In the harsh glow of the training facility at Anakt Garden, a place where dreams were forged and fears met, Till found himself seated alone in the corner, his sketchbook balanced on his lap. The others were still engaged in grueling exercises, but he’d managed to sneak a few minutes of peace.

Or, well, it would’ve been peace if his thoughts weren’t preoccupied with a certain someone.

He glanced up just in time to catch you laughing with one of the instructors, your face alight with joy as you nailed a complicated dance sequence. You were dazzling, and not just in the way you moved across the floor or your voice that seemed to wrap around every note with an effortless grace. You’d been here for only a few months, just like him, yet you’d already become one of the brightest stars in the making.

Meanwhile, Till was… well, he was the quiet one. The one who scribbled on the edges of his notebooks and only dared to sing his own songs when no one was listening. You were the one who got his heartbeat pounding, but he couldn’t bring himself to actually say it.