"You'd better seek out Richard and tell him you're not comfortable staying with a woman; ask for a male roommate or a single room, and tell him you'll pay the difference," Faye whispered while looking away, not even acknowledging me with her eyes.
I was busy texting my parents to inform them that I had arrived safely, so I didn't even bother looking up as I asked, "Why's that?"
"What kind of question is that? You're not single, so you shouldn't be staying in a room with someone of the opposite sex."
"What about you, then? Do you think you're single?"
Faye's hand froze, her voice taking on a haughty tone while explaining, "These were the rules established at the beginning, so I'm just following the results of the drawing."
I retorted softly, "I'm just following the result of the draw, too."
Faye glared at me, but I had already taken the key card and turned my back on her before she could speak.
I had barely taken a few steps when Richard suddenly announced, "Please head to the AV Room in half an hour—I've already reserved the whole place so that we can take a trip down memory lane and watch the first-year sports festival documentary!"
I kept walking without stopping, merely adjusting my hold on the handle of my suitcase.
It was the documentary of the first-year sports festival—the one that documented Faye's high-profile pursuit of Xavier.
There were snacks and fruit everywhere in the AV Room. Faye took her seat and instantly swapped the grapes over to Xavier's side.
A male classmate nearby laughed and teased them. "Faye is being so biased here! She's giving Xavier all the grapes since she knows he loves them!"
In that instant, everyone in the room joined the chorus of teasing.
Xavier gave a resigned sigh and nudged the plate of grapes away. He sounded rather pleased with himself, despite his actions, as he said, "You should all dig in too. Faye bought me plenty. If this isn't enough, there's more in the room."
Faye pushed the plate toward him, her grin widening. "I'll go grab some more, so you should just enjoy these."
Faye rose to leave, and the crowd's jeering grew deafening. "Faye jumped to it the moment you spoke, Xavier! She really has it bad for you!"
Xavier smiled as he ate the grapes. He then called out to me, saying, "You should eat your fill when Faye brings the rest, Caleb. You're quite fond of grapes as well, aren't you?"
Faye walked back into the AV room with two plates of grapes and set them both down before Xavier. She was well aware that I liked grapes too. She nagged me for the past three years whenever I bought grapes, telling me they had a high sugar content and would make my skin break out.
I had just casually grabbed an orange when Richard's voice suddenly rang out. "Where's Ruth, Caleb?"
In that instant, everyone turned their attention toward me.
I kept my head down and peeled the orange, replying, "She had something urgent to handle."
Richard seemed kind of bummed. "That doesn't bode well for you two, then! It's not a big deal, though, since I'm certain that the other couple will pull through!"
Faye looked at me for a brief moment, then looked away. "It's about to start."
She spoke in a breathy tone as she fed a grape to Xavier.
That documentary went on for a solid two hours, and the crowd remained enthusiastic, breaking into laughter and ribbing Faye and Xavier every time they appeared on the screen.
"Faye's wiping Xavier's sweat again! He only did a 50-meter dash, but she's already following him tighter than the cameraman!"
"You've even prepared a bottle of water, a mini fan, and sunscreen!"
"Faye's pursuit of you back then was known by the whole university, Xavier. How did you hold out for so long? She stayed single for four years because of you, and even after graduation, she's still hung up on you!"
Xavier looked at Faye with a gentle expression. "I just didn't think dating during university would last, so I wanted to wait until after graduation. I had no idea she would wait for me all this time."
It was then that one of the female classmates said, "You must have suffered a lot waiting for these past four years, Faye."
Faye looked him right in the eye and nodded gently. "It wasn't too bad."
That brief response carried the weight of four years of restraint and devotion, causing everyone around to sigh in admiration.
I, on the other hand, merely scoffed to myself, thinking that there was nothing for her to be miserable about.
Faye spent six dramatic months chasing Xavier with nothing to show for it before she suddenly shifted her focus to tennis instead.
I was a starter on the varsity team, so she asked me to coach her for half a year, and right at the beginning of sophomore year, she asked me out.
It was hardly even miserable for her, as even though our relationship was kept secret, we were perfectly content and incredibly happy.
