The morning started with an unusual buzz. Posters were going up in every hallway, painted in vibrant colors: "Spring Festival Planning Committee — Sign-Up Begins Today!"
Leo stared at the banner while sipping his warm milk tea.
"Festival, huh?" Kai leaned over his shoulder. "Sounds like a goldmine for romantic mishaps."
Leo sighed. "Can we not turn everything into a soap opera?"
"You're living in one," Kai pointed out.
Before Leo could respond, a voice called out from across the hallway.
"Leo-kun!"
It was their class rep, Ms. Nakamura, clipboard in hand and ponytail swishing.
"We need someone from our class to represent the festival committee. Would you consider joining?"
Leo blinked. "Me?"
"You're responsible, quiet, and… um, you won't slack off. Please?"
He hesitated. The idea of being in a leadership role during a massive school-wide event sounded like a nightmare.
Then Hana passed by, pausing briefly to give him a small nod.
And Yuki… well, she popped up seconds later, holding two festival flyers in hand.
"Oh! Leo! I was just looking for you! I'm thinking of joining the music performance committee—maybe we could coordinate!"
He sighed again.
"Fine," he muttered.
---
The first committee meeting was held in the multipurpose room after school. It was chaos.
Over thirty students from different year levels showed up, each with their own ideas and egos.
Leo picked a seat near the window, instinctively looking for a quiet corner. Unfortunately, fate wasn't done playing with him.
"Yo."
A familiar voice. Yuki dropped into the seat beside him, grinning.
"Didn't think I'd let you suffer alone, did you?"
He smiled faintly. "I was hoping."
From the other side of the room, Rin entered. She didn't notice him at first—but when she did, their eyes met briefly. Her expression was unreadable.
She took a seat across the room.
Leo frowned slightly. Had she been avoiding him since their last talk?
Then came Aira, late as usual, clutching a folder full of sketches. She spotted Leo, hesitated, then walked past him to sit beside Rin.
Now it was clear. Everyone was aware of the shifts.
But no one said anything.
---
They broke into smaller teams to plan different areas: food stalls, stage shows, decorations, etc.
To his surprise, Leo was assigned to the Layout & Logistics team.
Less creative, more practical.
Which was fine—until he saw who else was in it.
Rin.
And Hana.
And, just for good measure… Kai.
Leo didn't even want to ask how that happened.
"So," said the student leader, "you four will handle floor plans, space usage, and schedule coordination."
"Sounds fun," Kai said, obviously lying.
Hana calmly took a map and began drawing grid lines. "We should start by separating walkways from booths to prevent crowding."
"Agreed," Rin said curtly, pulling out a different marker.
They weren't looking at each other, but every move was subtly synchronized—as if both were fighting for the same space, metaphorically and literally.
Leo cleared his throat. "Um… maybe I can handle the schedule charting?"
"Great idea," both girls replied simultaneously.
Silence.
Kai leaned in. "We need name tags," he whispered. "This is gonna get messy."
---
Over the next few days, the group met regularly after school.
And every meeting became… tenser.
Rin spoke in clipped, professional tones. Hana responded politely, but with a quiet firmness. They never raised voices—but their eyes spoke volumes.
Leo was stuck in the middle. Literally.
When he passed documents to Rin, Hana's hand would twitch. When he discussed map placement with Hana, Rin's voice would drop a degree colder.
Kai, of course, was loving it.
"This is better than prime-time television," he muttered one afternoon.
"You're not helping," Leo said.
"I'm documenting history."
---
But it wasn't all sharp glances and tension.
One late evening, as the sun dipped beyond the gym, Hana and Leo stayed behind to finish pinning layout plans.
She handed him a thumbtack. "Hold this."
He did.
"I'm sorry if this is making things weird," Hana said softly.
Leo paused. "It's not your fault."
She looked at him. "I meant… all of this. The distance. The awkwardness. I didn't expect so many people to care about what we do."
He exhaled. "Me neither."
She hesitated. "But I still meant what I said. That day."
"I know."
She gave him a small smile. "That's enough for now."
---
The next day, Rin handed Leo a perfectly formatted schedule draft. She didn't say anything. Just placed it on his desk and walked off.
But scrawled in the margin was a tiny line: "We haven't talked. Maybe we should."
Leo stared at it for a long time.
Too many people were waiting for him to say something.
But he still didn't know what he wanted to say.