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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTlRLgjGyQL
Twenty.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsKqBrey7zb
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7HY7Ditj6
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:18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeKyWMkLvZG
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIv1r7oZk8t
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8cxnUUWcjx
They don’t ask for your permission.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdLB5K3J7IB
They just show up.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfVB1PO6c2X
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgDpYLPAnTo
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq5BPlGkLL2
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lU0TcgezY
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiX2BwxPDB5
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKWcWhnPWce
My hair was doing interpretive dance.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi1wvo3mbfc
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNGoshIRKKn
Not as strangers.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgsgKdIt5yb
Not as accidental classmates.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeCnK2wWdnV
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFcFc8fODiy
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzPh45PzZZ6
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLBJZ0OQMDd
Okay, maybe I do.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv2LtJcP0dK
Okay fine, I watch a lot.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtne6vIdCoW
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP3JPwhMNmf
But here she was.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT84YF73dtI
Leona.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkAEJN3vGAA
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsGOuoptBKt
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDENug9wTs2
We chatted as we walked.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡISkesbQJ07
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwrDSdZmQBE
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.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfUfv9P4GuJ
Not suddenly. Gradually.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡai32GsraQV
So, no one would notice.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVg0hFLC4VQ
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLzcJ6aAtuf
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtf3NmzHppN
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ86oJcQbrAe
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMUkT12wUS
But the signal?18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhciwVxN3jw
Well, it had other plans.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiN2Dxfwckl
