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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoioAZPONQr
Twenty.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdx8tOjChdg
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhj76xYXcf1
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:134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7w6iUlvhwV
One — light, smiling, joyful — the version of me that found a friend.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNhdnokqirL
The other — quiet, heavy — the version that almost said something he shouldn’t have.
Because here’s the thing about feelings:134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC1Bq5qom8Z
They don’t ask for your permission.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ165vBGdoVy
They just show up.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRVD1juQuxg
And when they arrive too fast — it’s scary. For you, and especially for the other person.
Imagine it from her side:134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe4UIFZpVJl
You meet someone by chance, a coincidence wrapped in everyday moments…134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGzrPzVqOq
and suddenly they’re showing up in your sky like a comet.
That’s terrifying.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiipNRJ0m8n
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7gk8UFYI7v
Just imagine a guy who threw on a shirt while arguing with his hairbrush and lost.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFzxx7QI2tW
My hair was doing interpretive dance.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwOCFjvW9kA
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuU9XMfubhK
Not as strangers.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyTablxtJyK
Not as accidental classmates.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡml5RwUlijZ
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡulwTsxYEpr
And — surprise — our classes are side by side. Same floor, barely a few steps apart.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2EHaIEfZfD
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg3n339GPFu
Okay, maybe I do.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy24bNqelhD
Okay fine, I watch a lot.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIuQNUp5df6
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb6z8HU13Zc
But here she was.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxe8YEoNTTm
Leona.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4zCWRUTYhk
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbAJTsASUAg
Eventually, she asked for my Insta.
I gave it.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwHVDRPhky6
We chatted as we walked.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbEbzqjqWut
The buses arrived. We said goodbye.
But in my head, I was spinning.
Why would someone want to talk to me?134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxHHWPzVy90
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.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡenBZGek2Z8
Not suddenly. Gradually.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdmKvleYlo2
So, no one would notice.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwStmDjx0y3
Because I had achieved what I came there for.
The plan?
Operation: One conversation with Seren.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmMTAzwhhuS
Status: Complete.
Bonus: We became friends.
And I didn’t care about anything else.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJW0tvSQ9Md
Because when you find one person who feels like more than a coincidence — that’s enough.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhceENWyDHX
Whether it’s a friend, a crush, a someday-maybe-never.
One is enough.
I tried texting her again from the bus.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDYJbtKW1pA
But the signal?134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYiDI9PYg9w
Well, it had other plans.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhSxJMh2TE
