The streets of Kivotos were unusually quiet at this hour. The usual loudness of the city had faded into the hum of distant neon signs and the occasional flicker of a streetlight. The road stretching from Gehenna Academy to the apartment and dorm districts was dimly lit, bathed in a soft blue glow from the floating holo-ads above.
Hina walked with slow steps, her oversized pink pajamas slightly too long at the sleeves, making her look far less like the feared Prefect Team chairwoman and more like just another tired student at the end of a day. Her yellow coat was draped loosely over her shoulders, barely holding back the night chill.
Ahead, she noticed someone walking in the same direction—jij.
She knew the face, vaguely. A student from one of the other academies, maybe. They must have had business at Gehenna, considering where they were coming from.
Normally, she wouldn’t bother acknowledging someone she didn’t know. But tonight… it had been an exhausting day. And a familiar presence, even a distant one, didn’t feel as much of a hassle as it usually did.
She picked up her pace slightly, walking just close enough for her voice to carry.
"You’re heading back too, huh?" Her voice was quiet, more of a statement than a question.
They didn’t respond, but they didn’t speed up or move away either. That was enough of an answer.
The two of them continued walking, side by side but separate, their footsteps in sync against the pavement. The city lights flickered across the road, reflecting faintly in the glow of Hina’s and jij's halo.
After a while, she exhaled softly, tilting her head slightly toward them.
"I hope you sleep well," she murmured.
There was no particular reason for it. Just a fleeting moment of acknowledgment, of shared exhaustion between two students who happened to be walking the same path for now.
