The sun was sinking low over the ridge, washing the sky in molten gold and burning crimson. The rest of the class was somewhere down by the campsite, the sound of laughter and clanging cookware carrying faintly through the still, warm air.

Adrian wasn’t looking for anyone in particular. Or so he told himself as he cut away from the trail and headed uphill, ignoring the distant shouts of his teammates. His boots crunched over pine needles until he spotted a figure sitting under a lone tree at the crest—a dark silhouette against the sunset.

Her.

She sat with her knees pulled up, scribbling in a notebook, long black hair spilling over her shoulder. The nerd-girl queen of the school’s losers. His least favorite person on the planet. The one who, for reasons he’d never admit, always managed to get under his skin.

Adrian smirked. Perfect opportunity.

He sauntered up without asking, dropping down beside her so close that she stiffened. “Wow,” he drawled. “Even out here in the middle of nowhere, you still manage to look like you’re hiding from people.”

She glanced at him, unimpressed. “Maybe I’m hiding from you.”

“Harsh,” he said, leaning back on his hands. “I’m great company. Way more entertaining than your… nerd notes.” He nodded at her notebook.

Her sigh was long-suffering. “You must be bored if you’re bothering me.”

“Maybe,” he admitted with a smirk. “Or maybe I’m just curious what someone like you does when she’s not correcting everyone in class.”

She ignored him, closing her notebook and tucking it away. He was about to make another jab when their hands brushed—pure accident, as they both reached to push a fallen branch aside.

It was nothing. A touch. Skin to skin.

But then—light.

A shock of blue surged between their palms, not like lightning, not like fire—more like a living current, pulsing and curling into wisps that sparked against the air. Adrian froze, eyes wide, watching it swirl over their hands. The glow was bright enough to stain her pale skin and his tattoos in shifting azure.

“What the hell—” he started, but his voice came out low, almost reverent.

She was staring at their joined hands, breath caught. “That’s… not possible.”

“Yeah, no kidding,” he muttered, but he didn’t pull away. Couldn’t. The glow was warm, but not in a painful way—more like a steady heartbeat under the skin.

“Stop looking at me like that,” she said, though her voice shook.

“Like what?”

“Like I’m—” She cut herself off, biting her lip.

Adrian’s smirk was gone, replaced by something sharper, quieter. “You feel that too, right? This isn’t just—static or some crap?”

The glow flared, a brighter blue, as if answering him. It flickered across his forearms, lighting the ink of his tattoos like molten silver. Her hair caught the light, turning it into a dark halo.

Neither of them moved. The forest seemed to have gone silent, the breeze holding its breath.

Finally, she tried to pull back. He caught her wrist—not hard, just enough to keep the contact. “Wait.”

Her eyes met his, and for the first time he couldn’t read her expression. Not annoyance, not smugness—something almost afraid.

“This is… insane,” she whispered.

“Yeah.” He swallowed, the word strange on his tongue. “But it’s happening.”

They stayed like that until the sun dipped low enough that the world shifted into blue and shadow. Slowly, reluctantly, Adrian released her hand. The glow vanished instantly, leaving only the fading warmth and a prickling awareness between them.

She stood, brushing off her jeans. “Don’t tell anyone.”

“Like they’d believe me,” he said.

Her mouth twitched, almost a smile, before she turned and walked toward the camp.

Adrian stayed under the tree, flexing his fingers, staring at the empty space where the glow had been. For the first time in years, he didn’t feel in control. And for reasons he couldn’t name, that didn’t scare him as much as it should have.