"Suga-chan! Look!"
Daichi Sawamura grabbed his phone and typed in the passcode furiously, then shoved it into my hands, a precious smile on his face. I glanced down, though I didn't need to see it to know what it was. It was a picture of him and Michimiya Yui, whom he had just started dating a month ago. I saw him with his hand on her shoulder. They were both laughing. It was a perfect photograph, with apparent love and clear joy.
They looked nice together.
I tuck away my tears for a later time and smile at him the way he smiles at her.
"That's amazing, Daichi! I can't believe you two are such a cute couple!"
I can't believe the words that are coming out of my mouth, but it's reality, and reality is a slap to the face. It didn't matter how much I cared for him, or how I cared for him. He was hers. I knew that, so I didn't do anything.
I left the club room walked home from school alone, wallowing in my own self-pity, or something. I decided to stop at the Sakanoshita market on my way home, just to buy myself a snack or magazine. I really just need something to do. I leaf halfheartedly through a newspaper, then decide to just leave. I sat on a bench outside the place to unravel my earbuds, which I plug into my phone and place into my ears. Finding a good playlist, I hit shuffle and let out a long and heavy sigh.
It was going to be a long week.
