Morning arrived with the cheerful chirping of birds. The sound of the alarm rang, and Akari quickly woke up from her sleep. Today was Akari's first day in Class 7.
Her mother, Mrs. Minami, had already prepared breakfast for everyone and set it neatly on the table.
"Akari~ wake up quickly, wash your face, brush your teeth, and get ready in your school uniform.
I've prepared a warm breakfast, so eat properly and don't be late."
Hearing her mother's words, Akari got up, freshened herself, and sat at the dining table. After finishing her breakfast, she packed her school bag and put on her uniform.
Akari's father was watching TV, checking the weather news. The forecast said that Tokyo might experience heavy rain for the next few days.
Before leaving, her mother gently said—
"Akari-chan, go to school carefully."
"Okay, Mom. Bye-bye!"
Akari headed to school by bus. As she stepped inside, her eyes suddenly fell on a boy.
The boy was sitting by the window, gazing outside absentmindedly. He was very quiet. While some boys nearby were chatting loudly with their friends, the boy by the window sat silently, paying attention to nothing around him.
Akari took her seat. A girl sitting beside her greeted her warmly and introduced herself.
Her name was Sumire, fourteen years old.
Sumire leaned closer and said with a playful smirk—
"I've been noticing you for a while. You've been staring at that boy sitting by the window.
Hmm~ do you know him from before?"
Akari flustered and felt slightly embarrassed.
"Umm… n-no…"
"Hmm, is that so?" Sumire whispered teasingly near Akari's ear.
"You must have a crush on him, hehe."
Hearing that, Akari panicked internally.
"E-eh?! I was just looking at him… does that really mean I have a crush?!"
She tried not to show it and quickly replied—
"N-no! You're misunderstanding! I was just looking randomly, that's all!"
Sumire giggled softly.
"You know, that boy used to be a really brilliant student back in Class 6.
He's very calm and quiet."
Before she could say more, the bus arrived at school. The driver stopped, and everyone got off.
The boy stepped down as well—but he accidentally left his umbrella on the bus seat.
Akari picked it up and hurried over to him.
"You might have forgotten your umbrella."
The boy smiled cutely and said—
"Oh, thank you so much! I didn't notice at all. I'm really careless."
"No problem! It's nothing."
As Akari turned to enter the school building, the boy called out—
"Um—excuse me! If you don't mind… may I know your name?"
Akari gently replied—
"Oh—yes! My name is Akari. Akari Minazuki. Nice to meet you.
And… what's your name?"
"Nice to meet you too, Akari-chan. My name is Haruka Takahashi."
Akari's cheeks instantly turned red.
"Haruka… the way he speaks is so gentle… so friendly…" she thought, blushing.
"Well, I'm heading to class now. See you later, Akari-chan."
He gave her a soft smile.
"Bye."
"U-um… bye!"
Akari sat down at her desk, her mind filled with thoughts of Haruka.
"Ah… Haruka is so nice…"
Suddenly, she snapped back to reality.
"W-what am I thinking?! Focus on the board!"
Classes went on. After school, Akari chatted with Sumire.
"Today's math class was so boring. It felt like it would never end," Sumire sighed.
"Yeah… and I was just thinking about Haru—!"
Akari quickly corrected herself, embarrassed.
"I mean—math! I was trying to understand math!"
"Huh? Haru?" Sumire smirked.
"Ooooh~ so that means—"
"No! Don't misunderstand! He just forgot his umbrella on the bus!"
"Oh~ I see, I see."
Sumire glanced at her watch.
"Sorry, I have to go home now. Let's talk tomorrow, Akari-chan. Bye-bye!"
"Okay! Bye!"
As Sumire left, the sky suddenly grew dark with thick clouds. Akari remembered the morning weather forecast—rain.
She realized she had forgotten her umbrella at home.
"How will I get home now? It's going to rain any moment…"
Just then, Haruka appeared in front of her.
"Hi, Akari-chan! What's wrong? You look worried."
"I… I forgot my umbrella at home, and it's raining… my uniform will get wet…"
"Oh, that's it?" Haruka smiled.
"Don't worry. You can walk with me. I'll walk you home with my umbrella."
Akari blushed deeply.
"N-no! That's not necessary! It'll be troublesome for you—th-thank you!"
"Hehe." Haruka giggled softly.
"Helping someone isn't troublesome at all. Come on, Akari-chan."
Feeling extremely shy, Akari walked beside Haruka under the umbrella.
Suddenly, a car rushed past, splashing muddy rainwater toward them.
"Akari!"
Haruka pulled her toward him just in time.
The muddy water missed her completely.
Akari's heart raced, her face turning bright red.
"A-ah?! Haruka-kun, did your uniform get dirty?!"
She noticed mud splashed onto half of his uniform.
Quickly, she took out a handkerchief and wiped it.
"I-I'm so sorry, Haruka-kun… your uniform got dirty because of me…"
"It's okay, Akari-chan. Don't worry about it."
Soon, they reached her house.
"Oh—here it is! My home! Thank you so much, Haruka-kun.
I don't even know how to thank you properly."
"Oh, this is your house? I actually live very close by too."
Akari felt extremely happy.
"Haru-kun lives nearby?! I didn't know that!"
Blushing hard, she rushed inside and closed the door.
Her mother greeted her—
"Welcome home, Akari-chan. You didn't take an umbrella today.
How did you get home? Go take a bath and freshen up."
"I… I walked home with a boy."
After changing and taking a bath, Akari lay on her bed, exhausted.
Her thoughts drifted back to Haruka.
"He lives nearby… ahhh! I'm so happy!"
She buried her face in the pillow.
"W-what am I thinking? Why do I feel like I've fallen for him? N-no! Akari! What are you saying?!"
She lightly slapped her cheeks just as her mother entered—
"Dinner time~ come quickly."
To Be Continued… 🌧️✨