Never Noticed Novels & Stories

And moved on. I was writing a delivery date in my notebook when I felt it. The particular awareness of being looked at by a specific person. Not intrusive. Not prolonged. Just there for a second and then gone, the way you feel a shift in air pressure before you hear the sound that caused it. I kept my pen moving and my eyes on my notebook and did not look up and the moment passed and the meeting continued.

It only sees what it wants. And the universe took me off its contact list. My friends faded first, then my seatmates stopped talking to me. Teachers stopped remembering my name. People literally walked past me in crowds like I wasn’t there. Someone bumped into me at lunch and said, “Oh, sorry didn’t see you.” Didn’t see me!! Didn’t see me!! Didn’t see me!! The phrase became a background noise. Eventually, I stopped expecting anything else. So I learned something important: If no one sees you, you see everything.

I stopped mid-sentence. He didn’t look up. The silence stretched—five seconds, ten, and he just kept reading, as if my voice had simply faded into background noise. Not cruel. Not even dismissive in any way he would have recognized. Just… absent. That was what carved into me. Not the word insecure, which I had already turned over until it felt smooth and harmless. Not even the phone. It was the not-noticing. That I could be standing right in front of him, mid-sentence, and disappear so completely he wouldn’t even register the quiet.

She gave him a look. “That was fast.” “Small changes,” he added. A pause. “Not noticeable ones.” She considered that. “I think I stopped noticing the small ones too,” she said. “That’s expected,” he replied. Upstairs, something thudded. Then laughter followed immediately. No reaction from either of them. That lack of reaction used to feel impossible. Now it was just normal. Amelia noticed it only because she noticed she didn’t react. “I used to think I’d always be alert,” she said quietly.

That’s how it usually worked. But even as I moved through the system, my attention kept slipping. Not far. Just enough to notice. And once I noticed, I couldn’t ignore it. I glanced up. He was across the room, speaking with one of the analysts. Nothing about the interaction stood out—just another conversation, another instruction being given. And yet, I found myself watching. For longer than necessary. I caught myself and looked away quickly, annoyed. “…Seriously?” Why did it matter? He wasn’t paying attention to me. Didn’t even look in my direction.

Denise nearly bumped into him. He turned slightly, just enough for his profile to catch the streetlight. His eyes were darker now than they had been earlier. Not angry. Focused. “You don’t notice things,” he said. Denise blinked. “What does that mean?” Liam stepped closer. Denise instinctively wanted to step back—but the wall of a closed shop was already behind her. He noticed that too. His gaze dropped briefly to the space she had no escape from. Then back to her face. “You don’t notice when someone is watching you,” he said quietly. “You don’t notice when you’re being targeted.”

Welcoming. “I saw you in the meeting,” he said, voice warm and unassuming. “Oh?” I forced a small smile. “Was I blinking too loudly or—” “You held your space.” I blinked. “I… didn’t think anyone noticed.” He looked at me with soft certainty. Not pity. Not fascination. Just seeing. “I notice.” Two words. So simple. So devastating. Because his noticing wasn’t a spotlight. Or scrutiny. Or pressure. It was observation without expectation. Cassian noticed like someone watching a night sky —

I think he noticed that I zone out a little bit. We ordered our food and dug in. We had a very good conversation while having and I was able to notice a few small things. He had a dimple showing everytime he smiled. He stole glances of everytime I wasn't looking at him and pretended like he wasn't once I caught him. **

It was a grand ceremony publicly announcing the marriage of two powerful Mafia families. As we made our way through the streets, our car passed another wedding convoy heading in the opposite direction. Both sides stopped briefly, as was the custom, to exchange bouquets between the brides. The car windows rolled down. And that’s when I saw him. Ted. OuOur eyes met, and in that instant, shock and disbelief flooded his face.

Anyway, it's quite early to jump to conclusions when I can actually ask questions. Another thing that caught my attention was how his eyes widened in bewilderment upon noticing my presence, but I wasn't getting any facial reactions from my Luna when I looked at her, though. Was that supposed to mean some elements of composure from her or something? I think they were both carried away and didn't notice me until I spoke. And so, they were simply taken unawares. “I asked a question: who do we have here?” I spoke up the moment it was as if he didn't hear me well the first time.