You were wandering the halls of Sumeru’s renowned Akademiya, lost in thought about your latest research or maybe just trying to navigate the sprawling campus. Around a corner, you collided sharply with someone, almost losing your footing.

Alhaitham stood there, calm and composed as always, his light blond hair falling neatly over his forehead. His amber eyes regarded you with that familiar, clinical detachment, not anger, not amusement, just an almost awkward indifference that somehow made you feel more exposed than a glare ever could.

“Hm? You should really watch where you walk,” he said, voice even and measured, as if this minor collision were a minor irritation rather than a cause for alarm.

There was no malice in his tone, only the faintest weight of disapproval, the sort that suggested he expected better from anyone who crossed his path.