Unraveled Ties-Chapter 47: The Start of Something New

It was the weekend, and Reiji stood near the small café, the afternoon sun hanging low in the sky. He wasn’t nervous.*Of course not.* It was just a lesson, after all.

But his mind kept drifting to one thing—*her.*

Sena.

As he waited, he tried to push away the thoughts that kept circling around her. The lesson, he reminded himself, was just about practice. Nothing more.

But then, he saw her.

She walked toward him with an effortless grace, her long black hair tied loosely behind her head, and her outfit—a simple white high-neck top with black baggy pants—stopped him in his tracks.

He couldn’t help it. Reiji was stunned. She looked... different. *Beautiful.*

He quickly shook off the thought, trying to maintain his usual calm demeanor.

Sena stopped a few steps away from him and tilted her head. "What, you gonna stand there all day?"

Reiji blinked, snapping out of his daze. "Huh? Oh, right."

She raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "So? How do I look?"

Reiji’s heart skipped a beat. She was asking him? Seriously?

"Uh, you look... fine," he muttered, but it came out a little too quick.

She raised her brow higher. "Fine? Just fine?"

Reiji scratched the back of his neck. "I mean, you look good. Really good."

Sena’s lips curled into a sly smile. "You’re supposed to compliment your partner on dates, Reiji. Haven’t you heard that before?"

His face flushed, and he quickly cleared his throat. "Right. Of course. You look great. Happy?"

Sena chuckled softly. "Good enough. Let’s go inside."

As they entered the café, the quiet ambiance made everything feel almost surreal. Reiji followed her to a small table by the window. As they sat down, he noticed her posture was relaxed, but her eyes were sharp.

Sena leaned forward slightly, studying him with a keen gaze. "Nervous?"

Reiji blinked, a little taken aback by her directness. "What? No, I’m fine."

She smirked. "You sure? You look a little tense."

Reiji let out an exasperated sigh. "I’m not tense."

"Mm-hmm." She didn’t seem convinced.

Before he could respond, the waitress arrived to take their order. They both placed their food and drink orders, and the waitress left.

Sena sat back in her chair, tapping her fingers on the table lightly. "You’ve been looking at me a lot today," she remarked.

Reiji didn’t know how to respond to that. "Uh... you just look different today. In a good way."

She smiled, clearly amused. "You don’t have to keep saying that."

Reiji blinked at her. "What?"

"Complimenting me."

His face flushed. "I’m not trying to—"

Sena leaned forward, cutting him off. "Relax. I’m just teasing you. You’re doing fine so far."

Reiji let out a quiet breath, feeling both relieved and slightly embarrassed at the same time.

—

The food arrived soon after, and they continued their conversation.

"Are you sure you’re okay with this whole lesson thing?" Sena asked, taking a bite of her food.

Reiji nodded. "Yeah. It’s fine." He hesitated, trying to figure out how to phrase his next words. "You make it seem easy, though."

Sena’s expression softened. "It’s not always easy, you know. You’ve got to make the other person feel comfortable too."

Reiji blinked at her. "You sound like you know this stuff pretty well."

She smirked. "Maybe. Or maybe I’ve just had a lot of practice."

Reiji raised an eyebrow. "Practice?"

"Not like that," she quickly clarified, before he could jump to conclusions. "But you don’t just pick this stuff up overnight. It takes time."

"Guess I’ve got a long way to go then," Reiji said, smirking.

Sena smiled, her eyes gleaming. "You’re doing alright. Better than I thought, actually."

Reiji couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. "That’s because you’re a good teacher."

"Don’t get cocky now," she warned playfully.

"Hey, just stating the truth," Reiji retorted, smirking.

They ate in relative comfort, chatting about random things. It wasn’t awkward or forced. For once, they were just two people enjoying each other’s company.

Reiji’s thoughts drifted back to her, though. **She looks good. Really good.** His eyes kept returning to her, and every time he tried to snap himself out of it, he couldn’t.

When they finished eating, Sena stood up and stretched, looking outside at the setting sun.

"Let’s walk for a bit," she suggested. "It’s nice outside."

Reiji stood, feeling a little unsure. "Sure. Why not?"

They stepped outside, and the cool evening air greeted them. The streets weren’t crowded, and the quiet gave them space to walk side by side in silence.

As they strolled, Reiji felt his heart race. *What was this?*

He glanced at Sena out of the corner of his eye, feeling his chest tighten. *Why does this feel so different?*

She was walking beside him, her hands casually stuffed into her jacket pockets. It was almost surreal, the calmness of the moment, the way they fit together so naturally.

Without either of them saying a word, their hands brushed lightly against each other. Neither of them pulled away.

And then, it happened.

Reiji, without thinking, reached out and took her hand in his.

Sena didn’t flinch or pull away. She just looked at him for a moment, as if weighing something in her mind.

It was a small moment, but it felt... right.

She didn’t say anything, just let her hand rest in his, their fingers naturally intertwining.

For a moment, they walked like that, side by side, hand in hand, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

When they reached the halfway point to her house, she turned to him. "Well, this is where we part ways," she said, her voice soft.

Reiji nodded, though he didn’t want to let go. "Yeah."

Sena smiled slightly. "You did well today."

Reiji hesitated, before responding with a small smile of his own. "I guess I did."

They stood there for a moment, the silence stretching between them like a quiet promise.

And then, reluctantly, Reiji let go of her hand.

"See you at school," Sena said softly, giving him a nod.

"Yeah," Reiji replied, his voice a little more distant than he intended.

He watched as she walked away, his mind still buzzing from the day.

*What was this feeling?*

He couldn’t quite put his finger on it. But for the first time, he wasn’t so sure that it was just a lesson.

Reiji stood there for a moment, staring at the spot where Sena had walked off.

He had expected the walk to feel like any other, like the simple lessons they had been having. But it didn’t.

*Why did it feel like this?*

Reiji wasn’t used to this kind of thing. Holding hands? Walking together like that? It felt... different from anything he’d ever experienced before.

Sena was his friend, his partner in this strange “lesson,” but there was something deeper, something he couldn’t quite grasp.

He walked back home, his mind racing with thoughts of *her.*

And as much as he tried to push those thoughts aside, he couldn’t ignore the feeling in his chest. *What was going on with him?*