Steel and Rain

I woke up to the sound of the alarm clock. "Ugh! It's morning again..." I muttered. I immediately thought of the girl from yesterday, her serious look and her eyes that seemed to draw me in. "Maybe... she'll be there again tonight," I said involuntarily. I got up and had breakfast, obviously a cheap one, tea and biscuits. "Stop thinking about the girl!" I hit myself on the head with an open hand. I left the house with feigned calm and went to work, my job, the metalworking shop. The smell of oil and steel filled my nostrils. "And here I am again," I said with feigned joy. I had started doing this job a couple of years ago. It was quite complex, but deep down, I liked it. I went to the locker room to change and saw my colleague and master craftsman, Akasaki, a somewhat large man in his thirties with a friendly goatee whose job it was to teach me the job."Hey! Hayato!! Did you sleep or were you still watching anime all night?" he said with uncommon enthusiasm. I thought, how can he have all that energy on a Monday morning? "I just took a walk, came home, and slept, no anime," I said calmly. "Oh yeah?! I'll judge that by your pace!" he said with a mock threat. We went to the workshop to work from the cars, but I was still with my head on that bench. "He had nice hair," I said unconsciously. "Hey! You're making a mistake!" Akasaki said in a gruff tone. "Huh?! Oh?! Yes, that's right! Sorry! I got distracted!" I said, panicking. "I told you not to watch anime in the evening or it'll make you stupid," Akasaki said with an older brother's look. "I didn't watch anime!" I just went to bed a little late! I said firmly. Akasaki nodded and went back to his work. He was a strange person, but not a bad person, just...very direct. I continued working, a little shaken, but the day ended peacefully without any serious problems. I left work at 6:30 PM and got home at 7 PM. I opened the door and calmed down for a moment, threw myself on the bed, and thought about the girl again. "Is she there now?"Maybe I'm in love with her? I asked myself. Is love so superficial? Is it enough that she has beautiful hair and eyes? Is it enough that she has a pretty face? Am I really that superficial? I said to myself in amazement. Maybe she's bewitched me. "Aa ... Then I took courage. "Hi..." I said softly and shakily, as if afraid of breaking something. "Can I... sit down again?" She turned slowly, and when our eyes met, a small smile played on her lips. "I was waiting for you." Those two words were enough to erase all doubt. I sat down next to her, closer than I'd dared the first time. "Waiting for you?" I repeated, incredulous. Yumehime looked at the sky, then murmured: "Yesterday, after you left, the stars stayed brighter than usual. I thought it was just a coincidence... but then I felt you'd come back." A drop of rain fell on my hand, then another on the wood of the bench. Within seconds, it began to rain gently, as if the sky wanted to join in that secret conversation. "You'll get your dress wet..." I said, looking at her worriedly. "Let the rain do its thing," she interrupted me with a quiet smile. "Water doesn't erase memories, it just makes them clearer." We stood there, without an umbrella, as the drops rolled down our backs. Yumehime raised her face to the sky and closed her eyes, as if listening to a melody I couldn't hear. "Do you hear it, hayato?" she whispered. "The rain is speaking to you, too, now." I looked at her in silence. I didn't really understand what she meant, but in that moment, there was no need to understand. All that mattered was her, there beside me, and the synchronized beating of two hearts under the same rain. Without thinking, I said, "If the rain could talk, I would ask it to never stop." Yumehime opened her eyes again and gazed at me gently. "Then the stars would have a new wish to cherish." I smiled. The drops continued to fall, thicker and thicker.The water ran down our hair, wetting our clothes, drawing little lines of light on our faces.

At a certain point, shivering slightly, I couldn't help myself.

"Aren't you cold?" I asked, trying to cover myself a little with my hands.

"You're getting sick... I'm freezing."

Yumehime opened her eyes and turned to me.

In the rain, her face was like a blurry dream, beautiful and fragile at the same time.

Her lips curved into an almost amused smile.

"Cold?" she repeated softly.

"A little. But... I think it's not so bad, when someone speaks to me with so much concern."

I blushed slightly, trying to hide my embarrassment with an uncertain laugh.

"Eh... I don't like seeing people get sick, that's all."

She lowered her gaze, then slowly raised a hand and placed it on my arm.

It was cold, but the touch was enough to make me forget every shiver.

- Then let's stay a little longer.

Until the rain gets tired. -

We stood there, not moving.

The bench creaked under the weight of the water, and I stared at it, unable to look away.And in that simplicity, two people soaked by rain and emotion, there was something perfect. Then, slowly, I took off my jacket and placed it over her shoulders. "At least this way you won't get too wet." She was surprised for a moment, then let out a light, almost emotional sigh. "Thank you, Hayato. You have a kind heart." "Not really," I replied, with a shy smile. "I just... I can't stay still when someone is shaking." Yumehime laughed softly, her voice seeming to come from a dream. "Then promise me something." "What?" "That you won't stay still. Not even when it's hard." Her words left me breathless. I didn't know what she really meant, but in that moment it seemed like an important promise, one of those that changes the way you look at life. "I promise." - She nodded, with a smile that smelled of rain and stars. Then she stood up, tightening her jacket around her shoulders. - It's late. I'll walk you a bit, if you want. Huh? I'm not a child, I'm only 22, I thought, a little annoyed. - No, - I said immediately. - I'll walk you. I don't let a girl walk home alone in the rain. Yumehime looked at me in surprise, then smiled again, sweetly. - So... let's go. We walked side by side, without saying anything. Only our footsteps, the water, and the slow sound of my heart, perhaps already learning to recognize its rhythm alongside hers. We walked slowly, side by side. The rain had become gentler, as if it were accompanying us instead of trying to get us wet. Yumehime held my jacket tightly around her shoulders. I, next to her, felt my heart warmer than my skin. It was a strange sensation, as if the cold outside and the warmth inside were merging. For a while, no one spoke. Just the sound of the water and our breathing mingling. Then, in a low voice, almost as if she were confiding a secret to the wind, Yumehime said: -When I was little... I often came here with my mother. We sat on that same bench and looked at the stars, even when the sky was cloudy.She always said, “Even if you can't see them, the stars are there. You just have to trust.” She lowered her gaze, her lips curling into a sweet but sad smile. “Then… one day, the clouds never parted again. And she… never came back.” My pace slowed. I didn't know what to say right away, but I felt the weight of that sentence inside me, as if the rain had suddenly gotten colder. “I'm sorry,” I whispered softly. “You shouldn't have said it if it hurts.” She shook her head, letting a few drops fall from her hair. “No, it's okay, sometimes talking about it makes you feel like she's still here, like, somehow, she can hear me.” We continued walking in silence for a while. Then she added, “Maybe that's why I still come every night. To look at the stars in her place. And… so as not to forget to trust in heaven. Her words struck me deeply. There was a silent strength in her, a kindness that needed no explanation. A part of me knew I would never forget her. I paused for a moment, and she turned to me, surprised. - hayato? - Nothing, - I said softly, with a smile. - I was just thinking that… if your mother could see you now, she would be proud of you. Yumehime remained silent, then lowered her eyes and smiled, for real this time. A sincere, warm smile that erased all sadness. - thank you… The lights of the city shone in the distance, fading into the rain mist. When we reached a small white gate, she stopped. - This is where I live. - Ah… - I said, almost regretfully. "So... see you tomorrow?" Yumehime hesitated for a moment, then nodded slowly. "If the stars are willing, yes." We stood there, looking at each other for a few seconds, unable to say anything else. Then she took a step back, in her calm, light way that already felt like goodbye. "Goodnight, Hayato." And thank you... for walking with me in the rain." "Goodnight, Yumehime." I watched her enter the driveway until the door closed softly behind her. Then I looked up at the sky: the rain had almost stopped, and a crack was appearing in the clouds. A single star shone, clear, as if smiling. Maybe it was her... Maybe it was the beginning of something I never wanted to lose again. I walked slowly along the road that led home. Yumehime's smile was still in my eyes, and a strange, hard-to-explain warmth was in my chest. Every time I thought of her, I smiled spontaneously.And yet… I couldn't deny it: she was a somewhat mysterious girl. Different from anyone I'd ever met. I ran a hand through my hair, still wet, and sighed softly. "Hmmm… she's a little weird…" I muttered to myself, with a half-smile. "But I don't mind." I laughed softly, alone, under the cloudy sky. "Actually… I like it." The words came out spontaneously, as if someone had said them for me. And in that instant, I realized it was the truth. I stopped for a moment, looking at the reflection of the lights in the wet sidewalks. The rain had left behind a clean, almost sweet scent, and the air seemed new. As if the world, too, had decided to start over that night. I continued walking, whistling softly, my heart lighter than it had been in a long time. Maybe I still didn't know who Yumehime really was... but I was certain of one thing: I wanted to find out.