Gentle Touch

Chapt. 2

Chapter 2: Accidental Meet-Up.

Lysa walked into Marketing 101. Her yellow binder was easy to spot in the crowded row. She sat down, fixed her sparkly backpack on the chair, and opened her notes to page 32. The class was noisy - people talking, papers rustling - but she was ready for the lesson.

Kael came in late. He looked around fast and saw the yellow binder - Lysa's. They had a blind date. He didn't know they were in the same class.

Kael squeezed into the seat beside her. His elbow bumped her gently. "Sorry."

Lysa turned fast - and her elbow hit his ribs. "Oof!" She jumped back, laughing. "Kael?!"

Kael smiled softly, rubbing his side. "Hey. Didn't know we're in the same class."

Lysa grinned big, still laughing a bit. "Mika didn't tell me! Sorry I elbowed you. You okay? I hit hard."

Kael chuckled, gentle. "I'm fine. The yellow binder warned me."

The teacher said, "Focus. Page 32. Segmentation variables."

They started taking notes. Lysa scribbled fast. Kael wrote neat stuff in his notebook. In the tight space, her sparkly pen kept touching his arm when she moved. Each time, Kael looked down soft and said "okay?", and Lysa whispered "sorry!", smiling tiny.

The break came. They stood up awkwardly. Lysa leaned in, voice bubbly. "This is fate making us do a sequel, right?"
Kael leaned in too, chuckling quiet. "Guess we have to study together."
"Bingo!" She tapped his notebook. "Study group. You + me. Deal?"
He looked a bit unsure but gentle. "You don't need a boring engineer slowing you, Lysa."
Lysa pouted cute. "I need sparkles. You have potential."
Kael smiled tiny, trapped. "Okay. Study group. Don't expect magic though."

The break ended. The teacher talked again. Their thighs touched. They brushed elbows writing notes. They wrote stuff. They felt something quiet.

Class ended. Chairs scraped. Lysa popped up, beaming.
"Study date tonight? Campus café? Six sharp?"
Kael hesitated a tiny bit less. "Tonight's fine."
"Yay!" She texted him stuff and bounced off, backpack swinging. "Fate confirmed, Kael."
He watched her go. Small smile stuck. Not in the plan. His phone buzzed: new contact, Lysa Enriquez.

Night came. They met at The Daily Grind café. Books were spread out. They drank coffee. Studying turned into laughs, silly talk, comparing bad breakfasts. Kael forgot to check his watch.

They didn't mention the blind date. They didn't need labels. They slipped into something gentle. Maybe inevitable.

Lysa walked into Marketing 101 again next week, same seat, same sparkly touches. Kael came on time, slid in beside her like normal.
"Ready for segmentation quiz, partner?" he murmured, notebook open.

Lysa grinned sideways, tapping her sparkly pen on his page. "We gonna crush this, engineering boy."

And they did.