After the chaotic morning, Ryo was desperate for some peace and quiet. He found a spot on the school's rooftop during lunch, hoping to avoid any more "incidents" with the girls.
For a while, it seemed to work. The breeze was nice, the view was calming, and Ryo was starting to feel like he could breathe again.
But, of course, his moment of peace didn't last long.
He heard the door to the rooftop creak open, and when he turned around, he saw Mei standing there, her hands tucked into the pockets of her school uniform. She didn't say anything at first, just walked over to where he was sitting and sat down next to him.
Ryo blinked in surprise. "Uh, hey."
Mei glanced at him briefly before looking out over the courtyard. "You don't have to avoid us, you know."
Ryo frowned. "I'm not avoiding anyone."
"You are," Mei said quietly. "You don't know how to handle it, do you?"
Ryo opened his mouth to argue, but he stopped himself. She was right. He *didn't* know how to handle it. The attention, the teasing, the confusing signals—it was all too much for him, and he had no idea how to make it stop.
"I just don't want things to get weird," Ryo admitted, his voice barely above a whisper.
Mei was silent for a moment before she spoke again. "Things are already weird. But that doesn't mean you have to run away from it."
Ryo wasn't sure how to respond to that. Mei's calm, straightforward approach was different from Hana's bubbly enthusiasm or Saki's playful teasing. It was… grounding, in a way.
They sat in silence for a while, the breeze ruffling their hair as they both stared out at the school grounds below. For the first time in a long time, Ryo felt like he could relax, even if only for a moment.