Time | ɴᴀɴᴀᴛꜱᴜ ɴᴏ ᴛᴀɪᴢᴀɪ

XI

"Meliodas kept making fun of you extra hard the following week. I figured he was just in a good mood."

"..."

"After a month, I finally gave the application."

—

Ban arrived home silent, his brain still processing what just happened outside her house. He just walked Elaine home and got her socials. How was that okay for his heart? Adding to the fact that she sat next to him the whole afternoon and slept on his lap. He had a capacity for these things, and today, he went over the meter.

He went upstairs to his room and laid flat on his bed. He felt so stupid about what he was feeling. It was a mix of ecstatic and confusion. He shoved his face in his pillow and debated whether to scream into it or not. He didn't, but he turned around to look at the ceiling. A smile trying to escape his lips and a blush on his face.

His thoughts naturally drifted to the blonde that made his heart race and put color into his cheeks. A summary of what happened for the day played in Ban's head—seeing her in a casual outfit for the first time, sitting next to her the whole three movies, her sleeping, him impressing her with his cooking, walking her home, and finally getting her socials.

Ban was already grinning to himself, although he felt ridiculous. He wasn't used to this since he was only meeting her during lunch and after school. The time they spent together at school was nothing like this first time experience of spending a day with her.

Ultimately, Ban was flustered. He'd been keeping his composure for the many moments that Elaine's actions tugged at his heart; it was tiring to keep it up for ours. Now, he lost all of it and smiled to himself like an idiot.

"This is so stupid," he told himself, but the wide smile on his face said otherwise. He turned to his side and opened his phone. He quickly looked up Elaine's socials and followed them. Oh, how Ban's smile widened at the sight of Elaine's featured pictures. He wanted to explode; Elaine was adorable.

He closed the app and turned his phone off, being left with his thoughts again. At this point, Ban had no choice but to fully accept that he had a gigantic crush on Elaine. He groaned, remembering what Meliodas told him earlier. It wasn't only that he recognized that he had a crush on her; he also didn't know what to do with his feelings.

It was new, refreshing, and exciting, but it was also nerve-racking and scary.

He doesn't even know when it started. Was it when he met her on the first day? Was it when they met each other during lunch? When they walked home together? When was the exact date, time, and place? Ban couldn't help but be bothered.

The feeling of liking someone was somewhat surreal. Every time she was around, spreading her positive energy, he found himself smiling. He would always feel something warm in his chest, but most of the time, it was warm from his neck to the tip of his ears. Everything Elaine did made him giddy. So giddy that he found it stupid for feeling that way.

Everything felt stupid, but a side of him loved it. He felt light and at ease whenever he saw her laugh or smile. Her big gold eyes were staring into his soul, ever so slowly melting his cold stare. He blushed every time it happened because he never knew when to look away.

Elaine was the only girl he felt these intense emotions for. She was the first girl that took his attention, the first girl who he knew he could trust (Elizabeth was another story. He took a while to trust her), and the first girl who made him act and think the way he is now.

He's never wanted to disappear and melt on the spot before too.

He groaned, taking his phone again. He looked through his contacts and stared at Meliodas' number. He debated whether he should call his friend to tell him about whatever he was feeling. This was a new situation for him. He didn't want to dive in headfirst; he had to at least ask for some sort of help from someone who's experienced what he was feeling.