Fɪɴᴅɪɴɢ Hᴏᴘᴇ [Bᴏᴏᴋ 1] | 𝙏𝙤𝙙𝙤𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙞 𝙎𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙤 𝙓 𝙊𝘾

12

The internship is two days away.

But during recess, I have lunch with my classmates. We were having a normal conversation about school and life when Mina approaches with a topic we left off a few weeks ago;

My crush.

All the girls are hyped as soon as the sensitive topic starts for only after a second. I get a bit fidgety.

" Todoroki-kun is blushing~ " Mina teases again. I couldn't hide myself at all. My cheeks are visibly red as well as my ears, which Uraraka stated. I sit there, only hoping for one of the guys to help me.

Thank goodness for Midoriya to try and change the subject.

But failed when the new topic only lasted for a minute as Mina complains that my mysterious crush is hard to find.

" You just have to look harder, " I put it simple in a monotonous tone. She groans in frustration before I make an agreement that we will drop this subject.

—

After school, Fuyumi called asking me for a favour to grocery shop. She sent me a list and I went off to the supermarket.

What I would never expect is to bump in with Kyryan. Out of all the people, why her? And why is the feeling of not wanting to see her and wanting to talk more with her is mixed together despite the two emotions are completely opposite?

At least I don't have to debate whether to pretend not seeing her or speak to her. She came to me first. She waves at me with a happy smile and approaches. What about that one night? She's acting casual, like nothing had happened between us. As if she doesn't remember I just revealed a secret. Was she tired even before I came?

" Hi! " she greets cheerfully and feel like shying away. Wasn't this girl always disappointed every time I come through her door back then? Should I start believing that she doesn't dislikes me anymore? That I have hope to confess to her?

Will I ever confess to her?

" Hey, " I slightly wave back at her before remembering that I kissed her on her forehead but I push it aside and act natural, as if nothing had happened. " Here for grocery shopping? " I point to her plastic bag in one hand.

" Haven't started but yeah. This is just Evan's stuff he needs me to buy. "

" Me too. I'm on my way to the supermarket. "

" Guess I'll stick with you since we're going to the same place. "

Natural warmth overtakes my cheeks but preventing myself from blushing is my main priority. Why even small things like this makes me flustered? Am I not a man at all?

With that, we walk side by side to our destination as we chat mindlessly. We enter the market and instead of parting ways, we still stick together. It wasn't exactly my doing. When Kyryan went off to a different isle, she would always find her way back to me. I wonder how she knows where I'm at even when I walk to another isle. So, I ask.

" How come you know where I'm at even if I went to a different isle?"

But I don't get an immeadiate answer like usual. Instead, I have to wait almost a whole minute for her reply. It would be a whole minute if I didn't bend down to look at her. The container of strawberries she examined is raised, her face hidden behind it.
" Kyryan? "

She only hums.

" I asked you a question; how come you know where I'm at even if I went to a different isle? "

" Uhh . . . " she says but then she mumbles something that I couldn't make out what she said. I ask her to repeat but that made her quickly place - throw, to be exact - the strawberries into her basket and turns away. It caught me by surprise that she act that way. Unconciously, I grab her by the arm. She gasps before facing me.

That's when I notice the shade of red cascaded her cheeks. Her pupils dilated. " What's up? Was it something that I said? "

" No, not at all. I just remembered what I said wasn't very . . . appropriate to answer your previous question. "

I want to say something about her sudden change of behaviour but a laugh manages to escape from my lips. She stares blankly at me before demanding me to tell the reason I'm laughing. " It's just, why are you suddenly becoming formal? "

Her cheeks darken, even her ears and those made me smile. Can I believe that we have a lot of in common things but we dislike each other?

But I don't dislike her.

I love her.

" I love you. " Those three words are out before I could stop myself.

Hell. Did I just really confess to her? Or was it my imagination?

" You . . . what? " Kyryan asks and my face is burning. I really said those words out loud, didn't I? Even though she asked, I knew that she heard me from the expression on her face.

What the hell do I say next?

" I l-lov . . . I gotta go. " Being true to my words, I left her so I can be somewhere alone.