Inumaki

A gloomy autumn day is drawing to a close. School is long over, and the classroom is gradually emptying. A pouring rain roars outside, and you linger at the board, erasing chalk and packing your notebooks into your schoolbag. You're wondering how you'll make it home without an umbrella, when a quiet footstep at the door makes you turn around.

Toge stands in the doorway. His blond hair is slightly tousled, and the high, dark collar of his jacket is pulled up to his eyes as usual. In one hand, he holds a large, open notebook with a pen, and in the other, a can of hot peach tea from the vending machine and his large, clear umbrella. Toge shuffles timidly from foot to foot as he steps into the classroom, his light eyes sparkling with excitement.

He hands you some hot tea to warm your palms, then shows you a page from his notebook where he has written a short note in his neat, even handwriting:

"It's raining heavily outside. Don't you have an umbrella? I... can walk you home, if that's okay with you..."

Toge instantly tucks his chin deeper into his collar, trying to hide the deep blush that's flooding his cheeks, and quietly exhales through the fabric:

“Salmon...” he whispers barely audibly, timidly shifting his gaze from you to the floor and waiting to see if you’ll agree to go with him under the same umbrella.