Oh man I totally forgot about her and I still couldn't believe she was actually in the same section as me. Before I could spiral any further, I heard the door click open.
The room went quiet.
She stepped in.
Black hair swayed gently as she walked, catching the light. Her face was soft, pretty, almost unreal… looked exactly the same as when I last saw her.
And even though we were wearing the same school uniform… On her, it looked different.
Like it's prettier for some reason.
The entire room froze, some people stared openly. Others whispered. A few just looked… stunned.
But I knew better.
Beneath that beautiful face was an alien. An alien that was in love with me.
I squeezed my eyes shut and cringed from the thought of it.
Because I'm still in disbelief that aliens actually exist..! And now she's my effing classmate!
I slowly opened my eyes again, peeking like if I didn't look too directly, maybe she'd disappear.
She didn't.
The teacher cleared his throat. "Go ahead. Introduce yourself."
Elena turned to face the class.
She smiled, It was gentle. Polite. Warm.
"My name is Elena Santos," she said, her voice calm and sweet. "I just transferred here, so I hope we can all get along. Thank you for having me."
That was it.
Simple. Elegant. Perfect.
She gave a small bow of her head, then smiled again soft, patient, composed.
The classroom exploded.
"Wait, are you a model?" "You're from the city, right?"
"What makeup do you use?" "Do you have a boyfriend?"
"Bro, she's my type—"
Boys laughed and nudged each other like idiots. Girls leaned forward, whispering and openly staring. Chairs shifted. The noise grew louder and louder until—
SLAP.
The teacher smacked his hand against the desk.
"That's enough," he said sharply. "Quiet down."
The room slowly settled, though the energy was still buzzing. He pointed toward an empty chair in the middle of the room.
"You can sit there, Miss Santos."
Elena nodded politely. "Yes, sir."
And then, she started walking toward it.
Toward the center. Toward all of us.
Toward me.
Her gaze flicked toward me.
Just for a split second, our eyes met.
My soul briefly left my body.
Then poof. She looked away like it never happened and calmly took her seat.
Meanwhile, I was still processing the fact that I had just made eye contact with an alien who literally confessed her love to me just few days ago.
Everyone kept staring at her, sneaking glances like it was illegal to look too long but impossible not to, even while the teacher started talking again, nobody was really listening.
I definitely wasn't.
…Hahaha.
Wow.
Am I going insane?
She'd only been here for a few seconds and she already had everyone wrapped around her finger just sitting there, smiling.
And suddenly everyone was acting like they'd never seen a human being before.
Meanwhile, I'm sitting here trying not to scream internally because the most terrifying thing in the universe is now sitting three rows away from me.
Now she's pretending she doesn't know I exist.
Yeah.
This is fine.
Totally fine.
Did she somehow read me?
Like… read the part where I don't like being bothered like we're close or something?
What if she can read minds?
She's an alien. That doesn't sound impossible.
But then again… If she can read minds, then she should've known from the very start that I wouldn't want this weird alien courtship thing in the first place.
And probably just destroyed Earth on the spot and gotten it over with.
Still… as long as she keeps pretending I don't exist, I think I can survive today.
Hopefully.
The class went by without any major disasters, which honestly felt like a miracle. And then—lunch time.
The moment the bell rang, it was like watching moths swarm a very pretty, very dangerous flame. People immediately crowded around Elena's desk. Questions flying everywhere.
I watched from my seat, unimpressed.
The girls looked starstruck.
The boys looked… hopeful.
Yeah. No. Ew.
I grabbed my lunchbox, quietly stood up, and headed toward the door. Elena was busy chatting, smiling, being effortlessly charming. Perfect.
This is my chance.
Escape.
Silence.
Peace.
I was almost there when—
"Hey, Mayu."
I stopped.
Oh no. I looked up.
Faye.
Of course…
"When did you—" I started, then sighed. I really need to stop staring at the floor like I'm avoiding eye contact with life itself.
"Where are you going?" she asked, already eyeing my lunchbox.
"Ohhh, you're gonna eat, right?" she continued without waiting for an answer.
"Perfect timing!"
She grinned way too wide.
"Come on, let's go together. The others are already in the cafeteria. I made sure they saved us a seat."
Us…?
She lightly grabbed my arm and started tugging me down the hallway like this was already decided.
"Faye—" I tried.
"Don't worry, don't worry," she laughed. "It'll be fun! First day and all. Gotta catch up, right?"
Right…. Sure.
I let myself be dragged along, my lunchbox dangling uselessly in my hand, already regretting every life choice that led me here.
So much for a quiet lunchbreak.
I was now seated with the exact same people who had ditched me drunk in a shed.
Amazing.
They were eating happily, chatting, laughing enjoying their lunches like nothing traumatic had ever happened. While I sat there stiff as a board, suddenly convinced I was about to throw up everything nanny lovingly made for me.
Aughh…
Even though Faye had invited me to sit with them, I felt like a total bystander at this table. Like I was physically present but spiritually somewhere else.
Preferably anywhere else.
I really wanted to leave. Badly.
Then—
"Um… excuse me. Is it okay if I sit here?"
The voice came from behind me. My stomach dropped.
…Wait. I know that voice.
I slowly turned around.
It was Elena.
She was standing there, holding her lunchbox neatly in both hands.
And… Did I hear that right?
She wants to sit… here?
With us?
Or... Is she sitting here because I'm here?
Faye blinked, surprised for exactly half a second before her face lit up.
"Oh! Yeah, sure! Of course!" she said quickly, scooting over to make space.
The girls at the table immediately froze, eyes glued to Elena like she'd just spawned out of nowhere.
The two guys?
Yeah. Completely gone. Soul left their bodies.
And now here I am.
Trapped between my fake-ass friends and an alien who has a crush on me. I stared down at my lunchbox, feeling a headache forming.
I'm pretty sure the universe is messing with me at this point.
"Sooo," Faye said, scooting a little closer to Elena, her tone instantly playful.
"You're the new girl in town, huh?"
She tilted her head, eyes sparkling with curiosity… and something a little mischievous.
"They weren't kidding, up close..." she added, grinning, "you're really pretty."
One of the boys nearly choked on his food.
"Y-Yeah! I mean—" he straightened up way too fast.
"I'm Josh."
He flashed what was probably meant to be a cool smile but looked more like he was in pain.
"Uh, if you ever need help with school stuff or, you know, finding places around here, you can totally ask me—"
"Yeah, yeah, sure," Jhanel cut in immediately, rolling her eyes.
She leaned forward across the table, squinting at Elena's face like she was trying to scan something.
"Anyway it was Elena, right?" she said.
"What's your skincare routine? Like, seriously."
She gestured vaguely at Elena's face. "You don't even have pores or dark spots. That's illegal."
She leaned in a little closer. Too close.
I watched in mild horror as Elena remained perfectly calm, surrounded by people who had clearly decided this was now an interrogation.
What the heck…?
Do they even know what boundaries are?
…Well. Clearly not.
I've been "friends" with them since the start of first year, so yeah. I should've known better by now.
Elena blinked once, then smiled politely.
"Oh… um, thank you," she said, her voice soft and calm.
"I don't really have a skincare routine. I just… wash my face with water."
She tilted her head slightly, like she was genuinely thinking about it.
"I think genetics help," she added after a pause.
The table went quiet for half a second.
Genetics.
I nearly snorted into my lunch.
Yeah. Sure.
Genetics.
They burst out laughing.
Faye nearly choked, pointing straight at Jhanel like she'd just won an argument.
"Hahaha..! Did you hear that, Jhanel?" she said between laughs.
"Genetics, she says! Girl, there's no saving you if your acne's still fighting for its life under that makeup!"
"What?!" Jhanel gasped dramatically, slapping a hand over her chest.
"Excuse you! This face is the result of hard work, expensive products, and emotional suffering!"
"Oh please," Faye snorted.
"Your pores have their own zip code."
"At least I have pores!" Jhanel shot back, lunging halfway across the table.
"Yours looks like It's sweating shit!"
The two of them dissolved into laughter, half play-fighting now, Jhanel swatting at Faye's arm, Faye dodging and squealing like a menace. A napkin flew. Someone almost knocked over a juice box.
"Violence!" one of the boys laughed. "I'm calling the authorities!"
"Do it," Jhanel said, fixing her hair.
"I'll sue for emotional damage."
The table was loud. Chaotic. Way too alive.
And in the middle of all that noise—
I didn't notice at first.
I was sitting beside Elena.
Not that close… nothing like how Faye was practically glued to her side, but close enough that I could feel her presence. Close enough to be painfully aware of it.
Then I felt it.
I glanced sideways.
Elena was looking at me.
Not smiling.
Not talking.
Just… looking.
Her expression was soft. Curious. Almost thoughtful, like she was studying something fragile and trying not to scare it away.
My stomach dropped.
Oh no.
Why is she looking at me?
I immediately looked back down at my lunchbox, suddenly very invested in the texture of the table.
Please don't read my mind.
Please don't read my mind.
Please don't read my mind—
She can't read minds right? Unfortunately, my anxiety disagrees.
I swear, if she says my name right now, I am actually going to combust.