High school was as boring as ever.

  Same halls. Same noise. Same people pretending they cared about things that wouldn’t matter in a year. I minded my business like I always did, slipped through the day without drawing attention.

  That part was easy.

  Classes passed without anything worth remembering. I took notes when I had to, answered when called on, and kept my head down. No magic. No pressure. No trouble.

  At lunch, I went to my usual spot on the roof.

  Quiet. Out of the way. A place no one bothered me, and I didn’t bother anyone back. I leaned against the fence, staring at the sky while I ate, letting time move at its own pace.

  Normal.

  Too normal to question.

  If I stayed here long enough, would the other world forget me?

  The thought didn’t linger.

  The day ended without incident. No strange looks. No headaches. No pressure behind my eyes. Just the slow shuffle of students heading home, complaining about exams and weather and things that mattered to them.

  I walked back alone.

  The house looked the same as it always did. Lights on. Curtains open. Safe.

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  Inside, the smell of cooking greeted me immediately.

  “Welcome back,” my mother called from the kitchen. “You’re late.”

  “School,” I replied automatically, kicking off my shoes.

  I paused.

  There was another presence in the house.

  Not threatening. Not loud. Just… familiar.

  Too familiar.

  “She stopped by earlier,” my mother continued. “A friend of yours.”

  My stomach sank.

  Friend.

  “She said she’d wait,” she added, cheerful. “Very polite girl.”

  I didn’t answer. I just walked forward.

  The living room was exactly as I’d left it that morning.

  Except for Akari.

  She sat on the couch like she belonged there, hands folded neatly in her lap. Same posture. Same calm expression. Same eyes that had seen too much and remembered everything.

  She looked up when she heard me.

  “Miro,” she said gently. “You’re home.”

  The world tilted.

  “How…?” I started, then stopped. There were too many questions. None of them safe to ask here.

  My mother peeked in from the kitchen, smiling. “She’s lovely. Why didn’t you tell me you had such a caring friend?”

  Akari smiled back at her. Warm. Harmless. Perfect.

  “I was worried,” Akari said. “You disappeared.”

  My mouth felt dry.

  “I didn’t,” I said carefully. “I came home.”

  She tilted her head slightly, eyes never leaving mine.

  “I know.”

  That was worse.

  My mother clapped her hands once. “I’ll give you two some space. Dinner will be ready soon.”

  She disappeared back into the kitchen, humming.

  The door clicked softly as the hallway settled into silence.

  Akari stood.

  She took a step toward me.

  “I found you,” she said quietly. Not proud. Not angry. Just stating a fact.

  I swallowed.

  “…How did you get here?”

  She looked genuinely surprised by the question.

  “You came here,” she replied. “So I followed.”

  No portals. No explanations. No hesitation.

  Just inevitability.

  She stopped a few feet away, close enough that I could see the exhaustion she was trying to hide.

  “You didn’t say goodbye,” she added.

  I exhaled slowly.

  She stood there, proof that this world wasn’t as closed as I thought.

  And if she had found a way in…

  I wondered if others...

  I stopped myself.

  Some questions weren’t safe to finish.