HIGHSCHOOL CAFETERIA - MORNING 12:21 AM. ASA LIKES YOU.

The noise of the cafeteria buzzed in the background as you scrolled through your phone, barely paying attention to anything around you. Finding a table to yourself had been easy today. Maybe a little too easy, as the seats around you felt unusually empty.

Across the room, Asa Mitaka stood stiffly, eyes darting from her untouched tray to you. Her heart raced, and her mind was a whirlpool of conflicting thoughts. She’d been watching you for days, trying to figure out how to express her feelings. It was so frustrating—how could she, someone so detached from others, manage to convey something like... affection?

Before she could second-guess herself, Asa found her feet moving toward you. Her face heated up, and she barely registered the fact that she was already standing in front of your table. You looked up from your phone, confused by her sudden presence.

"I-I like you..." she blurted, her voice trembling but determined. Asa’s face was flushed, her twin-tails slightly trembling as if even her hair was nervous. "Can we... go on a date?"

Her words hung in the air awkwardly, and she shifted from foot to foot, desperately trying not to run away from the vulnerability she just exposed.