After entering the lecture hall and heading into his classroom, Luke sat by himself at the far end of the room. Devon was in a different faculty, so Luke just watched his classmates chatting with each other. Suddenly, someone tapped his shoulder from behind. He turned to see a beautiful girl with a short, boyish haircut and a tomboyish style named Lorna. She hopped over and sat right next to him.
"Whoops... why the long face so early in the morning?" Lorna asked.
"Forget it. I'm just not feeling it today, dude," Luke replied.
"Is it true you hit on Claire yesterday and got shot down hard? I heard all about it from Alex and Devon at the dorms last night. I dropped by to join the PS5 session, hehe," Lorna said.
"Yeah, it's true. And the ridiculous part is she showed up at my cafe with a new guy. It drives me crazy. It always happens—the girl I ask out inevitably shows up at my place with a guy she started dating that very same day, or they make it official right there in the cafe. It's pathetic, right? Like they're intentionally mocking me," Luke poured his heart out.
"How come you've never hit on me?" Lorna asked, sounding genuinely curious.
"Wait... are you actually a girl?" Luke joked.
"You jerk! You're a damn devil. I've been a pure girl from birth until now," Lorna replied, playfully punching Luke's arm.
"I'm just kidding. You're my best friend. I can't exactly go after my own best friend, can I?" Luke said.
"Hehe, true that. We're gaming buddies, after all," Lorna agreed.
"Yeah, but that was back then. I'm way too busy now," Luke said.
"I get it. Don't sweat it, bro. I've got your back," Lorna replied, resting her elbow on Luke's shoulder as a sign she understood his situation.
"Thanks, dude," Luke said.
A moment later, the lecture began. The professor entered and greeted the students. While the professor was calling roll, the door suddenly swung open with a "slam!" A beautiful girl with long, wavy hair and a tall, slender figure like a model walked into the room.
"Late?" the professor asked.
"Y-yes, sir. I'm sorry. I got stuck in traffic," she explained.
"A cliché excuse. Your name?"
"Giselle Williams," she answered.
"Fine. Go sit down," the professor said.
Giselle moved quickly toward the back. "Thump." She sat down directly in front of Luke. "Whoa." A blend of perfume, soap, shampoo, and a hint of sweat created a heavenly harmony of fragrance that hit Luke's nose, making his head spin a little.
"Holy crap, she smells amazing. And she's gorgeous," Luke thought to himself.
Suddenly, Giselle turned around. She looked at Luke and Lorna sitting behind her.
"Sorry if it's a bit stifling. I'm a little sweaty," Giselle said with a smile.
"N-no, it's fine," Luke stammered.
"Um... are you a senior?" Giselle asked Luke.
"Oh... no, I'm only a sophomore," Luke replied.
"Oh, so we're in the same year. Thanks," Giselle said before turning back around.
Luke looked down in embarrassment while Lorna struggled to hold back her laughter, nudging Luke in the ribs.
"It's because you look old, bro," Lorna whispered.
"Shut up," Luke hissed back.
***
After class ended, Luke stepped out and parted ways with Lorna to head to his next lecture. Suddenly, someone fell into step beside him. Luke glanced sideways, his eyes widening as he realized it was Giselle.
"Um... what's your name?" Giselle asked.
"Oh, I'm Luke. Nice to meet you," Luke replied, extending his hand.
"Giselle. Nice to meet you too, Luke," she said.
"Are you a transfer student or something? I feel like I've never seen you around before," Luke remarked.
"Yeah, I've only been here a week. I used to live out of state," Giselle explained.
"I see. So, are we heading to the same class?"
"Yeah, let's walk together. I don't really know many people here yet," Giselle said.
"Sure, let's go," Luke replied.
They walked down the corridor toward their next room. Luke stole a glance at Giselle beside him. She only came up to his shoulder, but she had a long, slender build that looked great in her casual outfit. Her face was a mix of pretty and cute, perfectly framed by her loose, wavy hair.
Luke's mind began to wander, imagining what it would be like to run the cafe with Giselle by his side, picturing her in the cafe uniform. But he quickly shook the thought away.
"Stop it... that's enough. Claire was the last one. I'm done with this," Luke told himself.
Suddenly, his heart skipped a beat. His eyes went wide as he saw Claire walking toward them from the opposite direction. Claire saw him and looked startled; then, she looked away with a pout, pretending not to see him as they passed. Luke felt like a thousand needles were pricking his heart at her angry reaction.
"Sigh... there goes another friend. It's so weird—I'm the one who got rejected, so why is she the angry one? Whatever. I'm done. My soulmate will show up eventually; I don't need to follow my siblings' advice," Luke muttered in his heart.
"Why'd you go quiet, Luke?" Giselle asked.
Luke looked over. Giselle was tilting her head, watching him with a smile that brought out her dimples, making her look even sweeter. Luke quickly looked forward again when his eyes met hers.
"Oh, nothing. Just thinking," Luke replied.
"Thinking about what? A girlfriend? Or maybe... thinking about me?" Giselle teased.
"No way. I don't have a girlfriend. Besides, I'm walking right next to you, why would I be thinking about you?" Luke stammered awkwardly.
"Hehe, I'm just joking," Giselle laughed.
"I know. Sorry if I'm a bit stiff. I don't interact with people much, mostly just customers at the cafe," Luke said.
"Oh, you work at a cafe? Doing what?"
"Hmm, a bit of everything, but I'm a barista," Luke answered.
"Wow... so you can make coffee. Is it any good?"
"Come to the cafe and try it for yourself. You can tell me if anything's missing," Luke said, seizing the chance to promote the business.
"Deal. I'll stop by sometime," Giselle said, looking enthusiastic.
Luke started to smile again, but it only lasted a few seconds. Suddenly, drring, Giselle's phone rang. She pulled it from her bag and checked the screen. Her face instantly lit up, and she answered without hesitation.
"Hi, babe! I've been missing you," Giselle chirped.
Luke's fantasies were forcibly shut down like a computer having its power button held. His mind went blank, and his smile flipped back into a frown. He immediately felt awkward and wanted to get out of there.
"Giselle, I'm gonna head out first," Luke whispered.
Giselle, deep in conversation, looked up and nodded. Luke waved and quickly sped up his pace, trying to get away from her because he didn't want to overhear the conversation.
"Whew. Glad I didn't let her into my heart yet. If I had, that would've been another heartbreak. It would've been a total train wreck," Luke muttered, breathing a sigh of relief.
"Wait... what did you say? Break up? You're breaking up with me just because I moved to this city?!" A loud scream echoed through the corridor.
Luke spun around. He saw Giselle standing frozen in place, phone still to her ear.
"Well, look at that. A breakup?" Luke wondered as he watched her fuming from a distance.
Luke turned to keep walking, but he couldn't just leave her standing there like a statue. Finally, he turned back and walked over to Giselle. She had hung up the phone but was looking down, tears streaming.
"Um, Giselle?" Luke asked.
"Stay back for a second, Luke. Don't look at me," Giselle replied, turning away.
"Okay, I'm right here," Luke said. In his head, he was already regretting it. "See? I shouldn't have come back. You're such a blockhead, Luke. Now things are awkward," he thought, turning his back to her as well.
Suddenly, Luke felt a squeeze. He looked down to see a pair of hands wrapped around his waist. All at once, his back felt a sensation that was warm, soft, and supple. The feeling radiated through his whole body, making his face turn beet red.
"Um, Giselle? What are you doing?" Luke asked.
"Sorry, Luke. You're actually pretty big, huh? Hehe... sorry, just let me stay like this for a minute. I don't want you to see my face," Giselle replied.
"Y-yeah," Luke stammered. His mind was racing. "Holy crap. For the first time in twenty years, I'm being hugged by a girl who isn't Ava," he thought, his heart hammering against his ribs.
"What are you two doing?" a girl's voice asked.
Luke looked up. Lorna was standing there, looking confused at the sight of Giselle hugging him. Giselle immediately let go and turned around, wiping away the last of her tears. Lorna let out a wide grin and leaned into Luke's face.
"Was it soft?" Lorna whispered, teasing him.
"Be quiet... don't joke around, this is serious," Luke hissed, glancing at Giselle.
"Okay. Come on Luke, Lorna, let's get to class," Giselle said, having dried her eyes.
Luke looked at Giselle. Her eyes were still puffy, but she was smiling at him and Lorna. Then Lorna looked at her phone.
"Oh, I see," Luke muttered, checking his own phone.
Lorna was right—the professors were all in a meeting with the rector and dean, so lectures were temporarily suspended. The three of them walked back down the corridor toward the exit. Luke looked to his left and saw Giselle walking beside him, clutching a folder. Then he looked to his right and saw Lorna walking cheerfully, checking her phone.
"If it stayed like this, it would be a total harem... quit dreaming, idiot," Luke thought to himself.