The day began with sore limbs, a dry throat and weary eyes. The tell tale signs of a deep night's sleep. You sat up groggily from your bed, groaning at your body's unrelenting stiffness. What a nap! Ignoring the bird's nest resting on top of your head, you unlocked your phone to check your messages. The screen's brightness seared into your sleepy, squinting eyes, causing your vision to blur and suffer as you read.

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Kitty Um Yin? ( '• ω • ') I don't want to bother you but it's 8:45am. Are you there? I just wanted to check in and make sure ur okay! Because you usually text me on the way to class. (ᵕ—ᴗ—) But ur silent today. Are u okay? Are u sick? Do u need help? (￣ω￣;)

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What is he...? OH FUCK. YOU'RE LATE FOR CLASS. You shot up from bed in a cartoonish frenzy, launching yourself on to the floor like a fish out of water and scrambling out from your bed covers. With all the grace of a wild animal, you tore through your room, ripping off your pyjamas as though they were a second skin. Normally, you'd spend at least ten minutes selecting an outfit socially acceptable enough for a college student, but today was a race against the clock. In a flurry of motion, you grabbed the nearest hoodie - one that had seen better days - paired with whatever other items you could find. Then, with your school bag slung over your shoulder, you skidded toward the door in your socks, hand on the door handle before realising you still had yet to put your shoes on. You back-traced, hopping on one foot to the other as you squeezed on a pair of boots. Looking like the human personification of a hurricane, you finally propelled yourself outside, speeding with such velocity that you tripped over the door ledge and faceplanted on to the unforgiving concrete. Dazed, you remained lying there, questioning your existence. Your neighbour, a sweet old lady tending to the planets, observed your peril with sympathy. Mrs. Handa had grown accustomed to your bad luck. Just last week she had watched you tumble down the apartment stairs and pretend to be deceased for a full minute straight out of embarrassment. You had actually hoped to be dead, but unfortunately, life had other plans for you. With a concerned smile, she hobbled over, her walking stick tapping rhythmically against the pavement.

"You alright, dearie? That was quite a fall!" You got up, eyes watering with pain and humiliation as you forced yourself to smile at the sweet woman. "Yes! I'm fine thank you! Sorry for causing trouble. I wasn't looking where I was going." A trickle of blood ran down your face ominously. It was like something out of a horror movie. You continued to smile, adding to the creepiness, as you wiped it off with your hoodie sleeve and proceeded to walk away. "I have to go now. Um thank you once again. And sorry!! Bye!"

"Are you sure you're okay? You're bleeding. Let me get a bandaid for you!" She called out to no avail as you had already fled the scene.

Great. Not only were you incredibly late for class but now you had to figure out how to avoid that neighbour for the rest of your existence.

Koda, meanwhile, had been anxiously stalking the perimeter of your apartment building as he debated breaking into your home to check if you were still alive. He didn't want to sabotage his relationship with you, yet he couldn't help but panic whenever you didn't abide by your daily routine. As an incredibly anxious person, it was rare for you to be this late for class unless you were skipping it entirely. Not only that, but you hadn't even texted him yet! What if something had happened to you while he slept? It was the only time he had his guard down. If only he had a way of keeping tabs on your vitals. He'd watch every heartbeat go by and monitor every breath your precious lungs produced. His hand clutched to his chest, feeling his own heartbeat as it raced rapidly.

In the midst of his nervousness, a blur shot past him. Fast. Indistinguishable to all except Koda himself. His eyes immediately brightened, cheeks flushing pink with lovesick joy as he recognised this disorganised figure to be his one and only true love. He sauntered after you, quietly giggling to his amusement as he observed your rapt energy and distress. It was a rare sight to witness you behave so frantically. You made it to the station but just missed the train by a few seconds. How disgusting you felt as you huffed and sweated in defeat next to the tracks. Koda, on the other hand, couldn't stop blushing and snapping secret pictures of you for his collection.

"Tehehe, you look so adorable today, [Y/n]." he whispered softly to himself as he stalked you from around the corner, phone eagerly held toward his face as he repeatedly photographed his one and only muse. "I'm gonna make a whole album dedicated to [Y/n] being cute and messy!"

[𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹] 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘚𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴.

His smile dropped. Now you were both miserable.

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After catching the next train, you leapt out of the carriage and dashed toward campus, adrenaline coursing through your veins. Then, at last, you finally reached your classroom. Breathlessly peering through the door's frosted glass, your heart sank at the sight of your classmates already seated, immersed in the seminar. You were too late. Fifteen minutes late to be exact. The weight of your embarrassment settled heavily on your chest as you pictured the scene in your mind: all eyes turning to you, the careless latecomer, as you stumbled in, desperately apologising whilst your professor's disappointed gaze bore into you.

Nope. No way. Screw that. The thought of facing such humiliation was unbearable. Better to skip and pretend to be ill. With a quick glance over either shoulder to ensure no one had noticed your presence, you pivoted on your heel and hurried down the corridor.

As you tore blindly around the corner, you felt your body come into contact with something - or someone. In seconds, you felt your body trip forward, your face lunging toward the floor. You closed your eyes and braced for impact.

... But, instead, you remained safely suspended in the air. Nervously opening your eyes, you stared at the ground before you, questioning how on earth you had managed to remain upright and unharmed. That's when you glanced down and noticed a length of pressure against your chest.

"Woah, that was close! You okay?" A male's voice spoke. There was an upbeat warmth to it. You looked up to see the popular student union member, Liam, who had swiftly caught hold of you with one arm. Cheeks flushing, you jumped backed to support yourself on your own two feet.

"Ah! I-I'm sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going. Thank you for catching me. I'll be going now-" "Wait!" As you turned around to escape, he grabbed hold of your hand. You froze. Had he recognised you? Did he know you were skipping class?! "I- Um... Your head. It's bleeding." You emitted a confused expression, raising the palm of your hand toward your forehead. A warm, familiar liquid brushed against your skin, oozing down your wrists. The scent of metal filled the air. Your mind flickered back to earlier that morning when you had foolishly tripped over your own doorstep outside. You had been so quick to dismiss it. Liam's face softened with concern, his tender brown eyes locking on to the flowing wound.

"Gahh, this is all my fault! Did I not catch you in time?" he murmured with self-reproach. He gently placed a hand on your head, moving your hair back to study the bleeding gash. Your cheeks flushed and the world seemingly began to tilt as you felt yourself slowly losing balance again. Was this real life? Was this conventionally attractive person really speaking to you, touching you, caring about you? His confident yet calm voice fades into blurry background noise as you gaze at the boy; his reassuring smile, his tanned skin, his tousled brown hair. Your eyes flickered sleepily and you staggered a little, forcing him to catch you once again. "Hey, you are feeling alright? You seem a little out of it." You weren't sure if it was the blood loss or the anxious sensation fluttering within you. "I think I'm fine." you responded with uncertainty, still wavering slightly. "No no no! Don't go anywhere. It might be dangerous! You're clearly feeling faint." Liam exclaimed, holding you by your shoulders and looking around for a member of staff. "I'm gonna take you to the nurse's office, okay?" "It's okay. You don't have to do tha- AH!!" Before you could protest, the tall boy lifted you into his arms princess style and began moving with ease down the corridors. You instinctively clung on to him in panic, eyes wide with abject horror at the idea of being carried by someone. "You really really don't have to do this. I'm actually feeling a lot better now. Thank you. I'm sure I can walk."

"Nah, it's nothin'. Don't worry about it! Back in highschool, I was like the designated person-carrier whenever someone got hurt during sports. Haha. I'm basically a human ambulance at this point." Liam gave you a friendly wink and continued onward, completely misunderstanding the reason for your resistance. "Just rest easy for now. I got you."

On one hand, you did feel a slight sense of physical relief in his strong arms. On the other hand... WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK IS GOING ON?!?!

You were sure most of the girls in your class - hell, most girls in general - would be thrilled at this corny K-drama scene, squealing at the very thought of someone so objectively handsome holding them like this. But you were mortified. After all, you didn't exactly have the appearance of a cute, sparkling protagonist in your hideous "I paused my game to be here" hoodie that a misguided relative got you for your birthday. It was something you wore exclusively in the comfort of your own home, something you could laugh about ironically to yourself. Unfortunately, in the midst of your morning mayhem, you must have grabbed it by mistake. You self-consciously raised your hands to cover the contents of your top.

Most students were in classes but there were an odd few lingering outside, chatting with one another and playing on their phones. As you and Liam passed by, their eyebrows raised and you could see them whispering to one another. Although you couldn't make out exactly what they were saying, you were certain you heard the word 'couple' and 'dating' appear once or twice. You turned bright red, feeling your soul leave your body. This only sparked Liam's concern even more.

"Oh no. You're looking pretty rough there, [Y/n]. Don't worry though. We're here now. See?" Liam entered the nurse's office, still protectively holding you close to his chest as he cluelessly walked around the room. "Hello?" He was met with the absence of staff. "That's weird. No one's here. I wonder where they went." "Y-you can put me down now..." you croaked. "Ah right! Of course!!" Liam carefully set you down on one of the beds and took another look around the room. You had hoped that this would be the last of your ordeal with Liam but, to your disappointment, he sat down right next to you. "I guess I will wait right here with you until the nurse comes."

"No, it's fine...." Your voice was too quiet for him to notice. As you trailed off, Liam took another look at your scar, visibly worried as it began trickling down your face again.

"Aaaah this won't do! I'm not gonna sit here and do nothing while you're in pain. I'll patch it up. I mean we're adults, right? We don't need a member of staff to do it for us."

"No. No, Liam." You thought to yourself miserably. "I want a trusted adult to help me with this."

After acquiring a first aid kit, you noticed Liam's face drop as he was met with the many sterilised medical tools. This himbo clearly had no idea what he was doing. He swallowed nervously, picking up what appeared to be disinfectant and squinting his eyes to analyse the small writing at the back. "Hmm. This looks like that disinfecty stuff. I should use this, right?"

"M-maybe. I don't know."

"Yeah. This looks right. Okay, I'll wash your wound and then clean it with this and then... hmm... you don't need stitches, do you?"

There was no way in hell you were letting this guy give you stitches.

"I don't need stitches." you said quickly.

Liam raised an eyebrow at you, not entirely convinced, before shrugging it off and smiling.

"Okay! This shouldn't be too hard." He got up to rinse a paper towel whilst you prayed for the nurse to spawn. "Hell yeah, we so got this! You know, I used to help out with the nurse at my school. It was nice being able to help people. Then one day she puts a hand on my shoulder and gives me this sad sorta look on her face and says 'Liam... never become a doctor. Please for the love of god.' Hahaha, she was so funny! Kinda random though. I don't know what she meant by that. I mean I think I was pretty good at helping."

As Liam approached you shuffled away from him slightly, pale in the face. Is he trying to freak you out!?

No. That was the worst part. He was being complete genuine. Liam smiled at you, tilting his head in confusion as you distanced yourself. He sat down beside you and raised the damp tissue toward your head.

"Okay, stay still. I'll just clean this off."

You tried to move away again but your back was pressed again the headboard of the bed. Before you could ask if you could do it yourself, Liam pressed the warm wet towel against your skin, gently smearing off the dry blood stains. To your surprise, he was remarkably attentive, making sure he didn't apply too much pressure. After pulling away, he could see that the wound wasn't nearly as bad as it looked.

"Cool, we're nearly there. Now I gotta... oh." He gave you a pitiful look as he grabbed the disinfectant. "I guess this is the part where I kinda have to lie to you and say 'this won't hurt a bit?'"

Thanks for the reassurance.

Your stomach flips at the sight of the bottle as he dabs a cotton ball with the disinfectant. The two of you briefly lock eyes with the understanding that this is probably gonna hurt like hell. You nod and clamp your eyes shut, bracing for what's to come. As he presses the cotton ball against your skin, the stinging sensation sends a jolt through you, but it's nothing compared to the way his fingers linger just a moment longer than necessary. You can't help but wince slightly

"Sorry! I know it stings," he says, his eyes softening. "You're doing great."

His smile is reassuring, and you can't help but return it, even as your heart flutters wildly in your chest. You try to speak, to thank him, but the words get tangled in your throat. Instead, you focus on the way his brow furrows in concentration, how every movement of his hands seems so gentle and precise. Next is the bandages.

His hands are steady as he reaches for your wound, carefully tucking back your hair with his thumb. You can feel the heat radiating from his body, creating a cocoon of warmth around you. He leans in closer, his breath brushing against your ear. You struggle to focus on anything other than the way your heart races.

As he carefully unravels the bandage, your pulse quickens. The world around you fades, leaving only the two of you in this intimate moment. You catch the hint of his cologne—a fresh, invigorating scent that makes your head swim even more. You feel light-headed, and it's not just from the searing wound. Then, at last, he pulls away.

"There we go. You're gonna look super badass now." He complimented. "If anyone asks, you can tell them you got into a crazy fight and not... not because you bumped into me. Haha."

"I actually didn't get this from you," You raised a hand to your head, feeling the slightly clumsy bandage fitted around your head. "I um tripped and fell this morning. I was in a rush."

"What were you in a rush for?"

"Class."

"I see. I'm just wondering why you seemed to be running away from class when we ran into each other." Liam's posture and expression was relaxed. Not at all confrontational. Even so, you immediately flushed red in a panic, assuming he was getting ready to lecture you about skipping.

"No. I-I wasn't skipping. I was just-"

"[Y/n]," Liam chuckled softly. "I was skipping class too. Just because I'm in the student union doesn't mean I'm going to tell you off. We're not kids anymore. Anyways, this must be fate, right? Actually, truth be told, [Y/n], I've been wanting to talk to you for a while now. "

"About?"

"Anything? I just want to hang out with you to be honest. But every time class finishes, you leave so fast, I never manage to catch up to you in time! So can we be friends?" Friends? Like actual friends? Hangout friends? Texting friends? Real. Life. Friends. You stared at him, trying to decipher his expression. Was this a prank? Was he just using this experience to play with your feelings? Then again, he spoke with such sincerity, it was hard to disbelieve him.

"Okay, I would like that."

As the two of you leave the nurse's office, Liam yaps to you nonstop, asking you questions about your interests, and whereabouts you live. It's the first time someone here seems genuinely interested in you. It's overwhelming. Before you can reply to each and every one of his questions, the two of you are interrupted by the voices of Liam's friends. A mixed group of boys and girls waved him down, calling out to him.

"Liam, there you are! We've been searching all over for you." One of his friends said as he approached. He noticed you and grinned. "Oh shoot. I didn't know you were talking to someone. My bad!"

"Ah no! It's fine. I was actually just leaving." You murmured, swiftly turning around to escape. Liam grabbed your wrist, flushing pink as he could hear his friends coo from behind.

"Wait, [Y/n]. You don't have to go." Liam said, his voice slightly more fragile. "Would you like to hang out with us?"

Hang out... with them? The popular students? His friends enthusiastically agree, encouraging you to join them - even the girls (who you expected to be clingy and possessive of Liam) begged you to join.

"Come with us~ We're going out to get drinks." Chimed in one of his attractive female friends. "It'll be fun!"

"Hell yeah, new friend. Hang with us." Another added.

You took a step back.

"N-no, I- Um. I really have to go! Bye!"

You ran off, ashamed, leaving Liam and his group of friends stood in confusion.