The attic was silent, the hot, stifling air heavy with the smell of dust, old paper, and a faint trace of something from Hana—a scent Luka had long stopped noticing. The small TV in the corner had shut off sometime during the night, its dark screen reflecting the warped ceiling beams in the dim light filtering through the fogged window. Luka slept deeply, his body sunk into the thin mattress, his head resting on Hana's shoulder, his messy brown hair falling over his sweaty forehead. His gray hoodie hung loosely on his shoulders, his legs bent at an awkward angle, the weight of exhaustion still clinging to his bones even in sleep.
Hana was beside him, her strong frame pressed against his, her left arm draped around his shoulders in a gesture that had lingered since the night, her right hand resting on his chest, fingers splayed against the hoodie. She slept too, her face relaxed, her black hair falling in loose strands over her neck, her white tank top crumpled against her pale skin. Her breathing was slow, almost in sync with his, the warmth of his body against her chest a comfort she held onto even unconsciously.
The silence was broken by a low creak—the retractable ladder being pulled down from the floor below, the steps groaning under someone's weight. Akemi, Luka's mother, appeared at the trapdoor, her graying hair loose from its bun, damp strands clinging to her forehead, her store uniform still dusted from the night shift. She had come home early, a cup of tea in hand, steam rising in thin spirals as she planned to wake Luka for college. Her tired eyes widened at the sight—her son sleeping against a girl she'd never seen, the two of them together on the mattress, her arm around him as if it were routine.
"Luka?" she called, her hoarse voice cutting through the air, a mix of surprise and curiosity as she gripped the trapdoor with one hand, the tea sloshing in the cup. The sound woke Hana first, her brown eyes opening slowly, pupils dilating as she blinked against the faint light, her body tensing for a moment before relaxing. She turned her head, her black hair swaying with the movement, and stared at the woman in the trapdoor, her fingers reflexively tightening on Luka's hoodie as she tried to piece together who this was and what was happening.
Luka stirred next, his mother's voice pulling him from deep sleep, his brown eyes opening bleary as he blinked into the dimness. He felt the weight of her arm on his shoulders, the warmth of her body against his, and his heart raced, his groggy brain scrambling to catch up. "Mom?" he mumbled, his hoarse voice dragging as he lifted his head from Hana's shoulder, his messy hair falling into his eyes. He blinked again, shock rising in his chest as he saw Akemi at the trapdoor, his brown eyes widening as he tried to move, his body still heavy against the mattress. "I… wait, I…" He stammered, sweat trickling down his neck as he searched for a lie, an explanation to steer his mother away from this before it became something bigger.
But Akemi laughed before he could form a sentence—a short, hoarse sound that echoed in the attic, her tired eyes softening as she looked at the two of them. "So this is how you're spending your nights now?" she said, her tone light but tinged with surprise, the tea cup swaying in her hand as she climbed another step, her head now fully in the attic. "Didn't know you had a girlfriend, Luka. You could've told me—I'm not *that* old-fashioned." She smiled, the wrinkles on her face deepening with the gesture, her eyes darting between him and Hana as if trying to place the black-haired girl in the crumpled tank top in her son's life.
Luka froze, his heart pounding as his mother's words hit him like a punch. "What? No, she's not…" he started, his hoarse voice too loud, his face heating up as he tried to sit up, Hana's arm still around his shoulders hindering the movement. He looked at Hana, his brown eyes wide, pleading for a way out, but she just stared back, her brown eyes narrowed with a mix of confusion and something he couldn't read. His brain spun, exhaustion and shock tangling his thoughts as he tried to come up with something to debunk this before his mother took it seriously.
Hana shifted, the mattress creaking as she slowly released his shoulders, her fingers sliding off the hoodie with a hesitation Luka barely noticed. She stayed quiet, her brown eyes flicking between him and the woman at the trapdoor, her heart beating faster as she processed the situation. "Girlfriend"—the word hung in the air, strange, heavy, something she didn't fully grasp but that made her chest tighten in a new way. She didn't know what to say, her hoarse voice caught in her throat, but she saw Luka stammering, his red face struggling to explain, and she didn't interrupt, her instincts keeping her silent as the woman spoke.
Akemi tilted her head, her crooked smile lingering as she held the tea, steam rising in thin spirals. "Come on, both of you, get down here," she said, her hoarse voice firm but laced with amusement, her tired eyes glinting with something like approval. "I'll make coffee, and your friend can stay for some. No need to keep her hidden in the attic, Luka." She laughed again, the sound echoing in the stuffy space as she waved her free hand, already descending the retractable ladder, the steps creaking under her weight. "Hurry up before I come back up!" she called, her voice fading into the hallway as she headed to the kitchen.
Luka sat still, his heart racing as he looked at Hana, his face hot and his brown eyes wide. "She thinks you're…you know, I didn't…" he started, his hoarse voice low, the words stumbling as he rubbed the back of his neck, sweat trickling down his forehead. He tried to form a sentence, something to explain or undo the misunderstanding, but his sleep-fogged brain just spun in circles, the shock of the situation weighing like a stone in his chest.
Hana shrugged, her brown eyes narrowing as she grabbed the black mask from the floor, her cold fingers clutching the cracked plastic without putting it on. "Let it go," she said, her hoarse voice calm, almost indifferent, but with a faint tremor Luka didn't catch. She stood, her strong frame unfolding with silent grace, her black hair swaying as she headed for the ladder, her boots tapping lightly on the floor. She paused at the trapdoor, her brown eyes glancing back at him for a second, and nodded, a quick gesture telling him to follow.
Luka blinked, the shock still heavy in his chest as he stood slowly, his legs shaky under his tired body. "Okay, I… alright," he mumbled, his hoarse voice hesitant as he rubbed his face with his hands, trying to fully wake up. He followed Hana, the ladder creaking under his worn boots, his heart still racing as he descended behind her, the weight of his mother's words—"girlfriend," "coffee"—echoing in his head like a problem he didn't know how to solve.