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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLhTuW4zwZ2
Twenty.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRSaTEvQZvG
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjSU5v1H4hx
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:397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD5H89GGq8P
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3i2TfYKqoM
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9UKoPB8KE1
They don’t ask for your permission.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ypf9b6dB6
They just show up.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8hQajypgrQ
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ8hV60URBZ
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgK0Sg5ojQ2
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxRrQlKwA8g
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaHQqhTXqYH
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbCw3NdjtOv
My hair was doing interpretive dance.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWwvqXwxGos
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBC3DIN0Xxl
Not as strangers.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUM1GoYwX2Z
Not as accidental classmates.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lYio3H8yf
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3PdVrvJlt7
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEp6gm3rLn8
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQmsK3iYT7W
Okay, maybe I do.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3pKPlvNmLP
Okay fine, I watch a lot.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF1jEWvZnvv
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZOIOoSbNB
But here she was.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuQZqMsijdO
Leona.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmEvrDsnKKJ
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNhXrJLJHol
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6mA4sOlPcK
We chatted as we walked.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzXStopkXFg
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgKisG1JtQt
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡftut6noX4j
Not suddenly. Gradually.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlt3gFGlBfb
So, no one would notice.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOgB0atnGny
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4oRwLKAt6
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4G8p8bEf6v
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJdbzijpmOb
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlBkcsQzx2R
But the signal?397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzMVbpVlp9b
Well, it had other plans.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3rZRf3nYLL
and then Add to home screen.