Friday morning. Furin High School's second-year Class 3 classroom was loud as always. But there was one place that felt different. The last seat by the window. Sakuragi Ren's seat. Empty. No backpack—well, no bag, no textbooks. Just the chair pulled back, sitting there alone. Aoi stared at that empty desk. She couldn't get yesterday evening out of her head. Ren crying on the rooftop. That voice saying "Just leave me alone." The sound of footsteps running down the stairs. (It's our fault.) The moment she thought it, her chest tightened. "[whispers]……Sakuragi's absent?" The voice came from beside her. Yuki, still looking out the window, said it quietly. No usual smirk. Her mouth was pressed into a thin line—unusual for her. Aoi answered "……Yeah." The words wouldn't come out right. Yasuda-sensei started homeroom and took attendance. Sakuragi Ren's name was called. No answer. The teacher said "……Absent, then" and moved to the next name. That was all. But for Aoi, it wasn't "all." --- Lunch break. When the classroom emptied out, Aoi approached Yuki's seat. "[gentle]……Yuki." Yuki looked up. "[sad]I've been thinking about yesterday... the whole time." Yuki was quiet for a moment. Then she said, short and clipped: "[serious]Me too." Yuki without the smirk looked like... just a normal girl. Aoi was a little surprised. "[gentle]After school, should we go to Ren's house together?" Yuki stared at Aoi. "[sarcastic]……Together, huh." "Not to compete or anything. I just... want to apologize." Silence. "[serious]Fine." --- Meanwhile, Kouta had been gripping a piece of paper in his pocket all morning. A memo from Tanabe. She'd come again yesterday after school. Waited again. But Kouta ran before he could even see her face. Last night in bed, he'd practiced saying "I'm sorry" over and over. Today, he'd do it. He'd decided. "[serious]……Today, I'm going to give her a proper answer." He forced the words out to Natsuki, who'd fallen into step beside him in the hallway. Natsuki looked at Kouta. Silver hair caught the morning light. Odd-colored eyes—one on each side—reflected Kouta quietly. "[serious]That's right." Just four words. But for Kouta, that was enough. His chest swelled... and he almost started crying. Bad. If he cried here, it was over. Kouta blinked rapidly. --- After lunch. Kouta called Tanabe out to the back of the school building. Behind the north wing, next to the lunch delivery entrance. A dim, poorly-lit passage. The place where Tanabe had prostrated herself. Tanabe came. Her face tense, she looked at Kouta. "Sugimoto-san……" "[serious]Tanabe." Kouta looked straight at her. Her deep-green bob swayed slightly in the wind. Her large golden eyes didn't look away. "[serious]I was originally a guy. This body probably changed because of a curse—and I'm planning to go back to how I was. So I can't return your feelings. I'm sorry." She bowed. Deep. Tanabe froze for a while. Then, quietly: "……I understand." Her voice trembled a little. But it was a proper voice. "[serious]Thank you for being honest with me." Tanabe turned on her heel. Her shoulders were slightly hunched. Kouta watched her go all the way. (Sorry, Tanabe. But... I'm glad.) Her chest ached. But her feet felt lighter. --- When Kouta came back to the classroom, Natsuki saw his face. She knew right away. The face of someone who'd seen it through. Kouta caught Natsuki's eye at the doorway and gave a thumbs-up, embarrassed. Natsuki... smiled. Small. Just a little. The two boys by the window who saw it stirred. "Wait, Hanyu makes that face……?" Natsuki didn't notice. --- After school. "[gentle]I think I figured out what's going on with Ren." Natsuki said it while walking down the hallway. Kouta's eyes went wide. "[surprised]Huh? Really?" Natsuki continued quietly. "[serious]The curse hint is 'finding your true self,' but... that might not mean going back to being a guy." Kouta tilted his head. "……Hmm." "[gentle]Let's go to the rooftop." --- The north wing rooftop. The lock was still broken. When they pushed the door, the wind before evening blew in. Two water tanks hummed low. The two sat down side by side in front of the graffiti. Letters carved into the concrete floor. ——When you find your true self, the curse breaks. "[gentle]What's a true self, anyway?" She tilted her head honestly. Very like Kouta. Natsuki spoke, eyes on the graffiti. "[serious]Since Ren became a girl... she started caring about Aoi. She understood we mattered to her. But she didn't want to admit it, so she ran." Kouta made a sound. "Ah……" "[gentle]I didn't even know being in love was scary until Tanabe confessed to me, so..." Natsuki looked at Kouta. "[serious]That's a little different." "[surprised]Huh? How?" "[serious]……It's about courage. For Ren." Kouta blinked, then blinked again. "[excited]That sounds so cool!!" Natsuki gave a wry smile. "[serious]Call Ren." "[surprised]Now? Right now!?" "Now." --- Meanwhile. Ren was in bed. She'd been here since yesterday. This morning, Mom had asked "School?" Ren just said "Not going." She didn't ask anything else. Mom was good at handling Ren. After noon, the doorbell rang. Mom's voice came from the entrance, and only "Sakuragi-san... is here" echoed down the hallway. Aoi and Yuki's voices. Ren knew it. But she didn't get out of bed. After a while, it got quiet. (They left?) When she thought that, something strange happened in her chest. Relief? Or... She didn't know. She didn't know anything. She pulled the blanket over her head and stared at the ceiling. Dark. All she could hear was her own breathing. Then her phone rang. Light flashed across the screen. ——Sugimoto Kouta—— Ren stared at the screen. It rang once. Cut off. Rang again. Cut off. Third time. (……Annoying.) Reluctantly, she answered. "[angry]Ren!!! You're the leader!!" A loud voice came through right away. Ren held the phone a little away from her ear. "[angry]Guy or girl, you're still Sakuragi Ren! This isn't the time to run!!" The rooftop. Wind noise in the background. Kouta was shouting from the rooftop. Natsuki was probably there beside her. Probably narrowing her eyes, listening to Kouta's loud voice. Ren lay in bed, still. "[gentle]Hey, Ren……" The tone dropped. Kouta's voice suddenly softened. "[gentle]You've never stopped being Sakuragi Ren. Not once. I was watching. I saw." Something caught in her throat. Ren pressed her lips tight. (Shut up, Kouta.) (But shut up...) The back of her eyes got hot. Damn it, don't cry. She cried yesterday. Not again. Ren forced the words out. "[whispers]……Shut up. But... thanks." She hung up. On the rooftop, Kouta turned to Natsuki. "[gentle]……Did it get through?" Natsuki answered, short: "[serious]It did." The two looked at the graffiti again. The evening light slanted across the concrete letters. The letters didn't change. But somehow, Kouta felt the way she read them had changed. "[gentle]Maybe a true self... is all the selves you become, too." She said it quietly. Natsuki nodded silently. --- In her room, Ren threw off the blanket. She got up and stood in front of the mirror. A girl's face looked back. Short black hair, a little messy, a small piercing in her right ear. Eyes a little red underneath. (This is me now?) She wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. For a while, she just stared at the mirror. Then, quietly, she said: "[serious]……I'll go tomorrow." --- Meanwhile, on the way back from Ren's house. Aoi and Yuki walked side by side. Evening in Kazamachi shopping street. Smoke rose from "Maru Taco" at the end of the arcade. The usual smell. But the two walked past it in silence. After a while, Yuki spoke. "[serious]……Do you think I did something terrible to Sakuragi-san?" It was sudden. Aoi was a little surprised and looked at Yuki. "[gentle]……You're reflecting on it too, aren't you?" "[sarcastic]Less reflection, more... frustration." She said it plainly. Unusual. Aoi smiled a little. Yuki saw it and pouted. "[sarcastic]If you can smile, what about my position?" "[gentle]I smiled. But I feel the same way." They walked in silence again for a while. Just before the corner, Yuki stopped. "[serious]Let's go apologize together tomorrow." She held out her hand. Aoi was startled and looked at Yuki. Yuki faced forward, hand extended only this way. Her face was a little red. "[sarcastic]……Whoever apologizes first has the advantage anyway." She added it quickly. Aoi gave a wry smile. (This person, really...) But she took the hand. "[gentle]Let's go together, Yuki." Yuki said "Yuki, huh" and her expression softened a little. Still rivals, but for now, their steps matched. The sun sank beyond the arcade of the shopping street. The smell of Maru Taco's takoyaki drifted on the wind. Tomorrow, Ren would come to school. What kind of face she'd make, what words she'd say—Aoi still had no idea. There was one more thing Aoi wanted to say. Something she'd never been able to say. She'd wait until tomorrow for that.