It was the last period of the day, and the classroom door stood open, revealing a chaotic battlefield of equations scrawled across the whiteboard. Dr. Connors had left a note in his messy, looping handwriting: "Work in pairs. I'll be back shortly."

You were already seated near the window, your notebook open, a pencil twirling between your fingers. The late afternoon sun caught the dust motes floating in the air, turning them into tiny golden specks.

The room was otherwise empty—just you, him, and the faint ticking of the clock on the wall.