After finishing our sweets, we chatted about trivial things before parting ways, and I found myself walking home alone.
The night breeze brushed against my skin, pleasantly cool.
(I actually managed to relax…)
For some reason, the time I spent with Shiori hadn’t felt uncomfortable at all.
If anything, it had been a little… nice.
The loneliness of Honoka not being there had eased, just a tiny bit.
Of course, it wasn’t that I’d stopped loving Honoka.
No—that was something that would never happen, not in a million years.
In fact, the more I was aware of her absence, the more I realized just how much I loved her.
But right now, I was afraid of letting those emotions overwhelm me.
I miss Honoka. I want to see her. I want to hear her voice.
Those feelings kept swelling inside me, tightening around my chest, and honestly it hurt.
That’s why it was a relief that, at least while I was with Shiori, those emotions had softened.
But—
I pulled out my phone and stared at the screen.
No notifications from Honoka.
…Was I waiting for her to reach out?
Before, I would’ve been the one to message her immediately.
But now, I hesitated to send anything myself.
I’d decided to stop clinging and give her space, yet here I was, still completely consumed by thoughts of her.
My heart hadn’t changed at all.
I exhaled deeply and slipped my phone back into my pocket.
Just then, it buzzed unexpectedly.
For a second, hope flickered. Could it be Honoka?
I hurriedly checked the screen.
—But the message displayed was from Shiori.
“Thanks for today. I was really happy to talk with you, Nanase.”
I stared at those short words for a while.
Come to think of it, we had exchanged contact info at the café.
I hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to reply.
But ignoring her would be weird, so I simply sent back, “Me too.”
Almost immediately, my phone buzzed again.
“About the aquarium we talked about at the café—think it over, okay?”
(…The aquarium.)
It had been a passing topic at the time, but Shiori was seriously inviting me.
(Should I go…?)
I still felt a little resistant to the idea of going out with someone other than Honoka.
(But… if it’s Shiori…)
Even though we’d only just started getting closer, for some reason, I found myself trusting her.
Maybe it was because she’d listened to me, because she’d been considerate of my feelings.
That’s why I decided I’d accept Shiori’s invitation.
Besides…
(I want to properly build relationships with people other than Honoka.)
Maybe going to the aquarium with her could be the first step.
As I looked at the message thread with Shiori, that’s what I told myself.