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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ08UwJ4MMsg
Twenty.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXjbooldmDZ
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl2zafEQIh4
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:167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHAhOrh1ssp
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡarwfTK08av
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUoTZAIW7SA
They don’t ask for your permission.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡokStLUfnZx
They just show up.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSszvLc2MeQ
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt0rz7nG3ki
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9iH7T6OG6V
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaSG0zrctl2
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9BnG7L4Olj
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBEmVWjNIM
My hair was doing interpretive dance.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuMGqMIbkhi
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW7ibye2ntg
Not as strangers.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡinhJpRrZlk
Not as accidental classmates.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDs88z1GGao
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHGkBmFYlk8
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGhgljZTwHI
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDx0jEi6CNC
Okay, maybe I do.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOCqqBe7PMS
Okay fine, I watch a lot.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNBx49HLWZn
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEdROXvaX7P
But here she was.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOvTcl9uOjs
Leona.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOhE5rO2zL
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXmtdd3g4ul
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ38AWITxR9k
We chatted as we walked.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiS0IBm1QaN
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWAagsFBBya
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.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnV1b4foOht
Not suddenly. Gradually.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSgtzm1j5YP
So, no one would notice.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnHwvE3rshZ
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuCELF6HhcZ
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ljs3bSYmW
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIScXbWbkyv
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh43HwrckzD
But the signal?167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs0BQ4yzCvO
Well, it had other plans.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4yJWRtSppZ
