INVISIBLE STRINGS ~ Scoups [C]

🎀9

The next day, the air in the classroom was filled with the usual chatter, but Scoups felt an unusual weight in the atmosphere. He sat in his usual seat, his gaze occasionally drifting toward Y/N, who was engrossed in a conversation with Yeri.

Her laughter echoed faintly, but it wasn’t directed at him anymore.

"Are you going to keep staring or actually do something about it?" Mingyu whispered as he leaned on Scoups' desk.

Scoups shot him a glare. "I wasn’t staring."

Mingyu smirked. "Right. Keep telling yourself that."

Joshua joined them, casually flipping through a notebook. "You could try talking to her, you know."

"She doesn’t want to talk to me" Scoups muttered, his voice tinged with frustration.

"Maybe she’s done chasing after you" Jun replied calmly. "But that doesn’t mean you can’t start chasing her."

Scoups frowned, his fingers tightening around his pen.

As the day went on, an announcement rang through the PA system.

"Attention, students! The final class project of the year will be a collaborative activity between pairs. Partners will be assigned randomly. The list is posted outside the faculty room."

The hallway buzzed with anticipation as students rushed to check the list.

Y/N and Yeri walked toward the crowd casually, not overly concerned.

"You think we’ll get lucky and end up as partners?" Yeri asked.

Y/N shrugged. "Knowing my luck, probably not."

As they reached the list, Y/N scanned the names and froze.

"Y/N… and Scoups."

Yeri blinked. "Well, that’s… interesting."

Y/N exhaled sharply but kept her expression neutral. "It’s fine. It’s just a project."

Behind them, Scoups approached, reading the list. His jaw tightened when he saw the pairing.

"Looks like we’re partners" Y/N said evenly, turning to him.

Scoups nodded stiffly. "Yeah."

Yeri watched the interaction with narrowed eyes, sensing the tension but deciding not to comment.

Later that afternoon, Y/N and Scoups met in the library to discuss their project. The table between them felt like a chasm.

"I think we should divide the work" Y/N began, her tone professional.

"Okay" Scoups replied shortly.

"I can handle the research and initial draft. You can take care of the analysis and presentation" Y/N suggested, not looking directly at him.

Scoups frowned. "That’s not fair. Let’s split the research, too."

Y/N blinked, surprised by his input, but nodded. "Fine. We’ll each do half and compare notes."

As they worked in silence, Scoups kept glancing at Y/N, searching for any trace of the warmth she used to show him. But her focus remained entirely on the task at hand.

As they left the library, the sun was beginning to set, casting a warm glow over the campus.

"Thanks for meeting today" Y/N said, her voice polite but distant.

Scoups hesitated, his hands shoved into his pockets. "Y/N… about what happened at camp—"

"You don’t have to explain" Y/N interrupted, her tone calm but firm. "It’s in the past."