The next morning, Lea woke up and needed a few seconds to remember why she was in such a good mood.
Then she remembered.
Noah.
The park.
Hamburg.
And the conversation.
She immediately had to smile.
“This is going to be a good day,” she murmured.
Then she got up.
Ten minutes later, she realized she had already changed her outfit for the third time.
“This is ridiculous,” she said to her mirror.
The mirror offered no helpful answer.
It didn’t get any better at school.
Every time Lea spotted Noah somewhere in the hallway, she automatically had to smile.
And every time Noah smiled back.
It was both wonderful and incredibly confusing.
During the first big break, Mia appeared.
She looked at Lea for exactly three seconds.
Then she crossed her arms.
“So.”
Lea sighed.
“What?”
“First: You’ve been grinning since this morning like someone who won the lottery.”
“I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.”
“Maybe a little.”
“Second,” Mia continued, “Noah had the same expression earlier.”
Lea blushed.
“Mia.”
“Third: I demand information.”
“I thought so.”
Mia grinned.
“And?”
Lea tried for another five seconds to talk her way out of it.
Then she gave up.
When she finished telling, Mia almost jumped off the bench.
“FINALLY!”
Several students turned around.
“A little quieter!”
“No.”
“Mia!”
“I’ve been waiting for weeks.”
Lea laughed.
“You’re impossible.”
“And still your best friend.”
“Unfortunately.”
“You’re welcome.”
The rest of the school day passed surprisingly quickly.
After class, Noah was already waiting at the bus stop.
This time he wasn’t standing there alone.
Next to him, Hannah was leaning against the display board.
When she saw Lea, she immediately grinned.
“Finally.”
“Please don’t start,” said Noah.
“I haven’t said anything yet.”
“That’s exactly what worries me.”
Hannah laughed.
Then she looked at Lea.
“By the way, he didn’t sleep all night.”
“HANNAH!”
“What? It’s true.”
Lea couldn’t help it.
She had to laugh.
Noah just shook his head.
“One day I’ll get my revenge for everything.”
“Unlikely.”
Soon after, Hannah’s bus arrived.
She got on, waved once more through the window, and disappeared.
“She’ll never stop, will she?” Lea asked.
“No.”
“Good to know.”
The two remained at the stop.
For the first time without school.
Without group work.
Without excuses.
Just the two of them.
“Shall we walk a bit further?” Noah asked.
Lea nodded.
“Gladly.”
Together they walked along the street.
The sky was clear. The sun was low and bathed the houses in warm light.
The air smelled like spring.
Like a new beginning.
Like something good.
“You know,” Noah said after a while, “the whole story is actually pretty crazy.”
“Which story?”
“Ours.”
Lea smiled.
“Why?”
“Because it started on a bus.”
“True.”
“And almost always continued on a bus.”
“Also true.”
“And because we’re probably the only people who voluntarily miss their stop.”
Lea laughed.
“That was your fault.”
“Lie.”
“Prove otherwise.”
“Impossible.”
They kept walking.
Side by side.
Completely naturally.
As if they had always done it.
Finally, they reached the stop for line 42 again.
Exactly the stop where it all began.
The same bench.
The same display board.
Even the same crooked trash can shelter was still there.
Lea stopped briefly.
“Strange.”
“What?” Noah asked.
“A few weeks ago, I never would have thought we’d be standing here.”
Noah nodded.
“Me neither.”
They were silent for a while.
Then Noah sat down on the bench.
Lea sat next to him.
Not too far away.
Not this time.
The evening sun reflected in the windows of the houses.
A bus slowly approached the stop.
Line 42.
Just like back then.
Lea watched it briefly.
Then she looked at Noah.
And smiled.
“You know what?”
“What?”
“I think sometimes it’s worth missing the right stop.”
Noah had to laugh.
“That was pretty cheesy.”
“A little.”
“But also true.”
The bus stopped in front of them.
The doors opened.
People got off.
People got on.
The driver waited.
But this time neither Lea nor Noah was in a hurry.
Because their story hadn’t ended at a final stop.
But had just begun.