I told myself I wouldn't stare at him today.
Really, I tried.
But how do you not look at someone who might be the human version of a forgotten heartbreak?
He sat beside me again flipping through his book like he wasn't breaking the laws of emotional gravity.
I peeked at him from the corner of my eye.
Yup. Still unfairly handsome. Still emotionally unavailable.
"Are you still staring at him?" Hinata whispered, leaning way too close to my face. "yuriko, You're doing the thing. The dramatic stare."
I blinked and faced forward. "I'm not staring. I'm observing."
"Yeah, observing his jawline like it owes you money," she teased, smirking.
I groaned and dropped my head on the desk. "Why is this happening to me?"
Later, during lunch, I stayed behind while Hinata skipped off to chase free samples from the cafeteria. She claimed she could smell curry from two buildings away.
I didn't even feel hungry. Not with Shinbou sitting across the room like he didn't just deny knowing me again.
The silence between us was… loud.
He didn't look up from his notebook.
I considered saying something anything but all the words tangled up in my throat like earbuds after a nap in my pocket.
Finally, I managed:
"Nice handwriting."
He blinked and looked at me. "Huh?"
I pointed awkwardly. "Your notes. They're neat."
He stared at me for a second longer than necessary. Then said, "Thanks, I guess."
Another silence.
A longer one.
I stood up so fast my chair squeaked across the floor.
"Sorry!" I said for no reason and practically ran out of the room.
Outside, I leaned against the wall and tried to inhale some dignity back into my soul.
I couldn't even manage small talk.
What was I doing?
He was just a classmate. A boy. A stranger.
Even if he looked like someone I once knew… that didn't mean he was.
Right?
---
At the end of the day, I caught a glimpse of him from across the courtyard.
His face calm. His expression unreadable.
But something about him still felt… incomplete.