Reo Kagami woke before his alarm.
It wasn't sudden. There was no jolt, no reason for it—just the quiet awareness of being awake. Morning light slipped through the thin gap between his curtains, stretching pale lines across the walls of his room. Dust floated lazily in the air, catching the light like it always did.
For a moment, he lay there, staring at the ceiling.
Yui's voice surfaced in his mind without warning. Not anything specific she'd said—just the sound of it, calm and familiar. He shifted onto his side, burying his face slightly into the pillow as if that might quiet his thoughts.
Yesterday replayed itself in fragments.The cafeteria.The note passed in class.The bus ride home.
It was strange how something so ordinary could feel so present.
When his alarm finally rang, it felt unnecessary. He turned it off quickly and sat up, running a hand through his hair. His room looked the same as it always had—books stacked unevenly on his desk, his school uniform folded over the back of a chair, his bag resting against the wall.
Nothing had changed.
Still, he took more time getting ready.
He adjusted his uniform twice, checked his reflection longer than usual, then exhaled softly as if grounding himself. Before leaving, he paused at his door, glancing back at his room like he was leaving something unfinished behind.
Outside, the morning air was cool and quiet. Reo walked the familiar route to the bus stop, the rhythm of his steps steady. The sky was clear, the kind of blue that made it feel like the day had already decided to be uneventful.
A few students were already waiting when he arrived. He stood slightly apart, hands in his pockets, gaze drifting down the road.
Then Yui appeared.
She approached without rushing, her footsteps light, stopping beside him as naturally as if that had always been where she stood. Reo noticed the faint scent of her shampoo before she spoke.
"Morning," she said.
"Morning."
They didn't face each other. They didn't need to. Their shoulders were close enough that he could feel her presence without touching her.
"I was thinking about what you said yesterday," Yui said after a moment.
Reo glanced at her. "Which part?"
She smiled faintly. "About doing it again."
He felt his chest tighten—not uncomfortably, just enough to notice. "Yeah?"
"I think today's going to be boring," she continued, eyes forward. "But at least we can be bored together."
He let out a quiet laugh. "That sounds… surprisingly nice."
"It is," she said simply.
The bus arrived on time. They boarded together.
Inside, it was already half full. Reo hesitated, then chose a seat near the middle. Yui sat beside him without asking, setting her bag down between her feet. When the bus started moving, their knees brushed briefly.
Neither of them pulled away.
The ride passed quietly. Yui talked about a show she'd stayed up too late watching, how she regretted it but didn't at the same time. Reo listened, responding when he could, finding that silence didn't feel awkward between them.
At school, the day unfolded slowly.
In class, Yui passed him a folded note while the teacher's back was turned. Inside was a messy sketch of the classroom clock with exaggerated hands spinning wildly.
This is how today feels, she'd written.
He smiled and wrote back beneath it before passing it back. When she read it, she covered her mouth, shoulders shaking as she laughed silently.
Lunch was louder.
The cafeteria buzzed with overlapping voices, the scrape of chairs, the clatter of trays. Reo and Yui sat across from each other, sharing small observations about the people around them. Yui pushed her food around her tray, clearly distracted.
"You're not eating," Reo said.
She shrugged. "Not that hungry."
He slid part of his meal toward her without thinking. "Then help me."
She blinked, then laughed softly. "You're bad at pretending this is casual."
"Am I?" he asked.
"Yes," she said, smiling as she took a bite anyway.
For a while, they just talked—about classes they liked, teachers they didn't, small frustrations that didn't matter much in the grand scheme of things. At some point, Yui rested her chin on her hand, watching him as he spoke.
"You're different today," she said.
"How?"
"Quieter," she said. "But… not distant."
He thought about it. "I guess I'm just trying to remember this."
Her expression softened. "Then don't rush it."
After school, the sunlight felt warmer. Students poured out of the building, voices echoing across the pavement. Reo and Yui walked side by side, their steps unconsciously matching.
At the bus stop, they waited together again.
Same place.Same time.Same route.
When the bus arrived, Yui stepped on first and took the window seat. She didn't look back—but she left the seat beside her empty.
Reo noticed.
He sat down next to her, heart beating just a little faster than it needed to.
The bus pulled away from the curb, carrying them forward like it always did.
At the time, it felt like another ordinary day.
One worth remembering.