Fine snow fell slowly, whirling in the air and gradually descending on the city. Because of the weather, people on the street did not diminish, on the contrary, many ran around just to have time to buy gifts for the New Year. That is why a whole bunch of cars drove around the city.

Buses were no exception. The packed bus heading towards the city center was now in a huge traffic jam, literally three stops from where Aoi was heading.

The girl has long been engaged in dancing and the academy, in which she usually trained until she was tired, it was practically her second home. She already wanted to turn on the music to the fullest in the dancing room, change into loose clothes and surrender to the rhythm, but instead of this, strangers from all sides were huddling up to her, and this strangled her.

Sighing again, the girl took out her phone and changed the song. A song started playing randomly, from which the girl shuddered and immediately switched it to the next. She thought she deleted it.

For another thirty minutes of the time spent, the bus moved exactly a couple of meters and again froze in place. Aoi sighed in frustration as her phone vibrated in her hand. Frowning, she swiped across the screen, "Hello?"

“Aoi, when will you get here? The practice will not start without you," the girl sighed soundlessly, cursing everything in her head, and she only guiltily said, "Sorry, Miko, I'm stuck in traffic."

"So you're not coming today?" The girl on the phone asked this immediately, and Aoi wondered: maybe she really should stay at home today? But at that very second, she remembered that she did not want to be alone. And with music, she always forgot about everything else. "Aoi, today is Christmas, you can rest, and we ..."

“No, I'll come,” the girl replied instantly, without even giving the other a chance to continue. She tried to soften her voice and continued with a smile, “Thank you for your concern, Miko, but it's okay. I want to practice today.”

For a while, there was silence on the other side, but after the girl replied, "Okay, but if you don't come in forty minutes, consider the practice canceled." And Aoi nodded unconsciously, putting the phone back in her pocket. No, she didn't want to be alone today.

Sharply pressing the emergency button, the girl waited until the bus doors opened, and quickly pushed through the crowd and went out onto the crowded street. Looking around, she realized in which direction to run and ran forward abruptly.

The harsh wind hurt her eyes unpleasantly, there was not enough air in her lungs, but she had two more blocks to the center, and then she had to run to the third floor, so she could not stop. Having run another corner, she finally saw the building she needed.

Already on the third floor, she burst into the room in which her students were sitting in different corners of the room. They all looked up in surprise at her, and Aoi cleared and went inside. “Why are you sitting, let's start with a warm-up!” And the girl clapped her hands, which is why many readily stood up in poses, and the girl herself went to change with a smile.

One class after another, Aoi already felt her legs fall off, but she continued. She loved her job, loved this muscle pain, loved dancing and music in general. Ironically, but her favorite thing in the world was shown to her by a person whom she now would not want to see.

Exhaling wearily, the girl plopped down on the floor while her students left the hall. They said goodbye to her, and the girl could only wave at them with a slight smile. She sat on the floor and looked at her reflection, breathing deeply.

The girl saw herself in the reflection and just looked at it meaninglessly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a window in which the snow-covered roofs of the neighboring buildings were visible. It was already dark, and Aoi hadn't even noticed that several hours had passed. The New Year was already coming soon.

The door creaked and Miko walked in, holding two bottles of water. She shook her head, stepping closer, "I knew that you were still here." Aoi just chuckled as she gratefully accepted the water. She opened the lid and drank several sips thirstily. “Aoi, if you didn’t know, today is New Years, no one is working until late.”

The girl exhaled with pleasure and closed the lid, “I am working,” Miko just snorted at that, sitting down next to her. The room was getting darker, because the sun was slowly setting, and the lights in the hall were turned off. It was so calm. "Tell me what happened."

“Nothing,” Aoi replied too quickly, and Miko noticed it without taking her eyes off the girl. She only sighed back, “Nothing happened. I’m just tired." Miko just scoffed at her words as she stood up, "You know, Aoi, you've been tired for exactly three months." The girl knew what her friend was leading to, but said nothing.

Miko stood by, waiting for an answer, but Aoi didn't say anything. She sighed, shaking her head again. “It's probably just a coincidence, but he also left three months ago.” Miko fixed her bag over her shoulder while Aoi tried to pretend that everything was okay, "Aoi, don't get overwhelmed by this, he left and forgotten about us, now it's time for us to forget him."

Aoi frowned, clenching her hands into fists. She looked up sharply at the girl, “Don't say that about him! He would have contacted us if not for the prohibitions of his company! ” Miko was surprised by her answer, but emotions inside her also boiled: she also suffered, and was also offended. “Listen, Aoi, you're not the only one suffering here! Shotaro was my friend as well, but I don’t sit and cry because of him!”

"I'm no