Hina walked quickly, the soft soles of her shoes brushing against petals scattered across the path. Her group meeting had run ten minutes longer than planned. Fifteen, actually.
She kept checking her phone, hoping that Yuto would still be there.
And he was.
As she turned the corner past the main lecture hall, she saw him exactly where she'd left him.
Yuto sat beneath the cherry blossom tree, one leg stretched out, head tilted slightly back, eyes closed as the petals danced around him.
He looked so peaceful.
She paused for a moment, just watching him.
Somehow, in that moment, he looked like someone completely unreachable and yet, he was the person who knew her better than anyone else in the world.
"Hey," she called softly.
Yuto opened his eyes immediately and sat up straighter. A small smile touched his lips. "You came back."
"I said I would," she replied, walking toward him.
"I almost thought you got pulled into another hour of literature theory."
"I escaped," she said, settling beside him again. "Barely."
He handed her the second half of her croissant still wrapped in the napkin. "It looked lonely without you."
She laughed softly. "You saved it?"
"Of course."
Their shoulders sat just inches apart.
The silence between them wasn't awkward, just… full of everything they weren't saying.
That was when it happened.
A soft voice behind them said, "Yuto?"
They both turned.
A girl stood nearby, dressed neatly in a Todai Law hoodie and pleated skirt. She was pretty with straight black hair, glossed lips, a shy smile on her face.
"I'm sorry," she said, brushing her bangs behind her ear. "I just wanted to return your book. You dropped it in lecture earlier."
"Oh thanks," Yuto replied, reaching for the textbook she offered.
Her hand lingered just a moment longer than necessary. "I didn't get your contact last time. Maybe next time we can talk about the readings together?"
Yuto was polite. Calm. "Sure. I'll see you around."
The girl smiled, nodded at Hina briefly, then walked off.
Hina didn't move. But something inside her twisted.
The air between them had changed. She didn't know how to name it but it was quiet and sharp and uncomfortable.
Yuto turned back to her, sensing the shift. "She's in my political ethics class," he said casually.
"Right," Hina said.
"She's just being friendly."
"I didn't say anything."
He studied her for a moment. "But you thought something."
Hina looked away. "You're popular now. Tall. Smart. Calm. Girls like that kind of thing."
He tilted his head slightly. "You mean you don't?"
Her breath caught. "That's not the point."
Yuto leaned forward slightly, voice gentler. "Then what is?"
She opened her mouth, then closed it again. She didn't know how to say it. How to tell him that watching another girl speak to him so freely made her heart sink. She felt like something was being taken from her.
Instead, she said softly, "I'm just not used to sharing you."
Yuto's eyes softened instantly. He reached out and gently brushed a stray petal from her hair.
"You've never had to."
Hina blinked. Her cheeks turned red.
"You're still the one I wait for," he added, voice lower. "Even now."
She couldn't answer. Not yet. Not with her heart thudding in her chest like that.
But she didn't look away this time.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke. The space between them felt fragile, like it might shift into something else if either of them moved too quickly.
Then Yuto gave a small smile. "Let's go. We'll miss the train."
She nodded and they walked side by side. Their shoulders almost touched but neither of them said anything.
*****
The next few days passed in a delicate rhythm.
Between classes, assignments, and coffee under the sakura trees, Yuto and Hina continued to orbit each other—close, constant, but still suspended in that space between what was and what could be.
And then came Wednesday, during lunch break in the humanities courtyard.
Hina stood near the vending machine, debating whether to go for matcha or peach soda, when a smooth, familiar voice caught her ear.
"Still overthinking your drink choices?"
She turned and her stomach gave a small jolt.
Reiki Hoshino.
Dressed in a sleek black jacket over his open-collared shirt, his lean frame and charismatic smile made him hard to ignore.
Son of Riku Hoshino, her father's longtime rival.
They hadn't spoken much, but they shared a few general electives, and it was no secret among the inner circles of the underworld who he really was.
"Peach soda," he said, slipping a coin into the machine with casual ease. "Sweet suits you."
He retrieved the drink and offered it with one hand. "Take it. Think of it as… a gesture."
Hina hesitated, her fingers brushing his. "You really don't have to—"
"I want to," he said smoothly. "Besides, it's rare to meet someone like you in a place like this. You're… interesting."
Before she could reply, a familiar shadow stepped between them.
It was Yuto.
"She already has someone who remembers her drink preferences," Yuto said coolly, his gaze never leaving Reiki. "And she doesn't need gestures. She needs peace."
Reiki smiled, slow and amused. "Ah… Daiki's son. Paris made you taller. And bolder."
"Tokyo made me patient," Yuto replied. "But not when it comes to her."
There was a pause, just enough tension to make the air brittle.
Hina blinked, eyes flicking between them.
Yuto turned to her gently. "Come on."
Without waiting for approval, he reached for her hand bf brought her away.
He didn't say a word as he led her through the rear paths of the campus, past quiet hallways and stone steps bathed in sakura light, until they reached a narrow, peaceful garden behind the old library.
Here, the noise of students and lecture bells faded.
Only wind and petals remained.
Yuto stopped under the shadow of a tree and turned to face her. His jaw was tense. His eyes steady.
"I wasn't going to say anything yet," he began, voice low but sure. "I thought I'd give you time. Let you settle into college life first. Let you breathe a little."
Hina stared at him, heart pounding. "Yuto…"
"But I can't keep standing on the sidelines." He stepped closer. "Not when someone like him is trying to fill a space that's never belonged to anyone else."
She froze. His words hit her with the weight of everything she hadn't dared to say aloud.
"I want to woo you, Hina," he said plainly. "Not just wait anymore. Not just standing next to you and pretending I'm not hoping for more. I'm not rushing you but I need you to know where I stand."
Her breath caught.
"You've always stood close," she whispered. "I just… didn't know how to step into it."
"Then let me meet you halfway."
The silence lingered, warm and real.
Hina looked away, cheeks flushed. "I didn't expect you to say it out loud."
"I've wanted to say it for years."
She smiled softly, shy but bright. Her fingers tugged lightly at the edge of her sleeve, and her gaze dropped for a moment, too flustered to hold his for long.
"Then… don't take it back," she murmured.
Her cheeks bloomed with color as soon as the words left her lips. Yuto watched her quietly, the corners of his lips curving upward. He took a half-step closer.
"I won't," he said simply. "Not now. Not ever."
Hina tried to hide her flustered smile behind the can of peach soda she still held.
"Stop looking at me like that," she mumbled, eyes flicking anywhere but his.
"Like what?" Yuto asked, the teasing finally slipping into his voice.
"Like you know exactly what you're doing to me."
"I do," he said, low and soft.
Her eyes snapped up to meet his. Embarrassed. Completely undone.
And Yuto just smiled.
*****
Later that evening, back at the Kazama estate…
Hina stood at the kitchen sink, absentmindedly rinsing her mug for the second time. Her thoughts were far away,still tangled in Yuto's voice, his words, the look in his eyes.
She didn't notice Emi walk in until she heard her voice behind her.
"You've been rinsing that cup for five minutes, sweetheart."
Hina jumped a little, quickly shutting off the tap. "I—sorry. I was just…"
"Thinking," Emi finished with a knowing smile. She stepped forward and gently took the mug from Hina's hands, drying it with a cloth. "Let me guess. Yuto?"
Hina bit her lip. "How do you always know?"
"I'm your mother," Emi said softly. "I knew you loved that boy before you did."
Hina's cheeks turned red again. "I don't know if I'd call it love yet."
Emi tilted her head. "Maybe not. But it's close, isn't it?"
Hina sat down at the small kitchen table, her shoulders slumping as she exhaled. "He told me today. That he wants to woo me. That he doesn't want to wait anymore."
Emi smiled gently. "About time."
"I just stood there," Hina confessed. "Blushing like an idiot. I didn't even know how to respond."
"That's because it's real," Emi said, setting the dried mug on the rack and sitting across from her. "And real things? They shake you up."
Hina looked down at her hands. "I wanted to say something back. But I got so shy I could barely speak. And the way he looked at me, like he was so sure…"
"That's what Yuto does," Emi murmured. "He's quiet, but when he loves, he loves completely. It's all in or nothing at all."
Hina's voice softened. "He said I'm the one he waits for."
Emi reached out and took her daughter's hand, giving it a light squeeze. "Then maybe it's time you stopped running."
Hina blinked. "I'm not running."
"You're not walking forward either."
A gentle, reflective silence fell between them.
Then Hina whispered, "I think I'm just scared. What if I mess it up? What if I'm not ready?"
"Then you take it one step at a time," Emi said. "And if it's really him… he'll match your pace."
Hina looked down at her wrist. The ribbon bracelet was still there, slightly faded, but tied firm.
A small smile found her lips.
"Maybe I'll walk a little faster tomorrow," she murmured.
Emi's eyes sparkled. "That's my girl."