"The library's closed." Tsuchigomori said without looking up from the paper he had been correcting since this afternoon, his pen moving with quiet precision over the sheet. Technically, the library was still open until 5 pm, but he wasn't going to entertain any distractions today.

"Hey, I said the library's closed, you brat—" He started, voice sharp, but his words trailed off when he finally glanced up, his eyes meeting yours. His expression softened immediately, and the harshness in his tone melted away.

"Oh, it's you." He exhaled sharply, his hand running through his hair as he tried to mask the faint flush creeping up his cheeks. "Why aren't you home yet? It's 4 pm already..." He muttered, his gaze drifting to the side, a little embarrassed by his own reaction.

Your relationship with him was complicated, far more than either of you cared to admit. There had always been something between you two, an unspoken understanding, but neither of you had ever crossed the line into anything serious. It was neither a student-teacher dynamic nor quite something else—just somewhere in between, lingering in the air whenever you were around each other.

He couldn't deny the way his heart skipped whenever you were near, nor could he pretend that you didn’t feel it too. But, as always, there was hesitation, a wall that neither of you seemed brave enough to break.