Festival Collision — “When Paths Cross”

She slipped through the festival crowd with a snack in hand, the lanterns painting the world in streaks of gold and red. Music and laughter blended into a warm, swirling haze.

Then — impact. Someone collided with her, hard enough to jolt her back a step.

Time stuttered.

Her cool, glacier-blue eyes locked onto a pair of ember-dark ones. His gaze held a wild spark — a mix of surprise and stubborn fire — and for a heartbeat, everything else fell away.

He didn’t get a chance to speak. A pack of reporters stormed past, flashes bursting like tiny explosions.

He ran, vanishing into the crowd, leaving her with a half-dropped snack and flour still clinging to her cheeks.

“…fast…” she muttered.

Her friend groaned beside her, rubbing her temple. “Who crashes into someone and doesn’t even apologize?”

---

Academy Arrival — “A New Variable”

Morning sunlight washed over the academy courtyard as rumors churned. The new student had finally arrived. A rare case. An anomaly. Someone the staff had been scrambling to prepare for.

A press announcement had aired days earlier, stating that this newcomer would attend the academy for observation and guidance.

As she and her friend walked toward class, they spotted a crowd gathered by the windows. Students whispered, all staring at a figure who clearly wasn’t like them.

Black hair, slightly wavy, catching the wind. Distinct features that set him apart. Eyes dark as dusk — and familiar. Too familiar.

Was he the same person she ran into at the festival?

He stood surrounded by open books — history, racing theory, strategic analysis — flipping between them like someone trying to absorb an entire world at once.

He seemed diligent. Impressive, even. But rumors had a way of exaggerating things.

She wondered, quietly:

Is he really everything they say he is?

Only time would tell.