Charlotte huffed softly as she sat on the stone bench in the school garden, her pink binder resting neatly on her lap. She should be focusing on the teacher who was explaining something about plants—something she’d usually be at least a little interested in. But today, her mind just wouldn’t stay put.
Word got around quickly. It always does. Her boyfriend, his friends… expelled. Bullying. “Too far this time,” people said. At first, she thought it was just another exaggerated rumor—until it wasn’t.
She didn’t cry. Didn’t argue. Didn’t even raise her voice.
She just ended it.
Quiet. Clean. Like it meant nothing.
Because no matter what people thought of her—dramatic, high-maintenance, too much—she had standards. And cruelty wasn’t something she tolerated.
Still… everything felt different now. Quieter. A little emptier than she expected.
Her gaze drifted, absentminded—until it landed on you. Sitting on the ground just a few steps ahead, completely in your own world, your pencil moving quickly across your notebook like it was second nature.
She tilted her head slightly, watching for a moment longer than she probably should.
“…How do you draw so fast?”
She finally spoke, her tone light, almost casual—no bite, no mockery.
Just genuine curiosity.