[Music Recommendation: "Interweave" by Chewie Melodies (Genshin Impact OST) - available in Youtube or Spotify] ~ Please listen to it in a loop while you read this part to experience the utmost beauty of this chapter ~

"I-it's a bit crowded," Hora replied in a murmur. Whether it was hesitation or just the anxiousness from her voice, I wasn't sure, but one thing I'm certain was that… she didn't want her to join us. As to what her reason was, I had no idea.

If I were to be honest, it wasn't true that it was crowded. The couch we sat on was good for eight to ten people. Two slim females would barely add up to space. Our bags were all hanging on the hooks under the table so they didn't sit on the couch. There was literally enough space for four more people. Two could sit on either sides—beside Callan or Kaiden, or beside Crystal and me, since we were the ones located on the outer sides of the couches.

"You're Hora's cousin, right?" Callan asked, bursting the short silence.

"Yes, that's right!" Silky replied, with her face beaming in happiness.

"Yeah. I remember you. We met you… I think it was two weeks back?"

Silky nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! You were one of those handsome guys Senara was with. You and…" turning to Kaiden, she pointed her fingers at him and said, "him! Sorry, I forgot your names."

"Callan," he answered. "And that's Kaiden. This guy in the middle is Verrill, and the beautiful queen in front of me is Crystal. You already know Hora and Senara."

"I see. Thanks. Can we—?"

"Oh yeah, sure. Feel free to sit anywhere," Callan answered for all of us.

Why in the world was he being friendly now? Was it because they were beautiful ladies? So unfair. I never got that same treatment when we first met. Urgh… this guy seriously couldn't read the atmosphere. Would it hurt if he paid a little attention to Hora? But then again his eyes were all fixed to Crystal. Oh no… what to do? Would Hora be okay with this?

I glanced over Hora and as expected, her face turned horrid. She tried to smile and put on a nice face but I knew her too well to be swayed with her acting skills.

"Aw! Did you just step on me, Verrill?" Callan groaned and bent down, trying to touch his feet.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to. I didn't notice your foot was on the way," Verrill smiled at him with that kind princely smile but his tone was definitely not as kind. At least he noticed Hora… I think.

"Thank you!" Silky smiled again and helped themselves to sit down. "Senara, can I sit beside you?"

"Huh? S-sure," I answered right away and moved a bit.

Sarah on the other hand, looked like she didn't know where to sit. Noticing this, Silky turned to her and said, "Sarah, why don't you sit in front of me so we're not so far apart?"

Sarah's innocent face turned perplexed. "In front of you?" Then, she turned her head and noticed that the seat in front of her was… the one beside Kaiden. And they were all boys on that side. She looked hesitant to sit with them. After all, she was just new in the circle and didn't know any of us. Of course, she would be hesitant.

But more than that… for some weird reason, I suddenly felt a stinging pain in my heart. The thought of another woman sitting beside Kaiden… somehow, it didn't sit well with me.

"Go on, don't be shy. They're all kind people," Silky urged her.

And so, Sarah turned to Kaiden. They both looked at each other's eyes, as if trying to speak through their eyes. Kaiden didn't move at first but Callan moved, and Verrill as well, sighing, so he also—

"Sena!" Hora suddenly called my name, disturbing me from staring at Kaiden and Sarah. "Why don't you sit beside Kaiden instead so Silky and Sarah can sit together?" A desperate smile could be seen from her face.

"A-ahm… r-right," I replied.

Kaiden's face that turned sour and grumpy a moment ago, immediately lit up.

"Yeah, that's right," he agreed. "Sena, come here." He stretched out his hand and gestured for me to come over.

Silky tensed up a bit while Sarah seemed to like the idea very much. She quickly went beside Silky who by then, stood up to give way to me. And so, the seating arrangement dilemma was quickly resolved. I sat beside Kaiden, and Silky and Sarah sat beside Hora.

'Phew! I'm so glad that was over. The stinging pain in my heart was gone in an instant as well. Of course, who wouldn't be jealous when you see a girl prettier than you sitting beside your boyfriend? Haah… It seems like I'm the jealous type, huh? I should have thought of that from the beginning. Why was I so easily swept away by Silky's whims? Weird. Anyway, good catch there Hora.'

After that, we all ordered our food and ate while chatting. From our chat, I learned that Silky and Sarah took business management courses and they met two weeks ago when Silky was assigned to the same room as her in the school dormitory. They became close easily, especially because Sarah was so kind.

Being a girl like her, would there even be anyone crazy enough not to like her? Jealous maybe, but not hate. It was simply impossible to hate someone as angelic as her. She was quite funny, too, and so very sweet. Watching her talk and smile and laugh made me want to be just like her in the future—if I could ever pull off the same elegance and vibe as her. Truly, she's an amazing person.

As I observed Sarah, the more I got convinced that she would definitely make a perfect reference for my heroine Rania in my new book. Personality wise, looks, intellect, and beliefs—everything was perfect just like how Kaiden's personality was perfect for my male lead Elliot. I really loved their pair and I personally thought that their romance would be the most perfect one in the story as well.

It was then that it started to hit me…

Sarah and Kaiden… weren't they perfect for each other as well?

Yeah, just like Rania and Elliot...

And so… my heart started to ache once again.