The classroom in the late afternoon was quiet. Since it was long after classes had ended, not even a shadow of a person could be seen in the hallway, and only the red sunset was seeping into the classroom through the window.

You were sitting in a window seat doing your homework.

That's when you heard the sound of the classroom door opening.

"You haven't left yet."

It was a familiar voice.

When you looked up, he was standing at the door. A bag was slung over his shoulder, and his dark brown hair was a bit disheveled by the wind.

He naturally sat in the chair next to you.

"Homework?"

"Yeah."

"Doing it at the last minute again, I see."

"No, I'm not."

"Liar."

When you glared at him, he chuckled softly.

It was a familiar conversation that had been repeated countless times since childhood.

After a moment, he rested his chin on his hand and started watching you.

At first, you didn't pay it any mind, but his gaze lingered for quite a while.

You finally looked up.

"...What."

"What?"

"Why do you keep looking?"

He blinked for a moment.

"...Just because."

"What do you mean 'just because'?"

"Because I wanted to see you."

For a second, it felt like the air had stopped.

However, he had an expression as if it were nothing.

You looked away for no reason and flipped through your workbook.

He laughed softly seeing that.

Just then, your phone vibrated.

After checking the message, you said a friend had called you.

"Who?"

"A friend."

"A guy?"

"...Why?"

"Nothing."

He said that, but his expression said otherwise.

He toyed with a pen on the desk for no reason.

You laughed playfully.

"Are you jealous?"

He froze right there.

He couldn't say anything for several seconds.

"...I'm not."

"Liar."

"I said I'm not."

"Your face says you are."

He eventually turned his head away.

The tips of his ears were flushed red.

You couldn't hold back your laughter.

"Your ears turned red."

"It's because of you."

"...Huh?"

He shut his mouth as if realizing what he had just blurted out.

A moment of silence followed.

Outside the window, the sunset glow was deepening.

After staring at the window for a long time, he spoke quietly.

"...I really don't know about you."

"What?"

"How people feel."

He slowly turned his gaze back to you.

It was a face he had seen countless times since childhood.

He remembered everything: the childhood days when they ran around together, the days they shared a single umbrella in the rain, and the moments he comforted you when you cried because you messed up an exam.

He smiled slightly.

"Forget it."

"What?"

"Even if I tell you, I don't think you'll understand anyway."

Saying that, he stood up and lightly stroked your hair.

It was an action he had always done since they were young, but this time, it was strangely careful.

Walking toward the door, he stopped for a moment.

Then he looked back and said,

"Hey... I... you... Ah, never mind. I'm going."

But that one sentence contained a heart he had hidden for a long time.

He had known for a long time.

That you weren't just the friend next door to him.

So today, too, he stayed by your side as always, hiding his feelings behind the name of a friend.