The dorm room was pitch black. The only light came from the harsh blue glow of Vesper's phone screen.
It was 1:00 AM. Rowan and Casey were fast asleep, their breathing slow and even.
Vesper lay under her duvet, staring at Julian's social media profile. She had found his private account using the number Slade gave her.
Her thumb hovered over the blue 'Add Friend' button. Her hands were sweating so much the phone kept slipping.
She had spent the last hour typing and deleting a dozen different text messages, eventually deciding that a simple friend request was the safest, least desperate move.
Just do it, she told herself. Slade said not to overthink it.
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and pressed her thumb against the screen.
Request Sent.
Vesper shoved the phone under her pillow and rolled onto her stomach. Her heart was beating so violently she could feel it in her throat.
She lay there in the dark, every muscle tense. Five minutes passed. Then ten.
She pulled the phone out. Nothing.
She shoved it back.
At exactly 2:14 AM, the phone vibrated against her mattress.
Vesper shot up, throwing the duvet off. She grabbed the phone, her fingers trembling as she unlocked the screen.
A system notification sat at the top of her lock screen. But it wasn't from the app. It was just a generic weather alert. She unlocked the phone and opened the social media app, her heart pounding. Her request to Julian Hayes was still sitting there. Pending. No acceptance. No message. Just a quiet, deafening silence. The realization hit Vesper like a bucket of ice water. The heat drained from her body instantly. She stared at the screen, her vision blurring. He hadn't accepted it. A guy as polite and digitally active as Julian wouldn't just miss it; he was actively ignoring it, letting it float in the void. The silent dismissal felt almost worse than an outright rejection-it was a polite, distant wall that she had no idea how to climb.
A tear spilled over her eyelashes and tracked down her cheek. She wiped it away angrily. She couldn't cry over this. She wouldn't.
She needed a distraction. She needed to do something, anything, to stop the crushing weight in her chest.
She remembered that tonight was the absolute final deadline for the spring semester course registration. An automated notification had popped up in her inbox an hour ago—the elective she’d banked on was cancelled due to low enrollment, leaving her dangerously short on credits.
Vesper quietly slipped out of bed. She tiptoed to her desk, opened her laptop, and logged into the university's Banner system.
The website was agonizingly slow, lagging under the weight of thousands of desperate students.
She navigated to the elective section. She wanted 'Online Western Art History'-a class where she wouldn't have to look at or speak to a single human being.
She found the course. She moved her mouse over the 'Register' button.
Just as her finger hovered over the trackpad, a bright red banner flashed across the top of the course registry. Class Full. Registration Closed. The words mocked her. Panic spiked through Vesper's veins. She frantically refreshed the page, her eyes scanning the dwindling list of available electives. Everything was grayed out. History, literature, even the obscure philosophy seminars-all full. She needed exactly three more credits to maintain her scholarship status for the upcoming term. Her eyes desperately darted to the very bottom of the page, where a single, notoriously brutal physical education requirement still had one open seat. PE 302: Advanced Basketball Skills & Conditioning. It was a nightmare class, designed specifically as a conditioning camp for the varsity team's practice squad, which was why no normal student ever took it. But she had no other choice. If she didn't click it right now, the system would lock her out entirely. Gritting her teeth and cursing her own miserable luck, she slammed her finger down on the 'Register' button.
A new pop-up appeared. Registration Successful. All schedules are final.
Vesper's stomach plummeted. She was trapped.
Desperate, she clicked on the course syllabus link, praying the instructor was someone lenient.
The PDF loaded. Vesper's eyes scanned down to the instructor information.
Head Coach: Marcus Vance.
Teaching Assistant (TA): Slade Forrester.
Vesper stared at the bolded name. The universe wasn't just rejecting her; it was actively punishing her.
