Reincarnation of hearts. [BL]

Harumi

I sat on the school grounds, slouched back on the bench with my camera in hand, snapping shots of the chaos around me. Some students were running laps, their shoes pounding against the track, while a group of girls cheered from the sidelines. Others were playing soccer, faces flushed and dripping with sweat. I zoomed in on a group of guys huddled by the goalpost. And then, there he was, Kai, in those absurdly short shorts and a jersey that clung to him from the sweat. I clicked the camera instinctively, catching him mid-laugh as he joked with his teammates, his hair sticking to his forehead.

For some reason, my finger lingered on the button a little too long, snapping more shots of him than I'd care to admit. 'Ugh, what the hell am I doing?' I thought, lowering the camera quickly. Kai turned his head and caught me staring.

'Crap'

I froze, and he broke into that goofy grin of his, waving at me like a maniac.

I stiffened, unsure of how to react. Wave back? Ignore him? Run away? I settled for an awkward half-wave, barely lifting my hand. He beamed even brighter. 'Why is he like this?' I thought, feeling my face warm.

Trying to play it cool, I casually checked my camera screen. "Yeah, just checking the lighting... totally not spying or anything."

Before I could fully recover from the embarrassment of waving back, I heard footsteps approaching. I looked up, and there he was, Kai, jogging toward me with that same wide grin plastered on his face.

"Heyyyy, Harumi~!" Kai greeted me like we'd been best friends for years. His energy was off the charts, especially after practice. I glanced up at him, frowning as usual. He was panting hard, face flushed from running around. Without asking, he plopped down next to me on the bench, still catching his breath.

I blinked at him. "Uh, hey?"

Wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand, he flashed me that same goofy grin. "What are you doing out here? Taking pictures?" He leaned in closer, peering at my camera like it was some sort of alien gadget. "You know, if you wanted a picture of me, you could've just asked" he added with a wink. I rolled my eyes so hard I was sure they'd get stuck.

"Yeah," I muttered, adjusting the lens and pretending to focus on something else. "Just... you know, for the photography club."

"Cool! Got any good shots of me?" He grinned and leaned over, trying to peek at my camera again.

I pulled it away, raising an eyebrow. "What makes you think I'd take pictures of you?"

He laughed, completely unfazed. "Well, you were just staring at me, so I figured." He wiggled his eyebrows teasingly.

I felt my face heat up again. "I wasn't staring," I grumbled, trying to sound annoyed but probably failing miserably. "You were just... in the frame."

Kai chuckled, leaning back against the bench like we'd been best friends forever. "Yeah, yeah, sure. Anyway, what are you doing after school?"

I blinked again, taken aback by his casual friendliness. This guy really didn't know when to stop.

I cleared my throat, trying to focus on my camera, but Kai's presence was making that incredibly difficult. "I'm probably just heading home. You?"

"Not sure yet," Kai said, his grin never faltering. "Might grab something to eat, or hang out. Wanna come?"

I almost dropped my camera. Was he serious? "Why would I want to do that?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at him.

Kai shrugged, still annoyingly cheerful. "Why not? It's not like you're doing anything fun anyway."

I gave him a flat look. "And you think hanging out with you is fun?"

"Could be" He shot me a wink, which nearly made me choke on air. Who winks at someone like that?

I rubbed my temple, trying to ward off the headache I could feel coming. "You've got too much energy, you know that?"

"Yeah, I get that a lot," he laughed, completely unbothered. Then he stood up, stretching his arms above his head. "Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find me."

I glanced up at him, momentarily confused. "Wait, where?"

"All over the place!" he said with a laugh, before jogging back to his friends. I could hear his laugh echoing even as he disappeared around the corner.

I sighed, lowering my camera. "This guy..."

As I zoomed in to take more pictures, I couldn't help but wonder how the hell someone like Kai had wormed his way into my life so fast. Maybe he was just one of those people...too stubborn to leave you alone. I shook my head, finally catching a candid shot of a couple of students running across the field.

But even as I tried to refocus on my photography, my thoughts kept drifting back to Kai, and that damn smile of his.

Why did I wave back? Damn it, Harumi. You're losing your edge.