micah eden had a very nice smile.

that was an observation you had made recently—but that did not mean you enjoyed this revelation. you'd have preferred to find yourself becoming an odious league of legends player, which would still spare you more of the public humiliation that would have come with fancying him.

micah was the archetypal golden boy—a tanned, blond, social magnet with an infectious laugh. back then you had utterly missed that boat, opting for being a record-breaking arsehole to him. great.

the epiphany happened one weekend, while you were doodling in one of your notebooks despite the no silly cat squiggles policy, instated specifically to make your life hell. you'd been sitting with your friend april browning, and micah and bella khan just happened to be taking that particular path to the local café.

he hadn't been smiling at you, fuck no. he had just greeted april to compliment her lovely choice of bow that day, flashing her a lazy grin that highlighted the amber ring around his pupils, melting through his blue irises. god you were pathetic.

"you are so stupid. like actually." micah huffed, the brine-kissed breeze stirring his blond curls so they cascaded over his pinched brows, lily of the valley earrings like shells on the sand. your uncle was friends with his father, so the two of you were in the process of mediating a playdate for two adult men.

you hadn't thought your comment had been that gormless, but micah let out a soft sound; like a hastily butchered laugh, concealed with the side of his hand. it was a habit of his to cover his mouth, a behavior learned to hide the minute gap between his two front teeth as a teenager.

awesome, now your feature of interest was niche. weird™.

"they haven't drowned, have they?" he added dryly after a moment, brushing off his reaction to focus his eyes on the two surfboards bobbing in the shallow teal water. it was better than him ignoring you, you supposed. "i'm off shift, penny better not come up with overtime convenience bullshit."