Deloise was in her Royal Arts dorm room. Since her arrival the previous day, she was upied with unpacking and getting her schedule ready. For the first time in a while she was finally getting free time to properly settle in before ssesmenced.


    La – who was tired from her seven o’clock ss- dozed off the moment she returned. She could tell that her roomate wasn’t a morning person.


    Nevertheless, Deloise was happy to finally get settled inside her room and got busy on her phone, going through the inte, when she came across a picture of a popr mother and daughter duo in the industry.This is property ? N?velDrama.Org.


    For a while, she analyzed the picture with a ghost smile. How great would it be if she had her mother with her on this journey? Deloise wondered if a time woulde when she got the support of her mother.


    As though the earth heard her thoughts, her phone broke out in a loud ring, and to her utmost surprise, it was her mother!


    How on earth she decided to call at that point in time was a thought that scared Deloise. A thousand thoughts filled her head on why she was calling her. What if she’s been found out? Maybe Anna told her?


    Deloise’s mind was a tug, while the phone rang for the third time. Biting the bullet, Deloise swiped green.


    ” Baby! Where have you been? I was getting a little worried when you weren’t picking up.” Her mother’s worried voice made its way into her ears.


    ” Uh, um, I mean, yeah.” She managed to reply, hyperventting.


    ” Those aren’t words, are you okay? Should I be worried?” Esther said, her motherly instincts up and gauging her daughter’s reactions.


    ” No mum! I’m okay, just erm… I was erm… ” Deloise struggled to speak, she looked to the side, saw a sleeping La and immediately blurted, ” Sleeping! I was sleeping.” She said to her mother who was quiet behind the phone.


    ” Hello? ” Deloise called out when she received no response from her mother’s end.


    ” Yeah, I’m still here. I could tell something was wrong with you, I guess I woke you up. I’m sorry, I just missed you a lot.” Esther said and she felt relieved.


    ” It’s okay. It’s fine.” She said, feeling terrible for the tant lie she had resorted to in order to cover her slip ups.


    ” Since you’re already up, tell me, how’s school going over there, and Anna? Is she with you? ”


    ” Uhm, it’s fine mom, can we talkter, I need to go, take care of yourself, I love you, bye! ” Deloise rushed out, ending the call without waiting for a reply from her mom.


    Deloise let out a huge sigh of relief. She didn’t realize she held her breath the entire time. The fact that talking to her mom now gave her a ustrophobic reaction threw her mood downhill.


    How did it get to this point? She wondered painfully but decided against dwelling on it. It was only going to hurt her.


    She threw her phone by the side of her bed andid down properly. Exhausted and feeling the need for somefort food, she got up, deciding to explore the food spots on campus.


    With a stroll, she made her way out of the dorm, breathing through the situation and hopeful for the best.


    *****


    Inside one of the cafeterias on campus, Aaron, Ste and Tony were seated together, sharing a table. The Royal Arts cafeteria was the best you could find in the school environs. It was usually always packed with hungry students in need of a snack.


    It was also a throbbing spot where all manners of meetings, hangouts and gossip took ce. To add to the allure, their burgers were nothing short of heavenly.


    ” For getting the role, you sure are cranky. ” Ste said to Aaron, and sipped her drink.


    ” Yeah, one would think he didn’t get the role. He’s been in a piss mood for some days, it’s like living under a dark cloud. ” Tony added with a joking tone, knowing his friend wasn’t in his best mood.


    Aaron didn’t humor them with a reply. He wasn’t in the best mood and despite knowing the role yed part of the reason, he knew it wasn’t all there is to it.


    It was the fact that he suddenly didn’t feel like dropping out of the damned production. The fact that he couldn’t seem to sessfully push thoughts of his firecracker out of his head.


    His conflict was annoying as he always knew what he wanted. He had always been clear on what mattered and what didn’t, but recently, everything seemed to be spiraling out of control.


    His thoughts, his decision making process, and the fact that he unconsciously longed to get another glimpse of the little firecracker who got the role of lead female was concerning.


    Another angle was the fact he didn’t inform Ste that the role she coveted was taken by someone else. Not only that, but he found himself yearning for the shoot to begin.


    It was a weird dynamic for him, coupled with the fact that he’d been given an extra week to decide if he still wanted out of the production.


    ” Uhm, hey, Aaron.. Hello?! ” The voice of Ste snapped him back to reality.


    ” Are you done eating?” Aaron asked as he got out of his reverie, noticing the attention on him.


    ” Uh, yeah? Ages ago. What’s up with you man?” Tony asked, point nk worried about his friend.


    ” I’m okay, I just..” Aaron replied and suddenly went quiet midway. He couldn’t believe his eyes. It was her.


    The little firecracker he’d been on the lookout for. She literally walked inside the cafeteria looking lost and cute as ever. Before he could stop himself, Aaron stood up and took purposeful, confident strides towards her direction. Having no idea what he was going to do.


    Meanwhile, Ste and Tony remained seated. Tony looked at him with an amused look while Ste bored a hole behind him.