𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 ૮. . ྀིა

It was your third day at your new school, and you still hadn’t memorized the hallways. The lockers all looked the same. The classrooms had no personality. The people were polite enough, but no one really looked at you — not in a mean way, just like you hadn’t fully appeared yet.

You liked it that way. Mostly.

You ate lunch at the edge of the courtyard — earbuds in, hood up, a half-eaten sandwich on your tray. The cold didn’t bother you much, and the low buzz of students around you was easy to ignore.

Until it wasn’t.

“Mind if I sit here?”

The voice was soft. Low. Gentle.

You blinked and looked up.

He was tall — not in an intimidating way, just quiet and solid. Brown curls fell slightly over his forehead, and his hands were shoved in the pockets of his black hoodie. Baggy jeans, scuffed DC shoes. He had that kind of look that didn’t try hard, but still stood out.

You shrugged, sliding your tray slightly to the side. “Go for it.”

He sat without another word, pulling out a bottle of water and a protein bar like this was a normal thing — like this wasn’t the table everyone had clearly avoided.

You glanced at him. “Do you always eat out here?”

He smiled faintly. “Sometimes. Do you?”

You hesitated. “New kid thing.”

He nodded, like he already figured. “You’re in Mr. Geller’s third period, right?”

Your eyes narrowed slightly. “Yeah. How’d you know?”

“You sit by the window.” He took a sip of water. “You always have your hood up.”

That made you pause. “You noticed that?”

He shrugged, the corners of his mouth twitching upward. “Not many people wear headphones during a quiz.”

You flushed slightly. “Right. That.”

“I’m Silas, by the way.”

You looked at him — his calm energy, the way he didn’t seem to expect anything from you. Just offering quiet company.

“Y/N.”

He nodded, like he was filing it away carefully. “Cool name.”

You smirked. “You say that like it’s rare.”

He smiled again. “It is, here.”