Filed to story: That Campus Prince Is a Girl
Xander paused, speechless. ‘Come to think of it, anyone studying at Langford Academy probably isn’t exactly strapped for cash, he thought to himself.
While Xander and Elijah went back and forth, Cameron’s phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen. It was a message on WhatsApp from Bradley.
She looked up, confused. Bradley was sitting right next to her, on her right side. ‘Why would he text her when he could just talk?’ she wondered.
Bradley gave her a slight smile, his eyes signaling her to check the message.
Cameron opened WhatsApp.
Bradley: [We agreed yesterday to handle the paperwork today at lunch. Did you forget?
They should have just enough time if they left right after eating. Bradley had already prepared all the necessary documents.
Cameron blinked. She had actually forgotten. This was important. She had no time to worry about Elijah’s feelings now.
She replied to Bradley with a simple OK emoji. Then she looked toward the two still bickering across the table and cut in, “Elijah, how about you help Xander with math today? I’ve got something to take care of.”
“What is it?” Elijah and Xander asked in unison.
“It’s something important,” Cameron answered.
Both of them froze for a second.
Xander leaned toward her, wiggling his eyebrows. “What kind of important thing? Come on, give me a hint.”
“Nope,” Cameron said flatly. She had no intention of sharing. The only reason Bradley knew about this was a fluke. If she had a choice, she would not have told anyone.
Xander scowled at her, clearly annoyed. Cameron ignored him.
Elijah was curious too, but when he saw she did not want to talk about it, he dropped it.
Xander narrowed his eyes at Bradley. “What are you smirking about?”
Bradley casually touched his chin, his smile fading just a bit. “Was I?”
Xander nudged Elijah. “You saw that, right?”
Elijah said, “Brad always looks like he’s smiling.”
Xander groaned. “Talking to you is pointless. Your observation skills suck.”
Elijah paused, slightly stunned. Cameron and Bradley both chuckled at the exchange.
‘Elijah’s always calm and distant, Xander’s loud and restless. Watching them interact is kind of entertaining, they both thought.
Soon, their food arrived. One dish after another was placed on the table, and the four of them finished every last bit of the six dishes and one soup.
Xander set down his fork. “Cameron, told you it wasn’t enough.” Successfully unlocked! and order.”
Cameron simply replied, “If you want more, yo
Elijah put down his fork. “I’m full.”
Bradley added, “Same here.”
Elijah and Bradley stood up, and Cameron got up with them to settle the bill.
Xander froze for a second, then stood with a scowl. “Fine. Starting today, I’m learning how to be frugal from you.”
They stepped out of the private room. The dining hall had mostly cleared out by then. But two figures were standing by the entrance, clearly waiting for them.
It was none other than Amelia and her close friend, Skyler.
Xander glanced at Cameron and said, “They’re probably here for you.”
Cameron’s expression didn’t change. “I’ve got nothing to do with her anymore. What would they want with me?”
Xander said, “Oh, right. You guys called off the engagement. Poor thing, got dumped.”
Elijah asked, “How do you know Amelia dumped Cameron?”
Xander rolled his eyes. “Isn’t it obvious?”
Bradley said nothing.
The four of them walked toward Amelia and Skyler. Cameron didn’t even glance in their direction and walked straight past them.
Amelia’s eyes briefly landed on Bradley before quickly looking away.
Skyler’s gaze locked on Elijah, her expression dreamy. “Hi, Elijah.”
“Do you need something?” Elijah replied coolly.
Skyler froze. ‘No, I’m just standing here so I can catch a glimpse of you,’ she thought.
After a moment of thinking, Skyler said, “Yeah. Amy has something she wants to tell you.”
‘If Amelia talks to Elijah for a bit, I’ll get to stare at him a little longer,’ she thought.
Amelia was momentarily caught off guard.
Amelia looked completely confused. ‘What would I even need to say to Elijah? Wasn’t it Skyler who said she wanted to talk to him again, so we’re just waiting here for that?’ she wondered.
Bradley followed closely behind Cameron. Xander, seeing that Skyler was heading toward Elijah, quietly stepped aside and left the group.
Elijah turned to Amelia with his usual cool expression. “What is it?”
Everyone privately referred to Elijah as cold and distant. He kept people at arm’s length, no matter who they were.
Amelia hesitated, clearly uncomfortable. After a moment, she said, “I just wanted to tell you the one who solved the math problem in the challenge room that day wasn’t me. Skyler was just joking.”
“That was me. I-I’m Skyler.” Skyler quickly raised her hand, afraid Elijah might miss her.
But Elijah barely glanced at her from the corner of his eye before turning and walking away. He had known from the start it was not Amelia. Otherwise, he would not have gone through all that trouble and expense trying to find’the real solver.
As soon as Elijah left, Skyler deflated like a balloon. “Why wouldn’t he even look at me?”
Amelia said calmly, “Knowing your place is a virtue.”
Skyler rolled her eyes. ‘Knowing my place? Is she saying I’m not good enough for Elijah? Rude,’ she wondered.
But Skyler remembered how she had just thrown Amelia under the bus, so she only pouted and let it go.
Bradley caught up with Cameron, and Xander trailed after them, too.
Bradley gave Cameron a wink, and she got the message instantly. Suddenly, Cameron took off running. In just a few seconds, she was completely out of sight.
“Where’d she go?” Xander asked, puzzled.
Even Xander, who had seen Cameron’s insane speed before, was surprised she could disappear in a matter of seconds.
Bradley shrugged. “No idea.”
Xander stood there, stunned. Bradley made his way straight to the underground parking lot.
Xander, unwilling to follow Bradley’s unpredictable habits, clicked his tongue and decided to take a break. He figured he might as well gather the team for some basketball later:
The match against Horizon Academy was right around the corner, and Xander knew they had to step up their game. Those Horizon guys were no joke.
Bradley drove off campus and pulled up to an intersection, where Cameron stood waiting with one hand tucked casually in her pocket. He tapped the horn lightly.
Cameron turned around. A playful spring breeze messed up her short-cropped hair, and the obsidian stud in her right ear sparkled under the sunlight. Her striking features caught the attention of more than a few students passing by.
She opened the passenger door and got in. Bradley grinned. “I’ve noticed Xander’s gotten kinda attached to you.”
Normally, Xander only showed up at the dorm to sleep. The rest of the time, he was practically gone. A group meal like today was rare.
“Has he?” Cameron replied offhandedly. “Brad, is it far from here?”
“Not really. You can close your eyes and rest if you want. I’ll wake you when we get there,” said Bradley.
“Alright.” Cameron leaned back and shut her eyes.
Bradley drove smoothly. The public office was nearly empty by midday, so they finished the paperwork quickly.
Back in the car, Cameron glanced down at the documents in her hands. When she saw the square footage listed, she blinked in surprise. “No way, it’s so huge.” But Bradley had mentioned it was a small house.
Bradley nodded. “Yeah. You should go check it out when you have time. The place is decently furnished. For now, think of it as your temporary home.”
