Awkward Hearts
Winter Parker could feel the weight of a thousand stares on her back as she walked through the college hallways. Normally, she’d keep her head low and shuffle through the crowds, hoping to disappear into the background. But today was different. Today, she could feel eyes following her, whispers floating around like ghosts.
"Is that… Winter Parker?"
"Whoa, what happened to her? She looks so… different."
"Did she grow a foot overnight? And what’s with her face? She’s… hot now?"
Winter’s enhanced hearing picked up every murmur, making her feel even more self-conscious. She tugged at her hoodie, trying to shield herself from the attention. But there was no hiding the obvious changes that had taken over her body since the spider bite. She was taller, her skin clearer, her posture more confident. Even her once unruly hair seemed to have calmed down, now resting in soft waves around her face. Everything about her seemed more… polished.
To everyone else, it was like Winter Parker had undergone the ultimate glow-up in the span of a week. To Winter, it was just another layer of stress she hadn’t asked for.
As she made her way to her locker, she heard a familiar voice shout her name from down the hall.
"Winter! Wait up!" Ningning called, running to catch up with her. The moment she arrived, she was bouncing on the balls of her feet with excitement, her eyes gleaming as she looked her friend up and down. "Oh my god, everyone is freaking out about how different you look."
Winter groaned, leaning her head against her locker. "I noticed. It’s like I grew another head or something."
"You might as well have," Ningning said, giggling. "I mean, come on, you went from ‘awkward nerd’ to ‘hot superhero’ in less than a week. What did you expect?"
"I didn’t expect anything. I didn’t ask for this."
"But it happened anyway, and now you have to deal with the consequences," Ningning teased, nudging her playfully. "Speaking of consequences, someone’s been eyeing you ever since you walked into the building."
Winter raised an eyebrow. "Who?"
Ningning smirked and tilted her head toward the far end of the hallway, where none other than Karina Yu stood by her own locker, talking with her best friend, Aeri.
Winter’s heart skipped a beat. Karina Yu—the girl she’d had the biggest, most ridiculous crush on since freshman year. The girl who barely knew she existed, unless they were paired up for some group project or awkwardly crossing paths in the cafeteria. Karina, with her perfect hair, her effortless beauty, and her aura of confidence, was the kind of person Winter could only dream of talking to.
And yet, there she was, staring at Winter with a look of mild curiosity on her face.
"No way," Winter muttered, her voice barely above a whisper. "She’s not—"
"Oh, she definitely is," Ningning said, cutting her off. "She’s been staring at you since we walked in. You’re like a shiny new toy, and she’s curious."
Winter felt her face heat up, the blush creeping up her neck. "Great. Now she probably thinks I’m some weirdo who got plastic surgery over the weekend."
"Or," Ningning said with a mischievous grin, "she thinks you’re hotter than ever and wants to get to know you."
Winter shook her head, flustered. "You’re delusional."
But before they could argue any further, Aeri noticed the two of them standing by the lockers and waved enthusiastically.
"Hey, Winter!" Aeri called out, her voice teasing and playful. "Looking good today!"
Winter’s blush deepened, and she awkwardly waved back, trying not to make a fool of herself. Ningning, of course, was having the time of her life, giggling like a child at the whole situation.
But what really made Winter’s heart jump was the way Karina glanced at her, her eyes narrowing slightly as if trying to figure something out. Then, without warning, Karina started walking toward them.
"Oh no. Oh no, she’s coming over," Winter whispered, panic rising in her chest. "What do I do? What do I say?"
Ningning, ever the helpful friend, simply gave her a nudge and whispered, "Don’t freak out. Be cool."
Winter could barely breathe as Karina stopped in front of her, arms crossed and a casual smile playing on her lips. Up close, Karina looked even more perfect than Winter had remembered—like some ethereal goddess sent down to Earth just to torment her.
"Hey, Winter," Karina said smoothly, her voice like velvet. "You’ve, uh, changed a lot since I last saw you."
Winter blinked rapidly, her brain going into overdrive. "Uh, yeah. I… um… hit a growth spurt, I guess."
Ningning stifled a laugh next to her, and Winter shot her a quick glare.
Karina raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "Right. A growth spurt." She looked Winter up and down for a moment, her eyes lingering just a little too long, before meeting her gaze again. "Listen, I was wondering… would you maybe want to hang out sometime? Like, grab coffee or something?"
Winter’s heart practically stopped. Did Karina Yu just ask her out? Was this real life?
For a moment, she couldn’t speak. Her mind was racing, trying to process what had just happened. Karina Yu, the girl of her dreams, was standing in front of her, casually asking her to hang out like it was the most normal thing in the world.
"Uh… I… uh…" Winter stammered, her face heating up as she desperately tried to form coherent words. "I mean, yeah, sure, that’d be… cool. Coffee’s… great. I like coffee."
Ningning visibly cringed next to her, whispering, "Smooth."
Karina chuckled, clearly entertained by Winter’s awkwardness. "Awesome. How about tomorrow after class? I know a great place downtown."
Winter nodded a little too eagerly. "Yeah! Tomorrow. After class. Sounds… perfect."
"Cool," Karina said with a smile. "See you then, Winter."
With that, Karina gave her a small wave and turned to walk back to Aeri, who was smirking like she had just won the lottery.
As soon as Karina was out of earshot, Winter turned to Ningning, her face still burning with embarrassment.
"Oh my god, what did I just say?"
Ningning burst out laughing, clutching her stomach as she doubled over. "I cannot believe how awkward you are! You totally blew it with the whole ‘I like coffee’ line."
"I panicked!" Winter groaned, covering her face with her hands. "She caught me off guard!"
Ningning wiped away a tear from laughing too hard. "I mean, you did get a date out of it, so I guess it wasn’t a total disaster. But wow, that was painful to watch."
Winter sighed, her mind still reeling from what had just happened. "This is going to be a disaster. I don’t know how to talk to her."
"Relax," Ningning said, patting her on the back. "You’ll be fine. Just be yourself. Well, maybe a slightly less awkward version of yourself."
Winter groaned again, leaning her head against her locker. "This is going to be the longest day of my life."
---
Across the hall, Aeri leaned against her locker, watching Karina with a knowing smirk.
"So, are you going to tell me why you suddenly decided to ask Winter out?" Aeri teased, nudging her friend with her elbow. "You’ve barely noticed her before, but now you’re all about getting coffee with her?"
Karina shrugged nonchalantly, though there was a slight blush on her cheeks. "I don’t know. She’s just… different now. She caught my attention."
"Different, huh?" Aeri said with a grin. "Or maybe you just think she’s hot now?"
Karina rolled her eyes. "Shut up. It’s not like that."
"Uh-huh, sure," Aeri said, still grinning. "Whatever you say, Karina."
Karina just smiled to herself, her thoughts lingering on Winter. She didn’t know what it was, but something about Winter had changed, and now she couldn’t get her out of her head.