Chapter 1 – Their First Meeting

Yuji didn’t like morning shifts, but he needed them. Tuition wasn’t cheap and the rent for his tiny shared dorm room climbed every year. So he stood behind the counter of the convenience store at seven in the morning, fighting back yawns while arranging onigiri into neat rows.

The bell above the door chimed.

Yuji glanced up, expecting the usual crowd of sleepy students grabbing coffee. Instead, he saw a girl he’d never seen before. She stepped inside slowly, almost as if she wasn’t sure she was allowed to be there.

Her uniform was the same as his. Same crest. Same ribbon. But her posture and her careful way of looking around made her stand out. She held her bag too tightly, like someone afraid of losing it. Her hair was tied neatly with a ribbon, and she walked with a kind of practiced grace that didn’t match the cheap shelves or flickering lights of the store.

Yuji watched her from behind the counter. Not because she was pretty, though she was, but because she looked lost.

She gathered a few snacks—nothing heavy, mostly bottled tea and crackers—and brought them to the counter. Her eyes flicked up to meet his for a split second before she looked away again.

“Good morning,” Yuji said, trying to sound warm despite his sleep-deprived state.

She nodded, barely.

He scanned her items, and she handed him a pale pink wallet. It was expensive. The kind of wallet someone like him would never touch unless it was on a shelf behind glass.

Her fingers trembled a little while she waited.

“Long day ahead?” Yuji asked lightly.

She hesitated, then gave a small, almost guilty nod. “Classes.”

Her voice was soft. Careful. Like she had learned not to speak too much unless spoken to.

Yuji offered a faint smile. “Don’t worry. Everyone survives their first week.”

That earned a tiny blink of surprise from her, as if she didn’t expect encouragement from a store clerk.

She took her bag and stepped out quickly, the bell chiming again.

Yuji leaned back against the counter. Students came and went all the time, but something about her felt different. Maybe it was the way she never met his eyes. Or the weight she carried in her shoulders. She seemed like someone who didn’t get the chance to breathe freely.

A minute passed before he saw the wallet behind the register.

He froze. She had left it.

Yuji grabbed it, rushed out of the store and looked around. She was already halfway down the sidewalk, walking fast, head down. It was early, and the street was quiet except for passing bikes and the hum of morning buses.

“Hey! Wait!” Yuji jogged toward her.

She turned, startled. Her eyes widened when he held up the wallet.

“You dropped this,” he said, breathing a little hard. “Good thing I noticed.”

She stared at the wallet, then at him, confusion flickering through her expression. “I… thought I put it in my bag.”

She reached for it, but her hand paused halfway, as if uncertain whether she should be taking anything from him at all.

“Don’t worry,” Yuji said gently. “I’m not charging a rescue fee.”

A small, awkward silence passed between them before she finally took the wallet. Her fingers brushed his by accident, and she pulled away quickly.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

Her voice was low but sincere.

Yuji nodded. “Anytime.”

She hugged her bag closer and stepped back like she wanted to run, but also didn’t want to seem rude.

He tilted his head. “You’re new here, right? I haven’t seen you around campus.”

She hesitated, then nodded once. “I… just transferred.”

“Ah. That explains it.” He tried to keep the conversation easy. “I’m Yuji. If you ever need help finding buildings, I don’t mind showing you around.”

That startled her more than the wallet.

“You don’t even know me,” she said softly.

Yuji shrugged. “You looked lost. That’s enough.”

For a moment, her expression softened. Just a little. Like a thin layer of ice melting at the edges. But it vanished quickly when a black car rolled past the corner. The windows were tinted, but she stiffened the moment she saw it.

Yuji noticed.

“Someone you know?” he asked.

She shook her head too quickly. “No.”

The lie was obvious, but she didn’t offer more, and Yuji didn’t push. He just gave a small smile.

“Well, anyway,” he said, “you have your wallet back, so that’s what matters.”

She nodded but didn’t move. It was as if she wanted to leave but couldn’t bring herself to walk away yet.

Yuji took a step backward to give her space. “You should get going. You’ll be late.”

“Right.” She bowed her head slightly. “Thanks… again.”

She turned and walked off, careful and graceful as before. But before she reached the intersection, she paused. She didn’t look back, yet he could tell she was thinking something over. After a moment, she walked on and disappeared into the crowd.

Yuji stood there longer than he meant to. The morning breeze brushed his hair, and the store bell chimed behind him as another customer walked in.

He sighed and went back inside.

He didn’t expect to see her again. She looked like the kind of girl who belonged to a different world. A cleaner, brighter one. The kind where people like him were invisible.

But later that night, when he was stocking shelves, he found himself glancing at the door more than usual. Part of him hoped she’d walk in again. Not because he expected anything from her, but because there was something in her eyes he couldn’t forget.

A quiet loneliness.

A small spark of curiosity.

And a fragile way of holding herself like she hadn’t felt safe in a long time.

Yuji didn’t know her name yet.

But Aiko had already left a mark on his day.

And she had no idea how much he would change her life later.