Chapter 18: Under the Same Sky

Chapter 18: Under the Same Sky
“I thought fireworks were about looking up. But sometimes… the hardest things are standing right beside you.”  –  Akane

The evening smelled like summer.

Not just heat, but fabric warmed by skin, the faint sweetness of street food drifting in from far away, and the soft promise of noise waiting to happen. Akane stood in front of the mirror in her room, barely breathing as her mother tightened the last fold of her obi.

“Hold still,” Yume said gently. “If you breathe like that, you’ll float away.”

Akane laughed, shoulders relaxing. “I’m nervous.”

“Nervous?” Her mother smiled knowingly. “It’s just fireworks.”

Akane met her own reflection. The yukata was simple, pale with small patterns near the hem. Nothing extravagant. Nothing meant to draw attention. And yet her heart was racing anyway.

From the hallway, Sora’s voice rang out. “Adam’s here!”

Akane’s cheeks warmed instantly. “Why are you yelling?”

“Because he looks cool,” Sora replied, unapologetic.

Outside, Adam stood straight, hands loosely folded in front of him, dressed in a dark yukata that felt slightly too formal for how uncomfortable he was. He shifted his weight when the door slid open.

Akane stepped out.

Adam forgot how to speak.

She tilted her head, catching his expression. “You’re staring.”

He cleared his throat. “You look… fine.”

She narrowed her eyes. “That was the worst possible compliment.”

“I meant,” he corrected calmly, “that you look unfairly distracting.”

Her breath caught. “You didn’t have to say it like that.”

“I did,” he replied, deadpan.

Sora leaned out from behind Akane, arms crossed like a tiny guard. “Don’t make my sister cry.”

Adam nodded solemnly. “I won’t.”

“She cries easily.”

“I noticed.”

Akane groaned. “You two are ganging up on me already?”

Yume laughed softly. “Have fun,” she said, adjusting Akane’s sleeve. “And come home before the trains stop.”

“We will,” Akane said.

Adam bowed politely. “Thank you for letting me take her.”

Yume waved it off. “Just bring her back smiling.”

He glanced at Akane. “That I can do.”

They walked down the street together, the distant glow of lanterns coloring the sky. Akane matched her steps to his without thinking.

“You look stiff,” she said.

“I feel like I’m wearing expectations,” he replied.

She smiled. “Relax. You’re just here with me.”

He glanced down at her. “That’s the part I’m good at.”

A few blocks away, the rest of the group waited.

Minato waved both arms wildly the moment he saw them. “There they are! Finally!”

“You’re early,” Ryusei muttered.

Hikari smiled softly when she saw Akane. “You look really pretty.”

Akane’s smile widened. “Thank you.”

Ellie arrived last.

She looked composed, hair neatly tied, expression calm in a way that felt practiced. She greeted everyone politely, her eyes lingering for just a second too long on Adam and Akane standing close together.

Minato clapped his hands. “Alright. Fireworks festival. No injuries. No drama. No emotional revelations.”

Adam glanced sideways. “That feels optimistic.”

Minato grinned. “I live dangerously.”

The lanterns flickered to life as they moved toward the festival grounds, laughter threading through the warm air.

Ellie walked half a step behind them, hands folded in front of her, watching the way Akane leaned slightly toward Adam when she laughed.

The night had only just begun.

And already, something was tightening quietly beneath it all.

The festival grounds opened up all at once.

Lanterns hung in uneven rows, glowing orange and gold, swaying slightly with every passing breeze. The air buzzed with voices, music from distant speakers, and the sharp sizzle of oil hitting hot metal. Everywhere Akane looked, there was motion. Children tugging at sleeves. Couples drifting hand in hand. Groups of friends laughing too loudly.

Minato inhaled deeply. “This,” he announced, “is the smell of happiness.”

Ryusei glanced at him. “That’s oil and sweat.”

“Same thing.”

Akane laughed, her sleeve brushing Adam’s arm as she stepped closer to him to avoid a group rushing past. He noticed without comment and adjusted his pace so she stayed beside him.

They had barely taken ten steps when a loud voice cut through the noise.

“HEY! YOU SIX!”

Minato turned first. “Oh no.”

A stall sat to their left, its sign hand-painted and slightly crooked. A large pan bubbled with oil, pieces of fried octopus popping and crackling. Behind the counter stood a chaotic cluster of people.

The loud one was Habachi, sleeves rolled up, grinning like he owned the night. Beside him, Starz leaned dramatically against the counter, flicking a spatula like it was a microphone. Nyssa stood farther back, arms crossed, watching everything with sharp, unimpressed eyes.

At the register, Yuki smiled warmly, already holding out napkins. And perched on the edge of the stall, legs dangling, was Ryuuko, eyes bright and mischievous.

“Well I’ll be damned,” Ryuuko said, pointing straight at Adam and Akane. “If it isn’t festival romance in the flesh.”

Akane blinked. “We just got here.”

“That’s how we know,” Starz said solemnly. “Fresh couples glow.”

“We’re not glowing,” Adam said.

Nyssa glanced at him. “You’re standing three centimeters too close.”

Akane covered her mouth, laughing. “Is this a yearly interrogation?”

“Every fireworks festival,” Yuki said cheerfully. “We run this stall once a year. It’s tradition.”

Habachi leaned forward. “You buying or flirting?”

“Both,” Adam replied calmly.

Ryuuko burst out laughing. “I like him.”

Akane picked up a skewer and offered it to Adam. “Open.”

He hesitated. “It’s hot.”

“So am I,” she said without thinking.

Minato choked. “WHAT.”

Adam bit into the octopus and immediately winced. “It’s hot.”

Akane tried not to laugh and failed. “I warned you.”

“You did not.”

“You hesitated. That was your warning.”

Starz slapped the counter. “I am witnessing art.”

Hikari stood a little to the side, smiling softly, hands wrapped around her drink. Ellie stood beside her, quiet, watching the exchange with an expression that was not quite a smile and not quite sadness either.

Ryuuko leaned closer to Ellie. “Your friends are loud.”

Ellie nodded. “They always are.”

Nyssa glanced at her, then back at Adam and Akane. “They look good together.”

Ellie looked away. “They do.”

Adam handed Akane a napkin. She took it, their fingers brushing for just a second. She looked up at him, teasing already on her lips.

“You owe me a drink for trying to burn your tongue.”

He nodded. “Anything nonlethal.”

Minato raised his hands. “I swear I came for fireworks, not to witness whatever this is.”

“You love it,” Ryusei said.

Minato grinned. “I really do.”

They lingered longer than expected, laughter blending with the crackle of oil and music drifting through the night. For a moment, everything felt easy. Familiar. Full.

Ellie stood just behind them, lantern light catching in her eyes as she watched Adam tilt his head closer to Akane to hear her over the noise.

Her fingers curled slightly at her sides.

Above them, the first distant boom echoed in the sky.

The fireworks were almost ready.

And something inside Ellie was already starting to come undone.

The first firework cracked the night open without warning.

A sharp boom split the air, followed by a burst of white light that bloomed high above the rooftops. For half a second, the entire festival froze. Then the crowd reacted all at once, gasps turning into cheers, voices rising like a wave.

Akane looked up instinctively. “Ah…”

Color spilled across the sky. Gold bled into red, red into blue, each explosion lingering just long enough to be admired before dissolving into smoke.

Minato whooped. “There it is! That one’s my favorite!”

“They all look the same,” Ryusei said, though he was already lifting his phone to record.

Hikari stood still, eyes wide, reflecting the light above her. “They’re beautiful.”

Adam watched the sky for a moment, then looked down at Akane instead.

She didn’t notice at first. She was too busy tracking the way the sparks scattered, her lips parting slightly every time the sky lit up again. When another boom echoed, she leaned back just a little, her shoulder brushing his arm.

Without thinking, he shifted closer.

She noticed that.

Akane glanced at him, eyebrows lifting. “You’re not even watching.”

He replied quietly, “I am.”

Her breath caught for just a second. Then she smiled, small and warm, and leaned fully into his side.

Minato noticed immediately. “HEY. HEY. This is a public space.”

Adam didn’t look away from the sky. “So is the atmosphere.”

“That’s not an excuse.”

Akane laughed, the sound soft under the fireworks. “Let him be.”

Another explosion thundered overhead, this one bursting into a cascade of silver that rained down slowly, like falling stars. The crowd quieted for it, collective awe settling in.

Ellie stood a few steps away.

She had stopped pretending to watch the sky.

Her eyes were on Adam’s hand, which hovered near Akane’s sleeve, not gripping, not claiming, just there. Present. Certain.

She swallowed.

A memory surfaced without permission. Middle school. The park. Akane laughing on the swings. Adam standing at a distance back then, quiet, unreadable, already carrying something heavier than he ever showed.

Back then, Ellie had thought she understood everything.

Another firework exploded, bright enough to wash the color from the world for a heartbeat.

Ellie felt something shift inside her chest.

Not anger.

Not jealousy.

Something older. Something she had buried under responsibility and fear and excuses.

Regret.

Hikari leaned closer to Minato, saying something he didn’t quite hear. Ryusei adjusted his angle, muttering about lighting. The festival went on, loud and alive.

Akane tilted her head toward Adam. “You okay?”

He nodded. “Yeah.”

“You’re quiet.”

“I’m thinking.”

“About what?”

He hesitated, then said honestly, “How fast things change.”

She looked back up at the sky. “That’s what makes nights like this special.”

Another firework burst, this one red and gold, filling the space between sound and silence.

Ellie took a slow step back.

Then another.

No one noticed at first. The noise was too loud. The sky too bright.

By the time Akane glanced around, Ellie was already walking away, her figure slipping between lantern-lit shadows.

Adam noticed a second later.

His gaze followed her retreating form, something tightening in his chest.

“I’ll be right back,” he said quietly.

Akane turned to him. “Adam?”

He paused, then gave her a small, reassuring nod. “Just a minute.”

And with the fireworks roaring overhead, he stepped away from the group, following Ellie into the darker edge of the night.

Unaware that the next words spoken would change everything.

The noise of the festival dulled as Adam followed Ellie beyond the main path.

Lanterns thinned. Music softened into a distant hum. The crowd’s warmth faded, replaced by cooler air and the faint smell of grass and smoke. Fireworks still lit the sky, but here they arrived muffled, like echoes from another world.

Ellie stopped near a line of trees, their leaves trembling faintly with every distant boom. She did not turn around right away.

Adam slowed, then stopped a few steps behind her.

“You walked off,” he said gently. Not an accusation. Just a fact.

“I needed air,” Ellie replied. Her voice was steady. Too steady.

For a moment, neither spoke. A firework bloomed overhead, painting the ground in brief flashes of color. Ellie’s hands were clenched at her sides.

“You didn’t have to follow me,” she said.

“I know,” Adam replied. “But you looked like you wanted someone to.”

That made her turn.

Her expression cracked, just slightly. Not enough for tears. Enough for truth.

“You’re always like this,” she said. “Quiet. Watching. Acting like you understand more than you say.”

“I listen,” he said. “That’s different.”

Ellie laughed once, short and humorless. “That’s worse.”

Another firework burst, white and blue, lighting her face. Adam saw it then. The exhaustion. The restraint. The weight of years pressed behind her eyes.

“Do you remember this place?” she asked suddenly.

He glanced around. “Not really.”

“I do,” Ellie said. “We used to come here after cram school. Me and Akane. We’d sit on the grass and complain about teachers. About life. About boys we pretended not to care about.”

Adam stayed silent.

Ellie took a breath. “Then you showed up. And everything tilted.”

“That wasn’t my intention,” he said.

“I know,” she replied quickly. “That’s the worst part.”

She paced a few steps, fingers threading through her hair. “I told myself I hated you because you were trouble. Because rumors followed you. Because Komamura was easier to explain than you were.”

She stopped in front of him.

“But that wasn’t it.”

Adam met her gaze, calm, unflinching. He did not interrupt.

“I hated you,” Ellie continued, her voice trembling now, “because Akane chose you. And I didn’t even realize I wanted you to choose me.”

The words hung between them, fragile and exposed.

Fireworks thundered again, red this time, casting her shadow long across the ground.

Ellie swallowed hard. “I kept telling myself it was fear. Or loyalty. Or that I was protecting someone. But it was just me being scared of losing both of you.”

Adam exhaled slowly.

“Ellie,” he said, softly.

She shook her head, cutting him off, eyes shining now. “No. Let me say it. Just once. I don’t want to carry it anymore.”

She stepped closer. Not touching. Just close enough that he could hear her breath shake.

“I love you, Adam.”

The sky exploded in gold above them.

Ellie closed her eyes as if bracing for impact.

And the night held its breath.

To be Continued....