Chapter 4: Breaking The Walls
1278 Words
As the morning class ended, the classroom erupted with chatter and the scraping of chairs as students clustered into their usual friend groups. Akane, gathering her courage, stood up. "Maybe he was just being shy." If she approached him first, maybe he'd loosen up. Clutching her lunch box tightly, she glanced toward Kiyoshi’s seat only to find it empty.
Her heart sank.
Disappointment settled heavily on her shoulders as she stared at the unopened box in her hands.
"Fujimoto-san."
She flinched slightly at the unfamiliar voice. Turning, she was surprised to see Riku Toudou, an aloof classmate known for his thick glasses and quiet demeanor standing in front of her. A lone flower who rarely spoke to anyone.
"If you're looking for him..." Riku said, pushing up his glasses, "...he went toward the back building."
Her eyes widened. “Thank you!”
Without another word, Akane rushed out of the classroom, her footsteps echoing down the stairwell. "Maybe if I hurry, I can still catch him." But her breath hitched as she descended, "of course, he has long legs," she thought bitterly. "He's probably far by now."
Yet to her surprise, as she rounded the corner, there he was sitting on a bench under the quiet shade of a tree, opening his lunch. She stopped, breathless.
“Ayanami-kun… H-hello,” she said, panting.
He paused and looked at her, his expression unreadable. “Oh… you are?”
Akane froze, stunned. "He doesn’t remember me?" Her lips parted, but before she could say anything, he calmly began packing his lunch back into its bag.
“Sorry if I took your spot,” he said softly. “I’m new here—I’ll find somewhere else.”
“What…?” Akane barely whispered. “Why are you acting like you don’t know me?”
Kiyoshi stiffened. For a brief second, something flashed in his eyes. But he looked away.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured. “You can have the bench.”
“Then… I won’t be eating lunch at all,” she said stubbornly.
He paused. “What are you talking about?”
“We have physical training later. Students need food to refuel, right? I have low stamina. I faint easily, you know.”
“Fujimoto-san, please stop acting like a child.”
“Then stop acting like I’m a stranger to you!”
A silence hung between them like a taut thread.
“I ran here,” she continued, quieter now, “because I wanted to eat with you.”
Kiyoshi finally turned to look at her, his expression softening. “Thank you,” he said. “But… sticking around me won’t do you any good.”
Akane furrowed her brows and bit her lower lip. “Then what? I don’t have a best friend, or even a friend group. No one really talks to me. I’m just another background character in this school. So what if I want to be friends with a new classmate?”
“You see. . . how I look. Everyone thinks I’m strange,” he said, voice low. “If you stay near me, they’ll treat you the same way.”
“I don’t care!”
He blinked in surprise.
“You didn’t save me for attention. I know that. Even if it wasn’t me in that alley, you still would’ve stepped in. Because you’re a kind person.”
Kiyoshi stared at her, stunned by her words.
“And I’m here,” she added firmly, “because I want to be your friend.”
A long silence passed between them, filled only by the rustling of wind through the trees.
Finally, a small, almost reluctant smile curved his lips. “I didn’t know… you were this stubborn.”
They sat together beneath the tree, a gentle breeze rustling through the leaves above. Akane opened her lunch, but her eyes widened when she saw Kiyoshi’s.
“Wow,” she said, in awe. “It’s dazzling! Did your mom make it?”
Kiyoshi chuckled softly. “No, actually. My little sister made it.”
“Oh,” she nodded, remembering what her father had said about his new colleague having two children. “By the way… did you move here because of your dad’s job?”
There was a flicker of something in his expression pain, maybe but it vanished quickly behind a polite smile. “Yeah… something like that.”
“I think your dad transferred to my dad’s company,” she added. “He mentioned it at dinner last night.”
“Ah, really?” Kiyoshi looked a little surprised. “Small world.”
Their conversation flowed more easily as they ate. The awkwardness between them slowly faded, replaced by something more comfortable. For the first time in a long while, Akane felt like she wasn’t eating lunch alone.
Just as they finished, a familiar voice called out.
“Oh, there you two are.”
They turned to see Riku Toudou approaching, his usual serious expression softened by the sunlight glinting off his glasses.
Akane stood up quickly, a little flustered. “T-Toudou, you’re here.”
“I’m here for Ayanami,” he said plainly.
“Me?” Kiyoshi asked, confused.
Riku handed him a flyer. “The drama club is looking for new members. You might want to check it out.”
Kiyoshi took it politely. “Uhm, thank you.”
Riku’s glasses gleamed. “Hey, Fujimoto, you haven’t joined a club yet, right?”
“N-not yet,” she admitted.
“If you’re interested, you could come watch us too. Drama club. You’ve got a good face—perfect for a leading lady.”
“H-huh?!” Akane turned beet red. “W-well, thank you…”
“We’re having practice this afternoon,” Riku added. “You should both come watch. If you’re there, Ayanami might feel less out of place.”
Akane hesitated, but nodded. “O-okay…”
Before they could say more, the school bell rang.
“Oh, let’s head back.”
The three of them walked toward the classroom together. A few students stared and whispered, but Akane stayed close and cast sharp glares at anyone who looked like they had something nasty to say. A few of them flinched and turned away.
As they entered the room, a boy with a messy mop of hair bounded over.
“Oh hey, Fuji—whoa!” Sakamoto Naoya nearly tripped over himself as he spotted Riku behind her. “Why is this guy here?”
Akane raised an eyebrow, confused. Only then did she realize Naoya’s reaction wasn’t toward Kiyoshi but to Riku.
“What’s wrong, Sakamoto Naoya?” Riku asked coolly, eyes glinting beneath his glasses.
Naoya pointed accusingly. “Akane, why are you with this guy?!”
She sighed. “We were just talking.”
“Oh, Ayanami’s here too!” Naoya said, finally noticing Kiyoshi. “Nice! Ayanami, don’t trust this guy. He chants devilish stuff in the toilet!”
“What?” Riku replied flatly.
“I heard you! Whispering some ancient ritual or something!”
“I was memorizing a script, you airhead.”
“Then why was it so creepy-sounding?!”
Riku crossed his arms. “Because an i***t like you wouldn’t understand Shakespeare.”
“What did you say?!”
“Whatever,” Naoya huffed, turning back to Akane. “Hey, Fujimoto, Ayanami—wanna go to karaoke later?”
Before either of them could answer, Riku stepped between them.
“Nope. They’re coming to drama club this afternoon.”
“Huh?!”
Kiyoshi, watching the two banter, couldn’t help but smile. The warmth of it surprised even him.
- Writer
