The four of us - me, Aiden, Clem, and Mark, were eating in the cafeteria. I am sitting beside Clem and across us are our boyfriends. It is like we were having a double date.
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Clem put her elbows on the table and looked at me with a warm smile. I raised my eyebrows, asking what she is thinking.
She shook her head, "I'm just glad that you decided to date again. And seeing you happy? Oh boy! It makes me so damn happy, too."
I swallowed the last of my food before responding, "Thanks, Clem. I really appreciate you saying that."
She turned her head to Aiden and gave him a deathly glare, "If you hurt my friend, I will kill you!"
Mark cracked up and Clem gave him the same intense gaze.
"I'll definitely kill your friend."
"I hope we don't get to that part," Aiden said.
As if to cut our conversation, all of our phones started pinging, indicating that there is a text message. It was from our class representative. I read the text out loud, "Go to the main building room 205 for our class with Prof. McKinley. Don't be late."
"You too?" Aiden and Mark said in unison.
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That Wednesday afternoon after eating with my friends and Aiden, we all headed to the same room. Some of our classmates are already there including Professor McKinley and another professor, I assume because he is talking to my professor. I did not know his name though.
When we entered, Professor McKinley addressed the class, "Literature majors can take the right side. Sit quietly and listen carefully."
Clem kissed Mark on the cheek and walked away to find a seat for both of us. Aiden gave me a sad look, squeezing my hand.
"I thought we could sit together."
"I wish we could." I tiptoed and kissed him on the cheek, too.
I noticed that his cheeks turned pink and his mouth slightly opened. I left him standing there before he could react. I sat beside Clem and when I looked at Aiden, he was already staring back at me, grinning from ear to ear.
The class started and the two professors introduced themselves for the sake of the other majors. After all the pleasantries, Professor McKinley walked in the middle, "For your last big project before you graduate, Professor Walker and I decided to have a joint project. You will choose a literary piece, a novel, or a short story if you like."
Professor Walker walked beside Professor McKinley and continued explaining, "And you will make a song AND a music video about it. You can work with a group of three or you can just choose a partner from another major. Choosing your classmates will defeat the purpose of having a joint project."
A music video? With only two to three people? Is that even possible? What kind of music video are they expecting from us with that limited number of people working on it?
Clapping her hands, Professor McKinley walked back behind her desks.
"The rest of the time will be yours to find a team or a partner and start working on your project. Professor Walker and I will be here till the end of class if you have any questions."
Everyone started standing up and talking to their partners and team. Clem just gave me a knowing smile. Of course, she will choose Mark and I will choose my man.
[Aiden's POV]
I patted Mark on the back and I walked straight to where Daina is. I saw her smile as I sat beside her.
"Guess we were able to sit beside each other after all," she said beaming.
"Oh, I was just here to tell you that Mark, Clementine, and I will form a trio. I'm sorry I couldn't be partners with you." I said while scratching the back of my head. Her smile was suddenly gone, her expression unreadable. Oh-oh!
She crossed her arms and looked at me coldly, "Okay.'' Then she stood up. I quickly grabbed her hand and apologized.
"I'm sorry. I'm just joking. I didn't think you'd--"
"I'm really looking forward to us being partners! That joke isn't funny!" she pouted but went back to her seat.
I kissed the inside of her palm, trying to calm her down.
"I know. I'm really sorry. But you look really cute even when you're mad."
Seeing her act like this makes me want to do it again... but maybe not right now.
After that incident, we started working for our project. She took out her laptop along with her notebook and pen. I watched her jot down a concept for the joint project and I can almost see a light bulb appear above her head every time her face lights up, striking up with another idea.
Suddenly, a girl materialized before us. She is taller than Daina. Her blonde hair and big round eyes made her quite stand out than the rest of the people around this room. She looked like a human barbie doll but my girlfriend is definitely more beautiful and on that note, can I also say I do not like dolls? Especially this kind.
"Hi, Aiden! I'm Rachelle," she said, extending her hand. Why does she have to introduce herself to me? Does she think I am stupid for not remembering her name even though we are classmates?
I did not shake her hand and just stared at her, "Yes?"
She took it back after realizing that I had no intention of holding or shaking her hand. She does not look bothered, in fact, she smiled even more, flashing most of her teeth.
What is her deal?
"I'm also a music major like you. I wanna say that I really loved your band's performance last Valentine's Day."
"Thank you but do you need anything from me or my girlfriend?" she grimaced after hearing the word girlfriend but she was able to mask it right away with her smile.
"Oh, I see. I was about to ask you if we could be partners," she said while playing with her curls.
This time, Daina interrupted our conversation. Thank God!
"Didn't you hear what your professor said? You can't be partners with your co-major. It defeats the purpose of the joint project," her voice is controlled, maybe a bit commanding but she still has a smile on her face when said that. Damn, I'll be afraid of Daina if was Rachelle.
"If you'll excuse us, MY partner and I still have a project to make." Then she stood up, grabbed my arms, and lead me in front of her professor.
"Excuse me, Professor McKinley but could we go to the library? We find it quite hard to concentrate and talk about the project with all the noise in this room." she smiled, Professor McKinley just stared at her for ten full seconds.
"And we need resources," she added. I thought her professor would tell us to go back to our seats but I am surprised to see that I am mistaken because right now, we are walking towards the library.
