𝐑𝐎𝐀𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔⭑.ᐟ 𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐔 (✔)

chatper 15

The quiet in the room lingered long after the conversation had ended, settling into something softer but heavier at the same time, as if neither of us had quite decided to move on from it yet. The morning light filtered through the curtains in a slow, steady glow, warming the space without fully brightening it, leaving everything in that in-between state where nothing felt rushed.

I moved away from the bed, more out of habit than intention, heading toward the dresser to grab something to change into. The normalcy of it helped, grounding in a way that didn't require thought, though it didn't fully distract from the awareness that hadn't quite faded.

Rindou hadn't left. I could feel it without needing to look.

"You're still here," I said, glancing back briefly as I pulled a shirt over my shoulders.

"I said I would be," he replied, his tone calm, like the answer was obvious.

"That didn't sound permanent," I said, turning slightly as I adjusted the fabric.

"It wasn't."

"Then why does it feel like it?" The question slipped out more casually than I expected, but once it was there, I didn't take it back. 

He didn't answer immediately either, and for a moment the silence stretched, not awkward, just long enough to notice before I looked away again, brushing it off as nothing.

I stepped away from the dresser, moving across the room without really thinking about where I was going until I realized I had stopped closer to him than I intended. The distance between us wasn't far enough to ignore, but not close enough to comment on right away.

"...You're in the way," I said, even though he wasn't.

"Am I?" he asked, his voice carrying the faintest hint of something I didn't bother to define.

"Yes."

"You walked over here."

"That doesn't change the fact that you're in the way."

He shifted slightly, just enough to face me more directly, his gaze settling in a way that felt more focused than before. "You could move."

"So could you."

"I was here first."

I stared at him for a second, unimpressed. "That's not how that works."

"It is right now."

A quiet breath left me, somewhere between a sigh and a laugh, as I moved to step past him, intending to end the pointless argument, but he moved at the same time.

The motion was small, almost unnoticeable in any other situation, yet it was enough to close the gap between us completely.

I stopped. And so did he. For a moment, neither of us moved.

"...You did that on purpose," I said, lifting my gaze to meet his.

"No," he replied easily. "You just didn't move fast enough."

"That's not true."

"It is."

"You literally stepped into me."

"You walked into me."

I opened my mouth to argue, then paused, exhaling quietly as I looked away for half a second before meeting his eyes again. "You're annoying."

"You've said that."

"And I mean it every time."

"Then stop standing this close."