Into The Rain With You

After school, I found myself walking the same route I always did—down the familiar streets, past the same stores and people I'd seen a hundred times. But today, something felt different. Maybe it was the nagging feeling that something wasn't right. Or maybe it was just the fact that I'd never really allowed myself to question anything before.

As I walked by the park, I spotted Haruka again. She was sitting on the bench under the same tree, as usual, her book open in her lap. I don't know why, but I felt a pull toward her. A desire to understand.

I hesitated for a moment. It felt like a stupid idea. Why would I even talk to her? But before I could talk myself out of it, my feet were already moving, drawn by some invisible force.

"Hey," I said, trying to sound casual, like this wasn't something I'd been thinking about for the entire day.

Haruka looked up, her dark eyes scanning my face for a moment. She didn't smile, didn't look surprised. She just nodded slightly, as if acknowledging my presence. "Hey," she replied softly, her voice low but not unfriendly.

I wasn't sure where to start. I mean, what do you say to someone like Haruka? Someone who never seemed to care about fitting in, who never seemed to need anyone else's approval.

"Uh, what are you reading?" I asked, trying to sound more confident than I felt.

She glanced down at the book in her hands, her fingers lightly tracing the cover. "It's just something I found in the library. A fantasy novel, I guess. Not really my usual thing, but it's good."

I nodded, even though I didn't care about fantasy novels. What was I even doing here? My mind scrambled for something to say. I needed to keep this going. I had to.

"You always sit here, huh?" I blurted out, immediately regretting the question. Of course she sits here. This is the park. What did I expect?

Haruka didn't seem put off by my awkwardness. She gave a slight shrug. "I like the quiet."

The quiet. That was it. That was the thing that was different about her. She wasn't looking for approval, wasn't searching for attention. She didn't need the noise, the constant validation from everyone around her.

I looked at her for a long moment, wondering how she could be so… content with being by herself. I wanted to understand. I wanted to know how she could exist without needing the world to be a certain way.

"Must be nice," I muttered, more to myself than to her.

Haruka didn't respond right away. She just studied me with those calm, unblinking eyes. Then, finally, she said, "You don't have to be everything to everyone, you know. You don't have to perform all the time."

I froze. My mouth went dry. She knew.

For a second, I couldn't breathe. How did she—how did she know?

But before I could gather my thoughts, she stood up, closed her book, and slung her bag over her shoulder.

"Anyway, I'll see you around," she said, not unkindly, and walked away, leaving me standing there, staring after her.