Filed to story: That Campus Prince Is a Girl
Xander shut up immediately, thinking, ‘Shit. He took off his glasses. He actually took them off.
Instantly deflated, Xander scrambled to make r lo problem, Brad. I’ll move right now.”
Successfully unlocked!
He instantly grabbed his blanket and hurriedly eds nearby.
Bradley slowly slid his glasses back on, the corners of his lips lifting ever so slightly.
Cameron, still on her bed, stared in silent surprise. ‘Why does Xander look genuinely scared of him? I thought Bradley warned me not to mess with Xander. But could it be that Bradley’s actually the one no one should mess with in this dorm?’
Bradley looked over at Cameron. “Cameron, mind if I take the bed next to yours?”
There was that usual calm curve of his lips, that effortlessly elegant smile that made him look every bit the refined gentleman-poised, polished, untouchable.
Cameron met his gaze and nodded. “Sure.”
She knew he was helping her out. She thought, ‘Bradley’s actually kind of sweet. She hadn’t been in this dorm for long, but this wasn’t the first time he’d stepped in for her.
Bradley quietly moved his blanket to the bed beside hers and lay down, his feet pointed straight at Xander.
Xander rolled his eyes and promptly rotated too, aiming his feet back at Bradley.
Cameron had originally been lying with her head against the wall. Thinking it felt a little off to have her feet facing Bradley, she flipped her pillow and changed directions. Her head was now just about four inches from his.
“Thanks, Brad,” Cameron murmured.
Bradley replied, “No big deal. It’s late-get some sleep.”
“Okay.” Cameron pulled her curtain shut.
Hearing them whisper to each other, Xander let out a few dramatic snorts. He yanked the blanket over his face and thought, ‘I can’t believe this crap.’
When Elijah finally came out, the dorm had quieted down. Noticing Bradley had moved next to Cameron, he was a bit surprised but didn’t say anything. He switched off the lights, climbed into bed, and thought, ‘One hell of a night. Finally, some peace.
The next morning at six, Bradley was up for his usual run. He moved quietly, but it still woke Cameron.
She figured she might as well get up too. The moment her feet hit the floor, Xander followed. When she started brushing her teeth, he did the same-right next to her. It was starting to get on her nerves.
Eventually, Xander couldn’t hold it in any longer. “Pretty boy, with your shooting skills, why aren’t you on the school basketball team?”
Cameron replied flatly, “Not interested.”
That shut him up for a second, but then he tried again. “You’re insane at running too. Why not go the student-athlete route? Even if your grades suck, you could still get into a solid college.”
Cameron said, “Don’t need to.”
Xander was starting to get annoyed. “What is your deal, Cameron? I ask you anything and you shut me out, but when it’s Bradley, you’re all smiles.”
Cameron stayed cool. “How is that your business?”
Xander had no comeback for that.
Elijah, woken up again by their voices, finally lost his patience. As polite as he usually was, this was pushing it.
He sat up, pulled off his sleep mask, and looked toward the two by the sink. “Can you two not argue in the morning?”
“We’re not arguing,” Xander said.
Cameron glanced at Elijah..”Didn’t you say you were gonna kick me out of Room 316 the day I moved in? Why don’t you kick him out instead?”
Xander snapped, “What the hell is that supposed to mean? You trying to get rid of me through someone else now? Keep dreaming. I’m not going anywhere.”
Elijah said coldly, “The one who should leave is you, Cameron.”
Cameron’s lips curled slightly as she stared at him, waiting for him to finish.
His normally calm expression was tinged with clear frustration. “Cameron, aren’t you the one who should be gone? Ever since you moved in, this dorm’s been in chaos.”
Elijah hated arguing, but this had pushed him time. But now, he couldn’t even get a good nigh
Cameron replied, forry. Not leaving.”
Xander chimed in, “Yeah. She’s staying.”
Elijah was speechless.
Successfully unlocked!
Elijah’s brows tightened, and his dislike for Cameron deepened. With the conversation hitting a dead end, he didn’t bother saying more.
After finishing her morning routine, Cameron changed into her school uniform and walked out of the dorm. Xander quickly caught up and stopped her. “Cameron, I wasn’t done talking to you.”
Cameron said flatly, “Talk.”
Xander frowned. “You’re being way too cold to me.”
As Cameron turned to leave, he hurriedly said, “Cameron, I’m giving you a shot here. If you ask nicely, I’ll let you join the school basketball team. You could play next month against Horizon Academy.”
“No need,” Cameron replied without slowing down, heading straight for the academic building.
Xander took long strides to keep up. “Cameron, you know, people beg me for this kind of opportunity and I still turn them down. I’m only offering because we’re in the same dorm. Don’t be ungrateful.”
Cameron stopped in her tracks. “I enjoy being ungrateful.”
Xander was instantly lost for words.
Cameron walked another fifty feet before he called out behind her, “Hey, you seriously don’t wanna join the team?”
“Seriously,” she called back without looking over her shoulder.
Xander fell silent, thinking, ‘This little punk’s seriously stubborn as hell.’
After the morning study hall, Elijah went straight to the advisory teacher Brody. He didn’t beat around the bush. “Mr. Graham, I want Cameron transferred out of Room 316. He’s seriously messing with my ability to focus.”
Brody asked, “What exactly has he done?”
Elijah replied, “He and Xander argue constantly. It’s affecting my rest.”
Brody fell silent for a moment, then said, “Hold on. I’ll call Cameron over.”
That’s not necessary,” Elijah said. He didn’t want to argue, didn’t want conflict.
But Brody insisted, “I still need to hear his side of the story.” He treated both straight-A students and those barely scraping by with the same fairness.
Elijah frowned. “Forget it.” He pondered, ‘What a hassle. Might as well wait and see for now!’
It was Friday. After classes ended in the afternoon, the weekend officially began.
Cameron had planned to borrow a few books to read. On her way back to the dorm from the library at noon, she was suddenly stopped by a group of girls, each one looking visibly upset.
One of them stepped forward and scolded accusingly, “Cameron, you put Xander in the hospital and embarrassed him. You must be real proud of yourself.”
It turned out that Xander’s fangirls had come to avenge their idol.
Cameron looked at them expressionlessly, set her books gently on the ground, and slowly cracked her knuckles. Her sharp gaze landed squarely on the girl leading the charge. “Are you coming one by one, or all at once?”
The girls all froze, staring at each other in shock. Cameron stood there, her whole presence exuding a chilling intensity. Not a single one of them dared to step forward.
Just a moment ago, they’d looked so righteously fired up, ready to seek justice for Xander. But now, they were all too scared to move.
Cameron narrowed her eyes, already losing patience. “If you’re gonna do it, then hurry up. If not, get out of my way.” Still, no one moved.
She bent down and picked up her books. As she straightened up and walked forward, the crowd instinctively parted to make way.
Just as she passed, the ringleader mustered up one last shout. “Cameron, don’t get cocky. Maybe we can’t deal with you, but I doubt the Academic Office can’t.”
Cameron just scoed, thinking, ‘The Academic Office? What for? What exactly did I do? I just played basketball with Xander and we ran a couple laps together. He fainted because he was weak. How’s that my fault?’
She wasn’t fazed in the slightest. But sure enough, during the break that afternoon, Cameron got summoned to the Student
Affairs Director’s office.
In Class 10 of the senior year, Xander sat slouched in his seat, a tower of books stacked in front of him. Propping up his chin, he racked his brain, trying to figure out how to convince Cameron to join the school basketball team.
Last year, Langford Academy had scraped by in their match against Horizon Academy. This year, Xander wanted a solid win -no close calls.
Cameron had the skills. Xander really wanted her on the team but she didn’t seeme least bit interested.