The Hallway Collision

Ami Mizuno had a schedule to keep.

Student council meeting at noon.

Debate practice at 3:00 PM.Library study session until 6:00 PM.

Nothing—absolutely nothing—was going to mess up her perfectly structured day.

Until he did.

She didn't see him coming. One second, she was balancing a massive stack of student council paperwork, and the next—BAM.

Papers everywhere. A chaotic explosion of syllabi, committee lists, and budget forms rained down in the middle of the school hallway.

And the culprit?

Ryo Urawa.

Resident slacker. The boy who barely showed up to class but somehow still passed. The one person in this school who never looked like he was in a rush.

"Oh, come on!" Ami huffed, glaring up at him from the floor. "Do you not watch where you're going?"

Ryo blinked down at her, looking about as bothered as a cat that just knocked a glass off a counter. "I was watching." He shrugged. "I just didn't care."

Ami gaped at him. "You—! Ugh. Just—help me pick these up."

"Sure." He bent down lazily, gathering a few sheets like he had all the time in the world.

That's when Ryan walked by.

Ryan, her ex-boyfriend.

Ryan, who had dumped her publicly three weeks ago.

Ryan, who was now smirking at her, arm wrapped around his new girlfriend like Ami was nothing but an old homework assignment.

"Well, well," Ryan said smoothly, pausing beside her. "Didn't expect to see you on the floor, Ami. That's... new."

Ami clenched her fists.

She should've ignored him. She should've been the bigger person.

Instead, in a move fueled entirely by rage and impulse, she blurted out:
"I'm fine. My boyfriend was just helping me."

Silence.

Ami realized what she'd just said.

Ryo, holding a stack of papers, stared at her like she had lost her mind.

Ryan raised an eyebrow. "Your... boyfriend?"

Ami grabbed the nearest human limb—which just so happened to be Ryo's wrist—and yanked him close. "Yes," she said through a tight-lipped smile. "My boyfriend."

Ryo's entire body went stiff.

Ryan's smirk faltered.

And then—

"OH. MY. GOD."

The voice belonged to Nina Takahashi, the school's biggest gossip, who had conveniently witnessed everything.

"YOU GUYS ARE DATING?!" Nina screeched, already pulling out her phone. "OH, THIS IS GONNA BE GOOD."

Before Ami could correct the mistake, the hallway exploded with whispers.People were already turning, pointing.

Ryo exhaled. "Huh." He glanced at Ami. "So, do I get a say in this fake relationship, or—?""Just—go with it," Ami hissed.

Ryan rolled his eyes, clearly unimpressed. "Well, congrats. Hope he treats you better than I did." He threw a cocky smirk before walking off.

Ami bristled. She turned to Ryo, eyes narrowing.

"I need a favor."

Ryo raised an eyebrow. "A favor? You literally just dragged me into—"

"Two weeks." Ami folded her arms. "Pretend to date me for two weeks, and then we 'break up.'

After that, we go back to our completely separate lives."

Ryo tilted his head, as if considering. "Huh."

"Huh?" she echoed impatiently.

"...You know what? Fine. Could be fun." He gave her a slow, maddening smirk. "I always wanted to know what it's like to date the perfect Mizuno."

Ami's eye twitched.

She was going to regret this.

To be continued...