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Nico sat down on her armchair, holding a cup of hot chocolate in her hands while taking a look around the apartment she was living in, the darkness taking over her surroundings.
For the past two years, she had been living all by herself, near the university she studied in. At first she didn't want to leave her old home, but her mother had convinced her to by assuring her that everything was going to be alright. With a newfound job during the weekends and an apartment, she had begun her new life, surrounded by nothing but studies and loneliness.
Of course she visited her family often in Akihabara, and she had texted everyone her new address, but that was about it. She met up with Nozomi and Eli every once in a while, their old group still kept in touch with her through instant messaging applications, yet she hadn't seen any of the other six anymore ever since she graduated from Otonokizaka and moved.
'Understandable.' she thought, leaning back in her seat and sipping from her cup. 'We don't live close anymore.'
No matter how hard she tried for the first few months in her new university, she hadn't been able to make any new friends. They were all too different from her, coming from rich or respected families; they had way more freetime than her, as none of the people in her classes felt the need to look for a job and already had their own friends.
There was no need for her to join any new group of friends, no matter how many times she crossed paths with them: she just wasn't interested anymore.
She was content by just being able to text with the others in Otonokizaka; that's what she told herself multiple times, until she started to believe in her own words.
Nico, eventually, got used to her loneliness. Whenever she walked back inside of her cold, small and dark apartment, she closed her eyes and smiled, all her previous troubles and issues leaving her mind free and making her relax. She actually found some kind of comfort in her own loneliness.
Or that's what she thought.
While it was true for most of the year around, she still had troubles getting used to being all by herself during her birthday. During her first year, she had spent the whole day with her family and friends, only leaving the morning after. However that time she hadn't been able to leave, being held back by her classes instead.
She sighed, glancing outside of the window while gripping the cup with both of her hands tightly.
The Moon shining brightly in the night sky certainly did not help her melancholic thoughts.
Her mind travelled all the way back to when she used to sing and dance with everyone, specifically the night before their last live show. They all ended up watching the night sky together with a warm smile on their faces, worries and anxiety disappearing in a single instant.
She remembered often staying awake just to look at the stars with her father, when he was still alive, or with her mother and siblings.
Those were memories Nico treasured more than anything else, and yet she was slowly losing all of them, one by one. The people she used to know, the things she did with them... eventually, they were all bound to drift apart, especially because of their different dreams and paths.
No matter how many times she'd tell herself that it would be fine, that nothing was going to change, Nico couldn't believe her words anymore. She couldn't get the things her old friends said out of her mind, even though she tried, over and over again.
Eli and Kotori both decided to move overseas as soon as possible, Nozomi was going back to her parents, Honoka and Umi were busy on their own, while Maki, Rin and Hanayo were still in school.
But they too would leave her behind in less than a year.
One could argue that Nico was the one to leave them behind when she moved away from them, but that couldn't be further away from the truth. Her hopes and dreams were just too different from theirs, and even though she tried her best to keep in touch with them, it was getting more difficult as time went by.
She took her phone and glanced at all the 'Happy Birthday' messages she had received from the eight of them and her family, a couple of tears escaping her eyes and trailing down her cheeks, a sad smile forming on her lips. Nico had thanked them as normally as she could, but she had wanted to tell them so much more than just a simple 'Thank you'.
"I love you guys." she talked to no one, gripping both her phone and the cup, the heat from the chocolate having long disappeared already. "I'm sorry for not being there."
Somehow, the night always helped her calm down, and perhaps she hoped that it would give give her the strength to keep going on that day, too.
Even though it wasn't quite working for the time being, she had still a small ray of hope. The night was still young, either way, there was still time for her to get over it.
Placing both her phone and the cup down on the coffee table in front of her, she held her legs close to her chest and buried her face in it, no longer able to hold the tears back.
Yet her sobs went unheard, once again, echoing through the dark apartment with no one else inside but her and her only companion: the solitude.
Nico didn't know for how long she cried, but at some point she must have fallen asleep for what felt like a whole month; only to realise that it had been barely half an hour since she last checked her phone.
It was close to midnight now: she wasted yet another evening crying by herself, the only light in her apartment being the Moonlight.
She stood up, leaving her phone and the cup on the table. It wasn't like anyone was going to call her this late anyways, and she didn't feel like finishing the cold drink anymore.
The walk to her bedroom seemed to take forever, each step becoming heavier and heavier as she slowly had to lean against the wall to support herself, her whole body feeling completely numb.
Right before she could open the door to her room, however, she heard an unfamiliar sound coming from the front door, making her realise that she hadn't heard the sound of her own doorbell for a couple of months anymore.
The last people to visit her were Nozomi and Eli, after all, but nowadays they didn't have the time for it anymore. Nico had started to believe that she was never going to hear that ever again, and when she stopped her movements and waited to hear the doorbell ring again, Nico almost thought that it must have been nothing but a trick of her mind.
After all, it was late in the night, and who would even think of visiting her?
She was proven wrong once she heard it again, so she decided to approach the door, gulping while reaching out for the doorknob, standing still once again and debating whether to open it or not.
The doorbell rung a third time.
Nico gathered the courage she needed and swung the door open, only to have someone shove flowers in her face.
"Wha-"
"Happy Birthday, Nico."
Her eyes widened once she heard the familiar voice, one of her hands taking the bouquet as she stared in disbelief at the figure standing in front of her. "... Umi?"
Umi smiled slightly and nodded, placing a bag with a cake and a small box onto the ground. "I apologise, I was planning to visit you earlier but my workplace called me last minute. I finished just a couple of minutes ago."
Nico was confused. Workplace? Umi? That made no sense to her at all. Wasn't Umi supposed to help out her family with their own Dojo? What was she doing here?
The younger girl sensed the other's confusion and stood upright again, brushing a strand of her hair away from her face. "I decided to go to an University." she explained, "And I thought I'd keep you company. I am still settling in, but..."
She didn't get to finish her sentence as Nico immediately embraced her, burying her face in her shoulder. Umi, although taken off guard, returned the embrace and rubbed her back gently. "I'm sorry for not telling you earlier. I missed you, Nico."
"I missed you too, Umi."
The two parted and exchanged a smile, once again the tears falling onto Nico's cheeks.
Yet she didn't care anymore, because the smile on her lips was a genuine one; a smile she hadn't been able to do for a while anymore.
It was the most beautiful and radiant smile Umi had ever seen.