Selene's POV
The next morning at school, everything felt... different. It wasn't the weather or the classes—it was the strange anticipation I carried with me, knowing the boy who helped me yesterday might walk through those classroom doors any moment.
And he did.
Antonio entered with quiet confidence, wearing the school uniform like it was tailored just for him. His eyes scanned the room and met mine, and for a fleeting second, the world blurred.
He gave me a small wave and the same crooked smile from yesterday. I waved back, trying to play it cool, though my heart was anything but calm.
"Mind if I sit next to you?" he asked softly.
"Sure," I said, shifting my bag to make space.
As the class buzzed in the background, we whispered about everything. He told me about his recent transfer—how his dad's business kept the family moving, but this time, they hoped to settle down for good. He had an older sister studying abroad and a younger Sister still in middle school. His mother, he said, was his greatest support system.
I told him about my own world—how I lived with my parents and was the only child, how they were protective but loving, and how I balanced my love for sketching and fashion with my dream of becoming a nurse. He seemed genuinely interested, asking thoughtful questions and smiling when I got carried away explaining my designs.
"You draw your own fashion pieces?" he asked, impressed.
I nodded. "It's more than a hobby to me. It's like... therapy."
"Sounds like passion," he said. "I paint sometimes. Mostly graffiti styles—but I never really show them to people."
"You should," I smiled. "Art deserves to be seen."
That moment felt honest and raw. Like we weren't just classmates—we were people opening little windows into our lives.
When lunch came, we didn't sit with the usual crowd. We found a quiet bench under a tree. It wasn't a date, but it felt like something special. We talked about books, favorite colors, childhood memories, and dreams we barely admitted out loud.
And when the bell rang again, we both looked at each other with the same thought: How did this feel so natural so soon?