Fragments Of Past - Forgotten Promises

chapter 16

Chapter 16

As I stepped back, letting Ryoichi and Shota move between us, their voices blended into the background. They were chatting with Yuki, probably teasing him like they always did, laughing about something— maybe the way he tripped on the blanket. But those sounds felt distant, like they were coming from another room entirely. My eyes were on them, but everything felt blurry, like my mind had detached from the moment, drifting somewhere else.

Yuki... I’ve known him for so long. Since preschool, really. We were always together back then, inseparable. He was clumsy, always stumbling over something, and I was there to catch him, to help him back up. He used to look up to me as if I was his big sister, always running to me when he needed something. I liked that—being needed. It made me feel important to him, like I was his first line of defense against the world.

Back then, he was my first and best friend. We would play together in the park near our houses, or he’d come over to mine after school and we’d spend hours just being kids. He lived just a street away, so it was easy. So natural. He’d come over for lunch or dinner more times than I could count, sometimes spending the whole day at my place until his mom would call him home. It felt like Yuki was a part of my world in a way no one else was. Like he belonged there.

But then Ryoichi and Shota came into the picture. It wasn’t that they took him away from me. No, that wouldn’t be fair to say. It’s just... well, boys like to hang out with other boys, don’t they? It’s only natural. I wasn’t angry or upset about it, but I guess a part of me felt... left behind. Yuki didn’t need me as much anymore, not like before. Now he had them, his other friends—his guy friends.

I didn’t mind, I told myself. It was just the way things were. I was happy for him. He deserved friends like Ryoichi and Shota, people who made him laugh and brought out sides of him that I couldn’t. But still, a part of me couldn’t shake this strange feeling of... distance. Like I was watching him from afar, even when he was right in front of me.

My mind had been trained to take care of him for so long, it felt strange not to. Even now, seeing him surrounded by his friends, I felt that old instinct creeping in—the need to make sure he was okay, to watch over him like I always had. It wasn’t love, at least not the way people might think. It was just... affection, I suppose. The kind that comes from knowing someone for so long that you can’t help but care about them deeply.

But was it really just affection? Or was there something more buried in there, something I hadn’t even admitted to myself?

I shook my head, trying to push those thoughts away. No, it’s not like that. I wasn’t some lovesick girl who was pining after her childhood friend. I was just... worried. That’s all. Yuki was important to me, sure, but he wasn’t mine. He had his own life, his own friends. And I had mine. I should be happy with that. Right?

But even as I told myself those things, I couldn’t help the dull ache in my chest, the way my heart seemed to tighten every time I looked at him and realized that he didn’t need me the way he used to. He had moved on. And maybe I should too.

Ryoichi’s laugh snapped me out of my thoughts, and I blinked, forcing myself to refocus. The three of them were still talking, completely unaware of the storm that had been swirling in my head just moments before. I plastered on a smile, hoping none of them noticed how far away I’d just been.

It’s fine, I told myself again. I’m fine. This is how things are supposed to be.

But even as I tried to convince myself, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something had shifted. And I wasn’t sure what to do about it.

As we lingered in the health center a moment longer, a teasing look danced in Ryoichi's eyes. I could tell by the way he glanced at me that he had something mischievous planned. Oh no, not again.