The next morning, the classroom buzzed with post-rain chatter.
Haruto sat at his desk, flipping through his notes, trying not to look at the empty seat beside him — which, of course, belonged to Aoi.
She was late again.
He sighed quietly. She probably overslept. Again.
Just as he was about to put away his notebook, the classroom door slid open.
"Good morning~!" Aoi sang, stepping in with her usual burst of sunshine.
Haruto froze.
There she was — holding his umbrella.
Except… it looked very different.
The once-plain navy fabric was now covered in doodles of smiling cats, stars, and little hearts. Some had been drawn in pink permanent marker. Others sparkled faintly — glitter pen, maybe?
"Ta-da!" Aoi declared proudly, presenting it like a trophy. "I brought your umbrella back, Haruto-kun!"
Haruto blinked. Once. Twice. "…What did you do to it?"
"I improved it!" she said, puffing her chest out. "Now it's one of a kind!"
He opened it hesitantly — and sure enough, the inside was just as chaotic. On one of the panels, in big, neat handwriting, she'd written:
> 'Thank you for sharing your umbrella with me ☺ — Aoi ♡'
The class erupted in laughter.
"Wow, Haruto! You've got a fan club now!" Riku teased from the back.
"Did your girlfriend autograph your umbrella?" someone else added.
Haruto groaned, closing it quickly. "She's not—"
But Aoi interrupted, smiling. "Hey! Don't make fun of it. It's special!"
She looked at Haruto, eyes bright. "You didn't like it?"
Haruto hesitated. He wanted to say that it was embarrassing. That he'd never hear the end of this from Riku.
But… when he saw her grin — proud and full of warmth — the words just wouldn't come.
Instead, he sighed softly. "…No, it's fine. Just… maybe next time, use fewer hearts."
Aoi beamed. "So you do like it!"
He turned away quickly, trying to hide the faint blush creeping up his ears. "You're impossible."
"Maybe," she said, leaning her chin on her hand. "But I make rainy days better, don't I?"
He didn't answer, but his smile said enough.
---
Later that afternoon, as they walked home together, the sun peeked through the clouds — painting everything in soft gold.
Aoi twirled the umbrella like a baton, giggling as the glitter caught the light.
"It's kind of funny," she said. "Rainy days always feel gloomy… until you share them with someone."
Haruto glanced at her — and for a fleeting second, he thought maybe she was talking about more than just the weather.
He smiled faintly. "You really can find something happy in anything, can't you?"
"Of course!" she said, flashing him a grin. "That's what makes life fun!"
And as they walked, shoulder to shoulder, he thought —
Maybe she's right.
Maybe happiness wasn't something you waited for.
Maybe it was something that appeared when you least expected it — like a doodled umbrella on a sunny day.