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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaGpFlUEkee
Twenty.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEaDPIlk8g4
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡohMBgZrJN2
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:162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy9UCU6zuX9
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn2qnsjMcay
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs4sHDldlx3
They don’t ask for your permission.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqTds8dMoaY
They just show up.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSk6PIthwd
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6mROkHergZ
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeeyoqhkvAT
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqpvLALP81f
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXwE8n8sowE
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ016qBVnr8I
My hair was doing interpretive dance.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3MgSqCH1Z2
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj2FDEraNyt
Not as strangers.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC8EKRhrVYm
Not as accidental classmates.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeHRjuGFA92
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUlfUXwD3Rx
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5N6DFirCZE
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7RyAAvxLUf
Okay, maybe I do.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxg517p9inn
Okay fine, I watch a lot.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnGCc1brVTX
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlRCKegVb1a
But here she was.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1hoAdrFDTK
Leona.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4PnszJOSII
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgyt16Huau
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXFDtK560JI
We chatted as we walked.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJOqwkp6RpR
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTbaTJjyZp4
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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEW8qjFFf0b
Not suddenly. Gradually.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡliIBHT9ZU5
So, no one would notice.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFuu6nP3Zjr
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsV8FWjj1gB
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX4ZdUK6Hhf
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNJa6ZmZFme
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjSahUUEx1N
But the signal?162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDVC1SdQzX3
Well, it had other plans.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZoKeM8V6c
