𝙀𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙄𝙣 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙨

Chapter One

I was early to school again, sitting in my car and watching the empty parking lot slowly begin to fill with students. It was September, the beginning of a new school year. As I waited for more people to arrive, I couldn't help but laugh to myself, remembering the moment Bella and I had shared our schedules.

"Seriously, Ishkhan?" Bella had groaned, looking at my schedule full of AP, Honors, and Advanced classes. "Why do you always have to make me feel like a slacker?"

I chuckled, trying to hide my amusement. "Hey, it's not that bad. You know you're amazing in your own way."

Bella rolled her eyes but couldn't help but smile at my attempt to comfort her. "Yeah, yeah."

Bella tapped lightly on my window and mouthing, "Open the door." I smiled and rolled down the window, greeting her with a warm, "Hey, how are you?"

"I'm fine," She replied with a smile. "How are you?"

"I'm doing fine," I responded, still smiling.

Bella hesitated for a moment before asking, "Can I take a photo of you? My mom gifted me a photo album and she wants me to fill it with photos of my senior year."

I laughed at the thought of me taking pictures of our senior year. "What poses should I do?" I joked, striking a few playful poses like pretending to be a superhero and doing a dramatic thinker pose.

"Just be yourself," Bella said, holding up my camera. Ishkhan calmed down, still chuckling, and gave a genuine smile at the camera, holding a thumbs up.

"Thanks, Ishkhan." Bella said, snapping the photo.

"No problem," I replied.

We shared a moment of silence. I suddenly remembered something and turned to grab a small package from the passenger seat. "Oh, by the way," I said, holding it out to Bella, "I got you a little gift."

She raised an eyebrow, looking both surprised and amused. "You know I always say no presents, right?"

I chuckled, handing her the perfectly wrapped present. "Yeah, and you know I always ignore that."

She took the gift, her eyes widening as she admired the pristine wrapping. "Wow, this is wrapped perfectly. Did you finally figure out how to wrap presents?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "Nope. That was all my ma. I asked her to wrap it for you."

Bella smiled, and I could see the warmth in her eyes. "Well, thank you and thanks to your ma too. This is really sweet."

We shared a moment of quiet appreciation, just enjoying the simplicity of the gesture. She carefully unwrapped the present, taking her time not to tear the beautiful paper. Inside was a delicate necklace with a small, intricate pendant.

"Ishkhan, this is beautiful," she said, her voice filled with genuine appreciation. "You really didn't have to."

I shrugged modestly. "I wanted to. I saw it and thought it would look great on you."

She put the necklace on immediately and turned slightly to show me. "How does it look?" she asked.

"Perfect," I said with a grin. "Just like I thought."

She reached out and gave me a quick hug. "Thanks, Ishkhan. This means a lot."

"Anytime," I replied, my smile never fading.

The bell rang, signaling that school had finally started. Bella and I both sighed, knowing it was time to part ways for our next classes.

"Well, I guess that's our cue," I said, grabbing my backpack and standing up.