"Do you think he's gonna do it?"
"He will, he will! He's got it ready and everything! "
"Machina..."
They're not gonna quiet down, are they?
Machina held a handwritten letter tucked safely in an envelope with trembling hands. He sat no more than a seat away from its recipient, a very likeable boy (at least to Machina): Ace.
He's liked Ace since their first encounter, albeit not as much as he did now. When Machina had first seen him, he'd initially made a note of how attractive the blonde was- how well the gold-trimmed black uniform fit him, how the bangs of his hair adorably framed his face, how his azure eyes reflected his calm and collected aura- he'd liked these characteristics. Over time, Machina's feelings only grew stronger and he paid attention to the cute little things his crush did that he hadn't noticed before. His prior vague interest in the guy eventually turned into something much greater.
As February fourteenth approached, the few girls in Class Zero who knew of his infatuation with Ace consistently urged him to confess to him. Machina had planned the fourteenth since that (with a little bit of help from Rem). He'd write a letter explaining his feelings to Ace and slip it inside the cover of one of his books as he walked by out of class. If that failed for whatever reason, he'd just give it to him directly. He'd thought it all through.
Then why am I feeling so nervous?
Cinque, Cater, and Rem, who were sitting a few desks away before, walked up next to Machina, breaking him out of his trance. When he looked up they started talking to him excitedly.
"What are you doing?! Class ended and-"
Rem didn't let Cater finish, "I didn't help you for nothing, go after Ace! He's leaving class!" She lightly pushed Machina's shoulder.
"What-"
Machina looked to the aisle left of his desk to see Ace's retreating figure.
Shiiiii-
He quickly got up from his seat and made his way towards the aisle, getting increasingly anxious as he did. He'd have to give Ace the letter directly! Embarrassing much?
As he walked up the steps, his foot caught on the edge of one, causing him to fall face first to the ground.
...Damn it.
He could imagine his friends face-palming and Rem looking away, face red.
About to accept the stairs as his final resting place, Machina heard a sweet voice ask him if he was alright. Slowly, he lifted his head to meet the cerulean eyes of the very person he was chasing after. Ace was holding his hand out, offering Machina help, but he seemed not to need it judging by how promptly he stood up after seeing the blonde.
Ace was ready to keep going on his way and leave class, but Machina seemed to be trying to form words through his stutters in an attempt to speak to him. His face was red, but probably not just from smashing his face on the floor, Ace now assumed.
"...Yes?"
Ah, hell.
Giving up, Machina shoved his letter into Ace's hands, speeding past him and running out the door.
Machina heard the class erupt in cheers behind him as he sprinted through the hallway and realized that it had been quiet when the whole ordeal happened...
The entire class had been watching.
He felt his face burn at the thought. He reached the Great Sigil, looking forward to the comfort of the Chocobos.
Ace, mildly confused, examined the letter and then the people cheering around him.
"Oh man, that was sort of intense."
"I'm so excited! He finally did it!"
"I kinda had a crush on him so I'm sort of jealous, but they'll probably be better together."
"FUCK YEAH, RESERVE A HOTEL ROOM IMMEDIATELY, ACE!"
It took a moment for him to finally make sense of the situation (he blushed at the last outburst he heard). Ace smiled as he looked at the unopened message and resolved to sit right back down in his seat and read it in its entirety.
His mission afterwards would be to find a certain embarrassed classmate and tell him exactly how he feels.
...And one simple gesture was all he needed to do so.