It was a quiet afternoon.
The house was unusually still.
The children were at school, and Light had gone to work early that morning.
Nancy was alone.
She had decided to clean.
Not because the house was dirty everything was already arranged, as it always was but because she wanted something to do. Something to keep her mind occupied.
She moved from room to room, adjusting small things, organizing shelves that didn't need organizing.
That was how she was. Careful, Neat and Intentional.
Eventually, she found herself in one of the storage rooms.
It wasn't a place she visited often.
Old boxes were stacked neatly in one corner, labeled and arranged, just like everything else in her life.
She stood there for a moment.
Then, without thinking too much, she reached for one of the boxes.
It was light.
She carried it out and placed it gently on the floor.
Slowly… she opened it Inside were old things, Books,Papers. Small memories she had kept over the years.
She picked up one item at a time.
Smiling slightly at some… pausing longer at others.
Then her hand stopped.
At the bottom of the box…
Was a small notebook Old Worn at the edges.
She froze.
Her fingers hovered over it for a second before she finally picked it up.
She didn't need to open it to know what it was.
But she did anyway.
As she flipped through the pages, something shifted in her expression.
The handwriting was younger.
Messier,But still neat. Still her
Each page carried small thoughts.
Short entries.
Feelings she had written when she didn't know how to say them out loud.
Then she reached a particular page.
And stopped.
There, written clearly…
Was a name.
Light.
Her breath caught slightly.
She stared at it.
Like she was looking at something she had buried a long time ago.
Slowly… she sat down.
And began to read.
"Today he came late again."
"His books were scattered like always."
"I arranged them… he just said thank you and smiled."
She smiled faintly.
Tears slowly forming in her eyes.
"He lost his spoon again today."
"I gave him mine."
"I don't know why I always give him… I don't give others."
She let out a soft breath.
Her fingers tightened slightly around the page.
"They said I am his girlfriend."
"I didn't say anything."
"But I didn't hate it."
A tear slipped down her cheek.
She didn't wipe it.
"Today he changed his seat."
"He didn't even look at me."
Her breathing slowed.
The memory was still there.
Clear.
Sharp.
"He said it was nothing."
"But it wasn't nothing."
Her lips trembled slightly.
"I won't let him sit with me again."
"Not because I don't want him to…"
"…but because it hurt."
She closed her eyes.
That feeling, she remembered it, that quiet pain, the kind you don't show, the kind you just… carry. She turned the page, and then she saw it, a letter, not addressed, not sent just written.
Her heart began to beat faster as she read.
"Dear Light,"
"I don't know why I'm writing this."
"Maybe because I can't say it."
"I like you."
"I don't understand it, but I do."
"You're always messy and careless…"
"…but I still like sitting beside you."
"When you talk to me, I feel happy."
"When you don't, I notice."
"And when you left…"
"…it hurt more than I thought it would."
Nancy covered her mouth slightly.
Tears now falling freely.
"I won't say this to you."
"You probably won't understand."
"But I think…"
"I won't forget you."
Silence filled the room, heavy, sttill.
She lowered the notebook slowly.
Her hands trembling slightly.
"All this time…" she whispered to herself.
She had never said it.Not then not later.
Not even when they met again.
She had loved him too.
In her own quiet way.
Without noise.
Without expression.
Just… there.
She wiped her tears slowly.
Then she laughed softly.
A small, emotional laugh.
"We were both so young…" she murmured.
Too young to understand.
Too young to say anything.
And yet they both carried the same feeling.
All those years.
Without knowing.
She closed the notebook gently and held it close to her chest.
For a moment…
She just sat there.
Letting everything settle.
Later that evening, when Light returned home…
He found her sitting quietly.
Different.
Calm… but thoughtful.
He walked closer.
"Nancy?"
She looked up at him.
Her eyes soft.
But slightly red.
"Light," she said gently.
He frowned slightly.
"Are you okay?"
She nodded.
Then after a pause…
She said something he didn't expect.
"I found something today."
"What is it?" he asked.
She hesitated.
Then said softly…
"I never forgot you too."
That moment…
Said everything.