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Drop down your story of the first time you fell in love! I'd love to read it. 💚 Here's mine: I remember it was right after a powerful typhoon hit our island. It took several months before we could go back to school. Like most kids, I was happy at first because our midterm break was unexpectedly extended. But eventually, classes resumed. It was bittersweet because one of my best friends had to relocate to another island. I never even got the chance to say goodbye to him. One day, he was just... gone. Around that time, I was completely immersed in romance books and movies. My idea of love was something straight out of a fairy tale. It was fun to dream about—until he appeared. He was a transferee from a faraway island. He had fair skin, was much taller than me, and looked shy, cute, and anxious, as if he was worried he wouldn't fit in. He spoke a different language, which could have been a barrier, but somehow, it never became one. We were poor—very poor. Sometimes I didn't even have enough money to buy snacks. And since I was quite a voracious kid, I'd usually finish my homemade snacks before recess, leaving me with nothing to eat. So during break, I'd just watch the other students buy food from the canteen and eat outside. I was a little envious, but I distracted myself by reading a fairy tale book called Cinderella. As I tried to ignore my growling stomach, I heard a chair scrape across the floor. It was the chair where the transferee had been sitting. I looked up. He was looking at me as he carefully made his way between the rows of chairs until he stood right in front of me. I didn't know what to say. I wasn't even sure he'd understand me anyway. So I simply smiled. Then he held something out to me. A pack of snacks. The wrapper was pink, and inside were pink-striped, pillow-shaped wafers with creamy filling. Back then, snacks like that felt like a luxury on our island. I never imagined someone would willingly share something so special with me. Out of shock, happiness... and maybe hunger... I quietly mouthed, "Thank you." That's when I noticed it. His cheeks and ears had turned bright red, giving away his embarrassment. If my skin had been as fair as his, I probably would've been blushing just as much. And that was the moment I fell in love. It wasn't because of grand gestures or fairy-tale romance. It was his kindness. His generosity. The simple act of noticing someone who had nothing and choosing to share what he had. As time passed, we became close. We learned each other's languages until we could speak them to one another. He became my best friend, while I quietly carried feelings for him that I never confessed. I don't know if he ever felt the same way. But our friendship was already something precious, and I couldn't ask for anything more. Even now, I still like him. I guess it's true what they say... First love never really dies. 💚