Hina's hair was a little messy, her eyes glossy with tears, cheeks flushed.
She seemed lost in an overwhelming rush of emotion, letting out soft, breathy whimpers.
"Ah… Rei Ao-san… you're being way too much…"
Time, in that instant, felt like it had completely frozen.
Miyamizu Mitsuha's mouth fell open in a cute little "O."
Her mind went blank—she couldn't process what she was seeing at all.
The suitcase in her hand slipped from her grip and hit the floor with a dull thud.
Okudera Miki, meanwhile, stood rigid on the spot.
The apartment flyers in her hand fluttered down like fallen leaves.
A deep blush spread across her face in an instant, all the way to the tips of her ears.
Rei Ao merely raised an eyebrow.
He didn't even pause—his composure was almost unsettling.
"Oh?"
There was a faint breathlessness in his voice, the kind that comes after exertion, yet it stayed steady.
He lifted his head, swept his gaze over the two girls who looked like they'd turned to stone, and curved his lips into a smile.
"Mitsuha. Miki. Long time no see."
"R-Rei Ao…?" Mitsuha finally found her voice, but it shook badly.
She pointed at the utterly absurd scene in front of her, words tumbling out in a mess.
"W-Why are you here? And this is… what even is this?!"
Miki had already turned away in a panic.
But curiosity got the better of her—she couldn't help sneaking a look through the gaps between her fingers, heart pounding like a drum.
Rei Ao let out a low chuckle.
Only then did Hina seem to realize the sudden change in the situation.
Humiliation crashed over her. She hid her face against Rei Ao's chest, fingers clutching tightly at his clothes.
"Since you're here by coincidence," Rei Ao said, his voice dropping—low, magnetic, impossible to ignore, "then… why not join us?"
Mitsuha jolted.
"W-Wait—this isn't right!"
Miki also let out a startled little sound, thrown into flustered confusion.
"Rei Ao—what is going on?!"
Mitsuha tried to force herself to stay rational, hiding behind questions even as her thoughts spun into a hopeless tangle.
"Put simply," Rei Ao said, lightly brushing a hand along Hina's shoulder in a casual, familiar way, "Hina and I were in the middle of a small… 'deal.'"
He paused, seemingly amused by the growing confusion in Mitsuha's eyes.
"Then I remembered you might be from the same world as her. On a whim, I checked where you were."
"It turns out you two were living in the same world, just walking different paths."
"You weren't far, so I came by."
As he spoke, he shifted his posture slightly, unhurried, as if this were the most normal thing in the world.
Miki finally managed to speak again.
"Th-This is… too reckless…!"
But when the words left her mouth, they came out soft and weak, completely lacking conviction—especially in a situation like this.
Rei Ao turned his gaze to her. In those deep eyes was a smile that made it feel like he could see straight through her.
"Miki," he said, calling her by name. His voice was feather-light, like it was brushing against the heart. "Haven't you missed me?"
The bluntness made Miki tremble.
"I haven't…" she tried to deny it, but her voice only got smaller.
"There's nothing shameful about admitting what you want," Rei Ao cut in, sounding oddly calm—almost like old wisdom. "Everyone has a private longing. I just happen to see it… and happen to be able to satisfy it."
His gaze slid to Mitsuha again, meaningfully.
Mitsuha and Miki exchanged a glance—and in each other's eyes they both saw the same embarrassed hesitation.
Their focus blurred, like a thin mist had fallen over their thoughts.
"Relax," Rei Ao murmured—so softly it seemed to land in each of their ears, and also directly in their hearts.
Their thoughts broke off there.
Behind the paper sliding door, several overlapping silhouettes appeared—blurred and indistinct.
Soft breaths and muted sounds intertwined, forming a warm, ambiguous rhythm that filled the room.
Hina finally stopped trying to hold anything back.
Mitsuha's mind melted into a warm blankness, left only to respond on instinct.
Miki closed her eyes, long lashes trembling, letting herself be carried by an unfamiliar tide—gentle, overwhelming, and strangely tender.
It was a knot beyond ordinary logic.
A collision of different life paths—sparks bursting where they crossed.
Like parallel lines meeting at an impossible point, striking a brief, intense chord.
Much later, only the gentle dusk light filtering in from the window remained.
The figures gradually separated.
The air held a warm, damp softness—faint sweat, lingering heat, and an intimacy that couldn't quite be put into words.
Rei Ao leaned lazily against the wall, looking satisfied as he took in the scene.
Amano Hina curled up beside him, so exhausted she couldn't even lift her eyelids, breathing steady as she drifted into sleep.
Mitsuha and Miki lay side by side. Their breathing was still uneven, blush not yet faded from their faces.
Mitsuha stared up at the unfamiliar ceiling, eyes dazed.
"…So… what does this even count as?" she murmured hoarsely.
Miki didn't answer.
She simply lay there, quietly trying to digest everything that had just happened.
Rei Ao laughed softly.
"Call it an unforgettable reunion," he said, as casually as if he were talking about the weather.
"And a pretty decent afternoon."
In the end, Mitsuha could only let out a long, long sigh—turning every question about his sudden appearance into that single breath.
No matter what, she was happy to see him again.
She just hoped that next time, it wouldn't be in a way this mortifying—something more normal, at the very least.
Not… like this.