It started with a text from Axel: "We're at Joybeat—karaoke, rhythm games, the usual. You in?"
Sunny had dragged Laura halfway across the city before she could properly protest. The sky was turning soft with the violet hues of evening, and the streetlights flickered to life overhead as they turned onto a neon-lit block full of noise, music, and students already out for the weekend.
The arcade was alive with energy. Flashing LED screens pulsed in time with the blaring beat of pop songs and synthesized techno. In the far corner, Zane was already halfway through a dance battle with a kid who looked barely old enough to drive.
Axel waved them over from a booth near the snack counter. "Hey! Just in time. He's about to lose."
"Against a literal child?" Sunny grinned.
"Kid's a monster," Zane panted, catching his breath. "I swear he practiced in the womb."
Laura offered a faint smile but said nothing. She had her hands tucked in the sleeves of her cardigan, her shoulders slightly hunched as the chaos of the arcade settled over her like a weighted blanket.
They moved as a group from game to game—rhythm drums, dance pads, a hilariously broken tambourine game none of them could figure out. When it was her turn, Laura followed along, mimicking the beats perfectly. But something in her felt... disconnected.
She didn't laugh like Sunny. She didn't tease like Zane. She just followed.
Axel offered her a drink at one point—sweet milk tea with honey pearls. "You'll like it. They use real brewed leaves here."
Laura accepted it out of politeness. She sipped. Nothing.
Not bad. Not good. Just... liquid.
Sunny was watching her, quietly.
---
Later, as the group piled into a private karaoke room, Zane threw himself onto the couch like he owned the place. "Alright. I'll go first, but only if someone duets with me."
"No one wants to hear you butcher another ballad," Axel muttered.
"I make ballads better," Zane corrected, selecting a ridiculous love song and dragging Sunny up beside him.
Laura sat back, sipping her tea, the microphone cold and unfamiliar in her hand. Her voice was perfect when she joined in later—clean, on-pitch, emotionally empty.
The others cheered. She offered a smile.
But when she sat back down, her hands trembled slightly.
It wasn't stage fright. It was something deeper.
---
After they left the karaoke lounge, the others were buzzing with laughter. Zane hung back and fell into step beside her.
"You okay?"
Laura blinked. "Why wouldn't I be?"
He shrugged. "You just seem kinda... somewhere else. You didn't even react to the bubble tea twist ending. That plot was wild."
Laura exhaled. A small, almost invisible shake of her head. "I don't really taste anything anymore."
Zane stopped walking. She didn't.
"Wait, like, physically?"
"I don't know. Maybe." She kept her tone light, almost curious, as if commenting on the weather. "Or maybe it's just... me."
Zane caught up. "Do you know what you like, Laura? Like—truly like? Not what you're good at. Not what's expected."
She hesitated.
"No."
He didn't laugh. He didn't tease. He just nodded slowly.
And together, they kept walking—toward the next arcade, or ramen shop, or whatever place they hadn't decided on yet.
There was no plan. But maybe, tonight, that was the point.
---
The arcade glow still clung to their sleeves as the four of them wandered through the shopping district, laughter echoing behind them from a rhythm game they'd just destroyed as a team—well, mostly Sunny and Zane, with Axel playing along and Laura dutifully pressing buttons just a second too late.
After a bit of wandering, they found themselves parked outside a popular food stall. Sunny immediately ordered the largest combo, eyes sparkling like a kid at a festival. Axel followed suit with something grilled and sizzling. Laura hesitated, then ordered something plain—rice balls, lightly salted, nothing more.
Zane, watching her from the corner of his eye, didn't say anything. Not yet.
Sunny took one bite of her corn dog and practically moaned in delight. "Oh my god, this is insane," she said through a full mouth, laughing. "Zane, try this—no wait, Axel, you gotta—"
Zane raised a brow. "Save some enthusiasm for dessert."
Laura took a bite of her food.
Nothing.
Just... texture.
It wasn't bad. It wasn't good. It just was.
She chewed silently, eyes watching Sunny's animated expression, Axel's amused grin as he gave in and tried a bite from her skewer.
She didn't say anything.
Zane noticed.
---
Later, as they paused near a quiet bench, Axel leaned over to Zane.
"You said something earlier," Axel murmured, keeping his voice low so the others couldn't hear. "About Laura... not being able to taste?"
Zane nodded, his gaze flicking toward her. She was perched on the edge of the bench, legs crossed, nursing a bottle of water she hadn't opened.
"She told me before" he said. "After karaoke. Just... dropped it like it was nothing."
Axel frowned. "Seriously?"
"She said she doesn't really taste anything anymore. Might be physical. Might just be... her."
Axel didn't say anything at first. His brows furrowed as he stared ahead.
"I always thought she was just picky," he muttered. "Tea, plain food... not really getting excited about stuff. I figured it was just Laura being... chill."
Zane's voice dropped a bit. "I don't think it's about chill. I think it's about not knowing how to enjoy things. Or forgetting."
Axel looked over. "That's... dark."
"Yeah." Zane's jaw flexed slightly. "But she didn't say it for attention. She just said it like it was a fact. Like weather."
Axel turned to look at Laura again. She was smiling faintly at something Sunny was saying. But it didn't quite reach her eyes.
"I never questioned it," Axel murmured. "I just thought that's how she was."
Zane's voice was quieter now. "Maybe that's the problem."
---
Back with the group, Sunny was still babbling about a sweets shop nearby.Laura smiled, nodded when prompted, let herself be pulled along.
But Zane kept a watchful eye on her. The way she only took tiny bites of the pastry Sunny handed her. How she excused herself for "fresh air" when the sweetness made her stomach turn.
How she laughed—but not with her eyes.
---
The night had settled gently over the city, wrapping its noise in softer tones and longer shadows. The group stood at the edge of the station steps, laughter fading into the buzz of vending machines and passing trains.
Sunny stretched her arms with a sleepy grin. "That was fun. We should do this more often."
Axel nodded, cracking his neck. "Next time, I'm picking the karaoke songs though."
Laura offered a small, polite smile. Zane noticed it didn't quite match the way her shoulders curled inward.
Sunny stepped up to Zane before heading off. "Thanks for the rhythm battle backup, partner," she said, voice teasing. Then—without warning—she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
Zane blinked.
Laura did too.
"Goodnight, everyone~!" Sunny sang as she skipped down the stairs.
Zane ran a hand over his neck, still processing. "Well… that happened."
Axel smirked. "Don't act so shocked. You looked like you enjoyed it."
Zane gave a faint laugh but didn't comment. His eyes had already drifted back to Laura, who lingered near the railing, arms crossed.
She felt it—their eyes on her. Turning, she raised a brow. "What?"
Neither answered right away.
Zane finally spoke. "Just wondering what you're thinking."
Laura hesitated. Then shrugged. "Nothing, really."
Axel added, softer, "You're allowed to say more than that, y'know."
Laura's expression faltered—just for a second. Then it settled again into something composed. Quiet.
"I'm tired," she said.
Zane stepped forward just slightly, voice careful. "You don't always have to be."
A pause.
Then she looked away.
"I know."
The silence that followed wasn't heavy. Just... unfinished. Like a note still ringing out after the music had stopped.
---
The night air had grown cooler, settling with a hush over the city.
Zane's gaze lingered.
He glanced from Axel, then to Laura—his expression unreadable for once. He didn't say anything, just gave a nod and slipped his hands into his jacket pockets. The hum of passing cars swallowed the soft thud of his footsteps as he turned away, disappearing down the street.
That left Axel and Laura, standing under the muted orange glow of a streetlight.
"You headed home?" Axel asked, casually.
Laura nodded. "Yeah."
"I'll walk you."
She turned slightly, as if to refuse. "You don't have to—"
"I want to," he said, voice gentle but firm.
A pause.
"…Okay."
---
They walked side by side down the quiet sidewalk, their steps in sync like they'd done this a hundred times before. They didn't speak, and they didn't need to. The silence between them wasn't awkward—it was familiar, like an old coat worn soft with time.
Eventually, Laura slowed and sat down on a bench tucked beneath a tree, just past the street corner. The wind stirred the leaves faintly overhead.
"Give me a second," she said.
Axel nodded and sat beside her, his hands resting on his knees. He didn't look at her directly—just kept his eyes on the sidewalk, as if letting her decide when or if to speak.
He knew.
Of course he did.
Zane must've told him, and she knew it. Part of her wanted to ask what he'd said, to clear the air or pretend it hadn't mattered—but she didn't. And he didn't ask why she never told him.
Maybe he already knew the answer.
Maybe it was because he never asked.
And maybe… she never wanted him to know. Because if he knew, it would become real.
The breeze picked up again, and a single tear slipped from her eye. It caught her off-guard.
She blinked, touching her cheek absently—almost confused by the dampness. Crying wasn't something she did. Not anymore. She couldn't remember the last time she had.
Her voice, when it came, was barely more than a whisper. "Huh…"
Axel turned to her, but didn't speak.
She stared ahead, expression unreadable, tears welling quietly now—not sobbing, not unraveling, but letting go, one drop at a time.
And Axel just stayed with her.
No questions.No pressure.Just presence.
And in that rare, silent stillness, something unspoken passed between them.
It wasn't a breakdown. It wasn't dramatic.It was just… honest.
And maybe, for Laura, that was the most vulnerable thing of all.