River of Stars

Preface

It was 11:10 pm, the summer festival of the Island of Shodoshima in Japan had ended a few minutes before. Most of the people had already made it to their homes and the streets were now quiet for the most part. In one of these streets, a girl's laughter could be heard, followed by groans of the boy that walked with her.

"Are you sure you don't want to hold hands on the way home, Nishikata? It's quite dark here, I could get lost" said the girl between chuckles.

"We can still see where we're going, Takagi-san, there's no way you'd get lost" the boy responded, grinding his teeth, with a deep blush on his face.

Takagi laughed cheerfully at Nishikata's response as they walked through the slightly dim street. Their conversation eventually died down as they both reflected on what had happened that night.

Nishikata still replayed what happened in the festival in his mind over and over again. How desperate he felt when the girl disappeared from his sight for the second time that night and he just couldn't find her, the absolute relief and joy he felt when he finally spotted her, the happiness on her face followed by the disappointment to see that they couldn't watch the fireworks together, and the sudden feeling of what he had to do. Nishikata was far from regretting holding Takagi's hand at that moment, but he certainly couldn't fully understand why he did that.

Both of them continued walking their way in silence, deep in their own thoughts about that night, until they reached the intersection where they usually split up. Nishikata tried to read Takagi's expression, but he couldn't tell what she was thinking at all.

"So... I guess I'll see you around Nishikata" she said, hesitantly "Let's see each other again before summer break ends, though"

"Yeah..." The boy responded, with a strange feeling. He looked at the way to Takagi's house, but he couldn't really see much there in the dark. That wasn't the first time this had happened. 'You sound like you're my boyfriend', the girl's voice echoed in Nishikata's head as he felt blood rising up to his face. But the price that embarrassment had cost both of them that night was still fresh in Nishikata's head, he wouldn't let it take control over him again. "T-Takagi-san!" he called. The girl, who was already walking her way, turned around to look at him. Nishikata felt his nervousness getting even more intense, but he couldn't stop now.

"Your way home is actually a bit dark... Is it okay if I walk you home?" Takagi stopped for a moment, looking at him, though he couldn't see much of her face. He waited for her tease, but instead, she smiled softly.

"Thank you Nishikata... I really appreciate it"

Nishikata was surprised by the lack of teasing, but he didn't complain, and they resumed their quiet walk to Takagi's house. Until, after a few minutes, the girl finally spoke.

"Hey Nishikata" She sounded a bit hesitant.

"What is it, Takagi-san?"

"You know... You actually had your first win today" She said, still facing the road ahead of them "You held my hand..." Takagi was certainly blushing, though Nishikata couldn't see it clearly.

"But... I didn't do it for the sake of the contest" right after, Nishikata realized the implications of what he just said, as his face got bright red.

Takagi needed a few seconds to recover her posture, of course she knew, but hearing him implying it like that made her heart skip a beat "That's exactly why you won" She said with a nervous smile, still facing ahead "Besides, you're walking me home right now aren't you?" Takagi said, with a teasing smile and her confidence fully restored.

'She's teasing me again' Nishikata thought, looking away in embarrassment.

"So... What will be my punishment?" Takagi asked cheerfully. Nishikata looked at her, she was smiling, genuinely happy for his first win, but...