that means."
Luna folded her arms. "So she left Haruto… just like that?"
Haruto stayed silent, staring at the floor. His expression was unreadable, but his hands were trembling.
Beru's heart twisted painfully. Despite everything — despite her heartbreak — seeing him like this made her ache. She took a small step closer.
"Haruto…" she said softly. "It's okay. Maybe it's better this way. If she could leave so easily… she wasn't meant to stay."
For a moment, her words hung in the air — kind, careful, meant to comfort. But Haruto's mind was a storm.
He'd spent the whole morning trying to understand — trying to figure out how something so bright had fallen apart so suddenly. Saya's laughter still rang in his ears, but now it was mixed with the echo of her final words: You're nice, Haruto. But I need more than nice.
The confusion, the hurt, the humiliation — it all burned beneath his chest. And when Beru's gentle voice reached him, something inside snapped.
He looked up sharply, his eyes tired, raw. "What would you know about it?" he said, the words spilling before he could stop them.
Beru blinked, startled. "What…?"
Haruto stood, his voice rising, frustration twisting his tone. "What would you know about love, Beru? A girl like you — you've never loved anyone! You wouldn't understand what it's like to lose someone!"
The words struck like lightning.
The air left the room. Luna gasped softly. Souta froze mid-step. Tadao's jaw clenched.
Beru's lips parted, but no sound came out. Her hands trembled as she clutched her skirt, her eyes wide with disbelief.
Never loved anyone?
Her mind spun, replaying every moment — the mornings she waited for him, the nights she cried quietly under the stars, the way she named a planet after him because he was her world.
All of it — erased in a single sentence.
Her voice broke as she whispered, "You… really think that?"
Haruto froze, the anger fading from his face as he realized what he'd said — but it was too late.
Tears welled up in Beru's eyes, shimmering like broken glass. Her chest heaved as she took a trembling step backward. "If you think like that… then I'll never show you my face again!" Her voice cracked, echoing through the room. "I'll go far away from your life — forever!"
And before anyone could move, she turned and ran.
"Beru!" Luna shouted, rushing after her.
The door slammed, the sound sharp and final.
For a long moment, the clubroom was silent — unbearably so. Only the faint hum of the ceiling fan filled the air.
Souta was the first to move. He walked up to Haruto and grabbed his shoulder roughly. "Do you even realize what you just said?" he demanded, voice shaking with anger. "She's been your best friend since the start. You think she doesn't understand love? You think she doesn't—" He stopped himself, shaking his head in disbelief. "You're unbelievable."
Tadao sighed, rubbing his temples. "You messed up, man. Badly."
Luna burst back into the room a few minutes later, breathless. "I couldn't find her," she said, panic in her voice. "She's gone."
Haruto's heart dropped. The reality of what he'd done began to sink in like a weight pressing against his chest.
He sat down slowly, the anger long gone, replaced by something colder. Guilt.
He looked toward the telescope by the window — the one Beru always used. It still faced the night sky, quiet and patient. The same stars she loved.
He swallowed hard, the memory of her tear-streaked face burning behind his eyelids.
Luna crossed her arms, her voice low. "You should've seen how she looked when you said that. You broke something in her that won't heal easily."
Haruto's lips trembled. "I… I didn't mean it," he whispered. "I just… I wasn't thinking."
Souta shook his head. "You never do when it matters most."
The room fell into silence again.
Haruto turned his gaze to the window, where the first stars of the evening were appearing — faint, flickering dots in the growing dusk.
He thought of Beru, sitting by her telescope, eyes bright with wonder. He remembered her laughter under the cherry blossoms, the way she'd always encouraged him to chase the stars.
Now, she was gone.
Outside, one star shone a little brighter than the rest — faint, golden, steady.
Haruto stared at it, unaware that it was Haruto Star, the one she had named after him.
His chest ached. "Beru…" he whispered under his breath. "What have I done?"
No one answered. Only the night — vast, distant, and uncaring — listened.
And somewhere under that same sky, Beru ran until her legs gave out, collapsing near the riverbank, sobbing into her hands as the reflection of that same golden star shimmered in the water beside her.
The bond that had once connected two hearts beneath the stars now lay broken, scattered across the heavens — a constellation of pain and regret.
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To be continued...