The tent was filled with sparkling white cat designs. Cute kitty cats were everywhere, surrounded by bright, glittering starry skies and cat stickers.
Dwayne: "..."
He had a feeling he knew who designed this tent.
"Dwayne! Come on now, let's get you changed!" The kind, enthusiastic senior who had exposed him at the gate was running towards him.
Seeing her with a change of clothes and a cat-ear headband scared Dwayne's fragile heart.
"Senior Lila… you're the one behind this, aren't you?"
Lila, with her long hair in a ponytail, laughed. "Come on, Dwayne. It's not every day we have this contest, okay? And did you know contestants will get 25% of the money given to them by the audience?"
Dwayne's eyes lit up. "Really?"
Dwayne suddenly became conscious of how he reacted, so he put on a neutral face and cleared his throat.
"So, are you determined to win now?" Lila teased.
Dwayne nodded nonstop, nearly causing his head to fall off.
He was determined to work hard. Who wouldn't be? There were already plenty of benefits.
First, he wouldn't have to take the exam for the Arithmetic subject with Professor Richard. And if he won, he'd be exempted for the whole semester!
"Ah!" Dwayne suddenly screamed, catching Lila's attention.
"Oh, what's wrong?"
Dwayne bit his lip and shook his head. Covering his mouth, he looked like a small child afraid of being found out for stealing a cake.
Lila couldn't help herself and ruffled Dwayne's brown hair, giving special attention to the small curl on top of his head.
"So cute!"
"I'm. not. cute."
Lila was used to Dwayne's counter whenever his cuteness was praised.
He was always talking about how "being called cute would hurt his pride as a man or whatnot."
Dwayne followed Lila towards the dressing room to change outfits. As he walked along silently, Dwayne didn't forget to whisper to the Matchmaker System.
"If I fail, will there be any consequences?"
[No, it's only for the missions, host. That's where there will be punishment. But for side tasks like this, it's okay to fail. I do encourage you to complete the side task. It will also bring you nice rewards that can aid you in completing your missions.]
Dwayne swallowed hard. He wasn't confident he'd be able to pull it off. He had just met the scary man yesterday…
But, but he said "Mhm," right? That means he agreed?
He will support me, right?
Dwayne couldn't continue with his overthinking. Lila shoved him inside the dressing room with a white fancy long-sleeve shirt and black pants.
After five minutes, he came out looking lost. Lila dragged him into the next room, where she attached white cat ears to his head, making sure his curly brown hair wasn't disrupted.
The other seniors joined Lila, and they put light makeup on his face.
The chattering female seniors made Dwayne dizzy.
"Gosh, Lila, where did you find this little cutie?"
"Our department will surely win this competition!"
"No, no, I don't want to put makeup on his face anymore. He already looks too good. So precious. Junior, if you want to become a model, I can refer you to an agency my brother works at!"
Dwayne was flustered by their enthusiasm. He hastily declined their proposals.
When they finished touching up his appearance, they forced him to sit in the center of the tent. One of the girls brought a cat carrier and handed Dwayne a cute white kitten with blue and green eyes.
"For today's competition, I especially brought my cat, Beauty! Now, Dwayne, can you hold her by the stomach?"
Dwayne looked at the cute kitten with sparkling eyes. Afraid he would hurt the kitten, he delicately held it in his lap and rubbed its chin and forehead.
With a cat treat in his right hand, the kitten behaved in his lap. Its pink mouth and small red tongue licked the snack with gusto.
Dwayne smiled at the cute little thing, observing it closely and occasionally scratching its soft belly and fur.
Dwayne had always loved cats. He didn't keep it a secret from his seniors, especially the couple Lila and Zack.
When he saw the tent decorated with fluffy white cats and cute cat stickers, he could already guess who was behind it.
At first, there was still reluctance in his heart. But he let go of all negative feelings when they let him be accompanied by this pretty, cute kitten.
Dwayne was so invested in looking at the cute kitten that he didn't pay attention to his surroundings.
The competition had already started unbeknownst to him.
The contestants had to stay in each of their tents after the opening ceremony.
When Raven gave his speech for the opening, Dwayne wasn't able to see it.
Cole promptly informed Raven about the meeting they needed to attend in thirty minutes. He expected Raven to come with him to the parking lot, so he led the way.
But the person disappeared halfway, scaring Cole out of his wits.
Cole immediately went back to the center stage and managed to find Professor Richard among the crowd.
"Professor, did you see the President?"
Professor Richard was perplexed.
"Eh? Didn't you leave with him?"
Cole was at a loss. He adjusted his glasses and said,
"Yes, we were on our way to the parking lot when he disappeared midway. I checked on our car, but he wasn't there. Both of his personal and work phones were left in the car."
Professor Richard pondered for a moment.
"Maybe, Mr. Cole, you should come with me. I think I have an idea where to find him."
Cole wanted to ask where, but the professor had already walked a few steps away, excusing himself from his fellow colleagues. He did not give Cole any chance to ask what he has on mind.
They headed toward the activity center in the right building. Many students were present, showing their support for the different departments' contestants.