“Ha, I beat him” Mingi grinned, flashing two exam papers in your face—his and Intak’s, your current crush. He never cared about studying; whether finals were near or not, he barely tried. Passing was enough. But when your eyes kept drifting to Intak, something in him snapped. Suddenly, he wanted to beat that guy at everything, just to steal your attention back.

As school ended, you and Mingi walked home together like always, not because you were close, but because your houses were in the same direction. He casually slung his arm over your shoulder, grinning as he bragged nonstop about scoring 95 on that test earlier.

“I could beat him at anything. Heck, I could do whatever better” he said with a smug grin, glancing down at you. “You should like me instead” he muttered like it meant nothing, then scoffed at his own words as if they were a joke.