It didn't happen in one big moment.
It happened in pieces.
Small ones.
Like the way Julian started saving Grace a seat without thinking.
Like the way he remembered she hated pulp in her juice and swapped cartons with her during lunch.
Like how, when group projects were assigned, he didn't even look around anymore.
He just moved his chair next to hers.
And everyone noticed.
Everyone except Grace.
It started becoming obvious during competition practice.
They were staying back after school to plan.
Grace was explaining strategies, hands moving as she spoke.
"We should divide it like this — Ella and Zoey handle the presentation part. Dylan, Ethan, you two do the design. David can check everything over—"
"What about you?" Nate asked.
Grace shrugged. "I'll just coordinate."
Julian shook his head immediately.
"No. You're not 'just' anything."
The table went quiet.
Grace blinked. "What?"
"You're doing the main structure," he said calmly. "We're just filling it in."
There it was again.
That tone.
Protective.
Certain.
Theo's jaw tightened slightly.
Lucy noticed.
Zara noticed.
Everyone noticed.
Except Grace.
She just rolled her eyes lightly. "It's not that serious."
Julian smiled faintly.
To him, it was.
Then there were the hallway moments.
If someone bumped into Grace, Julian was the one who stepped forward first.
If she dropped something, he picked it up before it hit the ground.
If she got quiet during lunch, he was the one who nudged her back into the conversation.
Ella leaned toward Zoey one afternoon.
"Tell me you see it."
Zoey tried not to grin. "I've seen it for two weeks."
David noticed the way Julian watched Grace when she laughed.
Dylan noticed the way Julian got slightly defensive anytime someone teased her.
Ethan noticed the way Julian's mood shifted depending on hers.
Nate and Adrian exchanged looks more than once.
Theo noticed everything.
Especially the way Julian looked at her.
Not casually.
Not habitually.
But like she was the center of his focus even in a crowded room.
And that did something uncomfortable in his chest.
Lucy noticed too.
One day, as Grace was talking animatedly about something random, Julian wasn't even part of the conversation.
He was just watching her.
Softly.
Lucy leaned toward Zara.
"He likes her."
Zara didn't look surprised.
"I know."
There was something unreadable in her voice.
The clearest moment happened during practice again.
Grace tripped slightly while stepping off the low platform near the court.
It wasn't dramatic.
She didn't fall.
But Julian was on his feet instantly.
"Are you okay?"
Grace laughed. "I'm fine."
He didn't sit back down immediately.
He checked her ankle.
Actually checked it.
Theo had started to stand too.
But he stopped when he realized Julian was already there.
That split second?
Everyone saw it.
Theo's hesitation.
Julian's instinct.
Grace's oblivious smile.
Later that day, Ella cornered David near the lockers.
"It's obvious."
David nodded. "Painfully."
"Do you think she knows?"
David looked toward Grace down the hallway, laughing with Ethan.
"No."
And that was the truth.
Grace didn't see it.
She saw Julian as steady. Safe. Constant.
She didn't notice how his eyes softened when she talked.
Didn't notice how he remembered every tiny detail about her.
Didn't notice how he always stood slightly closer than necessary.
To her, he was just…
Julian.
Theo lay awake longer that night than he wanted to admit.
Because now it wasn't just Zara shifting things.
It was Julian.
And Julian wasn't smooth.
He wasn't subtle like Zara.
He wasn't loud like Dylan.
He was quiet.
Consistent.
Present.
And for the first time, Theo wondered something he didn't like at all.
What if Grace stopped needing him?
The next morning, the group gathered again.
Grace sat in the middle of laughter.
Julian beside her.
Theo across from her.
Zara watching.
Lucy thinking.
And everyone — every single one of them —
Knew.
Except the girl at the center of it all.