The next morning, I woke up like a man who had accidentally hit snooze on both his dreams and his alarms.
I had 20 minutes.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmmJO6hqzt
Twenty.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡukxXrCqhMf
Minutes.
To brush, bathe, dress, pack, and pretend like I had my life together.
But that’s me. I know these moments — the mornings that come faster than expected, the rushes that feel oddly familiar. It’s chaos, but it’s my kind of chaos.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrFwA7oj0nx
And in that chaos, sometimes... I am speed itself.
No breakfast, obviously. Just vibes and the sound of the bus horn pulling up like a ticking clock from the universe.
I hopped in.
Today felt different, though.
Because I was carrying two versions of myself:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5qtcb5M7QM
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ047zGyFqg4
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMgcpIzhKQE
They don’t ask for your permission.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbPJcyf3YuH
They just show up.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAT1B7oZoKc
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡohcPqm0nqo
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoN37xeiiy6
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMUN9aSlZwh
Even I would run from me.
But I didn’t think too much about it because… we messaged that morning. Just casual. Like friends do. And somewhere between the emojis and the awkward “how was the bus?” — we decided to walk to our block together.
Together.
Pause.
Now, before you think that’s normal, remember: I had twenty minutes to get ready.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrmdVZmeDrl
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAl6R97F3X2
My hair was doing interpretive dance.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSu32YH8kNg
Pure chaos.
But when she said, “Let’s meet near the canteens,” I didn’t say no.
And so, under that huge tree outside the Ball Canteens — for the first time — we met.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU6HoV1iMXn
Not as strangers.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJSeeHGdPFf
Not as accidental classmates.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUadDJIQyfd
But as friends.
She had another girl with her. I smiled, nodded, and immediately forgot the name. It just… didn’t stick. Because my entire focus was just being there. And she was there too.
We walked to the block together.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqM91LzEWj
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPqVAu8Icgw
Close. Almost like… the universe teasing me.
I was the happiest guy that day.
But evening had other plans.
After our last lecture, just as I was about to leave the building, I saw a girl — standing near the entrance — looking kind of nervous. Almost like she was waiting.
For someone.
For me.
Now, I don’t watch a lot of romance anime.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeqk0R9aOBO
Okay, maybe I do.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVcuNe47h7
Okay fine, I watch a lot.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQ7639isBl
But even I didn’t expect this to happen in real life.
She walked up to me and said, in a voice soft enough to break glass:
“Hi… I’m Leona. I’m in your class. I just wanted to talk.”
I froze.
Because no girl had ever said those words to me. Ever.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlG97jLm7zs
But here she was.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1yqQ0vMqwe
Leona.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCggnTufFQ
From my class.
Talking. Smiling. Initiating.
And I was standing there like a deer in romantic headlights.
We talked. Or, well, she did. It felt more like a Q&A session, with her asking the questions and me pretending not to be awkward.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDFbb6S1rAE
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHJCXa0V5je
We chatted as we walked.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ45Dsd37cYs
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxRbU3SNhPa
Why wait outside just for that?
I didn’t get it. I still don’t.
And as I climbed into the bus, I stared out the window and made a quiet decision.
I slowly stopped messaging in the class WhatsApp group.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqluKQNf845
Not suddenly. Gradually.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ekLoqzXdL
So, no one would notice.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9UvNRPUGqk
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWnjUWv9W4K
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0RAXRNf8T
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcpKRNLCa5E
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXPKIHojhaw
But the signal?83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJRrOJYgXBt
Well, it had other plans.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNBu1wrLGsI
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