xxxxxa dark cloud had enveloped the sky around the university campus, perfectly matching with meixiang’s mood that day. if three hours of sleep wasn’t bad enough, the coffee machine in the journalism club’s room wasn’t working, so now, she found herself slumped over her desk in front of her computer, the few members of the club that had arrived that morning casting her concerned glances. it couldn’t be helped, she was usually brimming with energy and chatting along with everyone in the club like on most mornings when she didn’t have any classes until the afternoon. but today was just… rough, putting it lightly. the girl had spent all night working on an assignment she had completely forgotten about, and it was due today at midnight, yet she was still nowhere near done. she had hoped that she could take a small break that morning before going back at it, get some coffee from the club room, get her caffeine fill, work on some articles. it would’ve been perfect, truly, if the traitorous coffee machine didn’t break on her.
xxxxxshe lifted her head ever so slightly, side-eyeing her phone on the desk. hypothetically speaking, if she texted ivan right now to go grab her some coffee from a nearby starbucks, would he? she dismissed the thought almost immediately, head slumping back onto the desk with a soft thud. she heaved an audible (and frustrated) sigh that had garnered her another set of concerned glances from the club members. she was tempted to text him, he was supposedly her boyfriend and all that, it would be nice of him to do her bidding once in a while, but at the same time, she knew that the pest wouldn’t do as she asked. she had been so stupid, agreeing to the whole thing, thinking that she wouldn’t have caught feelings because the relationship is fake. but here she was, sleep-deprived and too scared to text ivan to get her a simple cup of coffee. she had the urge to throw something at that moment in time, get her pent-up anger and frustration out somehow, but she didn’t want to scare the club members even further.
xxxxxif her day couldn’t get any worse than it already was, well, that would be a lie. the shrill sound of the fire alarm had filled her ears and she let out a loud groan as she sat herself up. why was god so against her that day? nevertheless, she had responsibilities that came with being in charge of the journalism club. she stood up reluctantly, grabbing her phone and bag while she was at it, head already throbbing from the constant blare of the fire alarm. ushering everyone out of the club room, she had basically instructed everyone to stay safe and go to their nearest fire exit, y’know, like the good mom that she was, and locked up the club room while she was at it, stashing the keys away in her bag when she was done. another sigh escaped her lips, right… now onto getting out of the building itself, seeing as the hallways were filled with panicking students everywhere she looked. it wasn’t a surprise to her, no one was really sure if the fire alarm was because of an actual fire or if it was a drill. or, it could’ve also been some idiot setting it off because of some dumb dare. what was this? high school? she shook her head, blending into the crowd and letting it guide her, hoping that everyone was moving towards the exit of the building.
xxxxxthe only good thing about today was the fact that the club room was on the ground floor of one of the main campus buildings, making the trip to the exit much faster and easier, and she managed to get out of the building within a few minutes. though only to grimace, seeing as the dark clouds from earlier hadn’t cleared up, hinting that it was probably going to rain soon. god really had something against her that day, if it hadn’t been clear enough before. at least the crowd had dispersed a little at this point, everyone spreading out around the spacious campus grounds, finding friends and such. right, that reminded her, she should probably find someone she knew before she outright collapsed from exhaustion. while she saw many familiar faces around campus, people even smiling and waving at her (don’t get her wrong, she waved back and tried to muster up her best smiles, but it was so hard right now), but she wanted to find a close friend who she didn’t mind seeing her in this vulnerable state that she was in. now that was a mission in itself, she realized, considering that she had maybe three to four people that she would actually consider a close friend. what a chore.
xxxxxshe had almost given up, fire alarm still blaring in the back (seriously, how long does it take to assess the situation and turn the damn thing off? she was getting a headache), until she spotted the familiar face of her fake boyfriend. it was sappy if she was being honest, but she felt her mood lift slightly as soon as she caught sight of him. yeah, she was in it bad. duffle bag slung over one of his shoulders, she knew that he was probably heading to practice before the fire alarm was set off, confirming that he probably wouldn’t have gotten her coffee if she had asked before. damn him. it was whatever, she concluded, not letting her dwell on it further as she moved towards him. her first instinct was to go in for a hug, wrapping her arms around his torso while he was distracted and leaning her head against his chest, a small ‘hi’ escaping her lips as a greeting. she hoped that the lack of her usual energy had gotten through to him somehow, and conveyed to him that if he pushed her off, she would commit a crime against him and it wouldn’t be pretty. right now, she just needed to have a moment to recharge her energy, and even though only coffee could bring her back to her senses fully, ivan’s body warmth would have to do for now.