Zephyr | Lee Felix

Chapter 10

SUNDAY, WEEK 4

Felix has been lying in bed, scrolling through TikTok for two hours straight after showering and having his lunch. He knows he has a food photography and blogging assignment due soon, but he can't seem to muster up the motivation to get out of bed and start working on it. He sighs, feeling guilty and unproductive, yet at the same time, is unwilling to get out of his comfort zone.

As Felix scrolls through TikTok and comes across a studygram video, he groans loudly, annoyed that the app seems to be mocking him for procrastinating on his assignment.

"Ugh, seriously?" He mutters to himself as he reluctantly gets out of bed, shaking off his blankets. The moment his eyes lay on his laptop, he lets out a frustrated sigh, feeling the temptation to start gaming consuming him.

However, he takes a deep breath and makes a firm decision.

Alright, enough of this. He tears his gaze away from his table and starts packing his laptop and charger into his tote bag. Despite his reluctance, Felix forces himself to get out of his aunt's apartment on a rainy weekend to visit the state library to stop himself from procrastinating any further.

As Felix walks into the state library, the air is filled with the faint smell of old books and the soft chatter of students focused on their studies. He looks around and notices how crowded the library is, the week around assignment deadlines bringing in flocks of these people in search of a quiet spot to work.

After making his way upstairs, he finds a small table for two in a secluded corner between bookshelves. It's a little cramped but it offers enough privacy, and he sets his tote bag down on one of the chairs, takes out his laptop and charger, and sits on the chair opposite side.

Let's do this. The male takes a deep sigh and gets into the flow of work, picking up where he left off from last week and continuing to type away with a focused expression on his face.

"Excuse me. Can I sit here?"

After a few minutes of typing with the sound of his keyboard clicking in the background, Felix hears a familiar voice break his concentration. Looking up from his laptop, he sees Eugene standing in front of him, her soft smile making his heart skip a beat. He does not expect to see her, but he's also secretly pleased to have her company.

"Hey, uh, Eugene." Felix hurriedly takes his tote bag from the other chair to let her sit, and then smiles at her sheepishly while trying to compose himself, "You're here to study too?"

Eugene smiles back and sits down, placing her own tote bag on the floor beside her chair. She gives him a grateful nod and replies, "Yeah, what a coincidence, hey? I was looking for a spot on the second floor and caught your figure."

She chuckles, "And yeah, I'm here to finish some work for my internship. How about you?"

Felix manages to keep his cool outward appearance, but inside, his heart is racing and his mind is buzzing with thoughts. He struggles to fully comprehend the situation and the coincidence of running into Eugene again.

"I'm just w-working on an assignment." He says with a slight stutter before cussing himself for sounding nervous for no reason. He reminds himself that they were just having a normal conversation last night at the bar with the others, so why is he feeling so flustered and tongue-tied right now? They've talked and shared bits of their lives, their friendship growing in a slow yet steady way.

"I see. We're basically on the same boat huh?" She speaks casually, showing her comfort in his presence. Felix only nods, watching her settle down in her seat and unpacking her own things to get started. He can't help but notice her casual yet stylish outfit—in contrast to how she was dressed the night before at the bar where she looked chic and put together.