Faded[On-hiatus]

Fated Encounter

The alarm clock blared, piercing through the stillness of the morning. Max groggily reached out to silence it, but in his drowsy state, he accidentally sent it flying off the nightstand. He lay there for a moment, rubbing his eyes and muttering to himself about staying up too late playing games.

As he dragged himself out of bed, he couldn't shake the feeling of dread that settled in his stomach. He knew today was going to be a long day. He quickly got dressed, grabbed his skateboard, and headed out the door, informing Mrs. Elevyn, that he'll be back by school time.

The streets were empty as he made his way to the basketball court. As he approached, he could hear the sounds of the ball bouncing and the chatter of his friends. But as he got closer, the noise came to a halt and all eyes were on him.

"You're late again, Max," a short guy said angry at Max.

"Well, we all know why," a slim guy added.

Max rolled his eyes and tried to brush off the teasing. He knew he had a problem with staying up too late, but it was hard to resist the pull of the virtual world. He joined in on the game, but the feeling of guilt weighed heavily on him.

As the game came to an end and the group started to disperse, one of his friends, Liam, approached him. "Meet you again in school, Max. Try not to be late," he said with a hint of sarcasm.

Max let out a sigh, knowing that Liam was right. He had a habit of being late to school and it always landed him in trouble with his teachers. As he said goodbye to his friends and made his way home, he couldn't shake the feeling that today was going to be a tough day.

As he walked through the school halls, he couldn't help but feel a sense of dread. But that all changed when he saw her. She was new, and she was beautiful. He couldn't take his eyes off of her. He turned to Liam, "Who is she? I have to talk to her," he said, practically starry-eyed.

"Well, let's first go to class now. We'll search for her during lunch," said Liam to Max with an assuring expression.

They both walked to their classroom, talking about video games.

The first period teacher was absent, so everyone in the class was dilly-dallying. Max was so bored that he was looking out the window. As he gazed out, he noticed some students throwing papers around the classroom.

With a surge of anger, he glared at his classmates who looked back at him. But as he scanned the crowd, his eyes locked onto hers. The girl from the corridor was among the students in the classroom.

Liam noticed Max's reaction and also felt his cheeks flush with embarrassment.

Maybe this was a fated encounter...