Keisuke hadn't even bothered to send a text message to say he'll stop by. And now that his steps had led him to the Hoshino mansion, he thought perhaps he should have.

Not wanting to risk running into the famous grandmother he'd heard so much about, Keisuke went straight to Hana's window. The curtains weren't drawn and there didn't seem to be any light in the room, as if no one was home. Perhaps he should have made sure she was there beforehand?

There was only one way to check, and Keisuke wasted no time in nimbly scaling the porch, despite the rain making it slippery.  In a blink of an eye, he found himself perched on the roof, right in front of the window, ready to knock against the icy glass. The young man didn't need to, however; a pair of charcoal-colored eyes were already staring at him in amazement, as if trying to determine whether he was a figment of her imagination or reality.

Alerted by the noise she'd heard outside, Hana had forced herself out of bed to peek through her window. Through the curtain made of rain, she was surprised to see Akaashi standing there, and before even questioning the reason for his presence, the young woman hastened to open the window for him. An icy draught seeped into the room at the same time as he did. It only lasted a brief moment, but it was more than enough to make her shiver.

After closing the window, Hana dashed off to her bed and without missing a beat, the brunette slipped back under the sheets. Thus wrapped up, she finally deigned to rest her gaze on the young man, standing in the middle of her room, who had just lowered the hood of his raincoat. Questions about the reason for his visit flooded into her mind.

—What are you doing here? She asked in a clear voice. Didn't anyone tell you I was sick? Asked the brunette, raising an eyebrow. It could be contagious.

Keisuke placed his bag close to a drawer and dropped himself into the nearby office chair. His eyes finally landed on Hana, and he took the time to observe her properly. The first thing that struck him was that, for someone who was supposedly sick, the young woman seemed to be doing rather well. She certainly looked exhausted, but he knew the difference between tiredness and sickness when he was confronted with it. And right now, the dark-haired boy could have put his hand on the fact that Hana was only using illness as an excuse to stay isolated within the four walls of her room. He didn't know exactly what had happened to put her in such mood, but if there was one thing he did know, it was that he wasn't going to let her make cheap excuses with impunity.

He hated lies.

—I don't care about your sickness, the boy finally retorted with a touch of mockery.

Hana pulled her blanket up a little higher and sighed. Message received. Unlike her ignorant grandmother, he seemed to have seen through her little charade in no time. Her lie wasn't working.

—It's just been a while since we've seen each other, Keisuke said, playing with a thread protruding from his windbreaker. So...

So what? Keisuke remained silent, amazed at the ease with which he was about to formulate the rest of this sentence. Did even his own thoughts seem to be ganging up on him?  He'd been this close to expressing that her absence had worried him, that he'd missed her presence. Close to admitting that she occupied his thoughts far more than any of his previous relationships. He was well-placed to know that he should never think about such things, let alone formulate them aloud, in a relationship like theirs. And yet, that's what he'd almost done just a fraction of a second ago.

He, too, must have been a little tired to let his thoughts run wild like that.

For her part, Hana hadn't lost her tongue at the young man's words. She hadn't perceived the real meaning of his hesitation, simply thinking of the most logical thing to finish his sentence. They hadn't seen each other for a long time, so he was here to benefit from what she had to offer. Simple as that.

However, for the first time since the beginning, Hana didn't feel in the mood to sleep with him. Since her birthday, only solitude seemed to suit the gloom in her heart. The hours flew by as she lay there, motionless, staring at the ceiling while listening to the irregular tapping of water drops against the roof. She only left her bed to go to the bathroom or the kitchen when hunger took hold of her stomach, which was already a considerable strain on her weakened body.

She wasn't in the mood, and before she knew it, the first excuse that came to mind escaped her lips.

—I'm on my period, Hana lied before biting her tongue vigorously.

What a poor lie, she felt like a fool. Of all the people she knew, Akaashi would be - and for good reason - the last one to believe it. She'd had her period the week before. He knew it very well. Moreover, the raised eyebrow he threw at her confirmed the absurdity of her excuse, and Hana felt even more ridiculous for saying so.

Keisuke sighed wearily but didn't pick up on the absurdity of her lie. He felt both relieved that Hana had interpreted his silence as such a request, and annoyed that she was lying to him again instead of simply being sincere with him. Unconsciously, her distant, closed demeanor only increased his unpleasant sense of trepidation.

—I'm not here for that, replied the young man, pinching the bridge of his nose. I just came to give you notes for the lessons you missed, he added, picking up his bag.

—You shouldn't have bothered, gasped Hana, resting her gaze on the file he'd just placed on the desk. 

—I also wanted to make sure you were still alive, joked the boy, getting up on his two legs. Now that's done...

Hana's eyes widened as she realized the young man's imminent departure.

—Don't go! Exclaimed the young woman, pulling herself upright. Please, she implored him in a calmer tone. Could you...

Could you stay? Now that he was here, she couldn't bring herself to let him go. She wanted him to stay, to distract her mind, as he knew so well how to. She wanted him to take her in his arms and hold her until she ran out of air, to tell her trivial things to occupy the space of this silence she could no longer bear.

—You sure 'bout this? Keisuke asked after a few seconds' hesitation.

In any case, it was too late to back out, so she might as well give it her best shot.

—Kazuya's clothes are in the top right-hand corner of the wardrobe, said Hana in a breath. But if you'd rather go back to class...

The young man's sneer interrupted her.

—Classes may burn in hell, he grumbled, heading for the indicated spot. As if I'd ever willingly go back.

Not without a sigh of contentment, Keisuke quickly removed his cold, soaked clothes and put on the one he'd worn a few months ago. It was much nicer to have dry clothes on one's back - even if they did belong to Shirai. Besides, Keisuke wondered what his dear captain would say if he saw him dressed like that, in his childhood friend's room. Even better. What would his reaction be if he saw him there, crawling into the young woman's bed as if it were his own? As much as it amused him to imagine what Shirai would do if he'd ever discovered all this, these thoughts vanished all at once the moment he felt Hana's body snuggle up to his, as close as the laws of physics would allow.

—Thank you, whispered the brunette in a barely audible voice.

He didn't reply and simply draped one arm behind his head, the other around Hana's waist. With his fingertips, he began to absentmindedly draw small circles against her skin, a gesture that had become a habit without him realizing it.

With her head resting against the dark-haired boy's chest, Hana listened to his heartbeat, slow and steady. The warmth of his body radiated pleasantly, even through his clothes. His familiar scent embalmed her senses, gently soothing her, and for the first time in days, Hana felt as if she could finally breathe deeply. Her anxiety gradually evaporated as she breathed in his scent, giving way to the calm she had so sorely missed. Her eyes closed.

She'd have given anything for the sand in the hourglass of time to get stuck, and for this moment to last for eternity.

—You have no idea what a shitty week I've had, confessed Hana matter-of-factly.

Hearing her utter such a rude word brought a sneer to Keisuke's lips. He'd never heard her speak so crudely, and strangely enough, it amused him more than it should have. Usually, such profanity came from his mouth. Maybe he'd rubbed off on her.

—Tell me more, the young man quietly encouraged her.

—It was my birthday a week ago, she began to explain sadly. And my parents' three-year anniversary, incidentally. I thought I'd moved on, but really...

She sighed.

—This time of year always puts me in a bad mood, exclaimed the young woman in a falsely amused tone. And the old lady... since she found out I was going back to competition, she's been more unbearable than ever. She controls my ever move even more than before.

—But at least, is your training's going well?

Hana took a few moments to think. Yes. No. Maybe-

—f you asked my coach, she'd say "not as much as I'd like".

—But I'm asking you, he remarked gently. Coaches always have disproportionate expectations.

A faint smile came to Hana's lips. She straightened slightly and crossed her hands under her chin. Her gaze fell on Akaashi. He was already watching her through a few strands of dark hair that fell over his face, and Hana had to force herself not to brush them away. They were so close that she could feel his breath graze her cheek. All she had to do was stretch her neck to...

Hana quietly cleared her throat and spoke again.

—Coming from someone who adores to annoy his baseball coach, I don't know if I should take your word for it.

—I was referring to my former piano teacher, corrected the boy, not without a smile. If I listened to her, I should have practiced even in my sleep.

Even though it had been several years since Keisuke had stopped taking lessons, he sometimes wondered what had become of the pianist. They'd lost touch. No doubt she would have loved to work with his little sister.

—You had the potential to become a professional, and she just wanted to push you all the way to it, Hana reasoned gently, giving him a look full of tenderness. I take back my words. You still have the potential. You're probably just too lazy to exploit it.

—You've never heard me play, remarked the young man, arching an eyebrow. How would you know?

—I don't have to listen to know, laughed Hana. You don't buy such complicated music sheets and expensive piano if you don't know how to use it.

True, but Keisuke was in a teasing mood. The conversation had shifted to a lighter subject, and the young woman's mood already seemed more serene than earlier.

—I just didn't know how to decorate my room, he said innocently.

—A piano is definitely the best idea of the century, she retorted in the same tone.

—Well, at least, I didn't decide to stick my nudes on my wall.

It took Hana a few seconds to understand what he was referring to. And when she did, the young woman couldn't help but giggle. When she displayed the sketches, the brunet had made of her a few weeks ago, she had no idea that anyone would see them. She never invited anyone into her home, let alone her bedroom. As for her grandmother, she hadn't been upstairs for a long time because of her knee problems.

—It's not... it's art, she corrected him automatically. Wouldn't it have been silly to leave your drawings gathering dust in a cupboard?

—True, that's very generous of you to share this content with everyone, he laughed, pretending to be sincere.

—You're the only one who knows about the drawings, contradicted Hana seriously. No one else has seen them, and no one else will until you become a rich, famous painter and I can resell these sketches for a small fortune.

—What businesswoman.

—Seriously though...

Hana moved slightly, and Keisuke didn't even have time to register what she intended to do before she had already moved away. If her lip balm hadn't left a sweet taste on his lips, the young man would have thought it was a simple hallucination.

—Thanks again for the help, whispered the brunette. We got the best grade with Igarashi.

But still slightly disturbed, Keisuke didn't even listen to her thanks. His gaze could not bring itself to leave the face of the person in front of him, as if to engrave every detail in his memory. He could see her lips moving, formulating words that would have made sense if he'd been paying attention, but the only thing on his mind was the fact that he wanted to taste it again. Just to make sure he hadn't simply imagined she'd just kissed him. That his heart hadn't missed a beat for no reason. That he wasn't the only one who'd felt something unusual.

It was the second time she'd kissed him without ulterior motives, with the sole desire to show her gratitude. And yet, he felt just as confused as he had the first time. He remembered all too well that evening, just after the neon-themed party they'd both attended. It was raining cats and dogs, and she'd offered to let him sleep over. He'd accepted. They'd gone to bed, and she'd kissed him to thank him for the evening they'd spent together. The similarity between these two moments was glaring, the only difference being that back then, the excuse of influence could more easily justify the gesture. But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, the dark-haired man forced himself to push it to the back of his mind before he could give a chance to overthinking again.

Keisuke snapped out of his thoughts, ready to listen to Hana's words, but only the most complete silence answered. Hana was no longer speaking, and when he looked back at her, he understood why. Her breath was slow, her eyelids closed. Her facial features were completely relaxed, but a faint smile still curved her lips.

She seemed to be sleeping peacefully in his arms, far from the clutches of her worries.