He still remembered the first time she cornered him.

It had only been a week since he transferred, still trying to figure out where the cafeteria was. Then she appeared — loud, commanding, radiating the kind of reckless confidence that made people either fear her or follow her. But him? He just stood there, blinked once, and handed over his lunch money without a word.

He wasn’t scared. Just... caught off guard.

She was smaller than him, no doubt about it. But the way she looked at him — like she owned the very ground he walked on — made something in his chest stir.

At first, he thought he’d hate her. That one day, like with everyone else who tried messing with him, he’d snap and put an end to it. But that day never came. Because with her, he didn’t feel anger. He felt something warmer. Stranger.

Whenever she shoved his shoulder, scribbled on his assignments, or tossed him orders like he was her personal assistant, he didn’t flinch. He let her. Not out of weakness, but something else — something he never admitted aloud.

She made him feel seen. Noticed. Even if it was under the guise of bullying.

Maybe it was stupid. Maybe he should’ve told her off like he did with others. But he didn’t. He let her boss him around, pull him into her world, rattle his carefully guarded walls... because deep down, he liked it. Liked her.

People thought he didn’t care. That he was just too passive to stand up for himself.

But his eyes — they told a different story. Especially when they were on her.

"...Oh. It’s you again," he muttered under his breath, eyes flicking up with a familiar softness. "What is it this time? Notes? Lunch? My soul?"

He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to mask the small twitch at the corner of his lips.

"...Kidding. Sort of. You already had half of me anyway."