・・・ xxv ・・・
In the end, he left immediately once his afternoon classes had ended.
Rie was most likely going to wait for him again.
He didn't care.
For now, he didn't want to see her face.
... No.
That was wrong.
Instead of something unreasonable like that,
the reason was simply something foolish.
He was afraid of seeing her again.
Of the pained expression that she had before.
Of the blurry tears in her eyes.
Of the bitter quietness of her voice.
He shook his head.
He knew he was making another mistake.
But he was too overwhelmed to change his mind.
He was running away again.
"But isn't that what you always do best?"
・・・ xxvi ・・・
Every muffled step,
every puffy breath,
every stretching moment
reminded him of how a horrible person he was.
But it was too late to turn back.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
Snow fell around him, but he didn't notice.
Minutes later, he finally arrived at the hallway that led to his apartment.
When he did, Ao stopped and froze.
Ah...
A few feet away, there was a person hunched beside his door.
A boy.
When he heard Ao's footsteps, he looked up.
Blue eyes.
There was no mistaking him.
"... Leo."
・・・ xxvii ・・・
In that moment, Ao considered running away.
Before he could move, however,
Leo quickly stood up.
His voice was hoarse and quiet as he opened his mouth to speak.
"Ao... Y-You're back."
"... And so are you."
Ao grit his teeth and turned away.
His fingers started to tremble.
His heart began to beat uneasily.
He could feel himself beginning to lose his grip on reality once more.
The floor was too shaky.
The air was too thin.
Why are you here again?
Why are you doing this?
Just... what do you want with me?
Ao glanced at him.
Leo was wearing a thick coat and a blue muffler.
In his hands, he was holding a soda.
He noticed that despite the chill in the air,
he wasn't wearing any gloves.
Noticing his gaze, Leo quickly hid his hands behind his back, offering him a strained smile.
But Ao had seen what he was trying to hide.
Leo's pale hands were bright red from the cold.
A sudden question passed through Ao's mind.
... How long were you waiting alone?