A knock echoed through the girls' hotel room, drawing the attention of Rika, Lia, Oriel, and the two other girls.
"I'll get it," Rika volunteered.
She had been standing near the door, scrolling through her phone while the others lounged on Lia's bed, searching for restaurants and places to visit the next day.
Rika made her way to the door as the conversation resumed behind her.
"Oh, I saw this place online, too!" Oriel exclaimed, pointing at her phone. "It looks so magical. Let's go here tomorrow!"
"How about my proposal?" Lia asked, looking up from the bed with pleading eyes.
"Yes, yes. We'll do that, too," Oriel assured her, trying to appease the girl who looked dangerously close to tears.
Meanwhile, Rika pulled the door open.
A familiar, gentle smile greeted her, bright as sunshine against the gloomy backdrop of the heavy rain.
Dhylan opened his mouth to speak, but Rika beat him to it.
"Looking for Oriel?"
"Yes!" He nodded enthusiastically.
Unfortunately for him, his answer was loud enough to reach the girls inside.
Lia immediately scrambled off the bed and squeezed her head through the gap in the doorway.
"No boys allowed here!" she declared, eyeing Dhylan suspiciously.
"I brought you snacks."
His smile never wavered as he raised a plastic bag filled with premium snacks he had bought outside.
Silence.
Then, one by one, the girls' eyes sparkled.
All except Oriel's.
She sat frozen on the bed, watching her so-called friends sell her out with absolutely no shame.
"GIRLS, GET HER!" Lia commanded.
She snatched the bag from Dhylan's hand and hurried back into the room, leaving the Dhylan standing at the door with the same cheerful expression.
"Lia!!!"
Oriel's protest echoed through the room as two of her classmates grabbed her arms and dragged her toward the door. Rika, apparently having accepted her role in this betrayal, held it wide open for them.
And there stood Dhylan, waiting patiently, looking as though someone had just handed him the best gift of his life.
"I WON'T FORGET THIS!"
Oriel's furious declaration gradually faded as she was hauled into the corridor. The door closed with a final thud, followed by a series of muffled shouts from the other side.
For a moment, the room fell quiet.
Rika turned away from the door and walked back toward the bed.
"They really shouldn't make so much noise if they don't want to get caught by President Ice."
Lia merely hummed in response, already digging into the bag of snacks. The other girls followed suit, each picking something that caught her eye.
Rika sat down beside them, watching Lia tear open a packet with the enthusiasm of someone who had just won a lottery.
"I really don't understand those two," Lia muttered between bites. "Oriel keeps denying it, while Dhylan always…" She paused, searching for the right word before rolling her eyes. "Show-offs! They act like a couple, but they both deny it."
"Mostly Oriel," one of the girls pointed out.
"Exactly!" Lia snapped her fingers. "But honestly, she should stop that already. Dhylan is cute."
She opened a packet of chips and examined its contents before popping one into her mouth.
"If he weren't already part of that so-called campus couple, I bet he'd be a heartthrob. Imagine how many girls would be after him."
Rika slowly turned her head toward Lia.
Then she leaned closer and whispered, "Do you like him?"
Lia nearly choked on her chips.
Her face flushed as she hurriedly grabbed a drink to wash them down.
"Ah! It's spicy!"
Rika stared at her.
"Let me try!" one of the girls exclaimed, reaching for the same packet.
Soon, everyone was sampling the snacks, but that didn't stop the interrogation.
"So, you like him?"
"No way! Ew!" Lia crossed her arms over her chest, looking utterly offended by the accusation. "There's only one man for me, and that's President Ice!" She exclaimed.
She lifted her chin proudly, as if she had just announced a lifelong vow.
The girls exchanged amused glances.
"But…" Lia suddenly trailed off.
Every head turned toward her.
The room fell silent, all eyes fixed on Lia as though they were watching the most suspenseful scene in a thriller.
She glanced at them, then sighed.
"I think it would be weird to like Dhylan. For one, we're friends with both him and Oriel. And we've always known those two as a couple."
She reached for a carton of juice, pushed the straw through its seal, and took a sip.
"But that's not really my point."
The girls leaned in.
"Just imagine if things were different. If they weren't friends with us, and Dhylan and Oriel weren't already known as a couple…" Lia lowered her drink. "There would be plenty of girls who'd fall for him."
Rika leaned back against the pillows, considering her words.
"Yeah, that's true. But Oriel is pretty, too."
The others nodded in agreement.
"She is," Lia admitted. "That's not the problem."
She flopped backward onto the bed, staring up at the fancy ceiling as if it held the answer to all their problems.
"The problem is that she refuses to come to her senses."
Her voice softened a little.
"If someone tried to steal Oriel's heart, I bet Dhylan would do something about it. He wouldn't just stand there and watch."
She paused.
"But if the roles were reversed…"
Lia turned her head toward the others.
"Do you think Oriel would do the same for him?"
No one answered immediately.
The question lingered in the room, quietly settling among the crinkled snack wrappers and half-empty drink cartons.
Rika's expression turned thoughtful.
"Yeah," she finally murmured. "That would be a problem."
Next:
One room. One bed. One pair of earphones.
I thought tonight would be nothing but another ridiculous movie night with Ice.
Apparently, I was wrong.