"Do you think we got enough?" Hiromasa asked, heading down the dimly lit platform towards the underground train stop.

"Obviously." I held up the two plastic bags stuffed to the brim with snacks and candy. "You know you're only staying for one night, right?"

"I can't help that I have a big appetite," he said.

We stopped to wait for the train. There were only a few people waiting, but I suppose it was pretty late at night. You wouldn't usually catch two thirteen year-old boys out this late by themselves, but snack runs are important business.

"Remind me again why we had to get on a train for snacks in the first place?" I asked.

 He set his two bags down, then pulled out a red bag of potato chips and held it up. "Because they don't have the pizza flavored ones near your house."

"That's probably because they're disgusting," I said.

Hiromasa gasped and hugged the chip bag to his chest. "How dare you say that about them." He gave the bag a kiss and stroked it. "It's ok my lovelies. Don't listen to him."

I chuckled.

Shiganori Hiromasa. We had been best friends since kindergarten. He had always been a goofy guy with messy hair and a cheesy smile. I'm not really sure why he picked me as his playmate. He was friendly and nice to everyone, so he could have chosen to play with anyone, but for some reason he picked me, the quiet kid sitting alone in the corner.

We had always been nearly identical in build and size, but his hair had always been a lot thicker than mine. Plus, I don’t think I could mimic that grin of his if I tried. 

We were getting ready to start yet another sleepover. This was probably the fourteenth one this summer already. They usually took place at my house. My parents worked a lot, so there was no one there to tell us to keep it down, when to go to sleep, or to lay off the junk food.

"Hey, Kaito." Hiromasa tapped my shoulder and pointed.

I followed his finger to a girl with long black hair standing only a few feet away from the edge of the platform. She looked about our age, but I couldn't see her face. Her feet inched over the yellow line on the floor. Why was she getting so close?

"She's got really pretty hair," Hiromasa said. "I wonder if she's got a pretty face too."

He bent his neck a little and leaned forward, as if that was going to give him a vantage point at all. The train rattled in the distance and the girl's fists tightened. It clicked in my head all of the sudden, like someone turning on a light. She was going to jump.

 I dropped the bags and dashed towards her. It was like one of those dreams where you're trying so hard to run, but you hardly get anywhere, like you're stuck in mud. Time seemed to slow down. The seconds it took to reach her seemed to stretch on for hours. All I could hear was my own heart hammering away in my ears while I held my breath, praying I’d make it in time.

Her body tensed as she prepared to jump. I grabbed her arm, pulling her back just as the train went speeding past.

It slowed to a stop and the doors opened. People got in, I guess. I wasn't really paying attention. I couldn't tear my gaze away from the girl's eyes. She was staring so intently back at me. I expected her to be crying, but she wasn't. Her eyes were perfectly clear and focused. For just a second, I felt like I saw her, really saw her. There was so much loneliness and rejection hidden behind her gaze. I'd seen those eyes before. I’d seen them every morning in the mirror for as far back as I could remember.

Hiromasa cheered and slapped me on the back. "Nice save. That was a close one."

I didn't answer him.

"You can probably let go of her arm now," he said.

I snatched my hand back. "Right. Sorry. Are you alright?”

She nodded, not breaking her gaze with me. “I must have tripped.”

That was wrong. I knew I wasn’t imagining things. She didn’t simply lose her balance. I was sure of that. Was she embarrassed or did she simply want to avoid answering questions?

 The doors closed and the train went speeding off.

Hiromasa groaned. "Now we have to wait again."

Did he not realize what almost happened? Maybe it was just easier to accept a convenient lie over the truth.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"Higoshi Saki," she answered softly.

I forced myself to finally tear my gaze away from hers. "Do you live around here?"

She nodded.

"Do you want us to walk you home?" I asked.

She looked down and shook her head.

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 I was out of my depth. Maybe I should’ve found a police officer. I was sure she shouldn’t be left alone, but they probably would’ve just called her parents and taken her home anyway. There was only one alternative I could think of.

"Do you want to come home with us?" I blurted out without taking time to consider how completely inappropriate it sounded.

She looked up and nodded slowly.

Hiromasa gasped and squealed. "We get to have a girl at the sleepover."

I shook my head. That guy has always been bad at keeping his cool.

"I'm Nagase Kaito, by the way." I pointed to Hiromasa. "That's Shiganori Hiromasa."

"Nice to meet you." He grinned.

She nodded.

I wondered if she was always this quiet or it was simply her reaction to the current situation.

I walked over and gathered up the bags I dropped. Then the three of us stood waiting for the next train. No one said anything. Hiromasa was usually pretty outgoing and chatty, but I think she was probably making him nervous. It was an awkward train ride too. The walk to my house from the station was equally as quiet. It was starting to seem like this had been a bad idea after all.

Should I insist that she went home? Her parents might be worried. But what if they were the reason she was out there so late trying to step out in front of trains?

I unlocked the door and we all went in. We took off our shoes and ascended the stairs to my room. I opened the door and we all went inside. Hiromasa and I set our bags down against the wall. Saki looked around, but didn't move far from the entrance. The room was pretty standard with all the usual stuff: A bed, desk, bookshelf, rug, TV. Still, she looked intrigued. Even though I had a bed, Hiromasa and I always laid out futons in front of the TV.

"You can make yourself comfortable," I said. "I have another futon in the hall closet. Hold on."

When I returned with the futon and extra blanket, Hiromasa and Saki were still standing awkwardly near the doorway.

 I sighed. This was going to be a long night.

I kneeled down and started to unroll the futon.

"What do you think you're doing?" Hiromasa asked.

"What?" I looked up at him.

"Why should you get to sleep next to her?"

I sighed. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about you putting her over here." He pointed to the space next to his futon.

"What makes you so special?" I asked.

He got down and crawled over to me.

"I saw her first," he said quietly.

"Well, I'm the one who saved her," I sneered.

"Fine," Hiromasa growled. "I'll play you rock, paper, scissors for it."

He held out a fist. I nodded and held out mine. We chanted the song and held out our hands, both choosing paper. We tried again. I held out rock and he picked scissors.

"Ha! I win." I grinned.

"No way," he said. "Best two out of three."

I laughed. "Yeah right."

"Those are the rules," he said. "When have we ever played with only one win?"

I rolled my eyes. "You're just making stuff up."

"I am not!"

"Excuse me," Saki said quietly from the doorway.

We both looked over at her.

"I could just sleep in the middle," she said, squeezing her arm.

A problem solver and a mediator. I liked her already. I slid my futon over and put hers in the middle. Hiromasa moved back and sat on his futon, tapping Saki's with a grin. She smiled and walked over slowly, then sat down with her legs hugged into her chest. It got quiet again.

"Do you like video games?" I asked finally.

She shrugged.

"Never played before?" I asked.

She shook her head. I leaned over to switch on the TV and load up a game. I passed a controller to Hiromasa and grabbed one of my own.

"This one is a fighting game. It's pretty easy. You just have to press buttons and drain the other person's health bar." I sat back on my futon. "You watch me for the first match and then you can try."

"Yeah, watch him if you want to watch someone lose," Hiromasa scoffed.

"Oh please," I said. "When have you ever won?"

"I win lots," he insisted.

"Whatever," I said.

We played the match and I kicked Hiromasa's ass, naturally.

"Lucky," Hiromasa said, after it was over.

I rolled my eyes and handed the controller to Saki. "You get it now, right?"

She nodded.

Hiromasa and Saki started the match. She actually wasn't doing that bad for someone who had never played before, but Hiromasa overwhelmed her in the first round.

"Hey, Higoshi." I gestured at her to come closer.

She leaned in and I whispered a simple combo in her ear.

"What are you two whispering about over there?" Hiromasa asked.

The round started and Saki used the combo I taught her over and over without mercy. Hiromasa groaned when he lost. I whispered another combo in Saki's ear and she used it to win the match.

Hiromasa threw the controller down. "You're cheating!"

"I am not. That's how you're supposed to play," I said.

"What would you know?" he asked, leaning over to me.

"I know it works every time against your stupid button mashing," I said, bringing my face up to his.

"Screw you, asshole!" he shouted.

Saki started cracking up behind us. We looked over at her. She put her hand over her mouth, but couldn't stop laughing.

Hiromasa sat back and clicked his tongue. "Well, I guess as long as she's having fun."

Saki's laugh trailed off. "Don't feel bad. I only won because of Nagase's combos."

I think that was only her second full sentence of the night.

"Well, whatever." Hiromasa said and sighed. "I still can't believe I lost to a girl."

Saki and I cracked up.

"She's never even played before," I said.

Saki and I laughed harder.

"Screw you guys!" Hiromasa folded his arms.

His attitude only made us laugh more. Hiromasa sighed and pulled one of the plastic bags filled with snacks towards him. He took out his pizza potato chips and popped them open.

"Higoshi, do you like pizza flavor?" he asked, holding the bag out to her.

She nodded and took one. "Thank you."

He stuck his tongue out at me and I rolled my eyes.  

We spent the rest of the night playing video games and eating snacks. I switched the fighting game out for a racing one at some point. I didn't want to give her anything too complicated. She wasn't exactly talkative, but at least it wasn't all head gestures like before. We played and ate until we couldn't stop yawning and our eyes got heavy. Eventually, we settled into our futons without even bothering to get changed or brush our teeth.

In the morning, when I woke up, Higoshi was gone. She left a note on her futon that said, "Thanks for everything." It was signed it with a smiley face. We didn't see her after that.

For the next few months, when we got to the train station, my eyes would search for her, but she never showed up. I really hoped she was fine, that maybe that night made some sort of difference to her and she wouldn't try to do anything terrible to herself again. I never got a chance to ask her why someone so young felt like there was no way out, no one to turn to. I didn’t bring up her suicide attempt to Hiromasa or anyone else. If anyone did take it seriously, she would probably just deny it like she had that first night.

For reasons I couldn’t explain, I found myself thinking about her long after she’d disappeared. We’d only spent a few hours together, but I’d never felt such an instant connection with anyone, not even Hiromasa.

Every wish I ever made for the next three years, whether it was on birthday candles, a shooting star, or at a shrine, went exactly the same: Higoshi Saki, wherever you are, I hope you’re safe and happy.