# *CHAPTER 2 — The First Kiss*
Weeks passed. Kento's strength waned, but his spirit didn't. One evening, Kazuma decided to lift him out of the apartment for a while.
"Let's go out," he said, rolling Kento's wheelchair toward the Akasaka Restaurant. The night air smelled of rain and neon.
Over dinner, Kazuma leaned forward. "You don't get up early anymore. You skip school. You think this is funny?"
Kento smirked faintly. "Maybe a little."
Kazuma chuckled. "So tell me, when will you get married, huh?"
Kento laughed softly. "You're crazy. Who would marry someone with DMD?"
"Who knows!" Kazuma said dramatically. "But maybe you'll find someone weirder than you."
He winked, then suddenly wheeled Kento toward a group of girls laughing nearby. "Let's test your luck."
"Kazuma! What are you—" Kento began, but Kazuma locked the brakes and vanished toward the restroom, leaving Kento frozen and embarrassed in front of them.
The girls giggled. One of them — confident, radiant, with eyes that seemed to see through everything — stepped forward. "Did your friend just abandon you?"
Kento nodded helplessly. "He thinks it's funny."
She crouched, unlocked the wheelchair, and smiled. "Well, at least you're polite. I'm Arisa Moriguchi."
"I'm Kento."
She tilted her head, noticing his discomfort. "You live nearby?"
"Akasaka Lane."
"I see." She glanced away for a moment, then back at him. "Mind if I drop by sometime?"
He blinked. "Why?"
"Because you look like someone who could use a friend."
The next day, Arisa came. She found the apartment in chaos — messy, dusty, unkept. "You two live like animals," she declared, and without asking, began to clean. Kitchen. Bathroom. Everything.
Kento tried to stop her. "You don't need to do that."
Arisa smiled. "I know. But I want to."
By the time she was done, the room smelled of soap and something new — hope. Before she left, she handed Kento her number.
"If you ever need anything, call me."
Kento stared at the scrap of paper long after she was gone, realizing that for the first time in years, someone had walked into his life instead of walking away.
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