✯Between the Miles✯

Kazama - Months in America

The snow had long melted by the time Kazama settled into a rhythm.Morning classes, library work, late-night study groups.Everyone admired his discipline. Professors trusted him; classmates sought his advice.He smiled politely, did what he was supposed to do, and almost convinced himself he was content.

Almost.

Sometimes, when the campus quieted after midnight, he'd walk to the edge of the river that ran behind the university. The city lights danced on the water, reminding him of another river far away, one bordered by laughter and a boy who never stopped talking.

He'd check his phone again-just habit now-scrolling to Shinchan's contact, reading old messages he could no longer reply to.He wondered if Shinchan still joked the same way, still skipped breakfast, still got scolded by his mom.The thought made him smile and hurt at the same time.

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Shinchan - Life Without Him

Back home, Shinchan was changing too.He'd started university in the city nearby, joined a small film club, even made a few friends who appreciated his strange humor. He was learning to keep busy, to fill the silence that used to belong to Kazama's calm voice.

But every so often, that silence slipped through.A sudden rain shower, the sight of plane trails in the sky, a familiar song-each one pulled him back to the same memory under the banyan tree.

At dinner, the family still talked about Kazama sometimes.Misae would say, "He sends such polite emails to the neighborhood every New Year."Shinchan would nod, smile faintly, and change the subject before anyone noticed the tightness in his throat.

He never told anyone that he still walked by the riverside after class, sitting on the same bench until the stars came out.It was the only place that still felt like them.

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Two Lives, One Sky

Winter arrived again.Kazama stood at his dorm window, watching a gentle snowfall begin.Half a world away, Shinchan tugged his jacket tighter and looked up at the same grey sky.

Neither spoke.Neither needed to.

Both whispered the same thought in different languages, in different cities:

> "I hope you're doing okay."

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End of Chapter 13

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