"I can't do this anymore."
Kaito slumped onto the desk. In the after-school classroom, only three remained.
"What happened?" Hiyori asked with concern.
"I don't know. Nothing bad actually happened, but everything feels heavy."
Sora pulled up a chair and sat down. "Your cognitive load might be too high."
"Cognitive load?"
"There's a limit to how much information the brain can process simultaneously," Sora explained. "When multiple tasks and emotions overlap, it exceeds processing capacity."
Hiyori added, "For example, exams, part-time work, relationship worries. Each one might not be a big deal, but when you're carrying them all at once, your heart can overload."
"That's exactly it," Kaito looked up. "This week, three reports, a club match, a fight with my parents, everything piled up."
Sora opened her notebook. "In psychology, multitasking is considered actually impossible. The brain is just switching at high speed."
"So that's why I'm exhausted."
"Yes. Each switch consumes energy. Cognitive resources are finite."
Hiyori said gently, "Emotional processing also uses energy the same way. Sadness, anger, anxiety—each requires time to face."
Kaito thought. "But reality doesn't wait. New things keep happening one after another."
"That's why your heart can't keep up," Sora nodded. "The external pace and internal processing speed don't match."
Hiyori looked out the window. "When that happens, you have to intentionally slow down."
"How?"
"Prioritize. Don't try to respond to everything with full force."
Sora gave a concrete example. "For instance, today focus only on processing emotions. Leave tasks for tomorrow."
"Is it dangerous to postpone emotions?" Kaito asked.
"It's the opposite," Hiyori answered. "If you ignore emotions, they unconsciously drain your processing capacity. Rather, consciously making time to face them is more efficient."
"So unprocessed emotions keep running in the background?"
"Yes. Like background processes on a computer," Sora compared.
Kaito showed a slightly relieved expression. "So I don't have to do anything today?"
"Doing nothing might be difficult," Hiyori smiled. "But at least, it's important to move at the speed your heart can keep up with."
Sora added, "There's something called acute stress response. In the short term, even if performance drops, it's time necessary for recovery in the long term."
"Rest is part of the work."
"Exactly. Psychologically, rest isn't mere laziness, but a recovery process for cognitive resources."
Kaito took a slow deep breath. "But I feel like everyone else is moving forward."
Hiyori said quietly, "That might also be a cognitive bias. In reality, everyone struggles the same way."
"It's just invisible."
"Yes. Others' internal states are hard to see. So you feel like you're the only one falling behind."
Sora said seriously, "Comparison also increases cognitive load. Just stopping comparison with others can make things much easier."
Kaito laughed a little. "Easier said than done, though."
"Of course. But noticing is the first step," Hiyori acknowledged.
Sora wrote in her notebook. "On days when your heart can't keep up, don't try to keep up."
Kaito read it. "Sounds contradictory, yet not."
"That might be how the heart works," Hiyori said. "You don't have to solve everything."
"What you can do today is just today's portion."
"Yes. Leave tomorrow's worries to tomorrow's self."
Kaito stood up. "Then today, I'll go home and sleep."
"Good choice," Sora nodded.
"Thanks, both of you."
Hiyori smiled. "There are days when your heart can't keep up. Acknowledging that is important."
The three left the classroom. The evening sky spread peacefully. It's okay to have days when your heart can't keep up. Being able to think that was already a step forward.