The assembly ended with the usual parade of announcements—new school session, freshmen being welcomed, and finally the Tudors High anthem that no one actually sang.
Students filed out of the hall in neat pairs, looking far too proper in their blue coats, grey vests, and perfectly pressed pants or skirts. Tudors was a private school with just enough prestige to make everyone act like they were walking down a runway. Some kids came from far away, some lived in the dorms, but all of them somehow managed to look immaculate this early in the morning.
Kai and the other student council members stayed behind for a quick chat, pretending to look responsible while most of them just wanted to escape to class. He'd left his bag in his homeroom earlier that morning, back when he was helping Yi Fan find his way around.
By the time Kai pushed open the classroom door, the teacher hadn't arrived yet, but the room buzzed with noise.
"Kai! Prez!" Anton called out, grinning from where he sat with the basketball team. They were halfway through bothering Ben again, who looked both amused and exhausted, like he'd accepted his fate a long time ago.
At the sound of Kai's name, the group's laughter simmered down.
"What's up?" Kai tossed back, but his focus shifted when he saw something odd.
Someone was sitting next to his bag.
No one ever sat there. Not even Emma. The seat had practically been claimed as Kai's personal no-go zone. But the curls peeking above the desk were familiar.
Kai knocked gently on the tabletop. The boy sitting there lifted his head, revealing brown, fluffy hair and a smile that dug dimples deep into his cheeks.
"Kai, hi!" Yi Fan said brightly. "Can I sit here? It's the only empty seat I saw."
Kai glanced around. Technically, there were other spots. Occupied by half-open bags, books, or students mid-conversation, but still… spots. He should say no. He really should.
Instead, he shrugged. "Yeah, sure. I sit alone anyway, so you're good."
Yi Fan's smile widened, and before Kai could second-guess the decision, the bell rang. The teacher swept in, arms full of books, and class launched into a blur of equations Kai didn't understand but still copied down. He'd figure them out later. That was the routine.
By lunchtime, the hallways no longer held the orderly lines from the morning. Students rushed in packs toward the cafeteria, the smell of fries and mystery meat pulling them like magnets.
Emma had already secured their usual table, waving when Kai entered. Ben sat beside her, blond hair catching the light while he poked halfheartedly at his food.
Yi Fan trailed after Kai like it was the most natural thing in the world. Kai wanted to stop him. He really did. But the words wouldn't come out.
"Kai! Yi Fan! Over here!" Emma called, patting the seat next to her.
They slid into place. Almost immediately, Ben leaned across the table with a grin. "You're the new kid, huh?"
Kai swatted at Ben's hand before it reached Yi Fan.
"Oh, come on, Kai! Don't listen to him," Ben said, eyes twinkling. "I'm a nice guy. Ignore whatever he tells you about me."
Yi Fan smiled politely. "I'm Yi Fan. Nice to meet you." He didn't extend a hand, though.
Kai noticed, and a small wave of satisfaction washed over him—until he realized Yi Fan was holding a juice box in one hand and a chicken drumstick in the other. There was no way a handshake could've happened anyway.
Kai pretended not to notice and enjoyed the victory anyway.
The rest of lunch passed in a blur of gossip, fries, and Kai trying to pay attention to his friends without staring too much at Yi Fan. Somehow, the new kid had managed to attract a small orbit of attention just by existing.
By mid-afternoon, the final bell rang. Students poured out of classrooms like water from a burst pipe. Kai lingered just a little, heading toward the student council office with Anton, Mara, and Emma, who carried herself with a practiced confident air. She literally faked it till she made it.
"So, Prez," Anton said, throwing an arm around Kai's shoulder, "did you see the look on Ben's face when Yi Fan sat next to you? Priceless."
Kai rolled his eyes. "I barely noticed."
"Uh-huh," Mara said, smirking. "Sure you didn't. Totally not watching him the whole class."
Emma leaned against the doorframe with a smile that mixed amusement and exasperation. "You're hopeless, Kai. Focus on your duties, not daydreaming about the new guy."
Kai shot her a glare, but inside, he had to admit she wasn't entirely wrong.
The council office was quiet compared to the hallway chaos. Papers stacked neatly, a few posters pinned to the wall, and a faint smell of old coffee hanging in the air. Kai dropped his bag on the couch, trying to focus on the agenda for the day: organizing sports schedules, approving club requests, and making sure the freshmen didn't accidentally break anything important.
Emma settled into the chair across from him, flipping through the stack of meeting notes. "Okay, Prez. First order of business: make sure the basketball schedule doesn't conflict with the homecoming planning committee. Then we'll talk club budgets." She glanced at Kai, eyebrow raised. "You can handle that, right?"
"Yeah, yeah," Kai muttered, trying not to drift off in thought.
And then he saw him.
Yi Fan.
Walking across the parking lot like he owned the place, casual and graceful despite carrying a backpack slung over one shoulder. A black G-Wagon waited by the curb. The driver opened the door. Yi Fan gave a small wave and climbed in, and the car pulled away, the engine growling like it had somewhere very important to be.
Kai blinked. His focus wavered completely.
Why does he make leaving look like a performance?
Emma nudged him lightly. "Prez? You're spacing again. Focus. We still have a ton to get done."
Kai blinked back at her, forcing his attention to the papers. "Yeah. Fine."
But he wasn't fine. He couldn't shake the image of Yi Fan stepping into the car, that little wave, the ease with which he moved through the world. It didn't make sense. A new kid, a pretty boy, and suddenly he couldn't stop thinking about him.
Emma, oblivious to Kai's internal chaos, continued, "Honestly, you need to stop looking like you're in a daze. The council can't run itself."
Kai sighed, muttering under his breath. "Focus, Kai. Focus. You have work to do."
Yet every time he closed his eyes, he could still see the curls of Yi Fan's hair catching the sunlight, his almond-shaped eyes, the faint curve of a smile that had somehow made the whole cafeteria chaos fade away for a moment.
Kai slumped back in his chair, glancing at Emma who was sorting through schedules with a precision only the Vice President could manage. Maybe today wasn't the day to pretend everything was normal.