It's Always You

The sky was soft and golden as their graduation ceremony wrapped up. The schoolyard buzzed with students tossing caps, hugging friends, crying into phones.

Finn stood alone for a moment, watching Ilona from across the field.

She was glowing in her pale blue dress, hugging her parents, her long hair bouncing with every step. She was smiling… but not at him.

Not yet.

He took a breath. And then shout.

“ILONA COLLIN!”

Everyone turned.

She froze.

She turned around slowly, half confused, half concerned.

There he was, storming toward her with that crooked grin, holding something behind his back.

She blinked. “Finn?”

“I love you.” His voice was steady, loud enough for the crowd to hear. “I’ve loved you since you caught me cheating on a math test and still let me copy your notes.”

The crowd laughed softly.

“I know we’re young. I know seventeen sounds stupid to make this kind of promise. But loving you never felt stupid to me.”

“Finn...”

He stepped closer.

“I’ve never been good at much, Ilona. Not school, not rules, not… feelings. But with you? I want to be better. I am better.”

He dropped to one knee, and gasps spread through the field like wind.

Ilona covered her mouth.

“Will you marry me?” he asked, opening the ring box. The tiny silver band inside shimmered in the late afternoon light. “Not just someday. Not in a few years. Now. Or soon. Or whenever you say yes.”

She couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Her heart was pounding so loud she could barely hear the cheers starting in the background.

He smiled up at her. “I’ll protect you. I’ll annoy you. I’ll make you pancakes and probably burn them. I’ll love you until I can’t anymore—and even then, I’ll find a way to love you still.”

Tears welled up in her eyes.

“Say something…” he whispered, voice cracking now.

Ilona finally exhaled, stepping forward, her hands trembling.

“Yes,” she said softly. “Yes, Finn. I’ll marry you.”

The crowd exploded in cheers.

Finn shot to his feet, picked her up in a tight hug, spinning her around as everyone clapped and whistled.

“I love you, Ilona,” he whispered into her ear.

And for that moment, everything else disappeared.

The pain they didn’t know was coming.

The goodbye she’d one day give.

For now, it was just a boy who chose a girl and a girl who said yes.

Flashback — Three Years Earlier

If anyone had said years ago that Finn Vincient, the boy with a bruised knuckle and a permanent smirk would be the one to kneel in the middle of a high school graduation, Ilona Collin would’ve laughed.

But here he was.

Before the proposal, before the cheers, and before the question that would flip her entire world upside down—there was a boy who no one believed could love anyone, and a girl who somehow believed he could.

Finn Vincient wasn’t exactly the boy your parents would let past the front door.

He was always in trouble. Always fighting. Always bleeding.

Teachers knew his name before he even spoke.

And when he did speak, it was either sarcastic… or loud.

But when Ilona Collin transferred to Northview High in sophomore year, everything changed.

He noticed her on day one, quiet, focused, soft around the edges. The kind of girl who made eye contact and made you feel seen. The kind of girl who didn’t flinch when she walked past him.

Maybe that’s when he started falling...

“Vincient! To the teacher’s room. Now!”

The voice echoed down the hall like a thunderclap, but Finn didn’t even flinch. He rubbed his jaw where the other guy’s punch landed and smirked like he’d won something.

Again.

Same story, different day.

He dragged his feet to the teacher’s office, his tie loose, his shirt untucked, and knuckles red from the fight. It wasn’t the first time. And it wouldn’t be the last until her.

“You think this is funny?” Mr. Grayson barked. “You’re going to keep ending up like this until you ruin yourself!”

Finn leaned against the wall with zero shame. “He started it.”

“I don’t care who started it. You’re both wrong. But since you love being dramatic, let’s give you a stage,” the teacher said, walking to the door and pointing to the hallway. “Kneel. Hands up. Five minutes. Maybe that’ll teach you something.”

Finn sighed. Loudly.

Still, he dropped to his knees outside the teacher’s office, raised his arms like a crucified rebel, and stared at the ceiling as if daring the universe to give him another reason to fight.

That’s when the door opened again.

“I’m sorry, sir,” a soft voice said. “We had some trouble finding the admin building.”

He turned his head lazily, only half-interested in whoever was walking in. Probably another parent yelling about grades.

But then he saw her.

The world, which had always been too loud and fast for Finn Vincient, suddenly slowed.

She walked in beside her parents, carrying a brown leather backpack and wearing a neat, pale yellow uniform. Her dark hair fell over her shoulders like a painting brought to life. And the sunlight, it poured in from the window behind her, casting a soft, golden glow around her face.

She didn’t smile.

She didn’t even blink at him.

She glanced just once.

That was it.

And yet, Finn Vincient… smiled like an idiot.

“That’s the new transfer student, Ilona Collin,” Mr. Grayson explained, flipping through some papers. “She’ll be joining Class 2-A.”

Ilona stood perfectly still, polite, composed, like someone who didn’t belong in this chaotic school filled with boys who threw punches just to feel alive.

Finn watched her with wide eyes, forgetting the ache in his knees and the burn in his arms.

She was grace in a battlefield.

When her eyes passed him again, she looked curious for half a second. Not impressed. Not disgusted. Just... observant. Like she saw straight through him.

He couldn’t stop grinning.

Who was this girl?

And why did it feel like she’d just cracked something open in his chest?

“Ilona, this way,” the teacher said.

She nodded and followed him down the corridor.

As she walked past him, the faint smell of vanilla and lavender drifted through the air, and Finn blinked slowly like he was trying to memorize everything about her.

Her walk. Her silence. Her presence.

He tilted his head to watch her go, heart beating for reasons he didn’t understand.

Then, softly to himself, he whispered,

“Damn… I’m in trouble.”

The punishment ended just in time for lunch.

Finn’s arms were sore. His knees ached. And he’d lost feeling in his fingertips after holding them up for what felt like an eternity.

But none of that mattered.

Because the only thing replaying in his head was her.

That girl. The transfer student.

Ilona Collin.

He didn’t even know her favorite color, but her name was already etched into his brain like a carved secret. Over and over again.

Ilona Collin.

Ilona Collin.

Ilona Collin.

He muttered it to himself under his breath like a prayer as he trudged back to Class 2-A. His classmates were already inside, eating, chatting, laughing. It smelled like microwaved noodles and cafeteria bread. Someone had their music on too loud.

And then he saw her.

There she was.

Sitting near the window, sunlight framing her again like the universe had a thing for lighting her up like poetry. She had a small bento box open, carefully picking at her food with her chopsticks. Her hair was tucked behind one ear, and she looked completely lost in her own world.

Finn froze in the doorway.

Same class.

Fate, you sneaky bastard.

He swallowed hard, realizing he was just… staring. Like an idiot. Again.

Then someone nudged past him, breaking the spell.

He shook his head and walked to his seat, two rows away from hers. Close enough to hear the soft rustle of her wrapper. Far enough to pretend he wasn’t watching her.

But oh, he was watching her.

He sat slowly, trying not to make a sound. His usual cocky slouch was gone. He was sitting straight now. Alert. Nervous. Like she’d turn her head at any moment and he didn’t know what to do if she did.

But she didn’t.

She just kept eating, focused and calm, completely unaware of the storm she’d dropped into.

Finn leaned his elbow on the desk, resting his chin in his palm as his eyes locked on her.

“She’s really here,” he whispered to himself. “Same class… no freaking way.”

There was a feeling in his chest, foreign and warm. Not like adrenaline after a fight. Not like rage or ego.

Something quieter.

More dangerous.

Like… hope.

He watched her chew thoughtfully, neatly fold her napkin, then sip from a water bottle like she’d rehearsed it all in a dream he forgot he had.

She didn’t look at him.

She didn’t know yet that she’d just become the reason a boy like him might finally want to stop fighting the world… and start fighting for something worth keeping.

For someone worth becoming.

And Finn Vincient?

He was already falling.

Hard.

A Week Later

It was a lazy afternoon, the kind of day that made classrooms feel like prisons.

Finn had one plan: ditch school.

He slipped through the side corridor, shoes quiet against the floor, eyes darting for any lurking teachers. The sun outside burned golden. Perfect weather for ramen. The old restaurant by the hill had been his escape since sophomore year, cheap, quiet, and always with an extra egg in his bowl.

He grinned when the back gate came into view.

“Easy,” he muttered to himself, cracking his knuckles and preparing to climb.

But just as he grabbed the iron bars...

a voice interrupted him.

“Are you always this obvious when sneaking out?”

He froze.

And then slipped—

CRASH.

“Damn it!” Finn landed flat on his back, groaning as he blinked up at the sky.

And standing over him…

Ilona.

In her school uniform, arms crossed, face unreadable.

He blinked again, unsure if he’d hit his head too hard or if she was really there.

“…How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to see you fall like a sack of potatoes.”

He winced, sitting up. “Could’ve warned me.”

“I could’ve,” she said, deadpan. “But watching was funnier.”

Finn groaned and stood, brushing off dust from his pants. “Are you stalking me?”

“No,” she said, dead serious. “Just curious. Where are you going?”

He hesitated. “Nowhere.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Nowhere involves climbing fences?”

“Okay, fine.” He sighed, defeated. “There’s a ramen shop I like. A small place. Been going there since I was fifteen.”

“Ah,” she nodded. “You’re ditching school for noodles.”

He shrugged. “When you say it like that, it sounds less poetic.”

Ilona stepped closer, her eyes meeting his.

“I’m coming with you.”

He blinked. “Wait, what?”

“You heard me.”

“No, no, no, bad idea. You’re a transfer student. A good girl. You’ll get scolded, maybe suspended. Just go back.”

But she already had one foot on the bottom rail of the gate.

“Ilona...”

“Be my ladder,” she interrupted. “Unless you want to watch me fall the way you did.”

He groaned again. “If you get caught, don’t say I dragged you into this.”

“Noted,” she said, smirking.

He crouched down, letting her step onto his back, grumbling under his breath. “Crazy girl…”

Once over the fence, she turned and offered him a hand.

“You coming?”

Finn stared at her for a second too long, then took her hand.

Their fingers brushed.

His heart raced.

They began walking down the quiet hill road, the sun warming their backs.

She glanced at him.

“So, what’s good at this place?”

He smiled.

“You’ll see.”

The bell above the door gave a little jingle as they stepped inside the tiny ramen shop. It was quiet and warm, with the smell of broth and garlic filling the air.

Ilona’s eyes scanned the room, wooden floors, an old jukebox in the corner humming low, and four small tables, two of them already occupied by quiet strangers slurping their bowls.

Finn led her to a seat by the window.

“This is my favorite spot,” he said, sliding into the booth. “Sunlight hits just right here.”

Ilona took the seat across from him, folding her hands neatly on the table.

A short, stout man wearing an apron and a big grin waddled over with a pen tucked behind his ear.

“Oi! Finn Vincient! Skipped school again, huh?” the man chuckled. “And who’s this? Finally brought your girlfriend, huh?”

Finn nearly choked on air.

Ilona, cool as ever, didn’t even blink.

“We’re not...” Finn cleared his throat, avoiding Ilona’s eyes. “She’s not my girlfriend. Just a friend.”

“Sure, sure,” the man winked, scribbling on his notepad. “So, the usual?”

“Yeah,” Finn nodded quickly. “My usual with extra eggs.”

He turned to Ilona. “What do you want?”

She paused for a second, then said, “Same as you.”

Finn looked a little surprised but relayed the order. “Two usuals. Double eggs.”

The owner gave a thumbs-up and disappeared into the kitchen.

Silence settled between them for a moment.

Ilona looked out the window, watching a cat stretch on the pavement across the street. Finn glanced at her a few times, unsure what to say next.

Then, the bowls arrived, hot, fragrant, and perfect.

“Smells amazing,” she whispered, leaning in.

Finn smiled, picking up his chopsticks. “Wait till you taste it.”

They began to eat, the sounds of slurping and clinking spoons filling the air.

“So?” he asked after a few minutes, nudging her foot under the table. “Good?”

She nodded with a small smile. “Delicious.”

Then she gently picked up both her boiled eggs, slid them into his bowl.

He froze.

“…You don’t like eggs?”

She shook her head. “Never did. The texture’s weird.”

He stared at her, as if he’d just heard the most tragic confession ever.

“Are you even human?” he gasped dramatically. “Who doesn’t like eggs? Eggs are elite. Sacred. Perfect!”

Ilona just slurped her noodles in response, completely ignoring his reaction.

Finn laughed softly, watching her.

“You’re strange,” he said.

“So are you,” she replied without looking up.

He grinned.

They finished their bowls in comfortable silence, light dancing through the window, softening the sharp edges of their teenage hearts.

It was quiet. But something was growing.

A feeling neither of them fully understood yet.

And as they stepped out of the ramen shop and started walking back to school, shoulders brushing, fingers almost touching they didn’t know this would be the first of many stolen moments.

Moments that would shape everything.

It had become their little secret.

Every lunch break, for a week straight, Finn and Ilona slipped out through the old back gate, snuck past the school guards like shadows, and shared bowls of ramen at that same warm little shop by the street. No one knew. No one suspected. It was their sacred escape, filled with easy laughs, playful teasing, and quiet smiles.

Finn found himself waiting for her every day like clockwork. He never said it, but it was her company he looked forward to more than the ramen.

And Ilona? She never said much but she always showed up.

Until that day.

The gate creaked open as Finn peeked over the top. “Okay, coast is clear. Come on.”

Ilona followed right behind, climbing with ease after weeks of practice.

But just as her feet hit the ground...

“Where do you two think you’re going?”

The sharp voice of Mr. Elric, the most feared discipline teacher on campus, cut through the air like a blade.

Finn froze mid-step. Ilona’s eyes widened.

Mr. Elric stood with arms crossed, eyes narrowed behind his square glasses. “You two think you’re clever, huh? Skipping school to play house?”

Finn opened his mouth to speak, but Ilona stepped in.

“We were just going for lunch...”

“Oh, I know exactly what you were doing,” Mr. Elric snapped. “You’ll explain it to your parents.”

Teacher’s Room

The walls felt smaller than usual. The air, thicker.

Ilona sat with her back straight, expression unreadable as her mother stood beside her, red with anger.

“You sneak out of school?! What were you thinking, Ilona?” her mom hissed. “You were supposed to be better than this.”

Ilona kept her gaze forward, nodding softly. “I know, Mom. I’m sorry.”

But her eyes weren’t on her mother.

They flicked sideways to Finn.

He sat with a bruised lip from a previous scuffle, slouched in his seat as his mother pointed a finger at him.

“You promised me you’d stop fighting!” his mom’s voice cracked. “And now you’re dragging some poor girl into your mess?”

Finn stared down at the floor, muttering, “I didn’t drag her. She came because she wanted to.”

“Excuse me?” his mom snapped.

But Ilona bit back a laugh.

And Finn glanced at her just as she glanced at him.

A tiny smile pulled at her lips.

His eyes sparkled in amusement, as if saying, Worth it.

They sat there, side by side on separate chairs, getting scolded by their mothers and smiling like fools.

Not a word passed between them. But everything did.

In that small chaotic teacher’s room, amidst the yelling and lectures, something bloomed.

Not rebellion. Not just friendship.

Something else.

Something more.

A Glimpse of His Quiet World

The sky was a deep indigo when Ilona and her younger sister, Leona, hopped out of the car. Their father stayed behind the wheel, engine humming softly, windows slightly cracked as he scrolled through his phone.

“Just grab the bread and milk,” he said before they left. “And no candy, Leona.”

“Ugh,” Leona whined. “Why even come if we can’t get candy?”

Ilona chuckled, ruffling her sister’s hair as they walked into the small convenience store tucked under a flickering streetlamp. The bell above the door chimed softly.

They strolled down the aisles, picking up what they needed. Bread. Milk. A small pack of instant noodles.

“Ilona,” Leona whispered as they reached the counter. “That guy looks scary.”

Ilona looked up.

Then froze.

Behind the counter, wearing a black apron and a name tag that barely clung to his shirt, stood Finn Vincient.

His hair was slightly messy, like he’d run here after school. There were shadows under his eyes but he was alert, focused, his fingers quickly scanning their items with practiced ease.

“...Finn?” she blinked.

Without looking up, he replied, “Didn’t think I’d run into you here.”

“What… what are you doing here?”

“Part-time job,” he answered simply, finally meeting her eyes with a small half-smile. “Gotta pay for my noodles somehow.”

Ilona stared for a second, taking in the boy who once got detention for punching a senior now calmly working behind a cash register.

“Bread, milk, noodles. That’ll be eight twenty-five,” he said.

She fumbled for her wallet. Her fingers felt weirdly clumsy. As she handed over the money, their fingers brushed for a split second.

Neither said a word about it.

“Thank you,” Finn said, handing the bag to her. “Take care walking back.”

She hesitated. “I didn’t know you worked.”

He gave a small shrug. “I don’t talk about it much. But yeah. Nights and weekends.”

There was something in his tone. A quiet kind of strength. A layer she hadn’t seen before.

Leona tugged at her hand. “Let’s go, Ilona. Dad’s waiting.”

“Right.” Ilona turned to leave, then looked back one last time.

Finn was already helping the next customer. But as she pushed the door open, the bell chiming behind her, she swore she saw him glance her way again just for a moment.

She didn’t smile.

But her heart did.

The classroom buzzed with the drone of the teacher’s voice explaining formulas on the board. Pencils scratched paper, and pages flipped but Finn’s head was already resting on his arms, eyes shut, body still.

Ilona glanced at him. His lips were parted slightly, his breathing even. Exhausted.

“Finn Vincient!” the teacher’s voice snapped through the room.

His head jerked up instantly, blinking groggily.

“Stand outside,” the teacher said coldly. “Sleep on your own time, not mine.”

Groans of sympathy and muffled laughter passed through the class.

As he stood and shuffled past the rows of desks, Ilona watched him silently. He didn’t look angry or bothered just tired. Really tired.

She knew.

She knew where he had been last night, working late at the convenience store, barely standing behind the counter.

As the teacher continued the lesson, she stared at her open notebook. A thought hit her. And without a second guess, she slowly closed it, slid it into her bag, and quietly tore the page with her homework off.

“Now,” the teacher said sternly, “whoever didn’t bring their homework...outside.”

Ilona raised her hand.

The teacher narrowed her eyes. “Ilona? You forgot your homework?”

“Yes, ma’am,” she lied calmly.

A beat passed. The teacher gave her a disappointed look. “Then you know what to do.”

She stood, grabbed her bag, and stepped into the hallway.

Finn looked at her, puzzled, as she came to stand beside him. “What… are you doing here?”

“I forgot my homework,” she replied casually, staring ahead.

He squinted at her. “You? Ilona Collin forgot her homework?”

She didn’t respond.

He chuckled. “You’re a bad liar.”

She shrugged. “Maybe.”

Finn tilted his head slightly to the side, his voice softening. “Why’d you do that?”

“I just… didn’t want you to stand here alone,” she said quietly.

There was a silence. A long, full one.

Then she asked, “You didn’t sleep again, did you?”

He smirked. “Caught me.”

“Why?” she asked.

He looked ahead at the empty hallway. “My family’s… complicated.”

Her gaze shifted to him. He rubbed the back of his neck, his voice light but laced with something heavier.

“My dad died when I was ten. After that, my mom… changed. She married some guy who didn’t really care about me. So I had to grow up faster. Get a job. Pay for what I need. Help with rent.”

He looked at her and smiled like it was no big deal.

She didn’t smile.

She looked at him the way no one had in a long time with quiet understanding, not pity.

“You don’t talk about that much, do you?”

“No one really asks.”

The hallway fell into a stillness. Just the sound of a clock ticking inside the classroom. Her hand brushed lightly against his.

He looked down at her fingers so close to his.

“Ilona,” he whispered.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks… for standing here with me.”

She looked up, a faint smile on her lips. “You’re welcome.”

They stood like that for nearly an hour, shoulder to shoulder, not touching, not speaking just existing together in the kind of silence that said more than words ever could.