The camp was silent, with only the faint crackling of burning firewood breaking the stillness.
Time flowed gently, much like the steady flames consuming the logs.
Since earlier, Makoto hadn't spoken a word. She watched the fire as it danced, her beautiful violet eyes reflecting its glow. Her expression seemed at peace, yet it carried a trace of wistfulness.
"It's getting late. Aren't you going to rest?" Yu Xie suddenly asked.
"I'm not sleepy yet," Makoto replied with a soft smile. "You should go ahead and sleep. I'll stay here a little longer."
"I'm not sleepy either," Yu Xie said, standing up and stretching a little. "How about... we take a walk? What do you think?"
Makoto turned to look at Yu Xie, hesitating for a moment. She wasn't even sure why she hesitated. Her mind filled with fleeting images of past memories, like fragments of a story she hadn't finished telling herself.
"Alright." After a moment, Makoto stood up as well, her face still adorned with that gentle and beautiful faint smile.
Yu Xie had always felt that Makoto's smile carried a unique kind of "lethality," though it usually amounted to just a "normal skill." Tonight, however, that skill landed a critical hit.
Perhaps it was the stillness of the late night or the charged atmosphere of being alone together—a man and a woman under such circumstances—but Makoto's smile in that moment caused a subtle tremor in Yu Xie's heart.
Sometimes, it's just like this. Nothing particularly extraordinary happens, but a single moment can seem to slow down, as if time itself has taken notice, and in that instant, something stirs within you.
No reason, and none needed.
Time flowed on gently, like the trickling waters of a stream.
In the forest, Makoto and Yu Xie walked side by side.
Neither of them spoke much; they simply walked quietly.
Occasionally, their shoulders would brush against one another, and Makoto would carefully pull away, just slightly widening the distance between them.
In this way, they slowly walked out of the forest and arrived at the beach, stepping onto the sand.
The waves continuously lapped against the shore, their sound like a special kind of background music.
At this moment, Makoto suddenly stopped, then bent down and removed her shoes, carrying them in her hand.
"What's wrong?" Yu Xie asked.
"I suddenly felt like stepping in the water," Makoto said with a smile. Then she turned and began walking toward the waves, stopping again as she neared the waterline.
The waves lapped at the shore as Makoto stood there, letting the water rush over her feet, the coolness reaching her ankles.
The nighttime sea was a bit chilly, and Makoto, who had momentarily overlooked this, shivered slightly.
"So cold!" Makoto exclaimed instinctively. "But... it feels quite nice. Yu Xie, do you want to try it?"
Yu Xie hesitated for a moment before removing his shoes and stepping forward to stand beside her.
The slightly icy seawater made Yu Xie shiver as well, which Makoto noticed with amusement, covering her mouth as she let out a soft laugh.
"Cold, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Yu Xie nodded. "But it's also kind of refreshing."
"Don't push yourself too hard now," Makoto teased with a playful smile.
At that moment, the sea breeze suddenly picked up, causing Makoto's long, violet hair to sway gracefully in the wind. The waves, too, surged slightly higher than before, splashing up unexpectedly.
Caught off guard and not paying attention to her footing, Makoto lost her balance for a brief moment.
Without thinking, Yu Xie dropped the shoes he was holding and reached out, grabbing Makoto's wrist just in time.
Thanks to his quick reaction, Makoto regained her balance, their eyes naturally meeting as a result.
The wind seemed to pause, and the waves calmed as if in harmony with the stillness between them.
The world felt silent.
Under the silver moonlight, Makoto gazed into Yu Xie's eyes, feeling the warmth in her cheeks gradually intensify.
Makoto suddenly wished this moment could last a little longer.
But soon, a realization hit her, and she let out a startled exclamation.
"Ah—!"
"What's wrong?" Yu Xie released her wrist, looking concerned.
"Your shoes!" Makoto exclaimed, quickly dashing toward Yu Xie's shoes, which the waves had begun to carry away. Fortunately, they hadn't drifted into deeper waters yet.
"Be careful," Yu Xie called after her, immediately following.
Makoto managed to retrieve the shoes, but they were already thoroughly soaked.
Holding the waterlogged shoes in her hands, Makoto looked at Yu Xie with a hint of guilt on her face.
"Sorry, if I hadn't lost my balance, your shoes wouldn't have ended up like this…"
"It's fine," Yu Xie said with a smile as he looked at Makoto. "We can dry them when we get back."
"But that means you'll have to walk back barefoot…"
"Well then… how about you carry me back?" Yu Xie joked.
Makoto hesitated for a moment before nodding unexpectedly. "Sure, as long as you don't mind."
Her response completely caught Yu Xie off guard, leaving him unsure how to react.
After a brief silence, he said, "I was joking. How could I let you carry me? If anyone's carrying someone, it should be me carrying you."
"You can't fit into my shoes, so I might as well carry you," Makoto replied with a lighthearted laugh. "Don't worry, it's not a long way back."
"Exactly, it's not far, so walking back like this is fine," Yu Xie said, turning and heading toward the shore.
Makoto watched Yu Xie's back, feeling a bit helpless, but she could only follow him.
Their footprints were left behind on the beach, only to be quickly washed away by the waves.
"If you're not too tired, shall we walk along the beach a bit longer?" Yu Xie said softly, walking ahead.
"Mm." Keeping pace with him, Makoto nodded gently.
Once again, silence fell between them, with only the sound of the sea breeze and waves filling the air.
Seconds passed, then minutes—it was hard to tell how much time had gone by—before Makoto finally spoke:
"Yu Xie, did you know? I really like the sea. A long time ago, I wanted to walk along the beach with you like this, but back then, for many reasons, I didn't say anything… Now, I guess I've finally fulfilled that wish."
Hearing Makoto's words, Yu Xie suddenly grew curious about the person he used to be in Inazuma.
"Makoto, what kind of person was I before? Am I different now?"
"…" Makoto pondered for a moment before smiling. "In my eyes, you're the same. You haven't changed a bit."
"The first time I met you, you were a fifteen-year-old boy. Back then, I only thought of you as a younger brother and saw the potential in you," Makoto continued. "At the time, I never imagined… you would bring so many changes to Inazuma, to me, and to Ei."
"Kitsune Saiguu said that when she first met me, I was also fifteen," Yu Xie said.
"Yes, she's the one who brought you to meet me," Makoto replied with a gentle smile. "I think she's probably very proud that she was the first among us to meet you…"
Mid-sentence, Makoto's smile faded, and her voice trailed off abruptly.
"What's wrong?" Yu Xie noticed the sadness hidden in Makoto's eyes.
Clearly, it wasn't because she wasn't the first to meet him—Makoto wasn't someone who would care about such things.
Makoto smiled and shook her head. "It's nothing."
But Yu Xie could tell that this time, there was a hint of bitterness in her smile, as if she was recalling some sorrowful memories.
"Are you sure it's nothing?" Yu Xie stopped walking and looked directly into Makoto's eyes.
Makoto fell silent for a while before slowly saying, "Speaking of 'being the first to meet you,' it reminded me of something else—back then... I was the first to know you were going to leave."
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