The hallway of Bluebell High buzzed with the usual Monday chaos—lockers slamming, footsteps echoing, and the faint chatter of students swapping weekend stories. Stella Harris stood at her locker, her head bowed as she rummaged through her bag for a notebook. Her life wasn't exactly headline-worthy, but she liked it that way. Staying invisible was easier than explaining the storm brewing inside her.
"Stella! Are you even listening?" her best friend Mia's voice jolted her out of her thoughts.
"Sorry, what?" Stella blinked, her fingers fumbling as she shut her locker.
Mia rolled her eyes. "I said Atlas is walking this way. You know, Atlas King? The guy you've been staring at for like… two years?"
Stella's stomach flipped. She didn't need Mia's reminder. She could feel him before she saw him—the shift in the air, the sudden hush of whispers, and the faint scent of mint and cologne that followed him everywhere. She glanced up cautiously, her heart pounding as Atlas strolled past with his signature effortless confidence.
He was everything the world told her she couldn't have—broad shoulders, tousled dark hair, and a smile that could make anyone believe in magic. She had spent countless hours convincing herself he was just a crush, a harmless daydream to distract from the mess of her reality.
But then, something unexpected happened.
Atlas's piercing gray eyes met hers. Not a fleeting glance, but a real look—a pause in his stride, his gaze lingering as if he had just discovered something worth noticing. Stella froze, clutching her notebook like a lifeline. Was she imagining it?
"Did he just—?" Mia whispered, her voice dripping with shock.
"I… don't know," Stella stammered, heat rushing to her cheeks.
Atlas's lips curved into a slight smile before he turned away, leaving Stella standing there, her world spinning. For a moment, she wasn't just invisible. For a moment, she existed.
And in that moment, everything began to change.
To Be Continued...