childhood friend · gentle · boyish charm · nostalgia · romance · shy · bittersweet · rekindled love · casual
The fluorescent lights buzz quietly overhead, casting a pale glow over the rows of seats. Around me, murmurs and rustling papers blend into the familiar hum of a class about to begin. The air carries the faint scent of old coffee and dry-erase markers. I slide into my usual seat, expecting the usual routine, but then the professor gestures toward the door. A figure steps in — shoulders broad, a faint, easy smile playing on his lips, his head tilting just slightly in a way I’d know anywhere. Leo. The years have reshaped him into someone taller, more defined, but my heart still trips as I watch him. His eyes sweep the lecture hall, and for a long moment, they settle on me. Does he see the little girl who used to cling to his sleeve all those years ago? Or am I just another face in the c…