The girl in the rain

The school day came to an end, takasaki was invited by the same group again,

Meanwhile I opted to remain in the classroom a bit longer, seeking to squeeze in some extra study time before heading home.

A few minutes after I've been sitting alone, it started to rain. " Staying was a good call " I mused to myself,

I didn't have a preferred weather in particular, but I liked rainy days slightly more, if I decided to go home earlier, and encountered the rain, I'd likely go back to school, or stay in a cafe.

As I enjoyed watching the rain from the window, a smile appeared on my face after I remembered some memories from my childhood.

I used to sit on the balcony with my mother watching raindrops while she'd be reading, and I'd be drawing in my sketchbook. It was a good time.

Now that I think about it, it's been a long time since I drew, " A year and half, huh". Time really flies.

After solving some practice papers for about an hour, I was craving some coffee so I went to grab one from the nearest vending machine.

The girl from earlier today was near the class door, her cheek looked a bit better. Was she here all the time?

The girl was looking at me, or rather staring at me as I proceeded to get the drink, which was a bit awkward.

" Do you want some? " I offered, gesturing toward the vending machine before retreating back to the classroom.

" No Thanks", she replied.

After taking a closer look at her, she looked undeniably cute, her face was beautiful, yet it looked like a little girl's, how do i describe it?innocent is a good word, but she clearly looked sad.

" Are you okay? " I asked her,

" If you're asking about that incident, then yeah I am okay", she said, I thought she was going to say something else but she didn't.

" See you later then ", I said before walking inside

" Your face", she said, her gaze searching

" My face?", I asked

" It's different, everyone had a sort of expression on their face when Nakamura was messing with me : sympathy, disgust, fear, amusement.

But yours was an exception" she said

So she could read everyone's facial expression, mine included in a matter of seconds, that's impressive.

" What were you feeling at that time?" She asked,

" Nothing in particular" I replied

" That's impossible, even if you can pull off a very good poker face, it doesn't mean that you aren't hiding an emotion behind it", she said,

She was right, I happened to witness that incident because I was curious when I heard Takasaki's name, precisely because of that dream I had,

But explaining that to her will be difficult, let alone that I don't wanna talk about it with someone else.

I didn't know how to respond so I stayed silent.

She stared at the ground for a moment then, then she looked at me and said, " your name, what is it?"

" Sato Haruka, you?"

" Naho, Mizuhara Naho ", she replied

" Nice to meet you, Mizuhara san "

" No need for formality, we're the same age", she said softly.

" You're right, I'll call you Mizuhara then " I said then went to sit at my desk.

That was a strange way to make someone's acquaintance.

I finished working, and stood next to the window looking at the scenery once more. The rain didn't seem to be stopping soon,

Thinking about it now, that girl didn't have an umbrella, would she be okay?

She was sitting near the school gate, looking at the sky.

So she hadn't left school yet, " you don't have an umbrella, do you? " I asked her,

" It's fine", she said

" You can take mine," I said, lending it to her.

" And you? We can share it, oh no that sounds wrong since it's yours and not mine, you can share it with me ", she said "That doesn't sound any better " she continued while smiling, she looked like a little dumb girl which made me laugh.

"So you do let your expressions show on your face, eh what are you laughing about? " She cried

" Nothing, you can keep the umbrella for yourself, I have a waterproof coat, I'll be fine", I told her.

That was a lie, my coat wasn't waterproof, but it'll be embarrassing to share an umbrella with a girl I just knew.

"In that case, I'll take it. I'll return the favour uhm, someday", she said

" Fine with me", I told her, then went to get my coat and leave.

I've been interacting with more people recently, since that guy joined our class, a lot has happened.

Will I experience having real friends soon? I wonder.

Walking in the rain was as satisfying as always, but I didn't want to catch a cold so I hurried up.