I’m gonna be late! Mika Torino ran as fast as his legs could carry him across the large college campus to his next class, a half-eaten breakfast bar gripped tightly in his teeth, his long black hair billowing out behind him. He chastised himself, knowing he shouldn’t have talked so long with the professor, but if he was going to pass the assignment, he wanted to be clear on what exactly he was looking for. It didn’t matter that it was just a gen-ed class, he was going to do his best, just as he always did. 

That said, he never should have stayed so long; this next class was part of his major curriculum and he absolutely could not miss a second of it. He readjusted his backpack and weaved past one group of students, through several walking steadily on, and around a large tree before rounding the corner of one of the lab buildings, nearly colliding head-on into the back of a large figure walking just on the other side. He skidded to a stop, his breakfast bar falling out of his mouth and into his hand.

He apologized profusely, not really taking note of the guy in front of him outside of his black and red hoodie and the dark mohawk that ended just above his shoulder blades, the tips dyed a deep red throughout each layer. His heavy backpack was slung loosely over his right shoulder and swayed slightly as Mika darted past him. He caught the faint smell of spicy burnt wood and bourbon and nearly tripped  over his own feet. I know that smell…The classroom was just ahead. He sighed with relief and slowed to a walk, just as one of his friends called to him from the doorway, waving his way.

“Hey, Mika, hurry up!” he shouted.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming!” He reached the small group that was waiting for him and they headed together to their desks that were all near each other. “Sorry, I was talking to Professor Redkin,” Mika explained, putting his backpack on the floor. He opened it up and pulled out the materials needed for this class.

“The English Lit professor?” another of his friends, a guy named Marcus, asked, as he chewed on a coffee stirrer. He plopped into the seat in front of Mika, sitting sideways, one arm on Mika’s desk.

Mika nodded. “It was about the short essay he assigned the other day.”

Kelly, one of his girl friends, giggled on his right. “You could have just asked me, dorkus,” she said. “I can tell you everything you need to know.” She was in a lot of the same gen-ed classes as Mika and she did have a point. 

Mika gave an embarrassed laugh. “Yeah, I guess that’s true.”

The first friend, Riley, fell into the chair on his left, next to the window, with a heavy sigh. “Glad I don’t have to take that class again,” he said. “Redkin was a beast. I’m lucky I got outta there with a high C.”

As the group chatted and laughed, more students began filing into the classroom, taking their seats. As one student passed him, he caught that smell again…burnt wood and bourbon.

He whipped his head around and saw a young man with a black and red hoodie and matching mohawk take a seat in the back near another large window. He looked…intimidating…his brows knit together, his full lips turned down. He had two lip rings in the right corner of his mouth and two in his left eyebrow. His ears were also fully pierced, and Mika could see part of a tattoo on the side of his neck. His dark eyes caught Mika’s for a second as he sat. Feeling caught, Mika blushed slightly and looked away a split second after the other man turned his gaze to the window, his arms folded on the desk.

Mika pulled out his textbook, notebook, and pen, just as Riley was asking if he had finished reading the manga he had lent him the week before. He was about to respond when the professor walked in and called for everyone to settle down so they could begin the class.

As with most other college classes, this one took about an hour and a half to complete, with a fifteen minute break in the middle of it. Mika took that time to stretch and pop his neck, looking over his notes as he did so. His friends all walked outside to get some fresh air, Mika saying he’d join them in a minute. As he was sitting there, his hair curtaining his face while he finished highlighting some information in the text, something caught his attention. Something was rolling on the floor near his left foot. He looked down and saw a pen, rolling to a stop just past his desk. He reached down and picked it up. 

It was distinctive, with Japanese lettering on one side and a row of anime characters on another. It was from Jujutsu Kaisen, a popular show he knew well. He looked around him but didn’t see anyone. Everyone had gone outside so there was no one to ask who it belonged to.

“U-um, I th-ink that’s mine.”

The low, stumbling voice from the back made Mika jump slightly. He turned and saw the young man with the mohawk staring at him, his arm extended on his desk, palm up. Mika noticed his fingertips seemed to be shaking a little bit.

“Oh!” Mika looked from him to the pen and back again. He smiled and stood up. “Sorry, I didn’t know there was anyone else here.” He walked toward the young man and placed the pen in his hand. The long fingers curled around the pen and he flipped it around a couple of times before tossing it in his notebook.

He shrugged and looked back out the window. “Thanks,” was all he said. He folded his hands together, elbows on the desk, and rested his face against them. 

Mika nodded. “Sure.” He turned to head back to his own desk. “It’s a cool pen. Might wanna be a little more careful with it, though, there’s plenty of other people here that would have taken it.”

“Not you?”

Mika shook his head, turning sideways in his seat. “It isn’t mine, it would be wrong. I like the series, but I’m not about to steal someone else's property to prove it.”

The other’s eyes turned toward him, studying him. Mika couldn’t look away, even though he wanted to. Those eyes were so intense, so captivating. He gave a small smile, tilting his head slightly, some of his hair falling off his shoulder. He hoped the intriguing student couldn’t hear his heart pounding against his ribcage. It was subtle, but he could see one of his eyebrows, the pierced one, twitch before he tore his eyes away and down to the notebook between his elbows. 

“I’m Mika,” Mika said. “Mika Torino.”

The other said nothing, his eyes going back out the window. He leaned back and put his hands in the pocket of his hoodie. He crossed his ankles under the desk, his long legs stretched out. The tips of his ears were turning red and Mika guessed he was uncomfortable continuing the conversation. 

He must not talk to people much, he thought.

“Mika!” Riley shouted from the door. “Are you coming or what, dude?”

Mika’s back tensed as he remembered he was supposed to join everyone outside. He turned towards the door and waved. “Yeah, I’ll be right there.”

He looked back at the quiet student and stood, raising a hand. “See ya,” he said and left the room.

“Dude, seriously, what took you so long?” Riley asked as Mika reached the door.

Mika apologized as they headed outside, their chatter continuing as they walked away.

Back at his desk, Gen Parker looked down at his Jujutsu Kaisen pen, breathing slowly to get his heart to calm down. He couldn’t believe someone was talking to him…not just to ask him to move or to hand them something, but actually talking to him.

And his dumb ass choked! Kana always told him he should try and engage more. “You’re not going to make any friends staring at your phone, Gen,” she’d say.

At that thought, he sighed and rubbed his face with his hands, trying to get the knot in his stomach to untangle before things got worse. He pulled his hood over his head and took his phone from his hoodie pocket. He opened up one of his webcomic apps, pulled up the manhwa he was binging and began scrolling, doing his best not to focus on the fact that he couldn’t even tell someone his own damn name.