As an ordinary genius

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the main engineering building as Ethan rushed toward the lecture hall. He was late, thanks to an overly long group meeting about their next assignment. The hallways were alive with the usual energy of students—some frantically discussing equations, others casually chatting about weekend plans.

As Ethan rounded the corner and entered the hall, his bag slung over one shoulder, he collided with someone.

"Whoa!" a voice exclaimed, accompanied by the unmistakable sound of books and papers hitting the floor.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry!" Ethan stammered, crouching down to help pick up the mess.

"It's fine, really," the girl replied, brushing her blonde hair out of her face. "You're not the first person to bulldoze me in this building."

Ethan glanced up and froze. She had striking green eyes behind a pair of thick-rimmed glasses, and her smile was just enough to disarm his panic.

"Here, let me get these," he said, handing her a few papers. "I didn't mean to—uh, sorry again."

"No harm done," she said, taking the papers from him and tucking them into her binder. "Although, if you knock me over again, I might start to think you're targeting me."

Ethan chuckled nervously. "I'll make sure to avoid you next time."

"Good plan," she said with a grin. "I'm Felicity, by the way. Felicity Smoak."

"I'm Ethan," he replied, feeling a little tongue-tied.

The Genius Girl

Ethan didn't see Felicity again until later that afternoon in the computer lab. He was working on some code for his programming class when she walked in, carrying a laptop covered in stickers and a coffee cup precariously balanced on top.

She sat down a few seats away, opened her laptop, and immediately began typing at a speed that made Ethan's fingers ache just watching her.

"Wow," he muttered under his breath.

Apparently, not quietly enough.

Felicity glanced over, raising an eyebrow. "What?"

"Nothing," Ethan said quickly. "Just… you type really fast."

She laughed, a light, melodic sound that somehow made him feel both relaxed and more nervous at the same time.

"Years of practice," she said. "What are you working on?"

"Oh, just a basic chatbot project," Ethan said, suddenly self-conscious about how simple it sounded.

"Nice," she said, swiveling her chair slightly to face him. "Is it for a class or just for fun?"

"Mostly for fun," Ethan admitted. "But also to practice. I'm not exactly a programming whiz."

"Well, you're in the right place to learn," Felicity said. "Mind if I take a look?"

"Sure," Ethan said, sliding his laptop toward her.

Felicity scanned the code quickly, her eyes narrowing in concentration. "This is pretty good. You've got a solid structure here, but… see this loop? It's a little redundant. You could streamline it like this."

She typed a few quick lines, then turned the laptop back toward him.

Ethan stared at the screen. "Wow. That's… so much cleaner."

"Programming is like poetry," Felicity said, smiling. "Sometimes, less is more."

Over the next few weeks, Ethan found himself bumping into Felicity more often—at the library, in the cafeteria, even at the gym (where she was more interested in checking her smartwatch than actually working out).

Each time, she greeted him with a smile or a quick wave, and each time, Ethan felt his heart skip a beat.

"She's way out of my league," he thought to himself one evening as he sat in the dorm, staring at his laptop but not really seeing the screen.

"What's got you so distracted?" Raj asked, glancing up from his book.

"Nothing," Ethan said quickly.

"Uh-huh," Liam chimed in, strumming his guitar. "That 'nothing' has been going on for days. Spill it."

"It's not a big deal," Ethan said, trying to brush it off.

"Let me guess," Mike said, leaning back in his chair. "It's a girl."

Ethan's face turned red. "What? No. Absolutely not."

The room erupted in laughter.

"Okay, okay," Raj said, holding up his hands. "We won't pry. But seriously, whoever she is, just talk to her. What's the worst that could happen?"

"Yeah, sure," Ethan muttered, knowing full well that he'd never actually do it.

One rainy afternoon, Ethan found himself in the library again, poring over notes for an upcoming test. He was so focused that he didn't notice Felicity sitting down across from him until she spoke.

"Studying hard, huh?"

Ethan nearly jumped out of his chair. "Oh, hey! Yeah, just trying to wrap my head around thermodynamics."

"Fun stuff," Felicity said, pulling out her own notebook. "Mind if I join you? I've got a test coming up too, and misery loves company."

"Uh, sure," Ethan said, trying to keep his voice steady.

For the next hour, they worked in comfortable silence, occasionally exchanging comments or questions about their studies.

At one point, Felicity looked up and said, "You know, you're smarter than you give yourself credit for."

Ethan blinked. "What makes you say that?"

"You're persistent," she said. "A lot of people give up when things get tough, but you don't. That's a kind of genius, too."

Ethan didn't know how to respond, so he just smiled.

That night, as he lay in bed, Ethan replayed their conversation in his head.

"She's just being nice," he told himself. "But still…"

He didn't know if he'd ever have the courage to tell Felicity how he felt, but for now, he was content to admire her from afar. After all, she wasn't just another genius—she was Felicity Smoak.