Story Title: Love in Silence
Chapter 2: The First Words
The class had already started.
The teacher was writing on the board.
Arif stared at his notebook,
but his mind was elsewhere.
Again and again,
without realizing it,
his eyes moved toward
the front bench.
Mehjabin.
She was taking notes seriously,
sometimes pausing,
lost in thought.
Suddenly—
her pen slipped from her hand.
The soft sound caught Arif's attention.
He looked down.
The pen had rolled
right near his feet.
For a moment, he hesitated.
Then he bent down
and picked it up.
Slowly,
he extended his hand
toward the front bench.
Mehjabin turned around.
For the first time,
this close.
"Thank you,"
she said with a gentle smile.
Arif froze for a second.
His throat felt dry.
"It's… okay,"
the words came out quietly.
Just two words.
That's all.
But to Arif,
it felt like
he had spoken to someone
after a very long time.
Mehjabin took the pen
and looked at him
for a second longer.
"You're very quiet,"
she said softly.
Arif felt awkward.
He lowered his eyes.
"I'm… used to it,"
he replied.
Mehjabin didn't say anything.
She just smiled
and turned back around.
But Arif knew—
this small conversation
was the biggest moment of his day.
And Mejhabin?
Without realizing it,
she was thinking—
the quietest people
often carry the loudest stories inside.
— To be continued —