"Congratulations to all of you who submitted the business plan for your SME project this semester. I've seen a lot; good and worse," the whole class can't help but laugh when their beloved lecturer rolls his eyes when he mentions the worst.
"For those who receive low marks, consider it as a soft warning for you. Grill your asses, or you might see me again next semester. Maybe I'm the one who will grill your ass!"
Again, the whole room cracks with laughter.
"So, right now, I have good news, and bad news..."
"There must be bad news behind the good one..." Han gushes to Pan and Yara. Both of them nod in unison. This is normal for them. There will be no good news without the bad one.
"The dean watched your presentation videos. He liked some of it. And of course, cracking his head while watching some..."
They laugh a bit. Then, the air feels tense.
"So, he gave a suggestion. A good one. Some of you really do your best to catch his attention. So, we decided to put it in real-time," the lecturer smirks.
"What do you mean, sir?" asks one of the students.
"The institute will be held more events in the future. One of them is Open Day. So, we decided to place some of you and your SME business plan into a real-time business. We will give you the opportunity to open a booth and sells your merchandise," the kecturer replies.
There are a lot of murmurs circulate around the classroom. Some sound excited, however, some feel the tense.
"That might be a lot of work..." Han gushes upon the news break.
"We already swarm with assignments and more paper works. Final is just around the corner as well..." Yara's head flops back and she is on the start of her snooze mode.
Pan keeps her composure tight. She can feel the tense as well, but she chose to be positive about it.
"The good news is, not all of you will participate in the booth sale for the Open Day," a small shriek cheering can be heard among them. "But, you might participate in Sports Day later, who knows..."
The crowd falls in slumps again.
"As for now, we will emphasize the Open Day project first. The faculty had decided to give 10 spots for the lucky students, based on your performance during the SME project presentation. So, those students are..." the announcement stirs the classroom.
Pan feels her pocket is vibrating. She takes out her phone.
One new message from Cray.
She held a deep sigh. Conversation last night still makes her head spinning.
"Oh.. what were you talking with Senior Cray last night?" asks Yara.
"You met Cray last night?!" Han half-shrieks. Pan pinches his forearm, leaving a red mark. The man replies him with a playful little smack.
"You seem to forgo your friend when you're with him..."
"Excuse me sir, but I never say anything when you used your mom as a fake excuse to escape and ditched us last night!" Pan glares at Han.
"I am not!" Han denies with his might.
"Aha... Explain your IG Story last night! You mom lives in a condo next to your boarding. Wow..." Pan rolls her eyes up. Yara gives Han a meh look, and nods in tiny, agree with his sneaky moves last night.
"That...that... That picture is a throwback-"
"My friend saw you dropped something at the condo's dropping point. Details: a snack for a senior..." Han hushes Yara immediately.
"The next spot is for... Athiyara Auswitz!"
Yara froze on her spot. She skims around. Her name was being called.
"Congratulations, my friend!!!" Han shakes her hand vigorously. Pan smiles at Yara, feeling proud for her as well.
"What?! But, I'm not prepare for this!"
"Now you can make some preparation then!" Yara shoots a sharp glare to Han. The man zips his mouth.
Pan slowly grabs Yara's hand and gives her as an assurance.
"You got this, Yara! It's okay. We can help you. Me and Han," she squeezes Yara's hand and tries to calm her down.
"And the next spot is Pandora Araya!"
"Oh no..." Pan turns bleak. She looks at Yara who now is staring at her in frustration.
"Now, I think I lost a hand..." she murmurs silently.
***
Pan strolls the path while having a lot of thoughts; SME Project, finals, assignments and more on her list. Conversation between her and Cray last night almost disperse before her eyes. It seems like it's not important anymore.
Having a relationship sounds scary for her current lifestyle. She has Shu and it's important for her to take care of her daughter's feeling as well. It's gonna be hard for Shu to blend with a stranger, now that Pan is aware about Shu and Zee.
But, how can she say no to Cray? The man never hurts her. Unlike Zee who always gatekeeping and Aye Yi who keep asking for trouble. The only thing that Pan worries if Cray can blend well with Shu.
And that's it.
"Don't worry about your daughter. I'm not that narrow minded person..."
Those words dance in her ears as she lets out a huge sigh. People might choose to give empty assurance, it's normal when you haven't get what you want, yet. What about his family, then? If Pan wants to have a relationship, she knows there won't be only two of them. Gradually, family will get interfere as well.
Sometimes that she should have a deep thoughts for the sake of the future.
"Pan!"
A honk sound wakes her up from her thoughts. As she turns her head towards the sound, she can't help but feeling anxious all of a sudden.
"Hop in. Let's have a dinner,"
There is Cray, smiling at Pan. She fails to react well, so Cray walks out from his car, running towards the passenger seat's door and open it.
"Come. Let's go..."