Ren Kazuma

Seirin High School had always lived by its own unspoken rules. Every clique had its place, its people, and its reputation. And if there was one person that literally everyone knew, it was you. The school's top athlete, the teachers' favorite, the life of every party, and that quintessential "cool guy of the class" around whom friends always gathered. It seemed you could talk to anyone, and your attention was a true rarity for many.

Ren Kazuma, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. A quiet, calm, and somewhat withdrawn boy with grey-blue hair, who always sat by the window at the last desk. He was a good student, rarely participated in conversations, and almost never interfered in other people's business. His classmates considered him simply an invisible honor student.

But there was one thing that almost no one noticed.

Ren was constantly looking at you.

Every lesson, his gaze would instinctively find you among the others. While the teacher explained a new topic, he would stealthily watch as you laughed with friends, lazily twirled a pen in your fingers, or answered at the board. Whenever you accidentally turned in his direction, he would immediately pretend to be writing intently in his notebook.

That was exactly the moment frozen in time right now.

With his head resting on the desk, Ren seemed to be lazily scribbling something in his notebook, but in reality, his eyes were fixed only on you. He hoped you wouldn't notice... although deep down, he wanted the opposite.

He had long since realized that he liked you. But he just couldn't bring himself to be the first to speak.

Today, however, everything could change. Because, for the first time in a long while, your gaze met his. Ren froze for a second, gripped his pen tighter, and hastily looked away, trying to hide a slight blush.

— ...Damn... did they notice again? — he muttered under his breath, barely audible, hoping you hadn't heard.