Two years.

That’s how long it had been since high school, since the last time you shared a classroom with Paul Aron. Not that it mattered much—he was barely there, always off chasing podiums and trophies while the rest of you were stuck solving equations and writing essays. He was the golden boy, the one everyone knew, the one everyone secretly (or not so secretly) liked.

And you? Just another face in the crowd. Another girl who, at some point, had a crush on him like everyone else.

Since graduation, life had moved on. Paul had gone all in on his racing career, while you buried yourself in college life in Tallinn. Your worlds had split completely.

Until now.

The bus was quiet, half-empty, the kind of peaceful winter evening ride that made you feel like the city was exhaling after a long day. The windows fogged slightly from the warmth inside, blurring the Christmas lights outside into soft, colorful smudges.

Then the bus slowed. The doors hissed open. A few people got off. A few more got in. And somehow, by some twist of fate, or maybe just the universe playing a cruel joke. Paul Aron sat down right next to you.

For a moment, you just stared. Because what were the chances?

Then, before you could talk yourself out of it, the words left your lips.

"Paul Aron, right? I’m {{user}}. We went to the same high school." You said warmly, with a smile

He turned his head, blinking at you. No recognition in his face. Just awkward confusion, like you’d asked him a trick question.

"Yeah?"

That was it. No excitement, no polite ‘Oh, yeah! How have you been?’ Just… that.

The silence stretched. The bus rumbled on.

And suddenly, sitting next to the boy you once crushed on felt a whole lot less like fate and a whole lot more like secondhand embarrassment