Chapter 6: Some People Leave Footprints Without Trying

“I forgot my pencil.”

It was a simple sentence. Casual. Barely enough to register.

But when she said it to him, spinning slightly in her chair and looking at him like they’d always shared conversations, it landed differently.

He didn’t speak. Just reached into his pencil case and held one out to her.

She smiled as she accepted it. “Thanks.”

That was it. No teasing, no commentary from Classmate A, B, or C this time. Just the moment, and the oddly comfortable silence it left behind.

⸻

At lunch, _ usually slipped out. There was a bench near the side building where the vending machine buzzed and the stray cat sometimes wandered by.

But today, he stayed.

Maybe because she was still in her seat, unwrapping a sandwich with quiet concentration. Or maybe because Classmate A had commandeered the corner by the window and pulled half the class into a “card battle” tournament using some obscure game no one really understood.

He didn’t join the crowd. Just opened his lunch and kept to himself, eating with the same practiced pace.

Then her voice came again.

“Want a bite?”

He looked up. She was holding out half of her sandwich, casually, as if offering part of her lunch to someone like him wasn’t strange at all.

“…No, I’m fine.”

“You hesitated.”

“I didn’t.”

“You blinked.”

“That’s not hesitation.”

She smiled. “Sure it isn’t.”

She took a bite of the half meant for him and chewed with exaggerated smugness. “Too late now. It was amazing.”

He shook his head, but the corner of his mouth almost twitched. Almost.

⸻

PE was volleyball again. His least favorite.

The team draft was chaotic as always, but somehow — maybe fate, maybe boredom — Classmate A roped _ into his group.

“You’re tall. You’re in. Don’t argue.”

“I wasn’t going to,” _ replied, surprising even himself.

The game was loud. Fast. Messy. Classmate C dived dramatically for every ball, even when unnecessary. Classmate B mostly stood in the back pretending he didn’t care.

_ played quietly. Efficiently.

After a decent block, Classmate A gave him a thumbs up. “Nice!”

He blinked.

No sarcasm. Just a thumbs up.

When he glanced toward the sideline, she was there. Knees tucked up, arms wrapped around them. Watching him again.

Not cheering. Just watching. Like she was trying to read something in his movements.

⸻

After class, the sky was pale gray and the wind hinted at rain.

They ended up walking down the hill together.

Not because it was planned. It just… happened.

They didn’t talk at first. The silence between them had started to become familiar. Comfortable, even.

“You were pretty good today,” she said finally, looking ahead.

“At what?”

“PE. Blocking. Looking like a functioning member of society.”

“I was just standing in the right place.”

She gave a soft laugh. “Still counts.”

They passed the bakery where the glass was fogged up with sweet steam. The clerk inside was putting out fresh melon bread.

“You never seem surprised,” he said, suddenly. “No matter how quiet I am. You just talk like I’ll always reply.”

“Because I think you will,” she answered.

He stopped walking.

She noticed and turned to him.

“…You really believe that?” he asked.

She shrugged. “I don’t know. You just don’t feel like someone who wants to disappear. You feel more like someone waiting to be noticed.”

The wind picked up. He shoved his hands deeper into his pockets.

“You say that,” he murmured, “but you don’t know anything about me.”

“I don’t,” she said. “But I can still care.”

That froze him.

She turned back toward the road. “You don’t have to share. Not yet. But you should know… I see you. Even when no one else does.”

And she started walking again, like the words weren’t meant to stay suspended between them.

But they did.

⸻

That night, he sat by his window, notebook open but untouched.

His mind returned to her voice. Not the words — the tone.

Like she meant every sentence. Like she wasn’t afraid of silence or walls.

For a moment, he wondered what she saw when she looked at him.

A ghost?

A shadow?

Or maybe…

Just a boy who wanted to be known.