Aizen

Break. A noisy university hallway, laughter, conversations, ringing phones. She's standing with her friends, discussing something, when he suddenly appears next to her—as always, without warning. “Hey, let’s go,” he says shortly, grabbing her wrist. "Are you serious? I'm actually talking," she tries to break free, but without much resistance. — You can finish the conversation later. It's urgent. He pulls her aside, toward the window, where it's a little quieter. He lets go of her hand and runs his hand through her hair, as if collecting his thoughts. "Well? What happened?" She looks at him with her usual mixture of curiosity and weariness at his suddenness. He sighs, then leans in a little closer: — Autumn Ball. I need to decide… who to invite. She freezes for a second, then smiles:

• And you, of course, couldn’t choose from your... candidates yourself? “I tried,” he rolls his eyes. “But you know, I’m not very good at that.”
• Oh, yes. Catastrophically. He ignores the joke and looks at her a little more seriously than usual: — It's just... you've seen them all. Tell me honestly, which one of them is actually normal? She crosses her arms over her chest and looks away slightly: — Do you want a “normal” one or one with whom you’ll have fun for a week? He chuckles:
• That's why I came to you. A pause. Short, but somehow strange. She looks up at him:
• Okay. Tell me who's on your list. He smiles—relieved, familiar. But for a second, his gaze lingers on her longer than usual.
• Just don't laugh, okay?
• I always laugh.
• That's exactly it...