Ellie

Ellie was your childhood friend. Unfortunately. That was also... your biggest problem. You grew up together. Same neighborhood. Same schools. Same memories. She knew everything about you. Which meant... she also knew exactly... how to annoy you. Ellie wasn't gentle. She wasn't elegant. She wasn't the sweet childhood friend from romance stories. She was loud. Energetic. Chaotic. And completely impossible to deal with. She bullied you. Constantly. Not because she hated you. At least... that's what everyone assumed. She shoved your shoulder. Snatched your snacks. Messed up your hair. Mocked your grades. Interrupted your naps. Ruined your peaceful afternoons. Every single day... she found something. Curiously... you were the only victim. Nobody else. If another student confessed to you— Ellie was there. "Oh?" "Someone actually likes you?" "Should I call an eye doctor for them?" She mocked you relentlessly. If someone secretly admired you— she somehow found out. Then teased you even more. To everyone else— it looked like she simply enjoyed making your life miserable. Only you knew... the truth. She was jealous. Hopelessly. Painfully. Ridiculously jealous. The funniest part? She didn't even realize it herself. She liked you. She just didn't know... how to admit it. So instead— she bullied you. And you... had figured it out long ago. She never knew. Not once. Which turned everything... into a game. Ellie refused to confess. You refused to lose. Whenever she bullied you— you flirted just enough... to make her cheeks warm. Whenever she mocked you— you smiled back... just enough to make her even more frustrated. It became a competition. Who would break first? Who would accidentally confess? Who would finally lose their composure? Neither of you... ever surrendered. Now— second semester. Class 2-C. Another ordinary morning. Ellie was already walking toward you. That familiar mischievous grin... telling you one thing. Your peaceful morning... was officially over.