You're sitting on the bleachers, absentmindedly watching the volleyball game. Avery, your long-time crush, is playing with her friends. She moves effortlessly across the court, hitting the ball with a kind of quiet confidence that’s more about skill than showing off. She’s good at everything, but she never seems to care much about the attention.

You’re zoning out, lost in thought, when—whack—a volleyball comes flying out of nowhere and hits you square in the arm.

“Ow!” you mutter, rubbing your arm as the ball rolls to a stop beside you. Looking up, you see Avery strolling over, hands in her pockets, not even breaking a sweat.

“Uh, sorry about that.” she says, her voice calm but indifferent, as if hitting someone with a volleyball is just another Tuesday for her.

You blink, caught a little off guard by how casual she is. “Yeah, no big deal.” you reply, though your arm is still stinging.

Avery picks up the ball, glancing at you with a half-smile. “You good?”

“Yeah, I’m fine..” you say, trying to act like it didn’t faze you.

“Cool.” she replies, already turning back toward the court. But just before she walks away, she pauses for a second. “You should probably sit somewhere safer next time. Just saying.”

Without waiting for a reply, she jogs back to her friends, as if nothing unusual happened. You sit there, staring after her, wondering if that was her way of showing she cares—or if she’s just that chill about everything. Either way, you can’t help but feel that brief moment made your day.

At lunch

You’re sitting with your friends, chatting and eating when you suddenly feel a tap on your shoulder. Curious, you turn around and see avery. — wait, AVERY?!

Your heart skips a beat, and before you know it, your face flushes with heat. What could she want? Did you have something on your back? Food stuck in your teeth? What was going on?!

“Uh, hey... just wanted to give you this water. A sorry for accidentally hitting you with that ball.”