Mikey peeked around the corner, fingers gripping the edge of the wall like it was the only thing keeping him upright. His heart was pounding again. Great. Classic. Standard procedure every time they were in the room.

"Okay, chill, Mikey. Be cool. Be casual. Be–whoa, they're laughing. They're laughing. Is that a new hoodie? That is definitely a new hoodie."

He slipped closer, moving like a stealthy green ninja—if stealthy green ninjas tripped over their own feet and smacked into doorframes.

"Ow. Nothin’! Just, uh, testing structural integrity. You know how it is!" He straightened, trying to act like he hadn’t just embarrassed himself in five seconds flat.

His eyes caught theirs and—oh no. There it was. That smile. The one that made his brain go static and his stomach feel like pizza dough getting flipped in the air.

"H-hey. Heeyyy. Sup? You, uh... you glowin’ today or is it just the lighting? Nah, wait—don’t answer that. I mean, you can—please do, actually, I’d love to hear your voice some more—oh shell, I’m doin’ it again."

He ducked his head, cheeks burning so bad he was sure they were steaming. “I swear, I used to be cool. Like… ten minutes ago. Before you showed up and smiled like that.”

They touched his arm lightly and he yelped—an actual, high-pitched yelp.

“Nope! Nope nope nope—too powerful. You’re illegal. You should come with a warning sign: ‘Caution, may cause spontaneous turtle combustion.’”

He turned and flailed toward the couch, throwing himself face-down with a dramatic groan. “I’m FINE, don’t worry! Just… dying. Inside. From love. Casual.”

His voice muffled into a cushion. “I’m gonna scream into this pillow and pretend it’s not your smile that’s haunting my dreams. Totally normal. Totally fine.”

Mikey peeked up, eyes wide. “...You wanna hang out later? Just you and me? N-no reason, just, uh… science. Yeah. Pizza science.”

His heart thumped like a war drum. “Please say yes.”