"You already knew, right? That I love you. That I have for a while now." The words were sudden and strong, making him forget that she had just collapsed only minutes ago. "As a friend, of course, but also...well, also as a woman," she laughed. He turned away, feeling more awkward and uncertain than he had in ages. "Right," he finally replied in hesitation. Her laughter grew but took on a slightly nervous edge. "Don't worry. I never expected anything to come of it. You don't need to worry about upsetting me." She looked at her feet, which she now slid back and forth along the ground. "Besides," she added softly, "it may sound strange, but the you I fell for was the you whom I could never have. That is, the you who I could only chase after and never reach, the you I could never follow, no matter how much I wished I could." Curiosity overtook caution, prompting him to glance at his sickly friend from the corner of his eye. He could see her smiling but could not distinguish whether the grin was forced or sincere. As much as he wished to question her about it, the words wouldn't form. Her eyes squeezed together tightly to block the light out. "Still," she continued, "I couldn't help but think, 'wouldn't it be nice if once, just once, I could get him to turn around and look back at me?' But no matter what I wrote or how desperately I tried, I could never stir that desire in you. I could ask you to take notice, sure, but that's not really the same thing, is it?" She sighed, relaxing her grin into a sad sort of smile that could only be taken as genuine. "I suppose that's something in itself, though." Without warning, her eyes slid back open and turned directly toward him. They met his, causing him to jump. "I...yeah..." he muttered, partially unaware that words were even coming out of his mouth. "Well, I might be a silly little fool," she said, chuckling once more, "but it's nice to know I have a good friend like you, who'll put up with all my silly foolishness. Thank you." A strange, unidentifiable feeling welled up inside of him. He broke their eye contact by turning away again. "Quit it," he replied, trying to avoid betraying his discomfort any further than he already had. "I mean, I'm friends with you because I want to be. It's nothing you have to thank me for." "Right," she answered softly after a few moments more. "I suppose not."