Meeting: Komi After School

Her hands were trembling.

"This might sound weird," I said, "but a little wax on the metal part of the buckle makes it slide easier. Do you… want me to show you?" Meeting Komi After School

She flinched. Her head snapped up, and her wide, dark eyes met mine. They were pools of pure panic. She looked like a deer that had just realized the hunter was not only there, but had been watching for hours. Her lips parted, but no sound came. Just a small, breathy gasp. Her hands were trembling

I read the words. Then I read them again. Her head snapped up, and her wide, dark eyes met mine

I looked at her. Really looked. Not at the legend, but at the girl. A girl with a knot in her throat and a storm in her heart.

Komi Shouko looked down at her now-buckled shoe. Then she looked up at me. The mask didn't crack. It didn't shatter. It simply… softened. At the corners of her eyes, in the slight curve of her lips, was something I had never seen on her face before.

I took a deep breath. This is not a big deal, Tadano. It's a shoe. Just a shoe. I dabbed the tiniest bit of wax onto the buckle's prong, then gently slid the leather strap over it. It clicked into place with a satisfying, smooth sound. Easy.