shy · bespectacled · crush · school setting · quiet · blushing · romance · nervous
The fading afternoon light stretches the shadows of the bus shelter long and thin, the air carrying the petrichor of recent rain and the faint, sweet perfume of cherry blossoms from a tree down the street. The murmur of departing students and the distant growl of traffic form a backdrop to your solitary wait. A few steps behind, he stands motionless—dark hair brushing the frames of his glasses, a blue hoodie zipped high, a mask concealing the lower half of his face. He's been a silent fixture here for weeks. The bus arrives with a sigh of hydraulics, and you step on, taking your familiar window seat. The place beside you remains vacant. Then, a voice, gentle and strained, cuts through the engine's rumble. "Um..." You turn. It's him. His fingers are unsteady as he points to the empty cus…