(POV: Sophia)
The last lecture of the semester was finally over.
The moment the professor muttered, "That's all for today," half the class vanished like they had been released from a cursed spell. The remaining students either lingered to chat or discussed plans for the upcoming break.
I stretched my arms and turned to my two best friends, Ethan and Ava, who were already huddled over Ethan's phone.
"So, where are we going?" I asked, peering over their shoulders.
"We're looking for a new café," Ava said, scrolling through social media. "Something with a good vibe."
"Yeah, somewhere that doesn't serve overpriced sugar disguised as coffee," Ethan added.
"Sounds fair. Lemme check, too." I pulled out my phone and started searching.
That's when it happened.
A familiar face popped up on my screen.
But not just anywhere. On a celebrity's post.
"...Wait." My brain lagged for a second as I processed what I was seeing. I squinted hard at the image, then tapped the post for a closer look.
"Uh, guys?" I said slowly.
Ava glanced over. "What?"
I turned my phone toward them.
"Explain this."
On my screen was a recent post from Lena Hartley, an A-list actress. She had uploaded a set of pictures from a café—our city's café, to be precise. In the fourth image, she was casually sitting across from a guy, her arm resting on his shoulder.
A very, very familiar guy.
Leo.
Leo Arclight. Our quiet, unfazed, socially indifferent friend.
The same Leo who sat three seats away from us in class. The same Leo who spent most of his time either staring blankly into space or looking vaguely bored with existence.
That Leo.
Ethan and Ava froze.
"...What." Ethan deadpanned.
"You're joking," Ava muttered, snatching my phone to zoom in. "No way. That's not him. That can't be him."
"It's him," I confirmed, my voice weak.
Ethan leaned in. "Maybe it's just a guy who looks like—"
I scrolled down to the comments.
And that's when it got worse.
Fan: "OMG, who's that guy?? He looks so uninterested LOL."
Lena Hartley: "Haha, he's like that in real life too. It's part of his charm."
Fan: "Wait, so you KNOW him??"
Lena Hartley: "Of course! We go way back."
Silence.
I looked up. Ava's mouth was slightly open. Ethan's brow twitched.
"...What," Ethan repeated, as if the universe owed him a better explanation.
I scrolled further.
Fan: "Are you guys dating??"
Lena Hartley: "Haha, what do you think? ;)"
I dropped my phone.
Ava screamed.
Ethan choked on air.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN 'WHAT DO YOU THINK?!'"
Heads turned in our direction.
"Shhh!" I hissed, waving my hands at them. "Keep it down!"
Ava was already pacing. "This doesn't make sense. Leo? With a famous actress? How?! HOW?!"
Ethan grabbed my phone. "I refuse to believe this until we confirm it." He scrolled furiously, his disbelief barely holding on.
But then he stopped.
His entire face went pale.
"...It's real," he whispered.
We stared at him.
"How do you know?" I asked.
He turned his phone toward us.
It was an older post from Lena—one from almost a year ago. A photo of her at an airport. In the blurry background?
Leo.
Holding a travel bag.
With her.
Ava grabbed my arm. "Did he—did he go on a trip with her?!"
Ethan scrolled more. His breathing sped up.
Then he froze again.
"...No. No. No, this is impossible."
Ava and I lunged toward the phone.
Another comment thread under the airport post:
Fan: "Who's that guy in the background?"
Lena Hartley: "Oh, him? That's Leo. He's got the worst luck."
Fan: "What do you mean??"
Lena Hartley: "He wasn't even supposed to be on this flight. He just got dragged into a whole mess and ended up traveling with us LOL."
Ava collapsed into a chair. "What do you MEAN he just 'ended up traveling' with a celebrity?!"
Ethan rubbed his temples. "No. No. I refuse. This is a lie."
Sophia took a deep breath. "Okay. We—We need to stay calm. Let's just—ask him?"
Silence.
Then all three of us turned.
Leo was still sitting in his seat, casually packing his bag.
Completely unaware of the existential crisis we were having.
I exchanged looks with Ethan and Ava.
Time to get some answers.
---
End of Chapter 1.