After lunch, we had an announcement in the main school hall for the upcoming Club Recruitment Week. Basically, booths everywhere where you sign up for whatever club you want. There were tables for sports, literature, arts, and more. But the most crowded? Robotics Club.
I swear I felt the excitement shockwaves from the entrance. The Star Section geniuses? All in. If they weren't raising their hands, they were holding giant "robotics enthusiast" banners. They were serious.
"Yeli! Sign up for Robotics Club! I need someone with energy—someone who's not afraid to do things," Bianca said, dragging me along. "They need fresh blood. That's you!"
"I'm sorry, what?" I said, still mentally recovering from the earlier lab chaos. "Fresh blood? I'm not a cyborg, okay?"
"Exactly!" Bianca grinned. "Sign already!"
I didn't even have time to react. One second I was eyeing the sports club table, the next—there was a pen in my hand, and Bianca was guiding it to the Robotics Club sign-up sheet.
Like I just got auto-enrolled without consent.
"Ughhh, I don't want to join! Bianca?!" I tried to backtrack, but it was too late. My name was on the list. I had zero idea what I just signed up for.
And just like that—Kairo arrived, followed by River, setting up papers for—whatever the heck—robotics project?
"Did you just join?" River asked while adjusting a robot blueprint. "Nice. We need extra hands... even though, well, this project might not be best for people who like using their hands."
I froze. I was in the robotics club?! How did this happen…
"Yeli, you signed up," Kairo said, not even glancing at me. "You're in. Congratulations, I guess."
Kairo, as usual, serving sarcasm with a side of brilliance.
But... no turning back?
"Wait, hold up!" I said, trying to defend myself. "I didn't even know what I was signing up for!"
"Weren't you watching us?" River smirked. "Robot-building, hello?"
"What?!" I said. "Robot building? That's your thing! I'm good at... surviving chem class. Where nothing explodes, okay?"
Bianca looked absolutely thrilled, like I was the world's coolest "accidental genius." "Yeli, you're mysterious! You're a perfect fit!"
I looked at the robot in front of me. Well, half a robot. With spaghetti-like wires poking out. It looked unfinished. Or maybe already fried.
Then Kairo looked at me, deadpan. "You'll figure it out. Just connect these." He pointed to the wires.
"Connect this? You're kidding." I gave him a look.
He smirked. "Don't worry. It's like a puzzle. And you're good at puzzles, right?"
NOOOOOOOOOOO!
-
The next day, after my oh-so-joyful accidental sign-up to Robotics Club, I couldn't help but feel I made a massive mistake. I'm not techy. I can't even assemble a water bottle properly—how was I supposed to build a robot?
But there I was, walking into the Robotics Lab, pretending like I had my life together. I didn't.
First thing I saw—Kairo, mad scientist mode, staring at a circuit board. Standing like he had a "don't talk to me" aura. Then there was River, messing with wires, looking like a cocky genius.
"Yeli!" River grinned. "Glad you made it. Don't worry, we'll teach you how not to blow things up."
Wow.
"Can you not give me wires? I might break something," I said, awkwardly approaching the work table.
"Oh, don't worry," River said, flashing a confident grin. "This is basic. Just match wires. No pressure."
I sat down, trying to look like I knew what I was doing. But truth? I was dead inside. My top skill right now? Cooking instant noodles and passing exams. Robots?
Not.
My.
Thing.
"Here," Kairo said suddenly. I looked at him—he handed me gloves. "Let's start simple. Just connect this wire to that part. Follow the diagram."
I looked at the diagram. Might as well have been ancient Chinese text. "Uh... sure. No pressure. I'll just... wing it."
River chuckled, "Okay, 'let's see what you got, genius'."
"Stop calling me that," I muttered, struggling to fit the wire in.
Kairo, unfazed, didn't even glance at me. "You know, 'winging it' doesn't always work with robots."
"I'm aware," I shot back, defensive.
Then, miracle of miracles—I connected the wire. It didn't explode. Small victory.
"Not bad," Kairo said with a little nod. "Maybe you've got potential."
I looked at River, who raised an eyebrow. "Did he just compliment you? Kairo complimented you?"
I glared. "Shut up."
But inside? I was squealing. Am I really getting giddy over a Kairo compliment? I don't know if I want to yell at him or hide under the table.
But then, the longer I stayed, the more I realized—this wasn't just about robots. It was about teamwork, too. And maybe, just maybe, I didn't have to make sense of everything. We were all struggling, but we were learning together.
~•~•~