Chapter 17: The Quiet Before The Storm

The rain didn't stop.

It had been falling relentlessly for the past two days, the kind of rain that wasn't just a shower but a downpour that soaked through everything, making the streets slick and the world around me feel like it was submerged. I couldn't even remember the last time the sun had pierced through the clouds.

I walked home alone, my footsteps muffled by the constant rhythm of the rain on the pavement. My jacket was soaked through, but I didn't care. It wasn't the cold I felt; it was the weight of everything I was carrying that made my bones ache.

It wasn't supposed to be this way.

I had spent so much time convincing myself that I was fine, that the space I created for myself in high school was all I needed. I was good at blending in, at being the guy who kept his head down, didn't make waves, and let life roll on by. It worked. Or at least, I thought it did.

But now? Now everything felt like it was spinning out of control, and I didn't know how to stop it.

Chino's return had stirred up something in me—something I didn't even know was there. It wasn't just about the past. It was about how he seemed to slip back into this world like he had never left, weaving into the fabric of our school like an old, familiar thread. He wasn't just the charming, magnetic person I remembered; he was also someone I couldn't quite grasp. There was something deeper—something between us that had always been there, and now that it was in the open, I didn't know how to deal with it.

I had been avoiding him, but he was persistent. And it wasn't just him. It was the people around us, the group that had grown without him, without the weight of the past hanging over our heads.

It was impossible to ignore the undercurrent of tension, like a wire stretched too thin, ready to snap. It was only a matter of time.

I arrived home, dripping wet, but I didn't care. I was numb, my mind still racing from everything that had happened earlier. The hallway light flickered above me as I pulled my shoes off and slung my wet jacket over the chair.

I just stood there, staring at the floor, trying to collect my thoughts. I didn't want to talk about it. I didn't want to talk about Chino, about how I felt like I was drowning in memories, or how I felt like I was losing control of everything I thought I had figured out.

"I'm fine," I muttered to myself, though I knew it wasn't true.

I didn't have the energy to try and explain what I was feeling.

The next day at school was no different. The rain hadn't let up, and neither had the tension.

I walked into class late, my wet shoes squeaking against the linoleum floor, and immediately felt the eyes on me. It wasn't unusual—being late was something I did often, but today it felt like everyone was waiting for something. As if they could sense the storm that was brewing beneath the surface, even if they couldn't quite name it.

Chino was sitting in his usual spot, surrounded by a group of students who hung on to every word he said. His presence was like a magnetic field—impossible to ignore. He caught sight of me as I walked in, his eyes locking onto mine for a moment. It was brief, just a flicker of recognition, but I felt it in my chest, a sudden jolt of something I couldn't name.

The moment was over in an instant, and he turned back to his friends, continuing his conversation like nothing had happened. But I couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted, something unspoken, and it left me restless.

I took my seat near the back, trying to focus on the lesson, but it was difficult. My mind kept wandering, my thoughts drifting back to Chino, to the conversation we had that afternoon when he had asked me why I had been avoiding him.

I hadn't given him an answer, not because I didn't want to, but because I didn't know what to say. How could I explain to him that it wasn't just about him being back? It was about everything—the past, the distance, the things we had never talked about.

It wasn't just him I was avoiding. It was myself.

Lunchtime came, and I sat with Kaito and Haruka, but it was different. The silence between us felt heavier, charged with the things we didn't say. Kaito kept glancing at me, but I avoided his gaze, afraid that if I looked at him, I'd say something I didn't mean.

Haruka, as usual, was the first to speak up. "Kai, are you sure you're okay? You've been out of it lately. You're always quiet, but today it feels like you're... somewhere else."

I opened my mouth, ready to shrug it off, but then I stopped myself. Maybe it was time. Maybe I couldn't keep pretending like everything was fine.

"I'm not sure what to do anymore," I admitted, my voice low. "With Chino, with everything. I feel like I'm caught between two worlds. One where everything's fine, and I'm just going through the motions, and another where everything is... different. And I don't know how to make sense of it."

Haruka was quiet for a moment before she looked at Kaito, then back at me. "That sounds... complicated," she said softly.

Kaito leaned forward, his gaze serious. "It's not just complicated, Kai. It's unresolved. You've got all this history with Chino, all these things left unsaid. And now that he's back, it's like all of that is coming to the surface."

"I know," I said, rubbing my temples. "I just don't know how to deal with it. I don't even know if I want to deal with it."

"You're going to have to eventually," Kaito said, his tone blunt. "You can't just keep ignoring it. You've got to face it."

But what if I didn't want to? What if I liked the quiet, the peace I'd built for myself?

Haruka must have seen the conflict on my face because she placed a hand on my arm. "It's okay to not have all the answers, Kai. But don't let this... whatever it is with Chino, or whatever's been holding you back... don't let it keep you from being who you really are."

I nodded slowly, but the knot in my chest didn't loosen. If anything, it felt tighter. I knew they were right. I knew I couldn't keep running from it forever. But the thought of confronting Chino, of going back to those feelings, terrified me.

After lunch, I made my way to the rooftop, needing some space to think. The rain had stopped, but the clouds hung low in the sky, as though the storm was still waiting to happen. I sat on the edge, my legs dangling over the side as I stared out at the grey landscape of the city. The world felt muted, like everything was waiting for something.

I didn't hear him at first.

But then I felt the familiar presence beside me—Chino, standing quietly next to me, his shoes tapping lightly on the concrete.

"You're avoiding me again," he said, his voice low but without accusation.

I didn't turn to look at him, didn't even acknowledge his presence at first. The words I wanted to say were tangled, and I wasn't sure I was ready to say them yet.

"I'm not avoiding you," I said, my voice coming out more defensive than I intended.

There was a pause before he spoke again. "Then what is this? What's going on with you, Kai? We've been through this before, haven't we? You're not this distant. You've never been like this."

I finally turned to look at him, meeting his eyes. There was a softness there, a vulnerability I hadn't seen in a long time. It was the same Chino, but different. He wasn't just the carefree guy who could breeze through life. He was someone who had changed, and maybe, just maybe, I had too.

"I don't know what to do," I whispered, my voice barely audible over the wind. "I don't know how to deal with all of this."

Chino smiled faintly, his eyes never leaving mine. "You don't have to figure it all out right away. But you can't keep hiding from it either."

I swallowed hard, trying to push down the lump in my throat. "I don't know if I'm ready to face it."

He nodded, but there was a quiet understanding in his gaze. "You don't have to be ready. You just have to take the first step."

The silence stretched between us, filled with everything we hadn't said in all these years.

And in that moment, I knew that the storm wasn't just outside. It was inside me too, and it was time for me to face it.