A miserable girl who doesn't believe her college campus can change her hollow life in any way, wants to escape the place as soon as possible.
That is until she meets a musician, Indie, who shakes up everything she'd established & makes her feel som...
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Setting my plate down on a bench-like structure outside the dining hall, I grimace. Behind me, the hall is bustling with light & noise. Indie felt that it would interfere with our conversation, so she suggested meeting in an empty classroom nearby—a secluded place that could guarantee more silence & not inhibit my ability to gather my thoughts.
It's a decent idea, but the problem is that I'm lost.
"Uh...hi," I mutter into my phone, unable to stop frowning. This is all her fault. I wouldn't be in this situation, standing in a dingy corner of campus with no idea where to go, if only she hadn't interrupted my evening. Just put up with her for today, I tell myself, somehow managing to route my attention back to the problem at present. "I'm near the hall, and I can't find the classroom."
There's shuffling in the background, before she speaks again. "I'm nearby, stay there—I'll come get you."
I almost scoff at how syrupy that sounds. Does she have some kind of saviour complex? Is she taking me for a damsel lost in the woods?
Footsteps grow loud behind me.
Phone loosely pressed against my ear, I turn around.
I recognise her from the profile picture. Indie is walking across a floor of moonlit grey. An unassuming smile on her face. Simple clothes, old t-shirt & faded jeans, short hair falling over her forehead in choppy strands. The most plain, boringly mundane, person.
"It's b-because I'm not used to the place," I stutter, putting away my phone. Why am I trying to explain myself? "So I couldn't find the c-class—"
"Don't worry about it," her smile broadens.
･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.
I swallow harshly. There was no need for me to apologize for not knowing my way around campus & I don't understand why I tried to do that in front of her. It fills my throat with a nagging itch. But, I manage to rationalize my action by telling myself that it was just an act of courtesy.
"...like I said on text, I had some questions about the complaints committee."
My shoulders stiffen.
My role in the complaints committee is not something I am proud of discussing—even if my position requires me to do so. I need to make this clear to her. "For your information, I am planning to resign very soon from the committee. I'm not the most invested in this job." So if you think this might be a waste of time, then leave right now.
Bitterness coats my tongue as I wait for Indie to frown in disappointed repulsion & stand up.
She lifts a leg up into the chair, instead, presses it against her chest & cock a curious brow at me. "Why do you want to resign?"
I strain my eyes trying to catch even a trace of a veil on her face but find none. It's as if she has nothing to hide. "I..." my throat feels dry at her unexpected response to my words.
