Chapter 3: First Soft Moment
The sky had been grey since morning.
Maya looked out the classroom window and sighed. "It's going to rain," she whispered.
Beside her, Ayan was focused on his notebook as usual.
During lunch break, Maya and her friends went outside to the school courtyard. The wind started blowing harder, carrying the smell of rain.
"I think we should go back inside," Nitu said.
"Relax, it's just wind," Maya replied with a smile.
But a few minutes later—
Thunder.
And then suddenly, heavy rain poured down.
Students screamed and ran toward the building.
Maya tried to cover her head with her bag, laughing as she ran. But before she could reach the stairs, she slipped slightly on the wet ground.
She didn't fall—
Because someone grabbed her arm.
Strong. Steady.
She looked up.
Ayan.
"When it starts raining, you go inside," he said calmly.
"You were outside too," Maya replied, trying to catch her breath.
"I came to call you."
Maya blinked.
"For the project," he added quickly.
Of course. The project.
The rain kept pouring. The building entrance was still a few steps away.
Without saying anything else, Ayan opened his umbrella.
He held it slightly over her head.
"What about you?" she asked.
"I'm fine."
But she noticed something—
He was tilting the umbrella more toward her side. His shoulder was getting wet.
They walked quietly toward the stairs.
For once, the silence didn't feel awkward.
It felt… soft.
Comfortable.
At the entrance, Maya stopped.
"Thank you," she said gently. "For coming to call me."
Ayan looked at her for a moment.
"You'll catch a cold," he said.
That wasn't really an answer.
But it wasn't nothing either.
As they stepped inside, Maya felt her heart beating a little faster than usual.
Maybe he wasn't as cold as everyone thought.
Maybe—
He just didn't know how to show it.
And maybe…
This was the first crack in his quiet wall.