Aoi's day has buzzed by somewhere lost in a flurry of sketches of Ren's fleeting visage. She had kept to herself, as always, retreating into the quiet world of her art. But with the last bell of the day finally ringing its signal to disperse, reality was beckoning her once again—Emi.
Emi, her younger sister, was almost Aoi's exact opposite in every respect. She was the one who welcomed the spotlight, who danced joyfully and invited admiration. She was a burst of energy and thunderous laughter, president of Seinen High School's student council. Everyone thought this was a crowning position for Emi since the girl naturally deserved a place there with her leadership skills and power of magnetism. She wore this title like a glove with her school uniform, always surrounded by friends, classmates, and admirers.
The moment Aoi stepped through the school gate and in the courtyard, Emi was there, standing guarding the entrance while exchanging laughter with her friends. Long swaying dark locks cast sparkle in full sunlight as her wide, warm smile radiated welcoming warmth. Because of that radiant energy, Emi was drawing in the hosting crowd, embracing every moment in it. It couldn't simply have been her beautiful visage that resembled Aoi—the charm of commanding attention with consummate ease came to her by the grace of some God.
"Hey, Aoi!" Emi waved cheerfully. Aoi managed a faint smile, although she felt very distant when hearing the greeting. Emi was always surrounded by some people, a tornado of chitchat. Aoi, for all her beauty and talent, simply could never seem to fit in there.
Aoi walked toward her sister, suppressing feelings of inadequacy that always seemed to bubble under the surface in Emi's presence. Emi was the one always shining in school and appeared to be more popular. Aoi was quite the opposite, made succinctly for time spent by herself. But regardless, she was still Emi's sister—her closest tie even if they could not figure each other out most of the time.
"You must have the worst sense of time!" Emi teased, grinning. "I've waited forever! I had to entertain all these people on my own!" She gestured to a throng of students now leaving, smiling as they drifted apart in different directions.
"Oh, I wasn't that late," Aoi protested lightly in an almost inaudible volume; "You just always finish your activities early."
"True, true," Emi replied, a mockingly exaggerated roll of her eyes. "I guess I'm too much for them to resist."
A light chuckling escaped Aoi. Nonetheless, Emi had this aura, this confidence that seemed to rub off on others. Yet Aoi knew her sister had her inner clockwork, that strength outside the radars of the majority—an artistic charm, a gift of social forays, her bond of leadership. While, on the boredom side of the room, Aoi's hands created amazing art and dreamed her way into worlds far away with just a pencil and blank paper.
"So, dear sister," said Emi, her eyes glinting with mischief, "what did you do today? Did you finally meet that mystery boy?"
Aoi flushed, quickly glancing away to the ground. Emi's teasing touch was all too close to the truth. How could she ever explain all her strange feelings regarding Ren and how his presence had lingered in her thoughts? The dream, the station meeting—all of it felt like something planted in her head from a story that drifted just out of her reach.
"Nothing happened," Aoi calmly replied, although a tremble could be detected in the trilling of her voice. "Just a normal day."
Emi arched an eyebrow, clearly not impressed. "Uh-huh, just an ordinary day with a 'mystery boy' who looks like he stepped right out of one of your sketches. Spill the beans, Aoi."
Aoi shook her head, sweeping away her hair across her forehead. She had not even told Emi about her dream. It felt too weird, unreal to explain.
"I don't think," Aoi mumbled. "There was just... an opportunity."
Emi did not say anything beyond that. She just smiled knowingly, as if already fully aware of things Aoi was less willing to tell. "Well, whatever the matter is, you know you can always count on me, right? No boy is gonna get too close to my sister."
The warmth spread through Aoi's heart at her sister's words. Despite their differences, Emi had always protected her.
"Let me tell you, you have got no reason to worry," said Aoi with a smile. "I can fend for myself."
Emi winked, her playful grin returning. "Sure, sure. Just don't come crying to me when the mystery boy starts making things complicated."
Aoi found herself smiling again, this time with somewhat more real conviction, even though it had eased her tension a bit. Emi was right—she didn't really have to tell everything. At least not now.
While walking home, Aoi felt things were starting to shift. She had no idea what Ren had to do with any of this. Certainly, she had no idea why she felt this odd connection with him. But one thing she knew for sure was that her raking reality forward was now inching up with Emi's teasing.
Whatever turned out in the situation, Aoi was sure of one thing—she would face it with Emi right beside her.