The classroom was in complete chaos. The moment Sophie finished reading the confession, students immediately began shouting guesses across the room. Some names were ridiculous. Some were surprisingly accurate. None of that mattered to Aiden or Mia. Both were frozen in their seats, staring at the front of the classroom while the same thought repeated in their minds. The confession sounded way too familiar. Almost suspiciously familiar. After all, how many times had they been interrupted lately?
"Okay, okay, calm down!" Sophie shouted.
Nobody calmed down.
Sophie sighed.
"Honestly, you people are impossible."
"WHO WROTE IT?" someone yelled.
"Yeah!"
"Tell us!"
Sophie smiled.
"I don't know."
The entire class groaned.
Meanwhile, Aiden was staring at his desk. There was no way Mia had written that note. Right? That would be ridiculous. Completely ridiculous. Yet the more he thought about it, the less ridiculous it seemed. She had tried to ask him something at the convenience store. She had tried to say something at the festival. There had been other moments too. Moments that suddenly felt very important.
Across the room, Mia was having the exact same problem. There was no way Aiden had written it. Absolutely no way. Yet she couldn't stop thinking about all the times he'd almost said something. The times he'd looked nervous. The times he'd started a sentence and never finished it. The times he'd looked at her like there was something he wanted to say but couldn't.
The rest of the class barely mattered after that. Students continued guessing while Sophie moved on to other confessions. Some were funny. Some were sweet. One involved somebody confessing to stealing answers from their older sibling's homework for an entire year. That caused another round of chaos. Yet through it all, Aiden and Mia remained distracted.
Very distracted.
When the final bell finally rang, students rushed toward the door. Conversations about the confession immediately spread through the hallways. By tomorrow, the entire school would probably have fifty different theories.
"That was a disaster," Mia said as she packed her bag.
"A complete disaster," Aiden agreed.
For a moment, neither moved. Then both accidentally spoke at the same time.
"Can I ask you-"
They stopped.
Blinking.
Then stared at each other.
"You go first," Mia said.
"No, you."
"No, you."
Aiden laughed.
"We're doing it again."
"We really are."
Before either could continue, Noah appeared.
Unfortunately.
Like always.
"There you are!"
Aiden immediately groaned.
"No."
"What?"
"No."
"I haven't even said anything."
"The answer is still no."
Noah looked offended.
"I'm just being a supportive friend."
"You're being a menace."
"That's also true."
Mia laughed.
Noah pointed dramatically at her.
"See? She agrees with me."
"I absolutely do not."
The three of them started walking toward the school gates together. For once, Noah was unusually quiet. Which should have worried Aiden. Deeply. Noah being quiet usually meant he was planning something.
And sure enough...
"I have a question."
Aiden sighed.
"Of course you do."
"If you could confess to someone right now, who would it be?"
Aiden nearly tripped.
Mia almost walked into a bench.
Noah looked delighted.
"NOAH!" they both shouted.
The nearby students immediately turned to look.
Noah laughed so hard he had to stop walking.
By the time they reached the gates, Mia's ride had already arrived. She adjusted the strap of her backpack and smiled at them.
"See you tomorrow."
"See you," Aiden said.
For a second, neither looked away. It wasn't long. Maybe only a moment. But it was enough for Noah to notice.
And unfortunately, Noah noticed everything.
After Mia left, Noah casually placed an arm around Aiden's shoulders.
"So."
"No."
"You stared."
"I did not."
"You absolutely did."
"I didn't."
"You looked like a man watching the love of his life drive away."
Aiden nearly choked.
"Oh my God."
Noah grinned.
"Interesting reaction."
Aiden pushed him away.
The worst part was that Noah spent the entire walk home laughing.
That night, Mia sat on her bed staring at her phone. She wasn't texting anyone. She wasn't scrolling through social media. She was simply thinking. Thinking about the confession note. Thinking about Aiden. Thinking about all the almost-conversations they'd had recently. The more she thought about it, the more one possibility kept appearing in her mind.
What if the note had been his?
Meanwhile, across town, Aiden was lying on his bed having the exact same problem. Every logical explanation told him the note could have been written by anyone. Yet logic wasn't winning tonight.
Because every time he thought about the note, he thought about Mia. And every time he thought about Mia... He smiled. Without realizing it.
Tomorrow was just another school day. At least, that's what both of them thought.
Neither realized that Sophie and Noah had already begun planning their next move. And this one was going to be much, much worse.