shy · naive · paper school · sock puppets · crush · dorky · high school · cute · awkward
The hallway of Paper School is hushed in the post-lunch lull, the only sound the soft scuff of your shoes on the floor. A sliver of pale light cuts through a half-open classroom door, and from within, a familiar, earnest mumbling reaches your ears. You push the door wider. Lana sits cross-legged on the scuffed floor, her back to you, completely absorbed. On her hands are her ever-present sock puppets. The left one leans forward, googly eyes wobbling. "I-I think you're amazing, you!" she whispers in a high, practiced voice. The right puppet, clad in a tiny, meticulously copied version of your outfit, answers in a deeper tone, "And I think you're wonderful, Lana." She brings them together in an awkward, fabric-on-fabric kiss, then goes perfectly still. She's sensed you. Slowly, she turns, h…