Kita seemed perfectly satisfied with parting this way. Smiling, she waved to the two of them and, before they had even reached their usual parting spot, she quickly broke away from the group.
She moved like a walking flame—swift, burning with energy—cutting through the crowd and disappearing without a trace.
After she left, the remaining two continued toward the station.
But Bocchi kept her head lowered, looking as though she was stewing over the awkward silence her earlier strange comment had caused.
After a few steps, she timidly raised her head, glanced at Ishikawa Hayabusa, opened her mouth as if to speak—
But Ishikawa didn't seem to notice. He was casually taking in the scenery, looking completely at ease.
A little while later, worried she might miss her chance to clear things up before they parted, Bocchi finally summoned her courage.
"Um! Hayabusa, I'm sorry. I said something weird just now."
Ishikawa turned to her with a satisfied smile. Under her anxious gaze, he reached out and gently patted her head.
"Well done. You said what you wanted to say."
Hearing the praise, Bocchi's lips softened into a shy, fluffy little smile—but then she quickly realized he still hadn't actually given her an answer.
"Hayabusa…"
She tried again.
"It's fine. I actually thought it was kind of funny."
Hayabusa leaned forward slightly as he said this, looking at Bocchi, who still had her head lowered.
He saw her exhale in relief—yet her expression was still clouded with worry.
Bocchi soon realized he was watching her, froze in place, her expression panicked, her gaze darting left and right.
Hayabusa thought for a moment, then a mischievous smile curled across his lips.
Before Bocchi could figure out what he was planning, he stepped in front of her.
With a deliberately arrogant, almost devilish grin, he placed his hands on her shoulders, staring straight into her eyes.
"You really are something, you know. You manage to surprise me every single time…"
He leaned down, closing the distance between them, locking eyes with her.
Bocchi saw his face draw closer, and something flashed through her mind—her cheeks instantly turned crimson, and her blue eyes widened to their limits.
As his face loomed nearer, so close she could make out the distinct pattern of his irises, Bocchi's gaze flickered away in embarrassment—only to glance down at his thin lips.
She let out an adorably pitiful little cry, her eyes darting away—then quickly back again, restless like a frightened fawn.
Hayabusa chuckled.
"Seriously… you're way too cute."
But just before their noses could touch, he stopped, straightened up, and returned to his usual easygoing demeanor.
He gave her head a firm but playful rub and said with a grin,
"Alright—now we're even."
He said it casually, but looking at Bocchi's flushed cheeks and her misty, crystal-clear eyes, he realized he might have teased her too much.
Feeling just a little guilty, he composed himself, his voice turning more serious as he abruptly changed the subject.
"Let's make a deal—there are only two times you ever need to apologize to me."
Though still flustered, Bocchi turned her head and listened carefully.
"One: when you break a rule I set on purpose. Two: when you hurt one of my friends."
Seeing the red on her face fade a little, Hayabusa smiled lightly.
"But honestly, I trust you, Bocchi. Even if you accidentally did something bad, I wouldn't get mad. So you should trust me a little too."
Bocchi nodded softly, her movements delicate like a baby deer.
As Hayabusa walked back to her side, he could only see half of her face under her soft pink bangs.
Her snow-white cheek glowed from within with a warm blush.
Her lips—untouched by lipstick, just faintly pink—pressed together tightly, trembling ever so slightly.
Her whole expression looked sweet enough to bite into.
Under the colorful streetlights, her pale skin seemed to give off a gentle glow, making her look mysteriously ethereal.
Hayabusa felt the atmosphere between them was still teetering on the edge of something strange.
The problem definitely wasn't him—he was sure of that.
No, the girl next to him was definitely thinking about something weird.
For a moment, it felt like sultry saxophone music was playing in the background—only for him to mentally press a hand over the imaginary instrument's bell, silencing it.
He shook off the thought and said,
"Anyway, Bocchi—you worked really hard today. I was watching."
Bocchi blinked, snapping out of her odd mood.
Hearing this, she remembered that Hayabusa hadn't been around to see her final successful attempt at serving a drink to a customer.
She hesitated for a moment, then, gathering her courage, said:
"Hayabusa… I… I managed to give a drink to a customer at the end."
Hayabusa looked surprised, then happily squeezed her shoulder a little.
"That's amazing! Really amazing! Bocchi, you've made progress."
Hearing his warm congratulations, Bocchi smiled softly.
Joy bubbled inside her, overflowing, making her press her lips together even harder—until her lips trembled shyly, as if too full of happiness to stay still.
At that moment, Hayabusa glanced down at her and suddenly said:
"Oh, right—Bocchi, if it's getting too exhausting lately, don't rush with the lyrics…"
"Lyrics!!"
Bocchi blurted out the word and froze on the spot.
Realizing she had just exposed herself, she slowly, fearfully turned to face Hayabusa.
"You forgot, didn't you?"
Hayabusa sighed helplessly, smiling wryly.
Bocchi nodded weakly.
She immediately started to kneel on the ground in apology, but Hayabusa quickly grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"I told you—it's fine."
He sighed, holding her upright so she couldn't kneel.
"But… but…" Bocchi's gaze wavered nervously before she suddenly blurted out:
"I need to apologize to Nijika too!"
In a panic, she fumbled for her phone, quickly opening LINE and typing out an apology message—
Only to be interrupted by a sharp karate chop from Hayabusa, landing squarely on her head.
"If you send her something like that out of nowhere, Nijika's just going to be confused," Hayabusa said wearily.
"Th-then what should I do?" Bocchi stammered, glancing around in panic.
Hayabusa thought for a moment, then brightened with an idea.
"This is when you check on the other songwriter's progress."
Pulling out his phone, he quickly found Ryo's number and, under Bocchi's wide-eyed stare, dialed it.
"Ryo~" Hayabusa said.
"…What?" Ryo's voice replied flatly.
"How's the song coming along?"
"That's it?"
"That's it."
"Haven't started."
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The call ended.
Since the phone was on speaker, Bocchi had heard every word clearly.
Hayabusa grinned and said,
"See? We're totally not in a rush."
Bocchi thought to herself,
As expected of Ryo-san. She's so cool…
By the time they reached the station, they were close to parting ways.
Hayabusa glanced at the station and casually asked,
"Bocchi, are you okay getting home this late? Want me to walk you?"
Bocchi flinched and waved her hands.
"N-no, I can manage by myself."
"Alright, then send me a message when you get home. Don't forget. If it's too late and you don't send one, I'll come looking for you."
"Ah… okay…"
Bocchi nodded softly, but her mood suddenly sank.
Hayabusa glanced at her, wondering what was going through her little head.
A moment later, Bocchi asked quietly,
"Why… why are you so nice to someone like me?"
Hayabusa knew exactly what this was.
Social anxiety made you question yourself over and over, fear others' opinions, distrust people—even doubt your own worth.
"I'll answer that next time," Hayabusa said gently.
When Bocchi, as usual, lowered her head at his words, he added,
"Bocchi, can I hug you?"
Bocchi's head shot up, eyes wide with disbelief. Then her expression softened into a mix of joy and nervousness, and she glanced around.
They were near the station—plenty of people coming and going.
Trendy people, quirky people, flashy people, ordinary students, office workers, musicians carrying their instruments…
She blinked slowly, hesitated, then whispered:
"…Okay."
Without commenting on her hesitation, Hayabusa bent down slightly, rested his head on her shoulder, and wrapped his arms around her back through the guitar bag she carried.
He hugged the girl who had gone so long without being hugged by anyone.
As she trembled faintly with unease, he said softly,
"You did really well today, Bocchi."
At his words, the trembling stilled, her body settling into a calmer state.
Hayabusa released her and started to straighten up, but Bocchi suddenly raised her hand—only to let it drop again at once.
Seeing this, Hayabusa patted her head.
"Next time," he said, then gestured to their surroundings with a faint smile.
"See? Nothing's really different here, is it?"
Bocchi just stared at him—at his carefree attitude, at his unrestrained smile, at the way passersby only glanced at him briefly before moving on.
"Mm."
She nodded, dazed.
Yes—this place beneath her feet hadn't changed.
What had changed was her, realizing what she now felt.