whatever it is.

A quiet laugh pulls me out of my thoughts. I glance up to see Elie looking back at me, a faint grin on her face like she knows exactly what I'm thinking. I quickly look away, pretending to focus on the professor.

When the lecture finally ends, I stay in my seat, waiting for most of the students to file out before I gather my things.

"Shin," a familiar voice calls out, and I groan inwardly. Of course, it's Elie.

"What?" I ask, not bothering to mask my irritation as she approaches.

"Why'd you sit all the way back here?" she asks, her tone casual but her eyes sharp.

"Because I felt like it," I reply, slinging my bag over my shoulder.

She crosses her arms and tilts her head. "You're not very good at this, you know."

"Good at what?"

"Being invisible," she says with a smirk. "You try so hard to blend in, but it's almost like you want people to notice you."

"Thanks for the amateur psychoanalysis," I say dryly, brushing past her toward the door.

To my annoyance, she follows me. "Relax, I'm not trying to get in your head. I'm just saying, it's kind of funny. You're like… a walking contradiction."

I stop in the hallway and turn to face her. "And you're like… really persistent. Why do you care so much?"

She shrugs, her expression unreadable for once. "I don't know. Maybe I'm bored. Maybe you're interesting. Or maybe I just think it's funny watching you squirm."

"Great. Glad I could entertain you," I mutter, resuming my pace toward the next class.

To my relief, she doesn't follow this time, but her words linger. You're not very good at being invisible.

The thing is, she's right. No matter how hard I try to keep my head down, people like Elie always manage to break through.

By the time I make it to the third class, I'm already exhausted—not from the lectures, but from the constant effort of avoiding her.

The walk home is quiet, but my thoughts are loud. No matter how I try to shake it off, Elie keeps circling in my mind. She's like a stubborn stain—every time I think I've scrubbed her out, she comes back stronger.

I reach the apartment, toss my bag on the couch, and flop into a chair. Evelyn's at the table, sketching something. She glances up briefly, her pencil still moving. "You look like you ran a marathon. Bad day?"

"Something like that," I mutter.

She hums in acknowledgment, too absorbed in her work to pry further. It's one of the few things I appreciate about Evelyn—she knows when to back off. Elie, on the other hand…

That's when it hits me. Avoiding her clearly isn't working. If anything, it seems to encourage her. Maybe it's time to flip the script.

Instead of running, I'll confront her. Head-on.

It's risky. People like Elie thrive on curiosity, and giving her even a fraction of what she wants might just feed the fire. But maybe, just maybe, it'll make her back off if I stop playing the mysterious loner card.

The next morning, I make it to my first class early—something I never do. Sure enough, Elie arrives a few minutes later. She stops in her tracks when she sees me sitting in the second row, right next to her usual spot.

"Well, this is new," she says, sliding into the seat beside me. "Did someone finally threaten you into being punctual?"

"No threats," I reply casually. "Just thought I'd try something different."

She eyes me suspiciously, like she's trying to figure out my angle. "Different, huh? Does that mean you're finally embracing the social scene?"

"Not exactly," I say, leaning back in my chair. "But I figured since you're so interested in me, I might as well give you what you want."

Her eyebrows shoot up, and for once, she seems caught off guard. "What I want?!

"You've been following me around, asking questions, making comments," I point out. "So, go ahead. Ask whatever you want. Let's get it over with."

Elie recovers quickly, her smirk returning. "Bold move, Shin. Are you sure you can handle it?"

"Try me," I say, crossing my arms.

She leans forward, resting her chin on her hand as she studies me. "Okay, let's start simple. Why are you here? At this college, I mean. You don't strike me as the type who picks a place like this willingly."

I hesitate for a fraction of a second before answering. "It's complicated."

"Of course it is," she says with a laugh. "Care to elaborate?"

"Not really," I admit. "But let's just say I needed a change of scenery."

She narrows her eyes, clearly unsatisfied, but she doesn't push. Instead, she switches gears. "Alright, how about this—what's your deal with people? You keep everyone at arm's length, but you're not exactly invisible. It's like you want attention but hate getting it."

I blink, caught off guard by how accurate that is. "Maybe I just don't like wasting my energy on people who won't stick around."

Her expression softens, and for the first time, there's no teasing in her voice. "That's… kind of sad, you know?"

"Maybe," I say, shrugging. "But it's also practical."

For a moment, we sit in silence, the air between us oddly heavy. Then, Elie breaks it with a small smile.

"You're interesting, Shin," she says, standing as the professor walks in. "I think I'll keep you around."

Before I can respond, she's already turned her attention to the lecture, leaving me wondering if I've just made a huge mistake.

By the time the day ends, one thing is clear: my plan hasn't worked the way I expected. Elie hasn't backed off. If anything, she seems more intrigued than ever.

But something about the way she looked at me, like she actually saw me, makes it hard to regret the decision.

Maybe changing strategies wasn't such a bad idea after all.

No, I said to myself. This façade never lasts long enough to be beneficial to anyone. Especially myself.

The truth was, I'd played this game before—letting someone in just enough to keep them from digging deeper, pretending to care when I didn't. It never worked. People either got tired of my half-hearted effort and left, or they dug too deep and found things they didn't want to see. Either way, I was always the one left cleaning up the mess.

So why did I think it would be different this time?

I sat on the edge of my bed that night, staring at the chipped paint on the wall. Elie's voice kept replaying in my mind. "You're interesting. I think I'll keep you around."

What did that even mean?

A knock on my door broke the cycle of thoughts. "You're brooding again, aren't you?" Evelyn's voice called out.

I sighed. "What do you want?"

She pushed the door open without waiting for permission, leaning against the frame with her arms crossed. "You're thinking too hard about something. I can tell."

"Your psychic powers strike again," I muttered.

Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Is it that girl? What's her name—Elie? The one you keep complaining about but can't stop talking about?"

I scowled. "I don't keep talking about her."

"Uh-huh." She smirked, stepping further into the room. "So what is it? Did she finally crack your cool, detached shell?"

"She's annoying," I said, brushing past her to grab a glass of water from the kitchen. Evelyn followed, of course.

"She's persistent," Evelyn corrected. "And apparently, she's in your head."

I shot her a glare, but she wasn't wrong. Elie was in my head, and not in the way I wanted. I hated how easily she'd read me, how quickly she'd latched onto my defenses and started pulling them apart.

Evelyn grabbed an apple from the counter and leaned against the fridge. "Look, I don't know her, but from what you've said, it sounds like she's just… curious. Maybe she's bored. Or maybe—just maybe—she actually wants to get to know you."

"Why would anyone want that?" I muttered under my breath.

Evelyn froze mid-bite, her expression softening. "Because people are weird like that. Some of them see past the walls you put up and think it's worth the effort to try. Not everyone's looking to hurt you, Shin."

I didn't respond, letting the words hang in the air.

The next day, I resolved to stick to the façade, even if it was doomed to fail. If Elie wanted to know me, she'd get the version of me I chose to show her. Nothing more. Nothing real.

But the moment I walked into class, I realized it wouldn't be that simple. Elie was waiting for me, as always, but this time her smile wasn't teasing or smug. It was… warm. Genuine.

"Morning, Shin," she said, her voice softer than usual. "You look like you didn't sleep much."

"I didn't," I admitted before I could stop myself.

She tilted her head, studying me like she always did. "Nightmares, or just overthinking?"

The question hit harder than it should have, and I forced a smirk. "Neither. I was planning how to avoid you today."

"Clearly, it didn't work," she shot back with a grin. "But seriously, are you okay?"

Something about her tone made me pause. It wasn't just curiosity—it was concern. Genuine, unfiltered concern.

For a moment, I considered brushing her off, but the words slipped out before I could stop them. "I don't know."

Elie blinked, surprised by my honesty. Then she smiled—a small, understanding smile that made my chest tighten. "Well, if you ever want to talk about it… I'm here."

And just like that, the façade cracked a little more.

This wasn't going to end well. I knew that. But as I sat beside her, listening to the professor's lecture, I couldn't help but feel a small flicker of something I hadn't felt in a long time.

Hope.

It was dangerous, foolish even. But for now, I'll let it stay.

It's almost comical how I do this every time. Follow some false hope just for it to end up destroying myself worse and worse each time. I wonder how long this can last.

Elie's concern was disarming. Genuine, even. And that made it dangerous. I've seen this pattern play out before—someone comes along, pushes past the barriers I've built, and for a brief, fleeting moment, I start to believe they'll stay. But they never do.

Still, something about her smile, her persistence, made it hard to look away. It wasn't like she was trying to save me, which would've been easier to push away. No, it was worse—she didn't seem to want anything from me at all.

By the time the day ends, the weight of my own thoughts has drained me more than the classes themselves. I'm halfway back to the apartment when I hear a familiar voice behind me.

"Shin!"

I stop, turning to see Elie jogging toward me, her bag slung over one shoulder. She looks winded, but there's a determination in her eyes that makes me uneasy.