If Dylan had known that a single spring afternoon would change everything, maybe he would have paid more attention. Maybe he wouldn’t have been so caught up in capturing the moment through his camera, trying to freeze time instead of living in it.

But back then, he thought memories had to be preserved to be real.

He had spent most of his life moving from place to place—different cities, different schools, different countries. His parents were always chasing something: careers, dreams, stability. And somewhere along the way, Dylan had stopped expecting anything to last. Friends, homes, routines… everything always faded.

The first spring they met was nothing like the one they were about to leave behind. It had been full of new beginnings—awkward introductions, unexpected friendships, and moments that would eventually turn into cherished memories. For the first time, it felt like Dylan had stumbled into something permanent. Something rooted.

He could still remember the exact moment it all started.

It was the end of their first-year orientation, and Dylan had escaped the noise and crowd, retreating to the rooftop of the student center with his camera in hand. From above, he watched the wind scatter petals across the courtyard below—Tokyo in spring. He had come all the way from the U.S. to study photography, but adjusting to life here still felt like balancing on unfamiliar ground.

He hadn’t expected anyone to find him up there. He liked it that way.

But then he heard a voice behind him.

"You know, people might think you're brooding up here," a girl with long black hair teased, stepping into view with casual confidence.

Dylan blinked, startled. “I’m just taking photos.”

“Of course you are,” she said with a knowing grin. “I’m Livi Chen. Communications major. Tokyo native. What’s your name, mysterious rooftop loner?”

“Dylan. Dylan Sinclair. I’m, uh… photography major.”

“Exchange student?” she asked.

“Yeah. Just moved here this semester.”

Livi gave him a warm smile—quick, genuine, and strangely reassuring. “Cool. My friends and I were just talking about you. Well—about how there’s like, one serious-looking photographer guy who didn’t say a word during the campus tour.”

Dylan chuckled awkwardly. “Yeah, that was probably me.”

She turned slightly, gesturing toward the stairwell. “You should come meet them. We kind of adopted someone already—Hikari, she’s from South Korea and also studying photography. You two might get along.”

Before Dylan could reply, footsteps echoed behind them. A boy with light brown hair appeared first—quiet, composed, with a calm presence that didn’t need to announce itself.

“Sora,” Livi said, turning to Dylan. “One of my best friends. We’ve known each other since high school.”

Sora gave a small nod. “Hey.”

Next came a taller figure with messy dark blue hair and the kind of energy that made his presence unavoidable.

“Oh, great,” Livi muttered playfully. “And that’s Ren.”

“Charming, as always,” Ren replied, unfazed. “Is this the rooftop exclusive you forgot to invite me to?”

“I didn’t forget. You weren’t invited,” she shot back.

Ren turned to Dylan with a lazy grin. “Ren Sato. Economics major. High school survivor. What about you?”

“Dylan. Photography.”

“Nice. You look like someone who’s got way too many brooding portraits already.”

Before Dylan could respond, a soft voice joined the group.

“Hey… sorry, did I miss something?” asked a girl with wavy brown hair and a quiet smile. She stepped onto the rooftop, looking at Dylan with gentle curiosity. “Oh. You must be the photographer Livi was talking about.”

“Hikari,” Livi said, linking her arm with hers. “This is Dylan. You two are both photography majors. Perfect, right?”

Dylan nodded, unsure what to say. Hikari tilted her head slightly. “You like taking photos?”

He hesitated before answering. “Yeah. It helps me hold onto things.”

Hikari looked up toward the cherry blossoms fluttering above them, the petals caught in the wind. “I think some things are better when you just experience them.”

Her words lingered, more than she probably realized.

Looking back, Dylan didn’t know it then—but that was the moment everything changed. The five of them, thrown together after orientation, would soon become inseparable.

It all felt so effortless, like something that was always meant to happen. And yet, deep down, Dylan had always carried the quiet fear that it couldn’t last. Not for someone like him—someone who never stayed in one place long enough to believe in forever.

Still, he wanted to believe. So he captured everything—laughs, glances, the silence between moments. Proof that it had all been real.

And now, four years later, as he stood beneath the same cherry blossoms where their story had begun, Dylan felt the breeze shift around him, the petals spinning in the air like they did that day. Graduation was only weeks away, and while the others were dreaming of the future, he was still quietly wondering what it meant to have a place to return to.

A place that felt like home.

This was their last spring together.

And Dylan knew, deep down, it was time to start truly living it.

Even if a part of him already feared he wouldn’t stay.