Ink & Echoes

1 . Collision Charm

" I knew it was not love at first sight.

I felt familiarity instead like : Oh, it's you .

It's going to be you.Game over."

(Skylar's POV)**

In the buzzing chaos of Nexus Institute, where talents clashed like unruly bumper cars at a carnival, I , Skylar Reid strutted through the place like I owned it . With earphones blasting , I was on a personal concert tour, completely in sync with the imaginary crowd cheering me on .

And then, cue the dramatic drumroll.

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"Thud!"

I collided with someone.

Picture it: a majestic crash of random headphone cables, like a symphony of spaghetti meeting its sauce.

Now, who's this unlucky victim ?

A hot stranger . A guy with paint on his jeans, looking like he'd rather hug a cactus than deal with me.

Here's the kicker - my first thought?

"Well , hello there "

But, hold the love songs, because as soon as Mr. Mysterious opened his mouth, the attraction fizzled faster than a soda left out in the sun.

If looks could kill , Ray shot me a glare that could curdle milk. And I, being the master of grace , I grinned at him like a fool to which he glared .

Mr. Grumpy Headphones Owner as I dubbed him, wasn't thrilled. He shot me a glare sharp enough to cut through my rockstar swagger .

I chuckled nervously, trying to diffuse the situation, "Whoops, are those vintage or something?"

He huffed, "Watch where you're stomping , blue."

"Blue ?" I asked .

Ray, still glaring, grumbled something unintelligible.

He glared some more before he turned on his heels to walk away, leaving me standing there, headphones in hand, utterly confused.

"Well, that went well," I muttered to myself. Little did I know, this encounter was just the beginning of something new .

Smooth, Skylar, real smooth.