Chapter 81: The Calm Before the Storm
The days that followed the group's final gathering were unusually quiet. The warmth they shared still lingered in Rika's room—in the books they borrowed, in the slightly crooked photo frame by the window, and in the quiet spaces where laughter once echoed.
Naoto stood by the kitchen sink early one morning, washing dishes in slow, deliberate motions. The rhythmic trickle of water echoed softly through the apartment. Behind him, his mother, Hana Hayashi, sipped her tea with a faint smile. Though her illness still painted shadows beneath her eyes, her expression held more peace than it had in years.
"She brought light into this home again," Hana said suddenly, her voice breaking the comfortable silence.
Naoto turned, drying his hands with a towel. "You mean... Himari?"
"Himari, and you. And those kids. This home hasn't felt so alive since you were in middle school."
Naoto's throat tightened slightly. He nodded slowly, unable to put the storm of emotions inside him into words. Himari had been coming over more often lately, helping with cooking and organizing medication, sometimes just sitting silently beside Hana while she rested. Their bond, once hidden in the past, had grown visibly deep.
But Naoto still hadn't told Rika. About Himari. About the truth. About everything.
---
At the Hayato estate, Rika sat on the steps outside the garden, her hair tied back, her fingers brushing over the spines of old books she'd once read with Naoto. She hadn't seen him properly in days.
Souta Aizawa approached her quietly, two juice bottles in hand. "You're in serious thinking mode again. Should I be worried?"
Rika managed a smile and took the offered bottle. "No need to worry. I'm just sorting things in my head."
"You mean about him?"
She didn't answer right away. Her eyes wandered across the garden. "I hate not knowing what I'm feeling. Or what he's feeling."
Souta sat down beside her. "He's not ignoring you, Rika. He's just… overwhelmed. There's a lot going on. And maybe he's scared."
She turned to him, her eyes searching. "Why are you always here for me, Souta? Even when I act like I don't want anyone?"
He shrugged, leaning back on his hands. "Because I know what it feels like to be left behind. And because you let me stay."
Their silence wasn't uncomfortable. In fact, it was one of the first times Rika felt like she could breathe.
---
Later that evening, Naoto visited the hospital alone. He handed a sealed envelope to Dr. Nishimura.
"Everything she might need. Contacts. Emergency notes. My letters to her. I just... I want her to know everything when the time is right."
Dr. Nishimura frowned. "You're planning something, Naoto. Don't go making sacrifices in silence."
Naoto offered a faint smile. "It's not sacrifice if it gives someone else peace."
As he stepped outside, Himari stood waiting by the parking lot. "You didn't tell her yet, did you?"
"I will," he said. "Just not yet. I want her to have something real. Not just a goodbye."
Himari looked at him with a mixture of sadness and admiration. "I know you love her, in your own way. But are you running from yourself again?"
Naoto didn't reply. Instead, he looked up at the moonlit sky and exhaled.
---
That same night, Rika wrote a letter.
Dear Naoto,
I don't know how to say the things stuck in my heart. Maybe that's why I'm writing this, even if I never send it.
You confuse me. You calm me. You frustrate me. And you matter to me more than I thought possible.
I wish you'd let me in.
She folded the letter and placed it in her diary.
Outside her window, Souta waited beneath the streetlight, his presence quiet but unwavering.
In the stillness of night, every character sat with unspoken truths.
The calm before the storm had settled. But soon, choices would have to be made.
And hearts would either be broken—or finally freed.