I slowly woke up, but I was still thinking about Waguri's words from the train.

"What do you think about me?"

Honestly, I had never really thought about that question before.

But now that it was stuck in my head, I couldn't get rid of it.

It kept bothering me, even though I didn't understand why.

I got up, took a shower, ate breakfast, and left for school.

On the way there, my eyes wandered toward the beautiful sky.

Christmas was coming soon...

But just like every year, I would probably spend it alone.

I was used to it by now.

I continued walking until I reached the school gate. As usual, there were many students around.

While walking through the hallways, I saw Waguri with her group of friends.

Our eyes met for a moment.

But in front of everyone else, we acted like we didn't know each other.

A few seconds later, my phone vibrated.

Waguri: We're meeting at 4 PM. Turn around, Hiro.

I replied:

Hiro: Okay.

I stopped for a few seconds before turning around.

I saw Waguri give me a small, discreet smile.

I didn't know why...

But that simple smile made me happy.

When I arrived in class, I took my usual seat.

Like always, I found myself lost in my thoughts, staring out the window.

The sky was beautiful.

The sunlight reflected on the clouds, making them look like they were floating above the water.

I thought about Waguri again.

Her smile.

Her question.

Then suddenly, the classroom door opened.

The teacher walked in.

Teacher: Please take your seats. Today, we have a new student joining our class.

The whole class started whispering.

Some students wondered if the new student was a boy or a girl.

The teacher told him to come in.

Personally, I wasn't that interested.

The door opened.

A boy walked inside.

He had a nice figure and a face that immediately caught people's attention.

He stood in front of the class.

Sora: My name is Sora Kanzaki. I'm 16 years old. It's nice to meet you. I hope we can get along.

The girls immediately started whispering.

"He's so handsome."

"He looks like a manga character."

I continued looking out the window.

I didn't really care.

Teacher: Choose any seat you like.

Sora looked around before coming to sit next to me.

I didn't notice it at first...

But his face felt strangely familiar.

Like I had seen him somewhere before.

I ignored the feeling.

A few minutes later, while taking out his things, his pen fell to the floor.

He tried to catch it, but accidentally knocked his notebook down too.

Sora: Ah...

He sighed and smiled awkwardly.

I looked at him.

He was different from the perfect image everyone else had of him.

At the end of class, many students gathered around Sora to talk to him.

I stayed lost in my thoughts as usual.

Then he stood up and came toward me.

Sora: Can I ask your name?

Hiro: Uh... sure. My name is Hiro.

For a few seconds, he froze.

His eyes widened slightly.

Sora: Hiro?

He smiled.

Sora: It's really you.

I frowned.

Hiro: Do we know each other?

His smile slowly disappeared.

Sora: You really don't remember me?

I stayed silent.

I searched through my memories, but nothing came back.

Then he said his name.

Sora: Sora Kanzaki.

At that moment...

Everything around me seemed to disappear.

That name.

I knew it.

An image suddenly appeared in my mind.

Two children sitting in a park.

A boy reaching out his hand toward me with a big smile.

"We'll be friends forever, Hiro."

My heart tightened.

How could I have forgotten?

I looked at Sora in shock.

Hiro: Sora...

This was impossible.

To be continued...