Chapter 4 - Operation: Publicly Ignored

The sun was high over the campus, and Orm sat at her usual café spot with a very serious expression on her face. Becky and May sat across from her, looking far too amused.

Becky: "Alright, let's assess the situation. How many times have you tried to get Lingling's attention now?"

Orm: "Five."

May: "And how many times has she reacted in a way that suggests she acknowledges you as a real person?"

Orm: "...Zero."

Becky choked on her drink.

Becky: "Oh my god. This is unprecedented. You've been ghosted while being physically present."

May: "It's like you don't exist in her plane of reality."

Orm slammed her palm on the table. "This is unacceptable."

Becky: "It's kind of iconic, though."

May: "Maybe she's your karma."

Orm groaned, leaning back in her chair. "No. I refuse to accept that I can't crack this."

Becky smirked. "What's the plan, then?"

Orm thought for a moment before grinning.

"If subtlety doesn't work, I'll just have to be unignorable."

May sighed. "That sounds dangerously like a bad idea."

Becky grinned. "Which means it's definitely going to be fun."

Orm had spent the last few days being ignored. Brutally.

No grand gestures had worked. No casual encounters. Not even offering food.

She had tried subtlety. She had tried casual approaches. And yet, Lingling was still acting like Orm was background noise.

So, clearly, it was time for drastic measures.

If Lingling wasn't going to acknowledge Orm through normal means, then Orm was going to force her to.

It was a warm afternoon on campus, and the outdoor study area was bustling with students. Some were diligently flipping through textbooks, others were chatting quietly while sipping iced lattes, and a few were just napping dramatically on their books.

And right in the middle of it all, unbothered, untouchable, and unreadable, sat Lingling.

She was seated at one of the shaded wooden tables, nose buried in a law textbook thicker than Orm's patience. She had a coffee next to her, untouched, and occasionally, she would underline a section in the book with a pen. Her focus was terrifying.

She was in her own world.

And Orm?

Orm was about to wreck that world.

From a few feet away, Becky and May watched with exaggerated interest.

Becky: "This is either going to be legendary or a disaster."

May: "Or both."

Orm flipped her hair, adjusted her scarf, and took a deep breath.

Time to make an entrance.

She sauntered forward like she was walking the red carpet, stopping just a few feet away from Lingling's table.

She cleared her throat. Loudly.

No reaction.

She coughed.

Nothing.

She tapped her foot.

Still. Nothing.

Somewhere behind her, Becky and May were already wheezing.

Finally, Orm gave up on being subtle.

Orm: "LINGLING!"

The entire study area went dead silent.

Heads turned. People paused mid-sip in their drinks. A guy who had been dozing off on his laptop snapped awake in fear.

And finally—FINALLY—Lingling looked up.

Her dark eyes, calm and completely unimpressed, met Orm's.

Lingling: "Yes?"

The crowd held their breath.

Orm: "You ignored my existence yesterday. That was rude."

Becky nearly fell off her chair.

May covered her face with both hands. "Oh my god, she's actually doing this."

Lingling blinked once.

Then, in the most neutral, unaffected tone imaginable, she responded:

Lingling: "Did I?"

Orm stared at her.

Becky choked on her drink.

May physically turned away from the scene out of secondhand embarrassment.

BECAUSE LINGLING. WAS. SERIOUS.

She genuinely did not remember ignoring Orm.

Orm had never been so insulted in her life.

Orm, stunned, quickly recovered. "Yes! You did! I've been trying to talk to you all week."

Lingling closed her book with deliberate calmness. "I see."

"...And?"

Lingling took a sip of her coffee. "And what?"

Orm narrowed her eyes. "Do you just... not like people?"

A long pause.

Lingling tilted her head slightly, as if considering the question.

Lingling: "I like some people."

Orm's heart did a weird little skip.

Was this progress? A confession? A sign from the universe?

Orm: "Oh? And what about me?"

Lingling stared at her for a moment.

Then, completely deadpan:

"...You're persistent."

AND WENT BACK TO READING.

Orm gaped.

Becky and May were losing their minds in the background.

Becky: "THAT WAS NOT A YES."

May: "That wasn't even a no. That was just... a factual statement."

Orm stood there, processing the fact that Lingling had just categorized her as 'persistent' the way someone would describe a mosquito in a locked room.

Just as she was about to say something else, Lingling calmly looked up again.

Lingling: "You're also very loud."

Orm felt her soul physically leave her body.

"...I—"

Lingling turned a page. Conversation over.

Orm stomped back to Becky and May, fuming.

Becky was gasping for air.

May looked at Orm with genuine sympathy. "I don't think I've ever seen you lose this badly."

Orm collapsed into her chair. "That's because I haven't."

Becky wiped a tear from her eye. "So, uh... new plan?"

Orm sat in silence, stirring her drink aggressively.

And then, with renewed determination, she slammed her fist on the table.

Orm: "If she won't react to me, then I'll just have to make sure she remembers me."

Becky and May exchanged horrified glances.

Becky: "Oh no."

May: "Oh no."

Somewhere back at her table, Lingling peacefully resumed reading, entirely unaware that she had just declared war without realizing it.

Later that evening, in a quieter setting, Namtan casually flopped onto the couch next to Lingling.

Namtan: "So... how does it feel to have Orm, the most admired person on campus, completely obsessed with you?"

Lingling, without looking up: "She's not obsessed."

Namtan laughed. "Oh, babe. You are so blind."

Lingling finally looked up. "She's just persistent."

Namtan smirked. "Uh-huh. Right. So if she confesses her undying love next week, I'm allowed to say 'I told you so?'"

Lingling rolled her eyes and went back to reading.

But—just for a second—she smiled.

Orm had no idea. But she might have just won her first point.