24/08/2025
*****HEART ON THE SIDELINES*****
Episode 1.
Lerato tried to focus on the math lesson, but her notebook might as well have been blank. Her eyes kept darting to the classroom door, and when it finally swung open, everything else seemed to fade.
He walked in with an effortless confidence that made heads turn—Thabo, the new student. The kind of boy who smiled and somehow lit up the entire room without even trying. Lerato’s heart thumped painfully in her chest, and she couldn’t stop herself from staring. Every laugh, every glance, felt like it was meant for her… even if it wasn’t.
When he scanned the room for a seat, his eyes met hers for a fleeting second. Just one second, but it was enough to send a rush of heat to her cheeks and make her palms clammy. Her stomach twisted in anticipation. Was it recognition? Curiosity? Or had she simply imagined it?
Lerato sank lower in her chair, pulling her notebook closer like a shield. She tried to tell herself to focus on the lesson, to stop imagining scenarios where he’d come over and sit next to her. But her mind wouldn’t listen. Every movement he made—the way he casually tossed his backpack onto the chair, the soft laugh escaping his lips—made her chest tighten.
“Focus, Lerato. Just… focus,” she muttered under her breath. Yet, deep down, she knew something had shifted. Something in the air between them felt electric, though she had no idea if he even noticed. Maybe this was the start of something… or maybe it was a cruel trick of fate, making her heart race for someone who might never notice.
