Haru sat by the second-floor window of Leblanc, stirring her tea with delicate precision. The spoon clinked gently against the porcelain, a rhythmic sound lost in the city noise beyond the glass. She wasn't sure how long she'd been sitting there—long enough to know she wasn't here for the tea.
Long enough to admit to herself that she was waiting.
Waiting for him.
The others hadn't said anything directly, but Haru could sense it—something was shifting. The tension between Ann and Makoto. The subtle glances exchanged during missions. And Ren…
Ren had always carried a certain gravity. But lately, it had grown heavier, almost magnetic.
When he entered a room now, heads turned—eyes lingered. She wasn't immune to it either. She'd caught herself staring more than once, lips parted as if to speak, only to say nothing.
Tonight, she'd seen them. The three of them—Ren, Makoto, and Ann—leaving the school roof together long after most had gone home. There was nothing explicitly wrong about it. But it felt like something had changed.
She closed her eyes and pressed the rim of the cup to her lips.
Am I being paranoid? she wondered.
But no—Haru had been raised in boardrooms, behind fake smiles and silent wars. She knew how to read people. And the way Ann smiled around Ren lately—it wasn't the playful flirtation it used to be. It was softer. Hungrier. And Makoto… Makoto had started glancing away too quickly whenever Haru brought Ren up.
It wasn't jealousy that settled in her chest.
It was the fear of being left behind.
Haru rose from her seat and walked to the window, parting the curtain slightly. Down on the street, she caught sight of Ren and Ann walking together—too close, too quiet. Makoto wasn't far behind, expression unreadable.
She didn't know what exactly was unfolding.
But something was blooming.
And Haru could feel the petals brushing against her skin—fragile, fragrant, and just out of reach.