Chapter 4
 
One day, near the beginning of my fourth year at Yamaku, as I'm leaving my last class of the day, I am surprised to hear Hanako's voice.  I was used to going to her class to pick her up, not the other way around.
 
"Lilly.  H-hi."
 
"Oh, hello Hanako.  Had a nice day at school?"
 
"I uh... Lilly... I need to t-talk to you."
 
"Alright Hanako," I respond.  "What is it?"
 
"...not here.  The room d-down the hall there."  After a moment's pause, I can feel the familiar hand brushing against my arm.  I accept it and we proceed down the hall.
 
As we brush just past the other students leaving for the day, Hanako leans even closer to me, our sides touching.  Her shyness is almost disheartening at its peak, really, but the feeling of her trembling body against mine washes this away.  Why can't I stop enjoying her company so thoroughly?  Is it curiosity, or something more?
 
There's a faint smell of plaster and paint in the room, very faint, and not much else.
 
"L-Lilly..." she says quietly, her arm not releasing mine.
 
And then she tells me about her past.  About the fire that killed her parents and left her alone in an orphanage.  A wave of feelings assaults me.  My parents are not dead, but they might as well have been, I've barely heard from them in years, outside of the occasional phone call.  
 
And then, there's the issue of the incident last year between me and her.  The connection is obvious now.  The past is impossible for her to get over.  I have no idea what Hanako's been through, truly, and it's not surprising that her glass-like, shy personality would have come from that.
 
"U-umm... also," she continues, "I... h-have scars.  All over my b-body.  I barely survived the fire... alone."
 
My mouth gapes open before I momentarily re-close it.  The connection is even clearer.  Scars are a physical deformity.  More than likely, not attractive to others.  To think about them being all over her body... I can't imagine how these may make her appear to others, and I don't dare ask to inspect.
 
She's probably been too nervous to tell me before now.  It can't be easy to let that out, let alone living your life without having that luxury of choice towards those who can see.
 
I'm about to cry, but I suppress the urge, now would not be a good time.  I feel terrible, because I know Hanako must feel terrible about the entire situation, as well.  
 
"Hanako, ah..." I say, trying to pick the right words.
 
"Y-you don't have to say anything... I just thought... you sh-should know."
 
"Alright then, Hanako."  I get up and grab my cane, turning to her, my composure strong.  "Shall we head to the dorms, then?"