Epilogue

The smell of food filled the apartment, blending with the sound of laughter and clinking dishes. The living room table was packed with snacks, hot dishes, and a few questionable attempts at new recipes made by Shinya.

“Was this supposed to be a rice ball?” Tsubasa asked, tilting his head skeptically at the unidentifiable thing on his plate.

“It was,” Shinya replied seriously. “But it’s an improved evolution of a rice ball.”

“Evolved into what? A horror movie villain?”

Mayu nearly choked from laughing. Hana chuckled too, trying to hide it as she picked up another one of the so-called rice balls with her chopsticks.

“I like it. It tastes like…” she paused, chewing carefully. “Rice.”

Everyone around Shinya laughed, and after a second, he joined in. Despite the teasing, he felt satisfied. They seemed to enjoy the food, even if it looked suspicious.

The goal for that night was simple, just a dinner with friends, something they’d promised each other a while ago. But the cozy atmosphere, the delicious smells, and the presence of the four of them made everything feel special.

Shinya and Hana were closer than ever, literally. She leaned her head on his shoulder between conversations, and he, always attentive, tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear or served her food like it was the most natural thing in the world. And it was. After everything, it finally was.

Mayu noticed. Of course she did. With every touch, every exchanged glance between the two, she grew a little more restless.

“You okay, Mayu?” Tsubasa asked.

“I’m just trying to adapt to this whole lovey-dovey vibe. The lovebirds are about to start materializing little hearts in the air,” she said, laughing as Shinya gave her an innocent look, still holding Hana’s hand.

“We can stop if it’s bothering you,” he said seriously.

“No, please, go on,” Mayu replied sarcastically. “In fact, if you could reenact a drama scene, that’d be great.”

“We could do that scene where I accidentally drop something and have to lean in close to clean it up,” Hana said, playing along.

Mayu’s eyes were restless, as if she truly expected them to go through it right there in front of her. She sighed and threw her hands up. “Okay, that’s my cue. I’m leaving you two to your romantic scene before the kissing starts.”

“I’ll take the chance to head out too,” Tsubasa said, already getting up.

Hana walked them to the door with a gentle smile. Shinya appeared behind her.

“Thanks for coming,” he said. “I hope that even if it looked weird, it still tasted good.”

“It... did. But we seriously need to talk about the presentation another time,” Mayu said, giving his shoulder a light pat.

Tsubasa and Mayu stepped out into the late evening. They walked down the stairs in silence, and once they reached the street, Tsubasa rubbed the back of his neck, thoughtful. Mayu glanced sideways at him, waiting for him to say something, but he seemed strangely... awkward.

“That was fun, huh?” she said, trying to break the silence.

“Yeah... I’m still processing the rice ball,” he replied, then added, a bit quieter, “They seem good together, don’t they?”

Mayu nodded, hugging her arms against the cold breeze cutting through the air.

“Yeah...”

Tsubasa looked at her for a moment, then looked away, a little hesitant.

“Do you... wanna grab a drink?” he asked casually. “Like, now. Just the two of us.”

She smiled.

“Yeah... I do.”

The invitation, seemingly simple, carried something deeper. And even if neither of them would admit it, it felt like they’d both been waiting for a moment like this. Without even realizing it, they both broke into wide smiles.

The night went on, the moon lighting their path as they walked side by side.

And even if fate had yet to say anything, that present moment already meant everything.