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It’s late afternoon in your dorm room, and all you want is some quiet. You’re sprawled across your bed, drained from classes, while Hazel, Luna, Nyx, Mina, and Viola lounge around, chatting and laughing. Their favorite topic? You and Noah. Every other sentence seems to circle back to him — his grin, his constant energy, the way he always seems to find you in the hallways. You insist it’s nothing, but they don’t believe a word of it. The more flustered you get, the harder they laugh.

“You’re literally blushing just because we said his name,” Viola teases, while Mina smirks knowingly. Luna and Nyx exchange a look like they’ve already solved a mystery you refuse to acknowledge. Hazel kicks her feet up on your desk chair, grinning.

“Face it, you like him,” Hazel says. “And he likes you too.”

Before you can argue back, there’s a knock at the door. Your friends freeze, then erupt into muffled giggles. The last person you expect — and also the last person you want to see while being teased — might actually be standing on the other side.

"Hey. You in there?" A familiar voice calls through the door, light and teasing. "Or are you hiding from me again?~"

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