(FAST FORWARD)
One year later.
Aoi stood in front of the gates of Katagiri Senior High School, his new school. His uniform felt crisp, his bag slightly too heavy, and his heart—racing.
He knew he should be focusing on orientation. On clubs. On finding his classroom.
But his eyes searched for someone who wasn't there anymore.
Iura Shuu had graduated the previous spring.
And though they hadn't exactly broken up, time and distance made things… quieter. The texts slowed. The late-night calls faded. There were no more shared lemonades or sneaky gifts in his bag.
It wasn't painful, just a soft ache.
Aoi never stopped liking Shuu. He just didn't know if Shuu still liked him.
That afternoon, Aoi wandered toward the back courtyard, chasing nostalgia.
The sakura tree they always met under was still there, swaying gently in the breeze. He sat beneath it, pulling out his phone—not to text Shuu, but just to look at that worn doodle he'd drawn. The one Shuu once said he kept in his phone case.
He'd given it back to me the day before graduation, Aoi remembered. Slipped it into my notebook and said, "You should hold onto it now."
Was that even still true?
He sighed.
Then, he heard a familiar voice from behind the tree.
"Still sitting under trees like a lost cat, huh?"
Aoi's head snapped up.
There he was.
Shuu.
Still loud. Still casually handsome in his college hoodie and messy hair. Still smiling like he never left.
Aoi scrambled up. "Shuu-senpai?!"
Shuu raised a brow. "You're still calling me that?"
Aoi's heart stuttered. "W-what are you doing here?"
"I was in the area. Thought I'd stop by." Shuu rubbed the back of his neck. "Kinda hoped I might see you, actually."
A beat.
"I wasn't sure if you'd want to."
Aoi looked down, voice soft. "I wasn't sure if you still wanted me to…"
Shuu sighed and took a step forward. "You think I came all the way back here just for nostalgia? I missed you, dummy."
Aoi's breath caught.
"You… did?"
Shuu smiled. "Every day. I kept thinking about you. How you looked when you blushed. How you held your bag with both hands like it was a shield. How you always smelled like citrus shampoo."
Aoi turned red in exactly 1.2 seconds.
"And," Shuu added, softer now, "how I never stopped liking you. I just didn't know if I had the right to say it again."
Aoi took a shaky step forward.
"You do."
Another step.
"I was waiting."
Another.
"For you to find me again."
Shuu didn't wait this time. He closed the distance and pulled Aoi into a gentle hug. Not rushed, not heated. Just warm. Right. Like home.
Aoi pressed his forehead against Shuu's chest.
"I'm glad you came back."
Shuu chuckled, kissing the top of his head. "I never really left. I actually left you that doddle as a reminder, dummy."
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A few months later, they were "dating" for real. This time, they said it out loud.
Shuu would come pick up Aoi from school on weekends, and Aoi would visit his college dorm with bentos and soft smiles.
They went on study dates, shared headphones on the train, and argued over which anime had the best opening themes.
And whenever Aoi got flustered—like when Shuu casually called him "my Aoi"—he'd pout and turn red, and Shuu would just grin and ruffle his hair like always.
But now, when Aoi leaned into his touch… Shuu would lean down too, and finally, finally, kiss him.