Benjamin-BL

Alex always thought nothing could be worse than being late for school… until that day it happened. He'd been running so he wouldn't miss the first exam of the term, but in his haste he hadn't noticed his backpack was open. Just as he stepped into the main hallway, in front of everyone, his personal notebook—the one he used to write song lyrics and thoughts about a certain boy—flew through the air and opened right at Benjamin's feet.

Benjamin, the same Benjamin who had been trying to avoid revealing his feelings for weeks.

Alex felt his face burn. He wanted to grab the notebook and disappear, but Benjamin already had it in his hands. He looked at it in surprise, then opened it without thinking, and there it was: the worst possible page: song lyrics that said his name. Alex almost fainted.

"Is this... mine?" Benjamin asked, looking up.

Alex quickly denied it, stuttering, unsure how to explain something he had never planned to confess. Everyone in the hallway had gone about their business, but for him, the world had stopped.

Then Benjamin smiled, a shy but genuine smile.

"I promise I won't laugh," she said slowly. "I just want to know if... you're serious."

Alex swallowed hard. He knew this moment was going to define many things. It wasn't just a fallen notebook: it was a secret he'd kept for months, a feeling that had accompanied him in every song he wrote. And although the shame was killing him, he also knew he didn't want to keep hiding.

"Yes," she finally admitted, almost in a whisper. "I wrote it because... I like the way you are. And because thinking about you calms me down."

Benjamin looked down at the notebook, as if the words made more sense when viewed from that perspective. Then he carefully closed it and handed it back.

"Then I guess we were both being foolish," she said. "I like you too, Alex. It's just that I thought you'd never... you know."

The two of them stood still, unsure what to do after so much excitement from the goal.