Chapter 2 - Campus Chronicles

The midday sun bore down on the campus, intensifying the usual chaos of student life. Scooters weaved between the walkways, upperclassmen lounged on shaded benches, and the aroma of grilled pork skewers wafted over from a street vendor strategically parked just outside the main gate.

And in the middle of it all? Orm, the undeniable queen of the university.

She wasn't just popular—she was a phenomenon. If you mentioned her name anywhere on campus, you were bound to hear gasps, sighs, and at least one dramatic declaration of love. Every morning, without fail, she opened her locker to a flood of love letters, confession notes, and even the occasional small gift (once, someone left a single Gucci shoe with a note that read, "I will find you, my Cinderella"). Professors adored her, clubs fought over her membership, and she had an entire fan club that unofficially kept track of her whereabouts.

Needless to say, she was used to a certain... level of attention.

"Three love confessions today," Orm announced dramatically.

She held up three neatly folded letters for Becky and May to inspect. "One poetry attempt, one proposal, and—oh—look! This one says they're willing to name their firstborn after me."

Becky snatched a letter, flipping it open. "This is getting ridiculous," she muttered. "How is it that every week, at least one person confesses their undying love for you, but no one has ever even tried to confess to me?"

May, sipping on her iced Thai tea, looked up from her phone. "That's because you scare them," she said matter-of-factly.

Becky scoffed. "I do not scare people!"

"Last week, you told a guy that his cologne smelled like 'rich uncle at a wedding who hands out crisp 100 baht bills but expects a thank-you speech.'"

"...Okay, fine, but I stand by that."

Orm giggled, tucking the letters into her bag. "Don't worry, Becky. Your time will come. But in the meantime, I think I need a new hobby."

May raised an eyebrow. "You mean besides collecting love confessions like they're Pokémon cards?"

"No, no, something fresh. Something different," Orm said, tapping her chin in thought. "Maybe... a challenge."

That was when she saw her.

Standing a few meters ahead, near the library steps, was a girl completely detached from the chaos of campus life. Her back was perfectly straight, her posture refined, her attention entirely on her phone. Unlike most students, who either hunched over their devices or scrolled mindlessly, this girl held her phone with the focus of someone reading a legal document that could decide the fate of a nation.

Orm's curiosity sparked instantly.

"Who's that?" she asked, eyes narrowing in intrigue.

Becky and May followed her gaze. "No clue," Becky said. "She's in your year, I think? Law student. One of those 'no time for fun, only business' types."

May nodded. "She's always studying. Never seen her at a party. Never seen her talk to anyone besides that one friend she's always with."

"That's weird," Orm mused. "Everyone talks to someone. Even the professors gossip."

"Maybe she's a robot," Becky suggested.

Orm grinned. "Well, I love breaking robots."

Before her friends could stop her, she strutted straight toward the mysterious girl.

———

Orm approached with her signature charm, the kind that made people swoon before she even said a word. "Hey there," she greeted brightly, stopping just a foot away.

The girl did not react.

For a moment, Orm thought maybe she hadn't heard her, but then, without so much as a pause in her scrolling, the girl responded:

"...Yes?"

A one-word answer.

A one. Word. Answer.

Orm blinked, momentarily thrown off her rhythm. She wasn't used to this. Where were the sparkles? The admiration? The immediate interest in her?

Still, she recovered quickly. "Nice day, huh?" she tried again.

The girl finally looked up from her phone. Her dark eyes, steady and unbothered, met Orm's gaze. "It's fine."

It's fine?!

Becky and May, watching from a safe distance, exchanged wide-eyed glances.

"Did she just... shrug off Orm?!" Becky whispered, gripping May's arm.

May took a slow sip of her tea. "I don't think this has ever happened before."

Orm, meanwhile, was still processing the fact that she had just been given the driest response of her life.

"...Right," she said, recovering with a bright smile. "I'm Orm, by the way."

For a moment, she thought—hoped—that this would prompt some kind of reaction. Maybe a flicker of recognition? A gasp? A shy, 'Oh wow, you're THE Orm?'

Instead, the girl merely blinked and said, in the same neutral tone:

"Lingling."

And then nothing else.

That was it.

No follow-up question. No spark of interest. Just her name, flatly given, like it was the least important thing in the world.

Orm was officially in uncharted waters.

"Well, Lingling," she said, determined not to let this be the most anticlimactic conversation of her life, "it's nice to meet you. You're very... composed."

Lingling nodded, then promptly went back to scrolling through her phone.

Orm gawked.

Becky and May, now fully invested spectators, were gripping each other's arms like they were watching a plot twist unfold in real-time.

"She just ignored Orm," Becky gasped. "She didn't even LOOK fazed."

May, deadpan, murmured, "I think I'm in love."

Realizing she wasn't going to get much more than the equivalent of a customer service auto-response, Orm forced a laugh. "Alright, well... I'll be seeing you around, Lingling."

Lingling nodded without looking up.

Defeated—but weirdly intrigued—Orm turned back to her friends, who were already waiting with smug expressions.

"Well?" Becky demanded the moment Orm rejoined them. "How was it? How does it feel to be treated like a mere mortal?"

Orm exhaled dramatically, placing a hand over her chest as if she'd just suffered a tragic heartbreak. "I've never... I've never been more ignored in my entire life."

Becky howled with laughter.

May shook her head in disbelief. "You approached her, introduced yourself and got nothing? Not even a hint of excitement? That's actually impressive."

Orm crossed her arms, a determined glint in her eyes. "I don't get it. It's like she doesn't care. Like I'm just another person on campus."

Becky smirked. "Hate to break it to you, Your Highness, but you kind of are."

"No," Orm declared. "No, no, no. This is a challenge."

May groaned. "Oh no."

Becky clapped her hands. "Oh yes."

Orm, ignoring them, gazed back at where Lingling had been standing. No one had ever shrugged her off before. No one had ever treated her like she was... just some random student.

She had to crack the mystery.

With a determined nod, she made a bold declaration:

"I'm interested. I'm officially interested."

Becky and May screamed.

And thus, Orm's most unexpected obsession began.

Namtan had just finished buying her favorite iced matcha latte from the campus café when she spotted Lingling standing near the library steps. That, in itself, was nothing out of the ordinary. Lingling always found the quietest spots to stand, her phone in one hand, notes in the other, her posture relaxed yet disciplined.

What was out of the ordinary was who was standing in front of her.

Namtan nearly spilled her drink.

Orm. The Orm.

The university's golden girl, the untouchable darling of campus, the same Orm who had an entire fan club dedicated to cataloging her best outfits and campus sightings—was just casually chatting with Lingling.

Namtan stood frozen in place, her brain working overtime to process the scene. Was she hallucinating? Maybe the Bangkok heat had finally fried her brain.

But no, it was real.

There Orm stood, a radiant smile lighting up her face as she leaned slightly toward Lingling.

The Orm who had once received a love confession written in calligraphy on gold-trimmed parchment was right there, talking to her best friend, Lingling—the most indifferent person on the planet.

And Lingling?

She was responding like Orm was some random student asking for the Wi-Fi password.

Namtan's jaw nearly hit the ground as she watched in horror.

Orm was putting in effort. Charm. The kind of charm that made people blush, stutter, or at the very least, acknowledge her existence with more than three words.

And yet, Lingling stood there, barely sparing Orm a glance.

A few more words were exchanged—mostly from Orm, who looked like she was trying to solve a particularly difficult puzzle—before she finally gave up, flashing one last dazzling smile and sauntering off.

Becky and May, who had been watching from a short distance, collapsed into laughter.

Lingling, meanwhile, went straight back to scrolling on her phone like nothing had happened.

Namtan marched over.

"What. The. Hell. Was. That?" she demanded, voice laced with disbelief.

Lingling looked up at her, entirely unbothered. "What was what?"

"What was what?" Namtan parroted back, voice rising an octave. "Lingling. Orm just walked up to you. Like, casually. Like you two are long-lost childhood friends. Or like—like she didn't just do something that would cause at least half the campus to faint if they saw it!"

Lingling blinked. "Oh."

OH?

Namtan grabbed Lingling's shoulders. "DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHO THAT WAS?"

Lingling took a moment to sip her iced Americano, the picture of serenity. Then, with the same neutral tone she had used on Orm, she responded, "Orm."

Namtan stared at her in silent agony.

"Yes, I KNOW it's Orm!" she nearly screeched. "But do you know who Orm is? Like, what she means to the entire student body? Do you realize that people literally cry over her? That she receives, on average, three love confessions per day? That she's basically our university's main character?"

Lingling shrugged.

Namtan physically recoiled. "Oh my god."

She threw a dramatic hand over her heart, staring at Lingling like she had just witnessed a crime. "Do you know what people would give to be in your position?! Some poor soul probably burned incense and prayed at a shrine to manifest this exact scenario, and here you are shrugging?!"

Lingling took another slow sip of her drink. "What should I have done?"

Namtan threw her arms up. "I don't know! Blushed?! Squealed?! Asked for a photo?! Acknowledged that you were just approached by the most wanted person on campus like a normal human being?!"

Lingling, unfazed, pocketed her phone and adjusted her bag. "She introduced herself. I introduced myself. That was it."

"THAT WAS IT?!"

Namtan groaned into her hands. "You don't understand! This is like getting a personal visit from a celebrity and treating it like a routine dentist appointment!"

Lingling shrugged again.

Namtan swayed on the spot, mourning the wasted opportunity.

"Unbelievable," she muttered. "I need to sit down. Or lie down. Or tell someone before I explode."

She turned to glance at Orm's retreating figure, who was already being dramatically teased by Becky and May.

"Unbelievable," Namtan whispered again, before chugging the rest of her matcha latte like it was strong liquor.