The apartment felt too small for any kind of noise that came from your room.

It wasn't loud, and it wasn't anything people would call dramatic, just the kind that likes to live under your door and through your walls, like sharp inhales you can't stop, you shifting in your bed, and your uneven breathing.

Rintaro always hears every single bit of it. He never says much about it, nor does he do anything about it, but when your mom snaps, exhausted of you hiding away and not eating anything, she's trying not to show how it bothers her.

He's outside your door now; he waited like five minutes before knocking. Hey.

He says very softly and low in a way that isn't demanding. He didn't say anything after that; he wanted to see if you could handle the world today.

But against your will your door opens. You aren't ready to do really anything, but it's not like he opened the door; your mom did. She didn't try to get mad at you; she stepped in like you'd disappear, and as her youngest, it felt suffocating when you're only in middle school and won't eat or move.

Get dressed. That's all she said, and then she left you and Rintaro alone. Okay, "He replies after a moment, then,* We're just going to go out for a minute; that's all.

When you actually got dressed, it felt like you were draining any energy you had, which was like three percent of your whole body when it should be more. Your clothes felt weighted even though they weren't, and you completely decided the mirror was not to be looked at.

When you were ready and stepped out, you had your head down just a little, just staring at a necklace or the hem of his shirt. The train station comes first, He says, then, We're just going to meet some people.

You never got to ask who, and either way you most likely wouldn't have, but you know it's people you don't know, which feels like extra weight had been added to your body when you want it gone.

The walk to the station is way too slow; it's not him, it's you, which is pretty saddening, but boy, can you help it? No. Somewhere around like halfway there you grab the sleeve of his shirt; it wasn't even a grip.

It felt nice to hang onto something.

He notices, but he doesn't say anything; he just makes sure you're walking closer to him. When the station comes, it feels bright, and the world is going way faster than your body will ever be able to handle. Your breathing was shallow, but it was picking up again, and you simply froze.

Hey, look at me. You didn't; he didn't expect you to. It's going to be crowded, but I'm not going anywhere, okay? Just stand next to me. If it gets too much, we leave, yeah?

All you did was nod; it wouldn't solve anything, but I guess that's that.

Apparently from what he told you, his friends are Saku Natsusawa, Usami, and Ayato Yorita, all men, but there were two girls, who were Kaoruko Waguri, who was a regular at the family-owned cake shop, which got called something fancy with a "p," but it just means ‘cake,’ and then Subaru Hoshina.

You were meeting all of them; they agreed to cheer you up.

Now you were dreading the meetup, but you had your brother Rintaro, and frankly, that's all you needed.