A Shift Between Us

CHAPTER-9

The studio emptied slowly, but I stayed longer than I needed to. Headphones resting around my neck, the last notes of the instrumental still humming faintly in my ears.

I wasn’t lingering because anyone asked me to. I wasn’t nervous or waiting for feedback. I stayed because I needed to.

I needed to let it sink in.

That I had just recorded a song in a professional studio, alongside someone whose music reached across the globe.

A little longer than I probably should have, I let the quiet of the space settle around me, letting the hum of equipment and the faint scent of coffee mix with the echo of my own breathing. I wanted to feel it fully.

To see, just for a moment, how far I had finally come.

Akane appeared beside me without a sound. “You did what the song needed,” she said softly.

Not praise.

Not reassurance.

Just the truth.

I nodded, feeling my shoulders finally loosen, just a fraction. “Thanks.”

She gave a small smile and slipped out, leaving me alone with the afterglow of accomplishment.

I soon after also headed out, it was pretty late into the night.

The city was quieter than usual when I walked toward the park. Midnight approaching, streetlights painting long, soft shadows across empty benches.

I wasn’t sure why I came here tonight. Maybe it was the quiet. Maybe it was the memory of him-

Issei and the odd warmth I felt every time he was around. Maybe I was hoping, selfishly, that I might see him again.

The park smelled faintly of winter leaves and distant asphalt. The air was crisp. I drew my jacket tighter and wandered along the path, letting my mind drift between the studio session and the echo of his calm, steady voice in my head.

Somewhere behind me, movement caught my eye…

A figure lingering too long near the tree line. My stomach clenched.

A man.

Watching.

Waiting.

A pang of fear settled low in my chest. Not overwhelming, but enough to make my heart beat faster. I mean what else could I expect walking alone late at night…

Just then, ahead on the path, a familiar shadow fell into place. Issei. Calm, casual, but sharp in his awareness. He didn’t make a show of it. He didn’t confront the other man. He simply walked closer to me, positioning himself between us with confidence and calm.

The stranger saw him and hesitated, shifted, and then went on his way like nothing ever happened.

“You okay?” Issei’s voice was low, steady. Calm and cool. No sign of alert. Just genuine worry and attention.

I nodded, a little breathless. “Yeah… thanks.”

He didn’t ask more.

He didn’t need to. He just… noticed and that’s what I liked about him. Being able to look through people with such ease.

After that we walked in silence for a few minutes, side by side, the crunch of gravel underfoot and the faint city hum the only sounds between us. Kind of romantic if you ask me.

I stole glances at him, thinking about how much he had calmed me, without even trying.

Finally, he stopped at a bench, letting me sit first. He leaned against the railing nearby, just watching the park stretch into the night.

“I…” His voice faltered slightly, a rare crack in his usual calm. “There’s something I need to say.”

I wasn’t too sure what it could be but seeing him crack a little made my stomach crunch in anticipation.

“I’ve been thinking a lot,” he continued, eyes tracing the park lights. “About you. About us. Or… well, about me and how I feel when I’m around you.”

I shifted, unsure whether to speak. He didn’t wait.

“I… I want to know you,” he said quietly, voice just above the whisper of the park at night. “Not just as a friend. Not just as someone I see for a moment and then forget. I want to know you… your world, the parts you don’t show anyone. And… I want to be someone worth something to you. I don’t know how else to explain this feeling, and keeping it to myself… It's been driving me crazy. I can’t anymore.”

He paused, as if speaking the words had already lifted some weight off his chest. The vulnerability in his eyes, reflecting the moonlight, couldn’t hide his true feelings. It was real, unpolished, and painfully sincere.

He looked at me then, his chocolatey brown eyes focused on mine, as if the answer was hidden inside my eyes.

I didn’t answer right away. My throat felt thick, and my heartbeat was loud enough I was sure he could hear it. But in that silence, something shifted.

The world felt smaller. The city, the distant cars, the night air…

All of it faded, leaving only the two of us underneath the moonlit sky and the weight of the confession that had come out of nowhere.

And in that moment, I knew something had changed.

END CHAPTER-9