Chapter 24: Sleepover Promises
A weekend sleepover was Aiko's idea.
"We never hang out like normal teenagers," she pouted one day after school. "We need snacks, movies, gossip. Let's be chaotic!"
And somehow—against all odds—everyone agreed.
Rika's house was chosen. It was big enough, thanks to her father, and her room had a balcony and a huge TV. She didn't fight the idea, though she pretended to.
Inside, she was… weirdly excited.
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The evening began with chaos.
Mei brought board games. Yuto arrived with four bags of chips and no change from the store. Sora, awkward but kind, brought DVDs of old anime. Aiko wore glitter on her face and declared it a "mandatory sparkle night."
Naoto came last.
He didn't bring anything except the girl, who followed behind quietly, holding a small box of handmade sweets.
The energy shifted the moment they walked in.
Not in a bad way.
Just… differently.
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They played games until someone started falling asleep in the middle of their turn. Then it was movie time, pillows piled across the floor like clouds. Everyone slowly drifted off, one by one.
Rika couldn't sleep.
The stars outside were brighter from her balcony, and the noise of the city was just distant enough to be calming.
She stepped out, barefoot on the wooden floor, breathing in the night.
She wasn't alone.
Naoto stood there, leaning over the railing, looking up.
"…You okay?" he asked without looking at her.
She nodded, then shook her head. "No. Yes. I don't know."
A long pause.
"She's important to you, huh?" she whispered.
Naoto was quiet for a moment, then replied, "Yeah. She is."
Rika didn't cry.
But something inside her softened. Cracked.
"I figured," she said, forcing a small smile.
"I'm sorry."
She looked at him—finally really looked—and realized something painful but beautiful:
He wasn't leading her on.
He was just being himself.
And she had started wishing for something more.
That wasn't his fault.
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Later, when everyone was asleep, the girl opened her eyes from her corner on the floor.
She had heard the balcony conversation.
And even though her heart tightened, she smiled—small and sad.
She turned to glance at Naoto, fast asleep beside Sora, his hand loosely curled on the blanket.
> "You're kind, even when it breaks someone."
> "And I love you for it."
She closed her eyes and hugged the small box of sweets tighter to her chest.
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