stuck in your orbit; kozume kenma
pairing; classmate!kenma x reader
wc; 1.5k ish
1 those eyes/ 2 all because i liked a boy/ 3 / 4 fool for you
sorry 😼 anon!! i didn’t really finish with your prompt but ILY FOR GIVING THAT PROMPT!!
you’d never thought you’d stop caring about where kenma kozume was during the school day. a few months ago, it was like your every move was calculated—strolling by his usual hangouts, lingering outside class to catch a glimpse of him, or even timing your lunch break just right. it was always intentional, always for him.
but now? now you were just walking with your friends, minding your own business, yet somehow he was everywhere.
the holidays had changed you. it wasn’t some dramatic, movie-worthy transformation—no dramatic "cutting your hair in the mirror" moment. no, it was quieter, slower. your cousin dragged you to the gym at sunrise, your best friend convinced you to try on new clothes that somehow made you feel like you were walking a little taller, and somewhere in the middle of it all, you stopped thinking about everyone else.
including kenma.
well, you tried.
maybe it was easier to forget him in the haze of late-night calls with your friends or early mornings baking with your mom. maybe it was because for the first time in a long time, you weren’t trying so hard to impress anyone. your love, your time, your energy—it was yours. just yours. and when school started again, you felt lighter, freer, even if the familiar halls threatened to pull you back into old habits.
you saw him again at lunch.
it wasn’t supposed to matter anymore. you’d told yourself over and over—he didn’t like you like that, you’d accepted it, moved on. but when you saw him under that tree, headphones around his neck, scrolling on his phone while his friends sprawled out beside him, your heart didn’t get the memo.
it was instinct to glance his way, but this time, he glanced back. his hazel eyes—warm, golden, and distracting as ever—locked onto yours, and for a second, you forgot how to walk.
“wait, is kenma staring at you?” one of your friends asked, nudging your side.
“no,” you lied, but the way your heart pounded said otherwise. you turned away quickly, acting as if you hadn’t noticed the way his gaze lingered even as you passed.
the next few days blurred into a strange, confusing routine. kenma was suddenly everywhere.
not because you were trying to see him—no, this was different. you’d be heading to your locker, and there he’d be, leaning against the wall with one of his friends. you’d walk into the library, and he’d already be there, headphones on, typing away on his laptop. even walking to class felt like some strange game of fate, where you’d glance up and find him watching you from across the hall.
“is it just me, or is kenma always around lately?” your friend teased, nudging you as you grabbed your books.
“it’s just a coincidence,” you replied quickly, brushing it off. “he probably doesn’t even notice me.”
but he did. you weren’t imagining the way his gaze lingered, the way he seemed to turn up wherever you were.
it happened after class one day.
you were gathering your things, chatting idly with your friend, when someone tapped your shoulder.
“you dropped this,” kenma said, holding out a pen you didn’t even realize you’d dropped.
“oh, thanks,” you replied, surprised. your fingers brushed his as you took it, and you swore he hesitated just a little longer than necessary before pulling away.
“i like your hair, by the way,” he said, so casually it took a moment for the words to sink in.
“what?”
“your hair,” he repeated, glancing at you briefly before looking away. “it suits you.”
“oh—uh, thanks.” your heart raced, caught between disbelief and something dangerously close to hope.
the next day, he said something else. this time, it was about your uniform.
“that color looks nice on you,” he commented when you passed him in the hall.
you blinked, unsure if you’d heard him correctly. “what?”
“your uniform,” he said, his tone as nonchalant as ever, though there was a faint warmth in his gaze. “i like it.”
you laughed nervously. “well, good, because i don’t have a choice.”
he smiled—an actual, genuine smile—and for a moment, it felt like the world had shifted.
despite the compliments, you couldn’t quite shake your confusion. why now? why, after months of silence, was kenma suddenly noticing you? you tried not to think about it too much, but the questions lingered in the back of your mind.
it all came to a head one afternoon when you ran into him on your way to the library.
“you’re here a lot lately,” he said, falling into step beside you.
“what do you mean?”
“i mean, i keep seeing you everywhere,” he replied, glancing at you out of the corner of his eye.
you laughed lightly, shaking your head. “funny, i was about to say the same thing about you.”
he shrugged, a small smirk tugging at his lips. “maybe we’re just walking in the same circles now.”
“maybe,” you said, though the way his gaze lingered on you suggested there was more to it than that.
as the weeks went on, kenma’s quiet attention became a constant in your life.
he didn’t talk much—he was still kenma, after all—but when he did, his words carried weight. a soft compliment here, a fleeting glance there. it wasn’t much, but it was enough to make your heart race, enough to make you wonder if maybe, just maybe, things were changing between you.
and yet, the doubts lingered. after all, you’d heard it from his own friends—he didn’t like you like that. he’d said so himself.
but then there were moments, fleeting and fragile, that made you question everything.
like the way he’d hold the door open for you without a word, or the way he’d glance your way during class when he thought you weren’t looking. like the way he said your name, soft and careful, as if it meant something to him.
“hey,” he said one afternoon, stopping you in the hall. “you, uh, free this weekend?”
“why?” you asked, trying to keep your voice steady despite the way your heart raced.
“just thought... maybe we could hang out or something,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck.
you blinked, caught off guard by the sudden invitation. “oh—yeah, sure. that sounds fun.”
he nodded, a small smile tugging at his lips. “cool. i’ll text you.”
and just like that, the walls you’d built around your heart started to crumble.
