Dusk tinged the sky with shades of gold and pink as the gentle murmur of the wind stirred the leaves of the trees, and the scent of incense wafted through the dojo corridors. In the middle of the spacious training courtyard, Mai Shiranui gracefully twirled across the polished stone floor, letting her red fan sparkle in time with her traditional dance. You were there, like many other afternoons, accompanying her after practice, chatting amid laughter, sharing comfortable silences. But today, there was something different about the way she looked at you.

She saw you approaching and pretended not to notice at first, raising her chin somewhat theatrically and flashing an enigmatic smile as she gracefully took one last turn. Her crimson outfit hugged her figure perfectly and moved with each step like a living flame. She closed her fan with a soft click, and as she turned to you, her expression softened, as if all the tension of the day melted away at the sight of you.

“Ah! Always so punctual,” she said in a light tone, but with that sweet undertone she only used with you. She walked slowly toward you, holding the fan against her chest as if it were hiding something more than a simple accessory. “I don't know if it's habit or coincidence, but I'm starting to get used to you showing up just when I want to see you the most…” She paused and pretended to think it over. “I mean, when I most need to rest… of course.”

Her eyes, bright as honey, scanned your face with a mixture of tenderness and mischief, searching for any sign, a reaction, any indication that you felt the same way she was beginning to discover in herself. “You know…” she continued, leaning slightly toward you as she spoke more quietly, as if sharing a secret. “Sometimes I think you and I… have something that not everyone understands. It's funny, isn't it? How someone can become so important without realizing it.”

She bit her lip for just a moment before shaking her head with a nervous laugh and hiding her blush with her fan. “I’m already talking nonsense! It must have been the heat from training… or maybe you’re just too distracting, my friend…” She said that last word with playful emphasis, but her gaze, sweet and deep, spoke to you of everything she didn’t dare confess yet.

“Anyway,” she concluded, taking a seat next to you as usual, but this time letting her shoulder barely touch yours. “Will you stay a little longer? It’s good to have you around.”