rld. The streets of Kyoto bustled in that uniquely quiet Japanese way people moving quickly but politely, voices low, bikes weaving through narrow la
milk boba, one earbud dangling from his hoodie and his hair shoved under
who forgot what trash t
hrift store's matrix," Noelle
we commit tru
's legs carried her toward Gion, her senses already attuned to the comforting smell of soy glaze, fried batter, and incense f
re," she said as they passed a r
pioca pearl into his mouth. "Ju
ned. "Ev
rom Hana you skipped t
" she c
etting
pro
m n
nto him lightly. "You don
nated dumb friend, I need you to succeed just
," she
apron who always recognized Noelle by sight. His smile was warm and deep-
again?" he ask
with a soft smile, h
aper and handed them over. "You
hock. "Is it
en they did the same thing." He w
e and whispered,
s ei
deeply proble
ley and a shrine wall. Gabe sprawled out, and Noelle perched
ng thing?" Gabe asked after a whil
everyone obsessed with
A looks like a d
him yet. Some guy whose mom runs a tea house and probably p
He sound
y. I'm
eryone who's good at school is soulless. Maybe he's just one of those
oddly sp
ject
igures standing apart under a string of festival lanterns. She didn't know why she was d
e said after a while. "I just
yours. The classes, the chaos, the screw-ups own
idn't
hem. Somewhere, a wind c