Eiden walked quietly, Deuel by his side. The murmurs of the morning crowd had already begun to fade behind them as they covered so distance. Eiden suddenly turned his head back, his eyes scanning the path they ca from. He was checking sothing.
Linda wasn’t following. He let out a soft sigh of relief, shoulders relaxing just a bit. But before he could dwell on the comfort of her absence, Deuel nudged him with his elbow, raising a brow at him with mild suspicion. "Isn’t that Linda?" Deuel asked, his tone casual but curious.
"Yes," Eiden replied, face calm, voice neutral, as if the na itself was no big deal. Deuel narrowed his eyes at the detached response. "Then why were you two walking arm-crossed earlier?"
Eiden shrugged. "I don’t know, you tell ." Deuel pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh, muttering under his breath, "I think I’m starting to feel what Petter usually feels..."
Eiden pretended not to hear that. He kept his expression blank, his pace steady. Ignoring things was sotis the best option.
Still rubbing his forehead, Deuel asked again, "Was she troubling you?" Eiden nodded.
Deuel opened his mouth again, probably to suggest sothing maybe another sarcastic quip or so awkward advice but this ti a cheerful voice interrupted them. "Good morning, you two!"
It was Harry. He was grinning from ear to ear, radiating joy. His hand waved excitedly at them as he caught up. They both nodded back at him with faint, half-hearted waves.
Harry didn’t seem to notice their disinterest. He started walking alongside them, instantly launching into his own story. "You won’t believe what happened yesterday I t this beautiful girl at the subway station she literally dropped her wallet and "
As he went on, neither Eiden nor Deuel seed remotely invested. Their replies were minimal, chanical. "Okay." "And? "I see."
But Harry kept going, unaffected, lost in his own enthusiasm.
After a few minutes of enduring Harry’s romantic retelling, they t up with Petter and John near the main building entrance. With the full group now gathered, Harry’s blabbering finally found an audience in Petter, who whether from genuine curiosity or boredom started engaging with him.
"So then what did you say to her?" Petter asked, eyes wide in mock amazent. "Oh, I said, ’You dropped sothing more precious than your wallet your smile.’" Harry grinned proudly. Petter clutched his stomach. "Bro, you didn’t."
"I did." anwhile, John and Deuel got caught up in their own discussion about ga strategies from last night. Eiden mostly tuned them out, his mind drifting again.
That was when Deuel suddenly stopped walking. "Hm?" Eiden turned slightly, noticing Deuel no longer beside him. The others paused too. Harry was about to ask what happened when Deuel spoke up first, voice serious.
"Eiden... since when were you that tall?" Eiden blinked. "Huh?" Everyone’s attention snapped toward him. John frowned and stepped closer, asuring Eiden with his eyes. He then walked up and compared heights side by side. Raising a hand to gauge the level, he frowned deeper.
"Your height... it used to reach my nose. Now it’s at my forehead." He stepped back, puzzled. Harry tilted his head. "Now that you ntion it... yeah, he does look taller." Petter ca over next, standing beside Eiden. "No way," he muttered, then added with a tone of disbelief, "You have got to be using height insoles. Just like Harry did seven months ago."
"I didn’t use " Harry began to protest, but no one paid him attention. Eiden stayed silent. "We’re gonna be late. Let’s go," he said flatly, neither denying nor confirming their suspicions.
The others exchanged glances but followed his lead. Deuel remained behind for a second longer, looking thoughtfully at Eiden’s back as he muttered to himself, "Should I try height insoles too...?"
After reaching the college gates, the group naturally dispersed into their respective classrooms. Eiden, as usual, took his morning classes seriously, staying focused throughout. When the final bell rang, signaling a break, he walked toward Sasha’s classroom.
As he neared the door, he spotted Sasha and Crysty walking out together. Sasha’s eyes t his for the briefest mont.
But just as quickly, she broke the contact, avoiding his gaze like it burned. Without a word, she jogged past him, Crysty following close behind with a puzzled expression. Crysty turned her head mid-walk, locking eyes with Eiden as if silently asking, What just happened?
Eiden shook his head slowly, a silent reply: I don’t know. Although in truth, he had a pretty good idea. The only thing that happened between them this morning was that kiss.
But could that really be it? Crysty eventually caught up with Sasha, who had slowed down.
"What happened?" she asked, her voice casual but tinged with concern.
Sasha said nothing. She just kept walking, her face unreadable. Crysty tilted her head, confused. "Did you and Eiden have a fight again?"
At the ntion of his na, Sasha flinched but she still didn’t respond.
Crysty’s confusion deepened. It wasn’t like their usual bickering. She had seen those fights before how Sasha would glare at him, tease him, maybe even stick out her tongue. But this? This was different.
This was avoidance. Real avoidance. Sothing had definitely happened, but it wasn’t the usual petty spat. Did I see that right? Crysty wondered. Eiden... looked taller just now. Did I imagine that?
From where he stood, Eiden watched the two girls disappear down the hallway. He sighed softly and turned, only to find soone else walking toward him. Lyra. She hadn’t noticed him yet. She was chatting with soone beside her. Linda. The two of them walked side by side, their conversation light and casual, until they spotted Eiden.
Both girls went quiet as their eyes t his.
Lyra’s cheeks flushed the mont she saw him. Still, she tried to maintain composure, brushing her hair behind her ear as if nothing had happened. Linda, on the other hand, broke eye contact almost instantly. A faint blush colored her cheeks, and she looked away.
The three stood just a few feet apart in awkward silence. No one spoke. Lyra shifted slightly, her mouth parting as if to say sothing, but nothing ca out. Linda glanced sideways and then quickly looked away again.
After a few seconds that felt like much longer, Eiden stepped aside. Lyra and Linda passed by him silently, each avoiding the other’s gaze.
At a nearby hallway corner, Eva passed by just in ti to see the entire interaction. She raised an eyebrow, a knowing smile forming on her lips.
"Huh," she muttered softly, voice low. "Sothing interesting just happened."
Reviews
All reviews (0)