It was raining again.
Ethan Reyes pulled his hoodie tighter around his head and stared out the window of the small campus library. He watched the raindrops race each other down the glass, his breath fogging the pane as he leaned forward. The hum of the fluorescent lights above mixed with the soft sound of pages turning from nearby students.
His stomach growled for the third time in the last hour.
"Figures," he muttered, rubbing his hand across his midsection. He had skipped dinner again. Not by choice. He only had thirty bucks left until the end of the week, and rent was due tomorrow.
He looked down at his laptop. The battery had died twenty minutes ago. No charger. No energy. No motivation. His sociology essay was still half-done, and the deadline was midnight.
Ethan sighed and leaned back in the creaky plastic chair. "I should've just gone to sleep," he mumbled. "At least I wouldn't feel hungry there."
A girl giggled a few tables over. Someone dropped a pen. The world moved on around him, and he stayed still, caught in the same storm he'd lived in for the last few years.
He shut his eyes.
Just for a second.
Just until the rain stopped.
He didn't remember falling asleep. But the next thing he heard made him sit up so fast the chair squeaked under him.
"Congratulations, Host. You have been selected."
"What the hell?" Ethan blinked.
A glowing blue screen hovered in front of his face, floating in midair. He could see through it, but the words were bright and sharp, like they were carved into light.
He reached out, thinking it was a prank.
His fingers went right through it.
"Initializing Romance System. Binding in process. Welcome, Ethan Reyes."
He looked around wildly. The library was gone. So were the people, the sounds, the rain. Everything was quiet and dark, like he was standing in a dream.
"Okay, this is a dream," he whispered. "Definitely a dream. Or maybe I've lost my mind."
"You are perfectly sane, Host. You've been chosen as a Male Lead Candidate for the Romance System. Your missions will begin shortly."
Ethan took a step back. "Wait. What system? What are you talking about? Am I being hacked? Is this-some weird prank?"
"No prank. This is your new reality."
A second screen appeared, listing out details he didn't understand.
> Mission 001: Make Luna Ashford fall in love with you.
Time limit: 30 days.
Reward: System Level-Up + Access to Background Points.
Failure Penalty: Memory loss + mission reset.
"What the hell is this?" Ethan demanded, staring at the screen. "Luna Ashford? She's a real person. I go to school with her. You can't just-make people fall in love like this."
"Incorrect. You will not make her fall in love. You will unlock the potential for love. The system simply assists."
He tried to swipe the screen away, but it followed him like it was glued to his vision.
"Why me?" he asked. "I'm nobody. I'm broke. I sleep on a mattress with springs that stab my back. What kind of 'Male Lead' do you expect me to be?"
"You are the perfect candidate. Average appearance. High emotional intelligence. Low attachments. You are an ideal blank canvas."
Ethan winced. "Thanks for the compliment, I guess."
"Mission begins now. Good luck."
The screens blinked out.
He was suddenly back in the library. The rain was still falling. His laptop still dead. But something was different.
His heart was pounding. His palms were damp. And when he looked up, he saw her.
Luna Ashford.
She stood near the shelves, flipping through a book with one hand, her long black coat falling perfectly over her frame. Her hair was dark and sleek, pulled into a low ponytail, and her face looked like it had been carved from ice.
Ethan stared at her.
No one ever talked to Luna. Not unless they wanted to be embarrassed in front of everyone. She had a reputation for being cold, cruel, and brilliant. Everyone said she was rich-really rich. Rumors said her father ran half the tech companies in the city.
Ethan had never spoken to her. Never even tried.
But now the system expected him to make her fall in love?
He groaned softly. "This has got to be a nightmare."
Luna glanced up.
Their eyes met.
Her gaze was sharp, like a blade, and for a second Ethan felt like he was about to be sliced in half. But she didn't say anything. She looked back down at her book and turned the page slowly, like he wasn't even worth noticing.
Ethan looked at the empty seat across from her.
"No," he told himself. "I'm not doing this. I'm not going to humiliate myself. This is insane."
"Mission active. Time remaining: 29 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes."
The voice returned in his head, cold and emotionless.
"Shut up," Ethan hissed under his breath.
He looked down at his laptop bag, then back at Luna. Something inside him twisted.
She didn't look cold. Not really. Her eyes, when she'd looked at him, had been tired. Like someone who hadn't slept well in days. Maybe weeks.
And there it was. The system's influence. Making him curious. Making him feel something.
He grabbed his dead laptop, stood up, and walked across the library.
Every step felt like a mistake.
When he reached her table, she didn't look up.
"Mind if I sit here?" he asked quietly.
She turned a page. "Every other table is empty."
"I know. But I thought maybe… I could borrow some of your brilliance through proximity."
Luna blinked once.
Then she slowly raised her eyes to meet his.
"That's a terrible line."
"First time I've used it," he said, shrugging. "I'll workshop it later."
She stared at him for a long second.
Then she tilted her head slightly. "Sit down. But don't talk."
Ethan smiled. "Deal."
He pulled out the chair and sat down. She didn't say another word, and he didn't push it. He just sat, pretending to work while his heart beat so loud he was sure she could hear it.
Five minutes passed. Then ten.
Luna finally looked up.
"You're Ethan, right?"
His eyes snapped to hers. "Yeah. You know my name?"
"I know everyone's name," she said flatly. "It's useful."
He nodded slowly. "You're not what I expected."
She raised a brow. "What did you expect?"
"I don't know. Something colder."
Luna leaned back. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?"
He rubbed the back of his neck. "Maybe."
She stared at him again, this time longer.
"You're different today."
"Different how?"
"Before, you looked like someone trying to disappear. Now you look like you're trying to be noticed."
Ethan laughed under his breath. "Maybe I woke up and decided to change everything."
"People don't change overnight," she said.
He looked at her seriously. "Maybe they can. If they have the right reason."
Her eyes narrowed. "Are you flirting with me?"
"Would you be mad if I said yes?"
"I don't get mad," Luna said. "I get bored."
"Then I'll do my best not to be boring."
She didn't smile.
But she didn't walk away either.
Instead, she closed her book and stood up.
"Walk me to my car," she said suddenly.
Ethan blinked. "Really?"
"You're not boring. Yet. Let's see if that lasts."
He grabbed his bag and followed her out into the rain.
The wind was cold, but he barely felt it.
The screen in his mind popped back up:
"Affinity increased. Progress: 5%."
Ethan grinned.
"Maybe this won't be so hard after all."