Until I Saw Him
I didn't believe in love at first sight.
At least, I didn't think I did.
I was just a girl trying to get through school, keep up with my studies, and make plans for my future. Falling in love had never been part of those plans.
Then, one ordinary afternoon, I saw him.
And somehow, everything changed.
I was sitting in the waiting area of the language school with my friend, talking quietly while we waited for our English class to begin.
She was older than me, and I had always felt that she was more like an older sister than a friend. She gave me advice, looked out for me, and always seemed to know when something was bothering me.
That day, neither of us knew that something was about to happen.
The school door opened.
Two boys walked in.
I barely noticed them at first.
Until I saw him.
He walked toward the secretary's desk and started talking to her about the class schedule. From the way he spoke, he seemed frustrated. He was trying to explain something about the time of his lesson, clearly unhappy with the situation.
I couldn't hear everything he said.
But I didn't need to.
Something about him caught my attention.
Maybe it was the way he carried himself.
Maybe it was his voice.
Maybe it was simply the fact that, for some reason, I couldn't stop looking at him.
I looked away.
Then looked back.
He was still there.
And suddenly, I found myself wondering who he was.
I didn't know his name.
I didn't know anything about him.
He was just a stranger who had walked through a school door.
Yet my heart was beating faster than it should have.
I had always thought people exaggerated when they talked about love at first sight.
How could you possibly have feelings for someone you knew nothing about?
But in that moment, I understood how easily a single look could make you curious about someone.
A thought crossed my mind before I could stop it.
I have to have him.
The thought was so bold that I almost laughed at myself.
What was wrong with me?
I didn't even know his name.
His friend was standing beside him while he continued talking to the secretary. At one point, his friend looked around the room.
His eyes met mine.
I immediately looked away.
I didn't think much of it.
My attention was still on the boy at the desk.
A few moments later, their conversation ended.
They turned around and walked back toward the door.
I watched him leave.
And when the door closed behind him, I realized something strange.
I wanted to see him again.
---
That evening, I went home and tried to forget about it.
I opened my books.
I tried to study.
I told myself it had been nothing.
Just a moment.
Just a stranger.
But every time my mind went quiet, he appeared again.
His face.
His voice.
The way he had stood near the secretary.
I didn't even know his name, yet somehow I couldn't stop thinking about him.
I smiled at myself.
This was ridiculous.
I had always been focused on my studies and the future I wanted for myself. I wasn't the kind of girl who imagined falling in love with someone after one look.
Yet there I was, lying in bed that night, wondering if I would ever see him again.
I had no idea how soon I would get my answer.
---
A few days later, I walked into the English classroom with my friend.
I was still talking to her when I put my things down.
Then I looked up.
And froze.
He was there.
For a second, I honestly thought I was imagining him.
The same boy.
The same face.
The stranger from the school entrance.
Except now, he wasn't standing near the secretary.
He was sitting inside my classroom.
My heart skipped.
I stared at him for a moment before quickly turning toward my friend.
She noticed my expression.
“What?” she asked.
I lowered my voice.
“Who is he?”
She followed my gaze.
Then she smiled as if the answer was obvious.
“Oh. Him?”
I nodded.
“He's my cousin.”
I blinked.
“Your cousin?”
“Yeah,” she said. “He's my aunt's son.”
I looked back at him.
My stranger wasn't a stranger anymore.
He was sitting in the same classroom as me.
And suddenly, the boy I thought I might never see again was no longer someone passing through a door.
He was part of my world now.
I didn't know his story.
I didn't know what he would become to me.
I didn't know what was waiting for me in that classroom.
I only knew one thing.
A few days ago, he had walked through the school door as a complete stranger.
Now, he was sitting only a few seats away from me.
And maybe the strangest part was that I still didn't know his name.
Not yet.
But I would.
And once I did, nothing would ever feel quite as ordinary again.
