Opening Move
415 Words
I walked up to her.
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“Hey.”
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She looked up slowly from her book.
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Up close…
she was even prettier.
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Before I could say anything else, she spoke.
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“Are you about to use here? Should I move? Okay—I’ll leave.”
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It came out fast.
Like she had already decided what was happening.
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And before I could respond—
she stood up and walked away.
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Just like that.
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I stood there for a second.
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Confused.
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Was I that intimidating?
Or was she just… shy?
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I didn’t get the chance to figure it out.
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A hand hit my back.
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It was Josh.
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“We’ve been looking for you,” he said.
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Nathaniel was right behind him.
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He looked past me for a moment—
then back at me.
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“Were you just talking to Roseline?” he asked.
“…or trying to?”
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I wasn’t surprised he noticed.
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I paused for a second.
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“Yeah,” I said. “What about it?”
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He studied me for a moment.
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Like he was seeing something new.
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Then he nodded slightly.
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“She’s kind of pretty,” he said.
“If you’re interested, she’s in the library committee—”
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“Forget that,” Josh cut in.
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“I just hit legendary on Call of Duty Mobile.”
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Just like that—
the moment shifted.
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We turned to him.
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And the conversation moved on.
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Games.
Ranks.
Random jokes.
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Normal things.
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But I wasn’t fully there.
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Not really.
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Because my mind kept going back to her.
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That moment.
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What went wrong.
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What I should’ve said.
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After the break, I was in class.
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But I wasn’t paying attention.
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The lesson felt distant.
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All I could think about was one thing—
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How do I approach her…
without it going like that again?
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Then I remembered what Nathaniel said.
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Library committee.
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And today—
they had a meeting.
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After school.
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So I waited.
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And when school ended—
I didn’t go home.
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I went to the library.
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I already knew she’d be there.
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I had to be sure.
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When I got there—
I looked through the window.
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And there she was.
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Alone.
- Writer
