. The girl who couldn't hear

✍️ Chapter 1: The Girl Who Couldn't Hear 
 The final bell rang. Bentio Inimota stood from his desk in silence, sliding his bag over his shoulder like he always did. No one said goodbye to him. He didn’t expect them to.
Outside, Tokyo’s evening sun dipped behind tall buildings, casting a gold hue across the streets. He walked alone, past the school gates, not noticing the laughter of classmates behind him. He wasn’t part of that world anymore.
His footsteps echoed against the pavement. His thoughts wandered, always circling back to middle school—the day Magiru Satawa, his best friend, told him they weren’t friends anymore. No reason. No explanation. Just silence after that.
That silence had stayed with him.
But today, silence was broken—by fate.
As he neared the crosswalk on a quiet road behind a small convenience store, he saw her.
Shizune Nozomiya.
The new girl. The one who never spoke. She had transferred in just two days ago. Most students whispered about her being deaf. Bentio hadn’t cared. He avoided her like everyone else.
But now, she stood at the edge of the road, clutching a worn shoulder bag, her gaze scanning traffic. Bentio slowed down. Something felt... wrong.
And then he saw it.
A truck.
Speeding. Turning too fast.
She didn’t hear it.
Time snapped.
“Hey!” Bentio shouted instinctively.
She didn’t hear that either.
She stepped forward.
He dropped his bag and sprinted. The wind howled in his ears. Just before the truck reached the crosswalk, he grabbed her arm and yanked her backward.
The truck screeched past.
Bentio and Shizune crashed to the pavement. She stared at him, stunned. Her eyes widened. Then… tears.
No words. Just trembling hands and sobs that came out silent at first, then cracked into broken breaths. She covered her face. She looked small. Fragile. Like someone who had been scared far too many times.
Bentio didn’t speak either. He fumbled through his bag, pulled out a notebook, and scribbled.
Are you okay?
He showed it to her. Her watery gaze drifted to the note, then to him. She nodded, just once.
Can I walk you home?
Another nod.
They walked side by side in silence, the distance between them no longer so wide. When they reached her apartment complex, she bowed politely, hands clutching her skirt. Then, slowly, she reached out and tugged his sleeve.
Her lips moved. Her voice was soft and shaky.
“Th… thank… y-you.”
Bentio blinked. It was the first time he’d heard her speak.
And somehow, in that single moment, her voice echoed louder in his heart than anyone else’s ever had.
He nodded, then turned to walk away.
For the first time in years, he looked back.
Shizune was still standing there, her hand gently touching her chest.
That was the day Bentio Inimota stopped walking a in it.