Chapter Text
"Looking up at the sky is one of the few things I actually enjoy. I know it'll never hurt me. It's still too early to see the stars, though. I'll wait until tonight to watch them for a while... Hm? Is someone coming?"
The girl quickly hid inside one of the large concrete pipes scattered around the empty lot. A moment later, someone leaned against the pipes and pulled out their phone. Curious, Shizuka carefully peeked out to get a look.
It was a guy, probably around nineteen years old. Brown hair, brown eyes, tall—about six feet tall, maybe. Shizuka shifted deeper into the pipe, hoping he'd leave so she could come out.
Unfortunately, her backpack slipped from her hands and landed on the grass with a soft thud.
The noise immediately caught the guy's attention.
"What was that? A cat?"
He took a few steps closer to investigate.
Inside the pipe, he found a little girl hugging her knees like she was trying to shield herself from the world. Her red backpack was filthy, and so were her clothes.
Was she homeless?
"Hey, kid. Come on out."
"..."
"Relax. I don't bite. Well... not that hard."
Shizuka immediately scooted farther into the pipe.
"Okay, okay, bad joke." He laughed awkwardly. "Come out already. You're just getting dirtier in there."
The black-haired girl cautiously crawled forward until her head was sticking out of the pipe. She looked up at him without saying a word.
Jeez... she's staring straight into my soul. That's kinda creepy...
"What are you doing here?" he asked.
"I should be asking you that. What were you doing in there?"
"...Hiding."
"Do I really look that scary?"
Shizuka climbed out and stood up.
The height difference was ridiculous.
"I thought you were someone else."
"Okay, that actually makes a lot more sense."
Without another word, Shizuka turned around and started walking away.
The young man scratched the back of his head.
"Guess I'm not great with kids."
The next day—
Once again, Shizuka sat staring at the sky, her expression impossible to read.
The only thing that pulled her out of her trance was the sound of footsteps approaching.
She lowered her gaze.
It was him again.
This time, she didn't hide. He didn't seem like he wanted to hurt her.
"Hey, kid. Back again?"
The brown-haired young man leaned against one of the pipes, pulled out his phone, and started scrolling.
Neither of them looked at each other.
A moment later, his phone rang.
"Hello? Yeah, what's up?"
"/ Nah, man, I can't go. I'm completely broke."
"/ Yeah, I work, but I give most of my paycheck to my mom. You know she needs it more than I do."
"/ Dude, I'm probably not even eating today, so quit bugging me."
"/ Delivering stuff? Nah, I'm not that desperate."
"/ Yeah."
"/ Okay, tomorrow night then?"
"/ You're getting bigger? Yeah, I'll be the judge of that."
"/ Alright, alright. Later."
He hung up.
"What an idiot..."
"Hey." she spoke
"Hm?"
He glanced over.
"What's up, kid?"
"Here."
Shizuka extended her arm.
In her hand was a perfectly untouched bread roll, still inside its wrapper.
"Wha—? Hey! No way. Who do you take me for? I'm not stealing food from a little girl. Even if I was starving."
"You sure?"
Shizuka slowly waved the bread back and forth in front of him like she was tempting a dog.
"I'm not going to eat it. And my mom gets mad if she finds out I skipped lunch. So don't think of it as a favor."
"Oh..."
He hesitated.
Then he immediately snatched the bread from her hand.
"Fine, give me that!"
"So you would steal food from a little girl."
"Hey! You literally said you didn't want it!"
He spoke with his mouth full.
"...Don't talk with your mouth full."
The bread disappeared in record time.
Apparently, it was so good that Haruta was licking the crumbs off his fingers.
"I seriously don't understand how you can pass up bread this good. Thanks. That was amazing."
"...I like sweet bread better."
"Oh, right. What's your name, anyway?"
"Shizuka. Shizuka Kuze. You?"
"Haruta. Haruta Kamo."
"Kamo? Isn't that a manga name or something?"
"Please don't remind me. Everybody says that."
"Okay."
After the short conversation, Haruta went back to his phone.
Shizuka interrupted him again.
"I've never seen you around here before. What are you doing here?"
"Oh. Right. I moved to the neighboring city not long ago. My university's nearby, so I usually come here during breaks before heading home."
"Hm."
She gave an indifferent little grunt.
"Speaking of which, I should get going."
Haruta stood up and started walking away.
"See ya."
Shizuka simply raised her hand in response.
And so the days passed.
Every afternoon, Shizuka would give Haruta her bread, and they'd exchange a few words.
One ordinary day, Haruta arrived at the lot as usual.
But Shizuka wasn't there.
That's weird...
He wasn't sure why he cared so much.
Maybe because she was interesting.
Maybe because her bread was incredible.
Either way, there was nothing he could do.
So he leaned against one of the pipes and pulled out his phone.
Before he could even unlock it, he noticed someone approaching from the corner of his eye.
It was Shizuka.
But something was wrong.
She was dragging herself forward as if every step required a massive effort.
Her clothes were covered in dirt, like she'd been thrown to the ground.
Bruises covered her arms and legs.
Her face was scratched up, and dark marks stained her skin.
Haruta rushed over immediately.
"Shizuka!"
He knelt in front of her and grabbed her shoulders.
"What happened to you?!"
"Ah... Haruta."
She slowly held something out toward him.
"Here..."
It was a bread roll.
Haruta stared at it.
Shizuka stepped around him and continued walking.
He quickly moved back in front of her.
"What happened?! I need to take you to a hospital! Come on, I'll carry you!"
"Leave me alone..."
"Shizu—!"
"I'll be fine..."
Using every ounce of strength she had left, Shizuka forced herself to walk faster.
"Shizuka! Let me help you! SHIZUKA!"
She didn't stop.
"You can't help me..."
She kept walking.
"Goodbye, Haruta."
Haruta stood frozen.
What the hell happened to
her?
Did some classmates beat her up?
What kind of school lets something like that happen?
Should I help her?
Does her mother know?
What am I supposed to do?!
In frustration, he threw the bread onto the ground.
I have to help her.
No matter what.