She knows what it's like, liking a boy. She knows what it's like, following a single figure across the room out of the corner of her eye, knows the feeling of lips upturned in a flirtatious smile.

She's never felt anything like this.

When he's around, she feels a flutter in her chest and a flush in her cheeks. She's his friend, but what she would give to be more.

She'd never expected it. Her friend had pointed him out in a crowd, her crush, and she had laughed and hadn't thought anything else.

Her eyes are drawn to him. Every day she talks to him under the pretense of doing it so that her shy friend will find the bravery to talk to him, but somehow, in between meeting him and becoming his friend, she's doing it less for her friend and more for herself.

Without meaning to, she's fallen in love.

He's reserved and a little cold, but beautiful and intelligent and he makes her laugh. She loves everything about him, the concentration and focus he puts into everything, the way he'd shattered her every expectation of being perfect and apathetic. He's imperfect and passionate, and she loves every flaw, every small habit that makes her so utterly unable to resist him.

She loves the dimples on his cheeks, the boyish charm he holds in his laugh in contrast to his proud, prince-like stature. She loves his short fingers and the strands of hair that curl upward in the back, and no matter how many times he presses down, they'll always resist, and it makes her laugh, his exasperation, and she loves the dark, smooth hair that gleams in the light when he tosses his head. She loves the tips of his hair, wisps bleached pale blond by chlorine. She loves the tanned, smooth skin and his strong, able hands that are surprisingly gentle when they caress his bow and violin.

It's a little scary, when he looks at her, and a single glance causes her heart to stutter. And he's so blind, she's not sure if that's supposed to be part of his charm or if it's supposed to frustrate her. Hidden behind wire-rimmed glasses are dark, perceptive eyes that see so much and are blind to what's right in front of him.

She's right here, always has been. She's by his side and she wants to stay there forever. It's taken her weeks, months, years, minutes that tick by slowly as she strives to get closer. Nights of tears and heartache she's forced to pour out so they won't weigh her down the next morning, because she needs to have a smile on her face when she sees him.

And one day he'll realize it, she believes in it, in him. There's nothing else she can do.