"Finally, I think I've found it," gasped a young man, his hoodie-clad figure drenched in sweat from the sprint he had just completed to reach the apartment complex. Not only is he bad at directions... but he doesnt know how to commute alone yet.
"I can't believe I got lost three times; I should have learned to navigate sooner," he muttered, regretting being over dependent on his family and friends for transportation.
"Ah, well, at least I can use the elevator now," he said with a touch of relief in his voice, with a hint of cheerfulness. Skipping over to the elevator, he hummed a tune while pressing the button to call it to the ground floor.
Minutes passed, and his impatience grew as he repeatedly jabbed at the button. Eventually, he realized that the elevator was out of order.
He sighed in embarrassment at how long it took him to notice. "Well, at least I got some rest," he thought, glancing at the staircase. "This will be my workout for the day, I guess," he said, trying to stay positive.
Ascending the apartment stairs, he stretched his limbs and prepared to sprint up them. With determination, he ascended the seemingly endless flight of steps, aiming to reach his destination as quickly as possible. Suddenly, he stopped, narrowly avoiding colliding with a random passerby. "Oh, my apologies!" he stammered with a nervous grin, quickly waving goodbye before resuming his workout
"He seems to be in quite a hurry," the passerby quietly chuckled before noticing a piece of paper on the ground. "Hey, you forgot your—" Turning around and scanning the area, they realized that the hooded figure had vanished.
"Apartment 909... hm... Aha! There it is" he exclaimed as he approached the apartment door, staring at it awkwardly. Nervousness consumed him. "How do I go about this? Let's hope no one's home."
Summoning his courage, he knocked on the door, secretly hoping the resident wasn't home so he could just slip the file underneath.
"Well, I don't think anyone's here... maybe I can just leave the file under the door—" His thoughts were abruptly interrupted as someone flung open the door.
In shock, the hooded young man took a few steps back before accidentally tripping over his own feet. Embarrassed, he disregarded the pain and gazed up at the person who had opened the door, causing his hood to slip from his head.
The stranger, who appeared to be a young man of about 18 with long blonde hair and pale skin, indicating he didn't spend much time outdoors, returned the gaze. "Ah, hello!" he said cheerfully, attempting to conceal his embarrassment as he pulled his hood back up to hide his face.
"Salutations, sir. May I be of assistance?" The stranger asked with eloquence in his voice, extending a hand to the unfortunate young man who had tripped.
"Ahem, ahem," the hooded man accepted the hand while stifling a laugh, "Thank you," he managed to say, struggling to hide his amusement as he interacted with the stranger.
The young man nodded and then asked, "Who are you, perhaps?" Realizing he had forgotten to introduce himself, he brushed aside the earlier events and proceeded to introduce himself.
"Oh, right! Hello, my name is Miller. Elira, right? I'm in your class if you don't remember," he replied, sweat dripping down his forehead as he noted Elira's impeccable memory. "I see. My apologies for forgetting you. And yes, I am indeed Elira. What would be your intention in approaching me, sir?" Elira asked, bowing with elegance.
"No need for formality, Elira, since we're around the same age. Just call me Miller or Mil for short!" Miller said, feeling overwhelmed by Elira's level of formality.
"If that's the case, then it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miller," Elira replied, extending his hand for a handshake. Miller promptly accepted, offering a firm handshake.
"Oh, speaking of why I'm here, it's related to school!" he exclaimed, a cheerful smile gracing his face as he tightened his grip during the handshake. "Let me grab the file I was supposed to give you..."
However, as he began searching for the file, a realization struck him — it wasn't with him. A wave of weakness swept over him, and suddenly, he found himself on the floor.
"Uh oh..." Miller stammered, his voice trembling, panic evident as his breathing accelerated. Elira stepped closer, gently rubbing circles on Miller's hand in an attempt to calm him down.
"It's alright, Miller. Are you okay? Maybe you need some rest," Elira suggested, offering reassurance.
"Yeah, it's just... Just..." Miller started, his voice shaking, "Take deep breaths first. We can focus on the rest later," Elira calmly advised, trying to soothe his distress.
Holding back his tears, Miller followed Elira's advice, taking deep breaths and gradually leaning on Elira for support. After a few minutes, he managed to regain his composure and softly muttered a grateful "thank you" to Elira.
"I'm so sorry you had to witness that, especially since we've just met," Miller said, attempting to sound cheerful. He was genuinely thankful for Elira's assistance during this vulnerable moment, despite their recent introduction.
"It's not a problem at all. Would you like to come inside for some tea?" Elira offered, keeping in mind the idea of ensuring Miller had time to fully calm down.
"Ah, no, it's alright. I still need to retrieve that file," Miller replied, standing up once more and sighing at his carelessness, Regretting the fact that he had revealed his vulnerable side to someone he had just met.
"What a view... hm?" A mischievous voice echoed from down the hall. The newcomer asked, Miller felt slightly embarrassed and hoping that the newcomer hadn't witnessed his earlier episode.
"Did you witness that?" Miller asked, hoping for the stranger to deny it.
"Well, yes, indeed," the newcomer replied playfully before asking, "Is this what you're looking for?" He waved the file around, the one Miller had been searching for.
Elira stepped in front of the newcomer in hopes to protect him from the stranger while partially blocking Miller's view.
"You dropped it when you almost bumped into me earlier."
"Ah, sorry!" Miller apologized, bowing deeply as he felt twice as embarrassed as before. Not only had Elira seen him in that vulnerable state, but the newcomer had as well.
"It's alright. Just be more careful with your belongings, okay?" The newcomer said as he walked past Elira, handing the file to Miller, and then silently walked away, lazily waving goodbye.
"You're not my mom..." Miller muttered to himself. "Hm?" Elira questioned. "Ah, it's nothing, never mind. Now that I have the file, I guess a cup of tea while we talk about school should be nice!" Miller said cheerfully, already recovering from the event that had taken place.
"In that case, please come in," Elira said, extending an invitation as he welcomed Miller into the apartment.