[Stylist] "Missed Connections" Prompt Response

[Vejas Vasiliauskas]

Hi All, 
Here is my response to the "missed connections" prompt, which I believe was the second of the ones Ann provided. 
I know I've mentioned before that I like using prompts to get me writing when I'm not in the mood. Sometimes I feel like following a prompt feels too forced, so it goes both ways. But this is based on an actual interaction that I saw, hence the nonfiction. 
Enjoy, and I look forward to reading others' prompts. Pasted below. 
Writer's Sketch of an Unknown Student: Missed Connections Prompt
by Vejas Vasiliauskas
"Hello!" you said brightly, breaking the silence in the music corridor.
Why "Hello?" So formal for someone of college age! Why not "Hi" or "Hey?" That would take fewer syllables, save you one second of a catch-up before you and your friend(s) had to go your separate ways.  At least it wasn't "How the fuck are you?" another greeting I had heard several minutes before from this same spot on the bench.  I would bet anything that the man who'd offered this latter greeting, while excited to see his friends, was trying to use this opportunity as time to use that word that makes young men think they're so cool.
I bet you were smiling when you uttered your own greeting, but whether genuine or forced, only you will ever know.
"Hello," I replied from my position on the bench, as I was scrolling through my emails.  I guessed you were probably talking to me: many people recognize me from seeing me around campus but are yet to connect my face with the rather complicated-sounding name that comes with it.  After all, at this particular time and place, nobody else was speaking, and I heard no footsteps walking past.
"I ended up having an early shift," you continued, turning your head away slightly so that I knew I was not the subject for whom this information should be significant.  "At the coffee shop," you continued after a pause.  "I ended up sleeping through my first class."
And with that, you walked away, as I hastily wrote this down.
Why would you have written this down? you might have asked had you had more time and sat down on the bench.
Well, I love to write, I replied.  Have you ever taken an English class with Professor M? We did an activity on the first week where we were supposed to write down overheard voices.  Then we can look back at these for entertainment and use them later.
Whoever you were with didn't seem too interested in your story, but I would have loved to hear more.  Presumably, if you worked a shift and fell asleep during your first class, you're not one for regular morning hike adventures, and I'll hazard a guess that you weren't in bed by 9 PM.
Or was it just one of these classes you'd slept through anyway? Was it my 8 AM authors class with Professor L, by any chance? If so, I feel sorry for you: we were peer-editing essay drafts, and not participating will put you at a huge disadvantage.
Regardless of who you are, I will probably never learn the rest of this interesting story, especially if it wasn't an isolated incident.  Who knows? Maybe I already know you well and you just didn't spot me, as tends to happen when our minds are somewhere else entirely.

You are one of many with whom I have had a missed connection.  Students are too busy (self-absorbed isn't quite the word for it, as many of their activities will benefit in the long run) to sit on a bench and just chat.
Whoever you are, I wish you the best in this world of missed connections.