"Ajin… Ajin."
The call pulled Ajin out of the world inside his book. He blinked and looked up to find Seth standing in front of him, one eyebrow raised, hand already extended.
"Pass your water bottle?" Seth asked, his tone casual, impatient in the way only Seth could manage.
Ajin handed it over without a word. Seth took the bottle, but instead of leaving, he lingered. His gaze dropped to the open novel resting in Ajin's lap, curiosity sharpening his expression as he tilted his head to read the page.
"I got it as a gift," Ajin said. "I'll give it to you after I finish."
Seth recoiled as if personally attacked. "You are suggesting me to read?"
Ajin nodded, amused.
"You can ask me to graduate with you and I might try," Seth said, already backing away, "but reading is completely out of the window."
Ajin laughed under his breath as Seth wandered off toward his seat.
He returned his attention to the book.
"Vebula's Science Lab."
His eyes lingered on the chapter title. He flipped through a few pages, scanning the dense blocks of text.
"It seems this chapter is long," he murmured to himself.
He leaned back slightly, glancing toward the window. Maybe he would read the second half later, once he was free again. The thought drifted lazily through his mind as the rhythm of the moving bus settled around him.
Ajin rested near the window, his forehead almost touching the cool glass. Outside, the city slid past in muted colors, shops blurring into streaks of faded paint and sunlight. The steady hum of the engine mixed with the low murmur of passengers, conversations dissolving into indistinct noise that slowly pulled at his awareness.
The bus began to slow.
His attention sharpened instinctively. His gaze drifted across the waiting crowd outside, uniformed students adjusting backpacks, office workers staring down at glowing phone screens, people standing in practiced lines shaped by routine.
Then he saw her.
She stood apart from the others, wrong in a way that made his chest tighten without explanation.
Soft pajamas clung to her, as if she had walked straight out of sleep and into the waking world. Her hair was slightly messy, her posture tense, eyes wide and searching. She looked lost, like someone who had woken up somewhere she did not belong.
Before Ajin could fully process her face, the bus hissed to a stop. The doors opened with a mechanical sigh, and she stepped inside.
She paused on the final step, fingers curling around the rail as her gaze swept across the crowded aisle.
Then her eyes found his.
She froze.
Ajin's breath caught painfully in his throat. His body moved before thought could form, a single step forward as a name escaped him in a broken whisper.
"Siri…"
The moment the sound reached her, something shattered across her expression. She rushed toward him, weaving past startled students who barely had time to move aside.
They stopped only a foot apart.
Ajin barely managed to inhale before she threw herself into him. Her arms wrapped tightly around his torso, holding him with desperate force, as if letting go meant falling into nothingness. He stiffened in shock. A second later, warmth seeped through his shirt as her tears soaked into his shoulder.
His hands hovered awkwardly at his sides, unsure, trembling.
She pulled back just enough to cup his face. Her palms shook as she looked at him, eyes overflowing with emotion too heavy for words. Before he could react, she pressed a kiss to his forehead, then his cheeks, then anywhere she could reach, frantic and urgent, as though time itself was chasing her away.
Her eyes met his again.
The pain inside them felt endless.
Ajin's hands finally rose, instinct taking over as he tried to hold her, to anchor her, to convince himself she was real.
She began to fade.
The warmth drained from her fingers. Color slipped from her skin. Her outline blurred, thinning like mist beneath sunlight. Ajin's arms closed around empty air just as she vanished completely.
Gone.
As if she had never existed.
Ajin stumbled forward, clutching nothing. His knees buckled as tears spilled freely, a raw sound tearing from his chest.
"Siri… Siri… Siri… SIRI!"
"Wake up, Ajin! Wake up!"
Jack's voice cut sharply through the panic.
Ajin jolted upright, dragging in a sharp breath as the world rushed back into focus. Seth and Jack stood over him, worry written plainly across their faces.
Seth quickly handed him a handkerchief. "Rub your eyes. You were crying for a long time, I think."
Ajin touched his face. His fingers came away wet. Heat rushed to his cheeks as he wiped the tears quickly, avoiding their gaze.
"Why were you crying?" Seth asked gently.
"I don't know," Ajin muttered. "I think I had a weird dream."
He turned toward the window, and the sight outside snapped him fully awake.
Their college stop.
His eyes dropped to his lap. The book still rested there.
Wasn't I just reading? When did I fall asleep?
He checked his watch. The time made him jump. He hurriedly stuffed his belongings into his bag and slung it over his shoulder.
"What were you waiting for?" he asked.
"You," Seth and Jack answered in perfect unison.
Ajin flashed an innocent smile. "Sorry, my bad."
Ajin was stepping out of the hall with his friends when a soft voice called from behind.
"Ajin… Ajin."
They turned. Cassie stood near the doorway, gesturing for him to stay.
Ajin excused himself and walked back inside. The hall had mostly emptied, leaving behind a quiet echo. Cassie took a slow breath, gathering courage.
"I need to talk to you."
Ajin glanced around to make sure they were alone, then nodded.
She stepped closer, her eyes shimmering with nervous determination. "I've wanted to say this for a long time. I can't hold it in anymore, so… please just let me speak."
Ajin waited silently.
"I've been watching you since the first day of college," she began. "You've always been the same. That amazing smile, always surrounded by people, always helping whenever someone needed it. Then you enrolled for the elections." She hesitated, smiling faintly at the memory. "I don't know if you remember, but I was the first girl to join your campaign. I supported you from the start. I liked you from the start."
She inhaled slowly.
"Boys usually approach me, so I never really learned how to approach someone myself. I kept telling myself there was time. A whole year passed with me just watching you smile."
Her voice steadied as she continued. "Last year I tried harder. I stayed with you during campaigns, made excuses to talk to you, to be near you. I know you noticed. I kept waiting for you to come to me the way others do. But you didn't. And this year… I don't want to waste another one living only inside my head."
Her eyes lowered.
"It hurts when you avoid me. It hurts when you ignore me. I don't think I can keep this inside anymore."
She stepped closer.
"So let me say this clearly, Ajin. Before I lose myself."
Her cheeks flushed deeply, fingers twisting together as her voice softened.
"I love your smile, and I want it to be mine. I love how you take care of everyone, and I want you to do that for me too. I love everything about you. After three years of feeling this way… I know it won't change. I will love you until I die."
Ajin's smile slowly spread across his face.
Cassie smiled too, her cheeks glowing red.
Ajin stepped forward.
She instinctively stepped back.
He took another step, and she retreated again until her back gently touched the wall behind her. He stopped there, meeting her eyes. Her face had turned so red it almost looked painful.
"Your face says everything," Ajin said lightly. "You should see yourself. You look like a red cherry."
She nodded shyly, barely able to breathe.
Ajin chuckled softly. "Will you really love me until death?"
"Yes," she answered immediately.
Ajin glanced around the empty hall once more. His expression softened, something unreadable passing through his eyes.
"Then maybe," he said quietly, "I shouldn't hold back anymore."
Cassie closed her eyes, lifting her chin, lips pressed together in nervous anticipation.
Suddenly, Ajin placed his hands against the wall on either side of her, trapping her between his arms.
She gasped, eyes flying open.
He leaned closer, his breath brushing her lips. "Do you still feel the same?"
"Yes," she whispered, her voice trembling.
His grip tightened slightly. She winced.
"Good," he said calmly. "Then I think I can do it now."