Chapter 1The spark

The campus was unusually noisy that afternoon. Students hurried past in groups, some carrying lecture notes, others clutching food packs. Eric stood by the faculty garden, trying to review his chemistry notes, but his mind kept drifting. The sun was high, the air buzzing with chatter — and then she appeared.

Stephanie.

She was walking fast, her steps sharp, her eyes narrowed as if the world had offended her. A black backpack hung loosely over her shoulders, and her braids swayed as she moved. Eric wasn’t staring — at least, that’s what he told himself — until she stopped suddenly and turned in his direction.

“You!” she snapped, pointing at him.

Eric blinked, confused. “Me?”

“Yes, you. What’s so funny?”

He frowned. “I… I wasn’t even talking.”

Stephanie rolled her eyes. “Don’t play dumb. You were smirking like you just heard a bad joke about me.”

Eric’s lips twitched. He wasn’t laughing at her, but now her fiery expression amused him even more. “You think the whole world revolves around you?” he asked calmly.

Her jaw dropped. “Excuse me?”

“Excused.” He shrugged, sliding his hands into his pockets. “Look, I wasn’t laughing at you. I was remembering something funny.”

Stephanie studied him with suspicion. Her eyes were sharp, like she was used to defending herself. Eric should have stopped there, but something about her energy pulled him in.

“You know,” he added lightly, “if I were laughing at you, it’d probably be because of how dramatic you look right now.”

She gasped, her lips parting in outrage. And then — unexpectedly — she laughed. A quick, reluctant sound, but warm enough to soften her entire face.

Eric found himself smiling. “That’s better,” he said.

She shook her head. “You’re impossible. What’s your name?”

“Eric. And you?”

“Stephanie,” she replied, adjusting her bag. “But don’t think I’ve forgiven you.”

“For what?” he asked, grinning.

“For existing in my bad mood and making it worse,” she teased, and with that, she walked away.

Eric stood there for a moment, surprised at how quickly the conversation had shifted. Something in her laugh stayed with him — light, musical, the kind of sound that made the world feel less heavy.

⸻

Over the next few weeks, fate seemed determined to keep throwing them together. At the library, she claimed the seat opposite his. At the cafeteria, she bumped into him again, accusing him of “stalking her.” Each time, their banter grew sharper, funnier, warmer.

Eric realized he was looking forward to those encounters. He noticed things he shouldn’t have — the way Stephanie bit her lip when she was deep in thought, the way she hummed softly when she was happy. He found himself caring about her moods, wanting to see her smile more often.

One evening, they sat together on a bench after class. The sky above was streaked with orange and pink, and the scent of roasted corn drifted from the roadside.

“Why are you always smiling?” she asked suddenly, tilting her head.

Eric chuckled. “I don’t know. Maybe because I like annoying you.”

She shook her head, but her lips curved into a smile. “You’re strange, Eric.”

“You mean charming.”

“Strange,” she repeated, laughing.

For a moment, their eyes locked. There was no noise, no crowd — just the warmth of something unspoken settling between them.

Eric’s chest tightened. He didn’t want to admit it yet, but he knew. He was falling.

⸻

The call came two days later.

They had been studying together when Stephanie’s phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen, frowned, and answered.

“Hello?” Her voice was casual at first. Then silence. Then a sharp intake of breath.

“Mom? What—what are you saying?”

Eric watched her face drain of color. Her hands trembled as she pressed the phone closer to her ear.

“No, no, that’s not possible. Please tell me it’s a mistake!”

Tears spilled down her cheeks as her mother’s voice cracked through the line. Eric caught only fragments. “…your father… accident… he didn’t make it.”

Stephanie’s bag fell from her lap. She gripped the phone like it was the only thing tethering her to reality.

Eric froze, his heart pounding. He reached out, but she pulled away, her cries raw and broken. The Stephanie he knew — fierce, proud, unshakable — was crumbling before his eyes.

And in that moment, Eric realized something else: he wasn’t just falling for her. He was already hers, in a way he couldn’t undo