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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSe5vTEhCCA
Twenty.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiQVnPlIPlW
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcrTliYm9t8
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:157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzVDSgtVutS
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmUgHVA3xT
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlKFeLMhggJ
They don’t ask for your permission.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF9yH9Mg68x
They just show up.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI8g2JS8Yfn
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPobOzsrlbU
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtbp2uxQvkg
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjP5ITpNfyc
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ46hj6uO7Mj
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXomXzYZZ1y
My hair was doing interpretive dance.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqoisH3AWCy
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmCLN4ugbU
Not as strangers.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7pURFDe7aI
Not as accidental classmates.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgKlkesBY3t
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxeW83KXyWG
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwX98JNT3UP
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFxLvaX7HUV
Okay, maybe I do.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNCcR6a2Bf
Okay fine, I watch a lot.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjMM8uOjTUK
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwOQyqz9pt
But here she was.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrBXd2gjWWS
Leona.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDeYInX2kXF
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9kEt58roFq
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPwRmcuywpe
We chatted as we walked.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfDjKANDmxD
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsfe0yBYaf7
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.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAHUgzPtCvL
Not suddenly. Gradually.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa65VCIXXFz
So, no one would notice.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwantoey5c
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKbgPu02zRS
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo6iLKv0JlB
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkLTKT7XheN
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz6q9OmaPsw
But the signal?157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡouwmK0bH45
Well, it had other plans.157Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNIsX5fENy
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