By the time summer rolled around, everyone assumed Iura Shuu had a girlfriend.
He'd be caught outside the gates talking to a middle schooler with soft eyes and a shy smile. His phone would buzz during class breaks, and he'd grin down at it like an idiot. And during school festivals, someone spotted him buying two lemonades and waiting under a tree with a face that was definitely not just "friendly."
Of course, no one said it outright.
Because even if they didn't know who, it was clear Shuu Iura was falling for someone. Hard.
Aoi tried to downplay it. They weren't dating—not officially. But the way Shuu held his bag when they walked side by side, how he always stood just a little too close, or the way he'd ruffle Aoi's hair and mutter, "You're really unfair, you know that?"—it all made Aoi's heart ache in the best way.
There was one moment in particular.
They were sitting on the steps near the riverbank after one of Aoi's mock exams. The sky was painted with the kind of gold that only happens right before sunset.
"You did good," Shuu said, bumping his shoulder lightly against Aoi's.
Aoi looked down, fingers fiddling with the hem of his sleeve. "I got question six wrong…"
Shuu clicked his tongue. "Still aced the rest, didn't you?"
Aoi smiled, barely.
Shuu tilted his head, watching him. "Hey."
Aoi looked up.
"I know I said we should take things slow, and we still can. But I like you, Aoi. Not just as some kid my sister dragged home. I like you."
Aoi's eyes widened, and his face went crimson. "I-I… I like you too."
There was a silence after that—comfortable, warm, the kind where hearts speak louder than words.
Shuu leaned over and bumped his head gently against Aoi's. "Cool."
The next few months were a quiet, secret kind of bliss.
They never officially told anyone. Shuu didn't want Aoi to be pressured, and Aoi liked having this one thing that was theirs. They exchanged messages like "Good luck on your test " and "You looked cool today". Shuu would walk Aoi home and sneak little gifts into his bag—like a frog-shaped eraser or his favorite melon bread.
Aoi, for his part, drew a little doodle of the two of them on a sticky note once. It was terrible, barely looked like either of them, but Shuu stuck it in the back of his phone case and never took it out.
But things weren't always easy.
One day, Aoi stopped replying. For two days straight.
Shuu worried. He panicked, almost went to Aoi's school, but stopped himself. On the third day, Aoi finally messaged.
"Sorry. I just… didn't know if it's okay to like you so much."
Shuu didn't even wait. He ran.
They met under the same tree by the school gates.
"You idiot," Shuu said, breathless. "It is okay. I like you that much too."
And for the first time, Shuu held Aoi's hand.
Fingers trembling, but hearts steady.