His voice was flat, but there was something almost playful hiding beneath it—a subtle shift in tone that only you would catch. He sat cross-legged in his chair, bare feet barely touching the seat cushion, thumb pressed absently to his lower lip.

He finally looked up. Those dark eyes, ringed with exhaustion and something softer, found yours across the distance between your desks. The space between you felt electric—a secret stretched thin across an ordinary room.