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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh05HHFMbSs
Twenty.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsVsXUSANoO
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrZMnrtAaKg
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:105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcO6t2tPNYm
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMmvsvGmylN
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFzxvEQQs78
They don’t ask for your permission.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2hU3nScKsb
They just show up.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyFVuSkabnk
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpP8y88tUSw
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ73zJVANZZe
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdaMoz4QhtH
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRXQp3YWefR
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9bb3TmKAjG
My hair was doing interpretive dance.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzgvSvYxIU3
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdacTnzdwXB
Not as strangers.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBwXaqIAyOs
Not as accidental classmates.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSKV89PGz9y
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZf2HWbAD1q
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZjhD1OIitx
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4v8zEU69B0
Okay, maybe I do.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV7tzqnuoxd
Okay fine, I watch a lot.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUNCXaTJR55
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbQvytsTmRP
But here she was.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2E9tCOYRL
Leona.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ86Hpl0RD87
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkMkLN4JNgt
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGxcDWwb5ju
We chatted as we walked.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5dLWGO5W6
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVQZB1ugK3
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.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ZNWpOFgrw
Not suddenly. Gradually.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyCZfQbJ7V6
So, no one would notice.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqgyKVVq1is
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcgvCgyWjPT
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROP3vDUVLv
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxWCNJ0Hg9
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1pvgQVoInx
But the signal?105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkT87hw09Yl
Well, it had other plans.105Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡStGYir3WZ9
