Every year, the conference wasn''t just a battle of wits between universities; it was a stage to unt the students'' prowess. Way more intense than those high school speeches.
Mirabe eyed the slides on the stage, letting out a soft tut.
Thank goodness she was just along for the ride and not in the hot seat.
Otherwise, she''d be going bald before her time.
The morning zipped by in no time.
Lunch was set up at Riverside University''s East Dining Hall. After wrapping up the morning session, a guide led the student crew over.
And who else but Summer was their guide? Even though she almost lost it over Mirabe''s earlier attitude, she stuck to her duties.
Summer led them to the dining hall and left without a second nce at Mirabe, as if they wereplete strangers, just like Mirabe had imed that morning.
Watching Summer walk away, Patrick adjusted his sses. "They say women and petty folks are tough to get along with. Seems there''s a nugget of truth there."
He''d sensed some serious attitude from her earlier, but now, she was unreadable.
Mirabe, thedy in question, raised an eyebrow at him. "Patrick, I bet you don''t have a girlfriend, right?"
"Mira, let''s keep it friendly and skip the personal digs, okay?" Patrick replied with a mock-serious tone.
As long as he didn''t let it get to him, no one else could either.
Mirabe mimed zipping her lips.
Patrick chuckled, shaking his head, and got up. "What''s everyone craving? I''ll grab us some grub."
"I''m in," ze chimed in.
Mirabe squinted at the whiteboard with today''s specials from afar and rattled off
a bunch of dishes without missing a beat.
Patrick and ze were taken aback.
"You can see that from here?" ze asked, surprised. Unlike Patrick, he didn''t need sses, but even he
make out the menu from distance.
Mirabe leaned on her hands. "I''ve got eagle eyes."
ze felt a bit slighted but let it slide.
Soon, the pair went off to get the food.
Mirabe stayed behind with Denny, chatting about the morning''s
Her phone buzzed a few tents.
pocket, but she paid it no
After lunch, she finally checked her phone.
Four messages, all from the same number.
her
The familiarity of the digits made Mirabe''s grip tighten, her eyes shing with a dangerous glint.
It took all her willpower to push down her emotions and regain her cool.
But if you looked closely, her mood was still sour.
Mirabe closed her eyes for a
moment, slipped her phone back et
into her
pocket, and stood up. "Gotta
hit the restroom," she told her friends.
ze and the gang were still deep in conference talk and didn''t notice her vibe. They just waved her off.
Mirabe left the dining hall, not heading toward the restroom but taking a detour down a side path.
She didn''t even check the signs or ask for directions, already knowing the way to the address from the text message.