Prologue

It's not hard to grow attached to something.

An object, a place, a person. It's only natural to feel a connection so deeply that you feel as if you can't live without it. You feel as if you can't breathe. You yearn for it. It feels as if someone has taken a knife and stabbed you through the heart.

That's how I feel about him. Satoru Yamada. I've been in love with him for the past two years of high school. My feelings for him didn't develop this quickly. They just sparked one day. It was back at the beginning of eleventh grade when I first saw him sitting in front of me in homeroom. There was something about the way he talked and the way his nose wrinkled whenever he would smile. I fell for him that day and I don't know why.

My best friend Hayashi Sora didn't understand my interest in Yamada. He would tell me that I probably only liked Yamada because of how popular he was. Honestly, I didn't care that he was popular. I liked the quiet side of him that I'd see in class, the way his eyebrows furrowed when he'd listen to the teacher's lesson. The way his hair looked so soft and carefully taken care of.

When I told Sora this, he figured it was something I'd get over eventually. But that never happened. Even now, in my last year of high school, I still have the same strong feelings for Yamada. It's always bothered me how close I was to Yamada yet we were part of two different worlds.

I'm not popular and don't have a huge friend group, just Sora. We've been best friends since primary school. We lived across from each other and still do. When I first met him it was in my mother's flower garden on a particularly sunny day.

It was the month of August and I had just finished eating some fruits that my dad bought at the market.

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"Haruka be more careful! You're making a mess!"

Mom said as she frantically wiped the juice that dripped from the strawberries I had been eating off the table.

Dad laughed, "Our Haruka sure knows how to eat! I know you're going to grow up to be a strong woman!" He says flexing his biceps.

I smiled as I ate the last of the fresh strawberries and happily skipped outside to finish playing with my dolls that were set up on a picnic blanket.

As I was skipping outside I saw a small figure hunched over the tulips in my mom's garden.

"Hey!" I said running over to investigate. The small figure popped his head up. "I think flowers are pretty cool," the boy said. I glared at him for a few moments before crouching down next to him in front of the tulips.

"Me too," I say with a small smile. "Do you live around here?"

The boy nods and points to the house across the street from mine. "We just moved here- I'm Hayashi Sora," He says. "Ishizaki Haruka," I say. "Can I call you Sora?" I ask leaning over him with a smile. His face slightly turned red. "Only if you let me call you Haruka," He says.

I nod and he asked me to be his friend. We pinkie promised and have kept true to our promise of being friends ever since.