The next morning arrived like nothing had happened.
That was the cruelest part.
Campus 2 woke up the same way it always did. Doors opened. Students dragged themselves to class. Someone laughed too loudly in the hallway. Someone complained about the weather. Life continued with the confidence of something that didn't care about unfinished conversations.
XH noticed the difference immediately.
Kitty wasn't there when he arrived.
Her seat was empty.
It shouldn't have mattered. She was allowed to be late. She had her own routines. Her own mornings. But XH found himself glancing at the door more than the board, waiting for a familiar shape that didn't appear.
TR slid into his seat, yawning dramatically. "I swear, mornings are an attack."
XH nodded absently.
PL leaned over. "You okay?"
"Yeah," XH said automatically.
JP glanced back once, sharp-eyed. "You're lying."
"I'm tired," XH replied.
"That's also a lie," JP said, then turned back to his screen.
The lecture began.
XH tried to focus, but his thoughts kept circling the same place. Kitty asking for space. NS calling him selfish without realizing it. The way Kitty had said she wouldn't compete.
I need space. Just a little.
The words replayed quietly, over and over.
Halfway through the lecture, Kitty finally came in.
She slipped into the room without drawing attention, taking a seat farther away than usual. Not dramatically far. Just enough.
When their eyes met, she smiled politely.
Not warmly.
Not coldly.
Politely.
XH felt it like a small loss.
TR noticed immediately. He leaned over, whispering, "Why does it feel like someone rearranged the furniture emotionally?"
XH shot him a look. "Stop."
"I'm serious," TR said. "The vibes are… off."
PL nodded solemnly. "Very off."
NS sat two rows away, posture straight, gaze forward. He didn't look at XH once.
The lecture ended without incident. No confrontation. No resolution.
Normal.
Too normal.
Outside, the group reassembled out of habit. It felt like muscle memory, not intention.
TR clapped his hands together. "Alright. Who's up for lunch?"
"Always," PL said.
JP checked his watch. "I have forty minutes."
HS smiled gently. "That's enough."
Kitty lingered at the edge of the group, phone in hand. When XH slowed to walk beside her, she adjusted her pace subtly so there was space between them.
He noticed.
He said nothing.
They walked to the same cheap place near campus, the one with noisy fans and mismatched chairs. The owner recognized them now, which made it feel unofficially theirs.
They sat.
Food arrived.
Conversation stumbled at first, then slowly found its rhythm.
TR told a story about nearly getting lost in the wrong building again. PL laughed too hard. TZ Royal leaned back, relaxed, talking about futsal clips he watched late at night. HS listened attentively. JP corrected details occasionally, like he couldn't help himself.
XH laughed when he was supposed to.
Kitty laughed too.
But they didn't look at each other when they did.
NS sat across from XH, eyes lowered, eating quietly. When he spoke, it was only to respond, not initiate.
After lunch, TR suddenly stood up. "We need to do something."
PL frowned. "We just ate."
"I mean something fun," TR said. "Everyone looks like they're emotionally buffering."
TZ Royal grinned. "Arcade?"
PL's eyes lit up. "Yes."
JP hesitated. "I have—"
TR grabbed his arm. "You have nothing."
They ended up at a small arcade near the mall. It wasn't impressive. Half the machines were old. Some buttons stuck. But it was loud, colorful, and full of distraction.
Exactly what they needed.
TR immediately challenged PL to a basketball machine duel. TZ Royal headed straight for a fighting game. HS hovered near a claw machine, oddly focused.
Kitty drifted toward the rhythm games, slipping headphones over her ears. She looked lighter there, like the noise gave her somewhere to hide.
XH watched her for a moment before forcing himself to move.
NS joined TZ Royal at the fighting game, rolling his shoulders like he was preparing for something bigger than pixels.
"You in?" NS asked.
XH nodded. "Sure."
They played without talking much at first. Buttons clicked. Characters moved. Scores flashed.
NS won the first round.
Then the second.
"You're distracted," NS said flatly.
XH exhaled. "Yeah."
NS didn't gloat. He just nodded. "Makes sense."
They played another round, closer this time.
Across the arcade, Kitty laughed suddenly, pulling off her headphones and clapping lightly as HS finally won a prize from the claw machine.
"It's crooked," HS said apologetically, holding up a small plush.
"It's perfect," Kitty replied.
XH felt something twist in his chest.
Later, TR dragged everyone toward the snack counter, declaring it a mandatory break. They gathered around a small table, sharing drinks and laughing about nothing important.
The mood lifted.
Just enough.
TR leaned back, satisfied. "See? Group therapy."
PL nodded. "We should charge ourselves."
JP shook his head. "This is not therapy."
"It's coping," TR corrected.
Kitty sipped her drink, eyes distant but calmer.
XH took a breath and leaned slightly toward her. "You okay?"
She looked at him, considering.
"I'm better," she said. "Thank you for asking."
The politeness was gentle.
It still hurt.
As the evening settled, they walked back toward Campus 2 together. The lights from the arcade faded behind them. The campus loomed ahead, familiar and quiet.
At the gate, the group slowed.
"Same time tomorrow?" TR asked automatically.
"Maybe," Kitty said.
"Depends," NS added.
XH noticed how neither of them looked at him when they spoke.
They separated naturally. No announcements. No goodbyes that meant anything more than routine.
Kitty walked ahead with HS. TR and PL argued about something trivial. TZ Royal followed, humming to himself.
NS lingered behind.
XH slowed until they were side by side.
"You mad at me?" XH asked quietly.
NS shook his head. "No."
"Then what?"
NS stopped walking.
XH stopped too.
"I'm tired of watching people get hurt because no one wants to be honest," NS said. "Including you."
XH swallowed. "I'm trying."
NS met his eyes. "Trying isn't the same as choosing."
The sentence echoed.
NS continued walking.
XH stood there for a moment longer, watching the group drift away, realizing something important.
The day had been light.
There had been laughter. Games. Food. Noise.
But underneath all of it, something had shifted.
Not broken.
Shifted.
Kitty was protecting herself.
NS was drawing lines.
And XH was standing in the middle, hoping time would save him from making a choice.
As he finally walked toward his dorm, the campus quiet around him, XH understood one thing clearly.
Normal days were the most dangerous.
Because they made you believe nothing was wrong.
Until one day, nothing was left to fix.