my once upon a crush

CHAPTER ONE The Boy I Never Expected to See Again Amara's POV If someone had told me that the boy I had been crushing on for the past three years would become the biggest problem in my college life, I would have laughed in their face. Seriously, who would believe that? Not me. Because, as far as I was concerned, Daniel Hayes belonged to my past. A very handsome, very unforgettable, and very frustrating part of my past. And I had absolutely no plans of bringing him into my future. Unfortunately, fate had other plans. Terrible plans. Beautiful, handsome, dark-eyed plans. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me start from the beginning. "Amara! If you don't get out of that bathroom in the next two minutes, I swear I'll leave you here!" I rolled my eyes at the mirror. "Can you relax, Tessa? I'm coming!" "You've been coming for the past twenty minutes!" I laughed, grabbed my lip gloss, and gave myself one final look. First day of college. New environment. New people. New opportunities. And, most importantly, a fresh start. I was finally leaving behind the embarrassing memories of secondary school, including the little crush I'd developed on a certain boy who had apparently made it his life's mission to occupy my thoughts without paying rent. Daniel Hayes. Just thinking about his name made me sigh. He had been the kind of boy who didn't even have to try. He was intelligent, quiet, and annoyingly handsome. He rarely spoke to girls unless he had a reason, and somehow, that made everyone even more interested in him. Including me. Especially me. The worst part? I'd never actually told him how I felt. Not once. I'd admired him from a distance, collected every tiny interaction we'd ever had like precious memories, and convinced myself that one day, perhaps, something might happen between us. But nothing ever did. Eventually, we went our separate ways. And now, three years later, I was ready to forget all about him. At least, that was what I kept telling myself. "AMARA!" I nearly dropped my lip gloss. "Okay! Okay! I'm out!" I grabbed my suitcase and hurried out of the bathroom to find Tessa standing beside our hostel room door with her hands on her hips. She stared at me. I stared at her. Then she looked at my suitcase. "Please tell me you didn't pack your entire house." "It's called being prepared." "You packed three pairs of shoes for a three-day orientation." "Fashion is important." Tessa burst out laughing. I shook my head and dragged my suitcase past her. "You're so annoying." "And yet, you love me." "Unfortunately." We laughed as we headed toward the hostel reception. The campus was beautiful. Students moved in every direction, some carrying boxes, others searching for their rooms, while parents struggled with bags and gave their children last-minute advice. The atmosphere was filled with excitement and nervous energy. I could already imagine myself making new friends, attending classes, exploring the campus, and maybe even falling in love. Wait. Scratch that last part. I was not falling in love. I was here to study. Get good grades. Make my family proud. And mind my business. That was the plan. A perfect plan. A plan that lasted exactly thirty-seven minutes. Because that was how long it took for my entire world to turn upside down. --- "Apparently, our new hostel supervisor is really handsome." Tessa made the announcement as we approached the reception area. I barely looked up from my phone. "Congratulations to him." She nudged my arm. "I'm serious! One of the girls said he's young, intelligent, and very strict." "Good for him." "Amara!" "What?" "Can you stop pretending you don't care about handsome men?" I gave her an innocent smile. "I don't pretend. I genuinely don't care." She laughed so loudly that two girls turned to look at us. "You're such a liar." Before I could defend myself, a bell rang, drawing everyone's attention toward the reception hall. A staff member stepped forward and asked all new students to gather for a brief orientation. We joined the crowd. I stood near the back, already wishing the meeting would end so I could unpack my things and find something to eat. Then the staff member spoke. "Before we begin, I'd like to introduce the person responsible for supervising this hostel. He will oversee hostel discipline, student conduct, and general welfare." I nodded absentmindedly. Blah, blah, rules. Curfew. No noise after a certain hour. No visitors without permission. I was mentally preparing a list of complaints when the staff member continued. "Please welcome Mr. Daniel Hayes." My heart stopped. No. Absolutely not. That name couldn't possibly mean— A young man stepped forward. Tall. Broad-shouldered. Dressed in a perfectly fitted black shirt and dark trousers, with an identification card hanging from his neck. His hair was neatly styled, and his expression was serious enough to frighten anyone considering breaking a hostel rule. But it wasn't his clothes that made my stomach drop. It wasn't his height. It wasn't even the familiar way he ran a hand through his hair before speaking. It was his face. The same face I'd secretly admired for three years. The same eyes I'd tried so hard to forget. The same boy who had once made my heart race simply by asking to borrow a pen. Daniel Hayes. My Daniel Hayes. Except he wasn't my Daniel Hayes. He had never been mine. And now he was standing in front of me, looking like a man who had absolutely no intention of making my college life easy. "Oh, my goodness," Tessa whispered beside me. I couldn't speak. "Amara," she whispered again, gripping my arm. "Why do you look like you've just seen a ghost?" I swallowed. Because I had. A very handsome ghost. And he was holding a clipboard. Daniel began speaking, his deep voice carrying easily across the room. "Good morning, everyone. I expect cooperation, respect, and discipline from every student in this hostel. The rules are simple, and I don't intend to repeat them unnecessarily." His gaze moved across the crowd. I immediately looked down. Nope. Absolutely not. I was not about to let him catch me staring. Not after all these years. Not when I was standing there looking like a girl who had spent three years dreaming about him. "Late arrivals will be recorded," he continued. "Noise complaints will be investigated, and anyone who repeatedly violates hostel regulations will face the appropriate consequences." Tessa leaned closer to me. "He looks like he could punish someone for breathing too loudly." I elbowed her. "Shut up." She grinned. "You think he's handsome, don't you?" "I think you should stop talking before I abandon you." She giggled. Meanwhile, Daniel continued his speech, completely unaware—or perhaps completely indifferent—to the fact that my heart was performing Olympic gymnastics inside my chest. Then, suddenly, his eyes landed on me. And stayed there. My breath caught. For one brief moment, the entire room seemed to disappear. There were no students. No orientation. No Tessa whispering nonsense beside me. Just Daniel. Looking directly at me. His expression changed. Only slightly. A faint narrowing of his eyes. A brief pause in his speech. But I noticed. Because I'd spent three years learning the smallest details about his face. He knew me. He had to know me. Didn't he? Then he looked away and continued speaking as though nothing had happened. I stood there, confused and embarrassed. Perhaps I'd imagined it. Perhaps I was simply overthinking because seeing him had brought back every ridiculous feeling I'd buried. Yes. That had to be it. The meeting eventually ended, and students began dispersing. I grabbed Tessa's wrist. "We're leaving." She looked at me suspiciously. "Why?" "Because I said so." "Amara, you are acting very—" "Please." Something in my voice made her stop teasing me. We turned toward the exit. I was almost there. Almost free. Almost ready to pretend that the universe hadn't just played the cruelest joke imaginable on me. Then a voice stopped us. "Excuse me." I froze. Tessa slowly turned her head toward me. I closed my eyes. Please, God. Not today. Not in front of Tessa. Not in front of all these people. "Miss." That deep voice came again. I turned around reluctantly. Daniel stood a few steps away, holding his clipboard. Up close, he was even more intimidating. And, unfortunately, even more handsome. His eyes settled on my face. For a moment, he said nothing. Then he spoke. "You're Amara Williams, correct?" My heart skipped. He remembered my name. After three years. He remembered. I forced myself to smile casually. "Yes. That's me." He glanced at the paper on his clipboard before looking back at me. "You're assigned to Room 214." "Okay." "Your room is on the second floor. Make sure you're familiar with the hostel regulations before tonight." "Of course." He paused. Then, in the same calm voice he'd used throughout the orientation, he added, "And Miss Williams?" "Yes?" His eyes met mine. "Try not to get into trouble." I blinked. Excuse me? Was that a joke? Was he teasing me? Or had I somehow offended him in a past life? "I don't get into trouble," I replied, perhaps a little too quickly. One corner of his mouth lifted. Barely. But I saw it. "I hope so." Then he walked away. Just like that. Leaving me standing there with my mouth slightly open and my dignity somewhere on the floor. Tessa stared at me. I stared at Daniel's retreating back. Then she grabbed both my shoulders. "AMARA WILLIAMS!" I jumped. "What?!" "YOU KNOW HIM!" I immediately shook my head. "No, I don't." She gave me a look. "Really? Because the way he looked at you, I thought you two had a whole secret history." I laughed nervously. "You're imagining things." "Then why did he remember your full name?" I had no answer. Because that was the question I couldn't stop asking myself. Why did Daniel Hayes remember me? And why had he looked at me as though he was surprised to see me? I watched him disappear into the administrative office. Three years. Three whole years of trying to forget him. And now, on my very first day of college, fate had placed him directly in my path. He wasn't my classmate. He wasn't my neighbour. He wasn't some random guy I could admire from a safe distance. He was my hostel supervisor. The person responsible for enforcing the rules I was supposed to follow. The person I would probably see every single day. I pressed a hand against my chest and took a deep breath. This was fine. Everything was fine. I could handle this. All I had to do was act normal, keep my distance, and remember that Daniel Hayes was nothing more than an old crush.