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Nori had dreaded this day. He still only had a vague idea of what he wanted to study in college. He was constantly worried that he wouldn’t make it or that he’d mess up. Even Shirasu’s reassurances weren’t helping in the slightest and that was when Nori knew he was struggling.
It was probably because Nori hadn’t been completely truthful with his friend about why he was worried. Yes, the future terrified him but that wasn’t why he dreaded graduation day.
He was afraid of being left behind - of being forgotten. Nori didn’t want to lose all of his friends he’d made in high school. He’d tried to stay optimistic, but the last few weeks he had already begun to feel the distance between himself and a few others.
It scared him to know that the rift would just continue to grow moving forward as they all found their paths in life.
His shoulders sagged. Nori missed his friends already.
“Hey, Nori,” an all too familiar voice said beside him. Nori straightened slightly as he turned toward Kazuya. “Are you okay?”
Nori looked around at all their friends and felt the ache of loneliness in his chest. “Fine,” he lied.
Kazuya hummed. The sounds of his friends’ laughter and voices around him made Nori want to cry. “You know,” Kazuya began after a moment, “this isn’t goodbye.”
Nori tensed when Kazuya’s hand found purchase on his shoulder. The squeeze of Kazuya’s hand was comforting. It was something solid to focus on when the world around Nori felt like it was crumbling.
“The important ones are going to stick around,” Kazuya added. Nori wondered when Kazuya had learned to read him so well.
“And you, Kazuya?” Nori asked before he could stop himself, but he wondered if Kazuya included himself in that statement. Would he be one of the important ones moving forward?
Kazuya’s hand slid until it cupped the back of Nori’s neck. Fingers gently kneaded the stiff muscles there and Nori’s body unwound.
A small smile lifted the corners of Kazuya’s lips. “Let’s meet again, Nori.”
“Yeah,” Nori said with a breath of relief, returning Kazuya’s smile. It’s a promise, he thought. Perhaps the future wouldn’t be as terrible as he thought.