Cherry blossoms First Love

Spring is the season when countless love stories begin.

It is a time when, upon meeting someone special, the heart begins to race, and a feeling unlike any other quietly takes root.

I felt the same way that spring.

It was the season when my own love story began.

Through that journey, I experienced countless emotions—embarrassment, happiness, excitement, heartbreak, pain, and so much more.

This love brought me both the greatest joy and the deepest sorrow.

Yet, after enduring every hardship, my love, like the cherry blossoms that bloom after a long winter, finally blossomed into something beautiful.

"Lyra, come downstairs and have your breakfast quickly, or you're going to be late!" her mother called.

"Yes, Mom!" Lyra replied.

Lyra hurried downstairs and quickly ate her breakfast.

"Every day I tell you not to stay up late, but you never listen. Now you're going to be late on your very first day of senior year!" her mother scolded.

"I know, I know!" Lyra said, grabbing her bag.

She finished her breakfast in a hurry and rushed out the door.

Hi, my name is Lyra Everhart, and I'm a senior high school student.

That morning, I was running as fast as I could. The cherry blossoms danced in the gentle spring breeze, their pink petals drifting through the air like tiny pieces of magic.

As I ran beneath the blooming trees, I suddenly bumped into someone.

"Ouch!"

I looked up.

Standing before me was the most handsome boy I had ever seen.

For a moment, my heart seemed to stop.

The world around me faded away, leaving only him.

His eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"Sorry," he said quickly.

Then, without another glance, he continued on his way.

I stood there, frozen.

My heart was racing, and I couldn't understand why.

Only when I noticed the time did I realize I was already late for school.

Panic shot through me.

I quickly started running again, but my thoughts remained with the mysterious boy.

As the cherry blossom petals floated around me, a question echoed in my mind.

Will we ever meet again?

Fortunately, I arrived just before the teacher entered the classroom.

The teacher walked in, greeted us, and began taking attendance. Everything was going as usual.

Then he looked up and said,

"Before we begin today's lesson, I'd like to introduce a new student who will be joining us for our final year."

The classroom immediately filled with whispers.

"I wonder what he looks like."

"Do you think he's handsome?"

Everyone was excited and talking to each other.

But my mind was still occupied by the mysterious boy I had bumped into that morning.

Then the classroom door opened.

The moment the new student walked in, my eyes widened in shock.

It was him.

The mysterious boy beneath the cherry blossoms.

He stood in front of the class with a calm expression.

"Hello. My name is Aeron Hayes. I hope we'll get along."

That was it.

His introduction lasted only two short sentences.

He seemed cold and distant.

Many of my classmates quickly assumed he was arrogant because of his expression. Ironically, that only made him more attractive to most of the girls in the class.

There was only one empty seat left.

It was the one beside me.

I was a shy person who always found it difficult to start conversations with others. It wasn't that I had no friends—I did have one best friend, but she was in the class next door.

Anyway, that's a story for another time.

The teacher looked at Aeron.

"You may take the empty seat beside Lyra."

He walked toward me and quietly sat down.

Then the teacher turned to me.

"Lyra, please share your textbooks with him until he receives his own."

"Yes, sir," I replied softly.