I forced myself to move forward. “Nanami.”

He stilled. I knew he heard me. But when he turned, his gaze was impassive, as if he were looking at a stranger.

“I need to talk to you,” I said.

“There’s nothing to talk about.” His voice was flat, detached.

I clenched my fists. “Please.”

For a moment, he just looked at me. Then, with a sigh, he walked past me towards the exit. But I wasn’t going to let him slip away again.

I followed him outside. “I was wrong,” I blurted out. “I—I was an idiot. I was stupid. I never should’ve—”

“Stop.” His tone was quiet but firm.

I shut my mouth, heart hammering.

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Why now?”

“Because I can’t stop thinking about you,” I admitted. “Because losing you was the worst thing that ever happened to me.”

He scoffed, looking at me with tired eyes. “You lost me the moment you told me the truth about your little bet.”

I flinched. “I know. And I hate myself for it.”

For the first time, emotion flickered in his eyes. Anger. Hurt. The same heartbreak I had seen that day.

“Do you even realize what you did to me?” he said, voice tight. “You made me believe we had something real, only to tell me I was just… some game to you.”

I swallowed hard. “Nanami, I never faked my feelings. I swear. What we had—it was real.”

He looked away. “It doesn’t matter now.”

“It does matter,” I insisted. “Because I love you.”

His breath hitched, but he didn’t look at me.

“I loved you then,” I said, voice shaking. “And I love you now. This time, no lies. No bets. Just me.”

Silence stretched between us. For a moment, I thought he might just walk away again. But then, he spoke—his voice softer this time. “Then prove it.”

And with that, he turned and left, leaving me standing there with a new determination burning in my chest.

I would win him back. For real, this time.