The war had truly begun.
And still, the cafeteria didn't stop.
People laughed.
Someone spilled a drink.
A group of first–years were arguing about something stupid near the windows. The world kept moving like nothing had happened, like six people at one small table hadn't just been pulled into something that would never let them go.
Kai was still sitting there.
His chest felt tight, like he was breathing through cloth. Too many eyes. Too many expectations. Ayko hadn't lifted her head. Sora was frozen beside her. Mira stared at the table. Rin watched him like she was waiting for a mistake.
And Eloine… Eloine was calm.
Almost gentle.
Joro exhaled slowly. "Man… this feels illegal."
No one reacted.
Kai pushed his chair back. "I'm leaving."
He didn't wait for permission.
The hallway outside felt cooler, quieter. He leaned against the wall, rubbing his temples.
Joro followed a second later. "You good?"
"No," Kai said honestly.
Joro nodded. "Fair."
Kai looked up at the ceiling. "Why does everyone suddenly want something from me?"
Joro shrugged. "Because you don't belong to anyone… and that makes people crazy."
The bell rang.
Class.
They walked back together.
Kai sat somewhere different than usual. Not beside Ayko. Not beside Mira. Just… wherever there was space.
A girl turned to him. "Hey, can you help me with this?"
"Sure."
They talked. Then another joined. Kai answered. Smiled. Joked.
It wasn't hard.
He wasn't awkward.
He wasn't bad at this.
He'd just never bothered before.
Eloine watched from her desk.
Ayko saw everything.
Mira stayed quiet.
Joro noticed it all.
Over the day, Kai kept doing it.
Group projects.
Random conversations.
Girls asking him things he could have answered months ago but never did.
He stayed.
He talked.
He laughed.
It was easier than sitting with the weight of that table.
That night, sleep took Kai slowly.
Not in the usual way, where voices dragged him down into half–dreams, half–noise —
but gently.
The blue returned.
Endless and quiet, like the sky after rain.
He stood there again, heart strangely calm, even though he didn't know where he was. And she was there — closer now. Her presence didn't overwhelm him. It didn't hurt. It just… settled into him.
For the first time in a long while, Kai didn't hear a single thought.
Only feeling.
Loneliness.
Warmth.
A soft ache that felt like being remembered.
"I can feel you," she whispered, and the words didn't echo — they sank.
When he reached out, his fingers passed through nothing but light.
Kai woke up with his heart beating fast, but not from fear.
From longing.
The next morning was Sunday.
Rain tapped softly against his window. The house was quiet. Sora was still asleep, and for once, the world felt slow enough for him to think.
He called Joro.
"Come over."
Joro arrived an hour later, still half asleep, hoodie pulled over his head. "You sound serious," he said. "That's terrifying."
Kai handed him a drink and sat across from him.
"I keep dreaming about someone," Kai said. "Not like a normal dream. It feels… real."
Joro didn't joke this time. "What's she like?"
"I can't hear her," Kai whispered. "Not her thoughts. Not her mind. But I feel her. Like she's touching my heart without being here."
Joro watched him quietly.
"When I'm with her," Kai continued, "everything goes quiet. No voices. No pressure. Just… blue."
Joro swallowed. "That doesn't sound like a normal dream, man."
"I know."
Kai looked down at his hands. "I think she's important. I just don't know why."
Joro smiled faintly. "Then you'll find out."
And somewhere, in a place far from noise and war, a calm blue soul felt his heart beating… and knew he was looking for her.