The next morning…
I almost turned around the moment I reached the classroom door.
Takoru was already there.
For once…
He wasn’t sleeping.
His elbow rested on the windowsill while his eyes quietly followed the clouds outside.
I lowered my head and walked to my seat without saying a word.
The moment I sat down, I opened my sketchbook.
Drawing.
That was the only thing that could calm my heart.
Around me, the classroom slowly filled with voices.
Students laughed.
Someone argued over homework.
Nesmin was loudly complaining about a surprise quiz while Steav listened with his usual calm expression.
Everything felt normal.
Except me.
I carefully began sketching the old oak tree from yesterday’s backyard.
Not the motorcycle.
Just the tree.
Its long branches…
Its rough bark…
Its quiet loneliness.
My pencil moved slowly across the page.
For a few peaceful moments…
I almost forgot who was sitting beside me.
Then…
I felt it.
A gaze.
Heavy.
Quiet.
Watching me.
My fingers stopped moving.
I didn’t need to look beside me.
I already knew.
Takoru.
Why…?
Why was he looking at me?
I tried to ignore him.
I focused on the drawing again.
The pencil trembled slightly in my hand.
Another line.
Another shadow.
I could still feel those eyes.
Closer now.
Almost curious.
My heartbeat became louder than the classroom itself.
I accidentally pressed too hard.
Snap.
The tip of my pencil broke.
“…”
I quietly reached into my pencil case for another one.
Before I could…
A sharpened pencil slid onto my desk.
I froze.
Slowly…
I turned my head.
Takoru hadn’t looked at me.
He was still staring outside the window.
One of his pencils now rested beside my sketchbook.
“…Use it.”
His voice was calm.
Almost emotionless.
For a few seconds…
I couldn’t even answer.
“…Th-thank you.”
He didn’t respond.
He simply closed his eyes again.
As though those two words had taken enough effort.
I looked down at the pencil.
It was ordinary.
Just a simple wooden pencil.
Yet somehow…
My hands shook even more than before.
Later that afternoon…
Nesmin dropped into the chair beside Takoru in the cafeteria.
“You’ve been weird since yesterday.”
Takoru continued eating.
“I’ve always been like this.”
“No.”
Nesmin grinned.
“You noticed the transfer student.”
Steav quietly looked up from his lunch.
Takoru remained silent.
After a moment…
He finally spoke.
“She got lost yesterday.”
“And?”
Steav asked.
“She found the backyard.”
Nesmin blinked.
“The old backyard?”
Takoru nodded once.
“She looked at the bike…”
His voice grew quieter.
“…like it terrified her.”
Nesmin frowned.
“That’s unusual.”
“Most girls don’t even look at you.”
“They look at your bike first.”
“…She’s different.”
Neither Steav nor Nesmin teased him this time.
Even they could tell…
Takoru wasn’t talking because he liked Rubi.
He was talking because…
He couldn’t understand her.
The final bell echoed through the classroom.
Students immediately began packing their bags.
I quickly closed my sketchbook.
I just wanted to leave.
The sooner…
The better.
As I stood up—
“You.”
My footsteps stopped.
It was Takoru.
For the first time…
He had spoken to me first.
I slowly turned around.
He looked at my sketchbook.
Then at me.
“You forgot my pencil.”
My eyes widened.
I looked down.
The pencil was still resting between the pages of my sketchbook.
“…S-sorry.”
I carefully placed it on his desk.
Without waiting another second…
I hurried out of the classroom.
Almost running.
Nesmin watched me disappear through the door before laughing softly.
“…She really runs away every time she sees you.”
Takoru quietly looked at the pencil lying on his desk.
For reasons he couldn’t explain…
He found himself watching the classroom door long after Rubi had disappeared.
To be continued…
Thank you for reading Chapter 6.
Sometimes, the smallest moments leave the biggest impact.
A broken pencil…
A borrowed one…
A few simple words…
Yet somehow, they felt heavier than an entire conversation.
Takoru still doesn’t understand why Rubi keeps avoiding him, and Rubi still doesn’t know what to make of the boy sitting beside her.
Their worlds are completely different, but little by little…
fate keeps bringing them together.
Now I’m curious…
What do you think about Takoru lending Rubi his pencil?
If you were Rubi, would you have accepted it?
And why do you think Takoru is starting to notice her?