Nishita ended up going to the school nurse from her breakdown, which, while Asahi expected her to react negatively, was a rather strong reaction to what he had in mind.

After the end of the lesson, he went to check on her to see how she was doing.

"Hey, Nishita? Are you in?"

"Y-Yeah…"

He walked into the nurses office. She didn't seem to be in.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"I think so…"

"Do you… want to talk about it?"

He spoke in a wispy, calming tone.

"I-I don't know…"

"It was so surprising to see you like that. The contrast between your normal, confident self and to your state before… whatever happened must have really hurt…"

What an empathetic boy.

"Yeah, but everyone has their struggles, right?"

Her comment was slightly bizarre, considering her complete disregard for asthmatics in her scene before.

"I… I think I'll tell you…"

"Hey, take your time, I'm always ready to listen,"

"It's going to be quite long, I think…"

"Go ahead, I'm not exactly going anywhere,"

"Alright."

Nishita was the daughter of an aristocrat, and while she was brought up in a wealthy household, she still maintained modesty. She recognised the struggles of others, and understood that she was fortunate to be living the way she was. She was, however, very lonely, and as a toddler, she used to roam around her mansion often. There she met the gardener's son, who was blowing on some dandelions.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"Here, have a go!"

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The two kids spent their day aimlessly running around and playing in the grass, enjoying their youths. It was the first time that Nishita had ever had so much fun with anyone. Since that day, they were the closest of friends.

When it was time for the 2 children to head off to school, they were placed in the same class. This only fortified their friendship, as they fought against bullies, teachers, and homework together. That is, until the sixth grade.

"H-Hey, Nishita…"

She turned around, innocently.

"Hey, what's up!"

"I… I think I like you."

The air was cold for a few minutes. Nishita found comfort in him, but she never saw him in that way. She could feel their years of friendship straining the tension between them. "What a stupid thing to say!", she thought to herself.

"I-I'm sorry… I don't see you that way…. But we can still be friends, right?"

Her voice clammed up. She knew that their relationship wouldn't be the same after this development, but she had no choice. She had to keep her one and only friend beside her. He was the only thing keeping her from being a depressed, lonely, bullied child. "I wish I loved him…", she mourned.

"What do you mean?! How can you not like me! We've been friends for ages!"

"I-I just don't see you that way!"

"What the you mean!"

He tensed up. His eyes burned red, and tears rolled down his face.

"Please… can you just hug me…"

"N-No! I don't want to lead you on!"

"Just let me HUG YOU!"

The boy pounced on her and embraced her. She couldn't do anything. She had never been afraid of anyone before, but the complete immobilisation of her limbs struck fear. She had never been rendered immovable before. She was vulnerable - susceptible to anything he wanted to do.

"I-I'm scared…. Please stop…"

Her timid whispers reached him, and he stopped. He felt bad, and tried his best to apologise. When he brought his hand near to her, he could see her twitch. He ran off, Crying.

"And that's the last time I ever interacted with him, Asahi."

Asahi noticed her damp eyes, and handed her a cloth.

"I know it's not that sever, but I'd never felt so… powerless before,"

"Yeah, I understand."

"I guess that's why I've become so distant to my surroundings. I know that I'm weak, so I have to do my best to appear strong."

"Is that why you try to live life recklessly?"

"… I guess."

They sat in the room for a little longer. Nishita lay limp on her bedside, thinking about her past.

I was correct. Of course I was. But this doesn't really hello with anything, does it? I'm procrastinating. Again. I really need to fix that habit. It's getting extremely annoying.

"Hey, Nishita?"

There was no response. She had fallen to sleep.

"I guess it's time to head out then."

Asahi left the room, rather disappointed.