Arthur walked toward his high school, glancing around without finding anything particularly interesting. But as he passed by a house, he saw an Akita Inu dog and remembered that he needed one for his movie. With that thought in mind, he arrived at Azabu High School.
Suddenly, Emiko appeared out of nowhere, startling Arthur.
"Do I really scare you that much?" she teased, walking ahead toward the classroom.
Daichi approached Arthur with a relaxed look, glancing around to see if anyone was listening.
"Arthur, I've got my acting instructor's approval. I even showed him the introduction of your script—almost gave him the whole thing, but my mom stopped me before I made that mistake."
Arthur looked confused.
"You trust your instructor that much?"
"Well," Daichi said, rubbing the back of his neck, "I was inexperienced before, but now I'm getting better at acting. My parents are supporting me."
Arthur looked thoughtful. "Daichi, don't you think acting isn't really your dream?"
Daichi gave him a straightforward look. "Honestly, Arthur, my dream was to be a baseball player. But I never had the chance to prove I had talent. So if acting works out for me, I'm fine with it."
Arthur noticed Daichi didn't want to talk about it further, so they both headed to class.
"Well, don't worry, Daichi," Arthur said. "I'll support you however I can."
"Thanks, Arthur. My instructor wanted to know who wrote the script. He was really interested in it, but I didn't tell him. I couldn't betray your trust."
Arthur nodded. "Yeah, better that way. I don't want people showing up at my house bothering me about scripts. Though I doubt I can stay anonymous for long."
When the bell rang, classes began. After class ended, Daichi tried to talk to Arthur, but one of his friends dragged him off to lunch, leaving Arthur staring out the window.
Emiko gave him a sharp look. "I guess the great novelist is already tired, huh?"
Arthur turned to her.
"Have you fallen for me already, Arthur?" she said dramatically, flipping her hair.
Arthur couldn't help but laugh.
"It's fascinating, isn't it, Emiko? I dreamed of a love story last night."
With that, Arthur pulled out the novel Love Letter. Emiko looked at it, then handed him a small lunchbox.
"I made one for you. So now you have no excuse to leave. You're staying here until I finish reading."
Arthur nodded, took the lunchbox, and began to eat as Emiko sat down with a smile and started reading.
> Snow fell gently over Otaru, covering the streets in white, as if the past itself could be hidden beneath its blanket. Itsuki Fujii held a letter in his hands. The name on it was familiar—his own—but the handwriting, the voice behind it, came from a stranger in Kobe.
The other Itsuki Fujii—a woman marked by loss—had written to the old home of her late fiancé, who had died two years earlier in the mountains, never expecting an answer. But one came—from a woman who shared his name.
Thus began a strange and almost impossible exchange between two strangers connected by a name and the echo of the past. Letters went back and forth, carrying memories of adolescence, laughter in school corridors, glances that had never been confessed.
Little by little, the Itsuki of Otaru realized that the deceased man had remembered her—the quiet girl in the library, the one who never knew the love left sleeping between the pages of a book.
And in each letter, between every word, both women found different forms of love: one, letting go of the ghost that haunted her; the other, rediscovering the value of being remembered.
When the snow fell again, nothing was the same. The letters had closed a circle that neither time nor death could erase.
When Emiko finished reading, she stared out the window, then looked back at Arthur.
"Why did you dream this, Arthur?"
Arthur, finishing his lunch, smiled. "Honestly, I don't know. Maybe… inspiration."
Emiko lifted the novel as if to throw it at him but restrained herself.
"It's really touching… such a shame the novelist is an idiot," she muttered before grabbing her things and leaving the classroom.
Arthur watched her go, confused. Did I say something wrong? he wondered, then grabbed his bag and decided to visit the literature club to show them his new work.
When he entered the clubroom, he noticed Takashi hadn't arrived yet. He left the novel on the reading table where everyone could see it. Aiko was the first to notice and curiously picked it up, while Arthur went to another corner to read.
When Takashi finally arrived, he greeted everyone and saw Aiko completely absorbed in the novel. Not wanting to disturb her, he went over to Arthur.
"What's Aiko doing?"
Arthur gave him a smug look. "She's reading my new novel. She's the first club member to see it."
Takashi rolled his eyes. "You know, Arthur, you should serialize your novels. You'd make a fortune from royalties."
"I already have a publisher willing to do that," Arthur said. "But this one's brand new."
"Aren't you afraid someone might steal it and take your royalties?"
Arthur shook his head. "It's already registered. I'm not that dumb, Takashi."
Takashi laughed at how mature the 15-year-old sounded. "Well then, Mr. Arthur, my apologies for doubting you." He sat down to read something while waiting for Aiko to finish.
When Aiko finally looked up, she noticed everyone staring at her, which startled her. She quickly put the novel down and grabbed another book. Takashi immediately picked it up.
"As president of the club, it's my duty to review every member's work and ensure it doesn't promote bad behavior," he said with mock seriousness, earning glares from everyone.
After reading, Takashi put the novel on the table and approached Arthur.
"It's impressive. If I didn't know you were fifteen, I'd think you've lived through many loves."
He patted Arthur on the shoulder and left the club. Arthur turned toward the window, watching the sunset, when Aiko came up to him.
"Arthur, did you really write that?"
Arthur nodded.
"It's… truly moving," she said softly before walking away.
Arthur was left confused but assumed she didn't know what else to say. When everyone finished reading, he packed the novel into his bag and decided to head to the kendo club.
On his way there, he felt someone's gaze. Turning around, he saw the girl who had punched him—Kyouka. Forcing a smile, Arthur looked at her, but she only gave him a cold stare before entering the kendo hall.
Arthur still couldn't understand why she had hit him or what was going on with her. Inside, he saw Emiko practicing, and also Mika and Takashi chatting. When they noticed him, they both approached.
"What's up, foreigner? Got the urge to win over Emiko now?" Mika teased.
Arthur rolled his eyes, and Takashi burst out laughing. "Let him be, Mika. I doubt Arthur's looking for romance yet. By the way, Arthur, let Mika read your new novel."
He held out his hand, but before Arthur could respond, Mika snatched the book.
"You're too slow, foreigner," she grinned.
Takashi frowned. "Mika, you really have to stop doing that."
Mika just smiled playfully. "Relax, Takashi. Arthur doesn't mind, right?"
Arthur nodded. "I don't mind—as long as it doesn't end in punches."
Mika and Takashi laughed together.
"You know, Arthur," Mika said while opening the book, "I'm surprised you didn't defend yourself when Emiko hit you." She ignored Takashi's protests as she began reading.
"Well," Takashi sighed, "I guess Mika's going to be busy for a while." He looked back at Arthur. "So, how are you? Do you really feel nothing for Emiko?"
Before Arthur could answer, a voice cut in.
"Feel something for who?"
They turned to see Emiko standing there, her expression cold.
"You know, Arthur," she said, "I'm too young for love."
Takashi quickly tried to defuse the tension, slinging his arm around Arthur's shoulders.
"Come on, Emiko, do you really think Arthur would force anyone into love?"
Arthur rolled his eyes again.
"Anyway," he said, "speaking of love stories—Mika, did you hear that the daughter of a Yakuza joined the club?"
Mika, absorbed in the novel, didn't respond.
"What do you mean, a Yakuza's daughter?" Takashi asked quickly.
Emiko nodded. "I heard from the instructor. Apparently, she wants to learn kendo to control her anger. Look, there she is."
She pointed toward a girl with half-dyed red hair, the rest still black.
Takashi glanced at her. "What's her name?"
Emiko thought for a moment. "I think it was Kyouka Tachibana."
Arthur hadn't expected to see the girl who'd hit him again—but now she'd joined the kendo club.
"She's kind of strange," Emiko said. "Barely talks to anyone, always lost in her own world. Maybe she's just shy."
Arthur couldn't help but laugh.
"What's so funny, Arthur?" Takashi asked.
"Nothing," Arthur said, shaking his head. "Just remembered a joke. Sorry, I've got to go."
With that, Arthur left the club and headed home, leaving Emiko and Takashi looking at each other in confusion.