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Alone in the dorm, Ren lounges on his bunk, lazily reading whatever article he has pulled up on his scroll. He sighs slightly, stretching out into a more comfortable position.
Suddenly, the quiet is interrupted by energetic footsteps approaching the door. A few quick knocks are heard, followed by a familiar, "Hello?"
"In here," he responds, the corner of his mouth twitching upward despite himself.
A cheerfully grinning Nora appears in his peripheral a few seconds later. "Hi!" She plops down onto the bed across from him, placing her hands on her lap and bouncing excitedly.
Ren sets the scroll aside, pushing himself upright and turning to face her. "Hi." He watches her for a moment, amused. "You seem energetic."
Nora bounces once more before leaning forward with her elbows on her knees. "Not more than normal, really; just in a good mood!"
"Any particular reason why?" Ren can't help but notice how especially cute she is like this; not that that's new information.
She pauses, considering. "Hmm... No, not really. Oh!" Nora sits up straight suddenly, as if realizing something. "It might be because a certain someone has been talking more," she suggests in a sing-song voice.
Ren looks down at his sleeve and picks at it absentmindedly, feigning disinterest. "Have I?" Nora nods enthusiastically, earning a hum of acknowledgment in response. "I hadn't noticed."
"I did!" Ren pauses mid-movement, turning his head to look at her. Nora seems to process exactly what she had said, and her cheeks flush as a result. "W-well, I mean..." she continues, a bit hesitant this time, "Of course I noticed! I... I notice a lot things about you."
Ren stares at her, a little stunned. Nora's quiet, not meeting his eyes. After a moment, Ren looks away, his cheeks pink as well. There's an unusual silence, which doesn't help either of them feel less nervous. Almost desperate to ease the tension, Ren speaks up. "You know... If it had been the other way around, I probably would've noticed too."
Finally, Nora looks at him, with an expression not unlike the one he'd worn a moment ago. After a pause, she cracks a smile. "It never would be the other way around, though, because there's no way I could talk more!"
Ren laughs, a little nervously, but it definitely makes him a little more comfortable. "That's probably true."
Still grinning, Nora reaches forward and pokes him right on the nose. "Boop!" Genuinely smiling now, Ren rests his cheek on his hand, partially hiding the returning blush.
When Nora leans back, she takes a deep breath, as if preparing for something. Hands back in her lap, she looks up at Ren. "You know, there's a reason I notice things about you." The serious tone of Nora's voice gets his attention, and he looks at her curiously. She pauses, taking in a shaky breath. "I used to think it was just because we're really close friends, and that's part of it, but... It's not. And it took me a really long time to figure it out, and even after I did, I had no idea what to do, and just-" she stops, realizing she's rambling. "I... It's scary, really, doing this, and I have no idea what'll happen now, but... I have to tell you. I have to tell you at some point, and I guess it's going to be now." Nora closes her eyes, composing herself. Letting out one last long breath, she stands, and looks Ren directly in the eyes. "I love you, Ren. And yeah, in the 'best-friend-basically-family-known-you-forever' kind of way, but... Also in the 'head-over-heels-blushing-heart-racing' way. And... Well, you're the person I'm closest to in the whole world, so you deserve to know that. And it's true!"
Ren can do nothing but stare, barely even processing what he just heard. After a moment, Nora realizes the weight of what she's just done, and plops back onto the bunk, almost dazed. She stares down at her hands, clasping them and unclasping them nervously.
Finally, Ren sits up, somehow keeping it together enough to look at her. "You... You really... That's... True?" He can barely get words out, much less form a coherent sentence. Nora just nods, not meeting his gaze. Still stunned, he continues. "I... Didn't expect that. Any of that."
Nora almost laughs, an uncharacteristically sarcastic sound. "Clearly."
Puzzled at her reaction, Ren pauses. "Wait... Do you think I'm rejecting you?"
She quickly looks up at him, taking in the confusion on his face. "Aren't you?" Nora watches as understanding washes over his features.
"Oh. You do think that. But... Why?" Nora inhales sharply, hesitantly optimistic about what he means. "Why would I?" Why would I ever reject you?" Ren smiles, almost amused. "I... I love you too, you know. I suppose I've been a little too good at hiding it." Nora stares at him, wide-eyed. "I probably should have told you before now, but... I don't know, it never seemed like a very good idea."
Nora looks down, processing everything that's just happened. "So you're saying... We've both had feelings for each other for a while, and we were both too nervous and oblivious to even realize?"
Ren smiles again. "I guess so."
Nora's mouth slowly stretches into a grin, and before long she's absolutely beaming. "Well, at least we know now, right? So we don't have to be awkward and nervous around each other! We can actually show our feelings without worrying, and I can actually say 'I love you' instead of 'Boop'!" She's standing now, smiling widely.
Realization hits Ren. "You mean... That's what that meant?" Nora comprehends what she had said, and smacks a hand over her mouth, her cheeks turning a bright pink. Ren grins, standing up in front her. He reaches up and pulls Nora's hand away from her face, holding it in his own between them instead. "That's adorable."
Nora blushes even harder, if possible. "I-I mean, if you think so, I might still say it sometimes."
Smiling, Ren nods. "Yeah, I'd like that." He looks at her fondly, softly rubbing his thumb across her hand. Their faces are very close, leaving Nora barely breathing.
"Ren?" Her voice is quiet, quieter than Ren's really ever heard her. For a moment, he just looks at her, taking in how cute she looks when she's flustered. Nora's lips curl upward slightly, a happy but nervous expression. "I'm in an even better mood now." Unable to contain his affection any longer, Ren places a quick kiss right on the tip of her nose. He leans back, smiling and feeling pure love for the girl in front of him.
"Boop."
The look on Nora's face is one Ren would be perfectly happy seeing for the rest of his life.