"Lina!"
She turned at the sound of her name — again.
Ciel jogged toward her, his signature grin in place but eyes slightly more focused than usual.
"Hey, I was looking for you," he said. "You forgot your notebook yesterday."
"Oh. Thank you." She reached for it.
He didn't let go immediately.
"You haven't written in it, have you?"
Lina blinked. "How'd you know?"
"Because it still looks too neat," he teased, then added more softly, "You don't have to fill the pages all at once, you know. One line at a time's enough."
She smiled, but before she could reply—
"Lina."
She froze.
Renzo. Just behind her, voice quiet, unreadable.
She turned around slowly. "Hi."
He glanced at Ciel, then back at her. "Can we talk?"
Ciel raised an eyebrow. "Right now?"
"I won't take long," Renzo replied, not looking at him.
Lina looked between the two of them, unsure what to say.
Before she could answer, a third voice joined in.
"I was actually looking for you too."
Tyron.
She blinked, stunned. "Me?"
He gave a polite nod. "We need your input on the new campaign materials for Awareness Week. Posters, digital banners, student features — I want something real. Something people will stop and actually read."
Lina opened her mouth. "I'm not really—"
"You don't have to be anything," he said smoothly. "Just honest. You're already being watched. Might as well give them something worth seeing."
Now all three stood there.
No raised voices.
No arguments.
Just… silence. And eyes waiting for her to choose.
Lina's fingers curled around her notebook.