"You are here."
Beatrice's face instantly brightened when Harmony opened the door to their classroom.
"I promised," she replied.
"Let's take pictures now," Kathrine announced.
From group photos to pictures of three or two of them, some with all four guys and one girl—different pictures were taken without pause. They chose not to check them yet and simply took as many photos as they could.
Once they got tired, they positioned the chairs in a circular arrangement before sitting down.
"So, it's time," Beatrice started.
"It was a short while, but it was really fun," Kathrine followed.
"You sound like we wouldn't be seeing one another any longer," Justin instantly rebuked.
Kathrine just glared at him. Retorting would only disrupt the mood right now.
"Oh, speaking of which, here you go, guys," Kenneth suddenly said, tossing something to the three ladies.
"What's this?" Kathrine asked, raising a wristband.
"That's the wristband I've used since I started high school," Kenneth proudly said.
"Eww."
Kathrine tossed it, causing the wristband to land on Beatrice, who was already holding the headband.
She blinked when even Harmony handed her the other wristband without saying anything.
"I'd rather receive Brother Elson's second button."
"Do see him around?" Justin instantly reacted.
Kathrine stuck out her tongue
"That's rude. Do you know how many girls would love it if I gave those to them?" Kenneth commented after.
"Anyway, Justin is right. It's not like we won't be seeing one another again. Plus, we're in an advanced era—there are a lot of ways to communicate with one another," he continued, completely cutting off Kathrine's retort.
The opposite of her decision moments ago to not retort.
"Indeed, we can video call one another," Luca also said.
"We're all acquaintances—let's all be honest," Kathrine spoke up.
Beatrice smiled in return. Indeed, shouldn't they all be honest at this point?
"Despite all this, in the end, none of us have deepened our friendship," Kathrine continued.
"Except, well, I would like to say that Beatrice and I wish to seriously befriend you, Harmony," Kathrine added.
Beatrice nodded her head.
Harmony did not give any response.
"Then why don't we make things real now?" Kenneth announced.
They all turned to him.
"We've all shown worry and care for one another. Why don't we just be friends? And keep being friends even after graduation?" he grinned.
"That's right. We can start getting to know one another from now on," Justin added.
Kathrine looked at Beatrice.
"I don't see anything wrong with that," Beatrice replied.
Luca and Gabriel nodded in response, and all of them turned to Harmony. She replied with a slight shrug—honest as always.
They felt sad, but they couldn't force her anymore due to their selfishness. She had already given them a lot despite only being pulled into their desires.
It was also surreal, thinking they wanted to be friends now that they were about to go their separate ways.
But sometimes, friendship starts during farewells. And sometimes, those who become friends during farewells and keep it from then on are the ones who become friends for the rest of their lives.
Because they were able to keep their friendship despite not being with one another while still not knowing each other too well.
Soon, it was time to depart.
"I will go ahead now."
Harmony was the first to bid them goodbye.
Beatrice and Kathrine got up and hugged her, saying their goodbyes. Harmony returned their hug—a gesture that made them emotional. Even just a bit, she had accepted them as good acquaintances.
She nodded at the rest before leaving the room. Well, except for Luca, whom she did not look at.
Something he shrugged off. She had openly told him she did not wish to get close to him, so why would he still expect anything?
"I guess this is farewell then," Beatrice was the most emotional after Harmony left.
She was the only one leaving the country for her studies.
"We will be one call away, so know that you can always call us when it gets difficult," Kathrine replied.
"That's right. And keep your confidence. Your talent is yours—that is for sure," Justin followed.
"And don't think too much about their expectations. No matter what you showed in your audition, you can surpass that performance and become even better," Kenneth added.
Beatrice had been worrying about it—that they would expect more from her. Since she showed such acting in the audition, the time she lost herself to the character, something she did not wish to happen again.
Gabriel firmly nodded his head, "We have witnessed your talent."
"That's right. I acted alongside you for so many practices, and I can tell you—your talent is real. As someone close to those in the entertainment world, I can tell for sure that you will bloom even more."
"Then, as a token of our friendship, would you tell us your real name?" Beatrice sniffed.
Luca blinked before chuckling, "Nice to meet you. I am Shawn Dominick Lockhart."
The two blinked. In an instant, they recognized the name.
"So, you were wearing contacts all this time?" Beatrice asked.
Luca nodded but did not remove them.
"You will continue studying in this city, right? You'll keep up with the disguise?" Kathrine asked next.
"I'm thinking about it," he replied with a shrug.
Though it was difficult, having so many people trying to get close to him, he could handle it just fine.
"I see. Nice to meet you too," Beatrice replied with a smile.
"Nice to meet you," Kathrine followed.
"That's right—send us all the pictures," Kathrine remembered.
The camera was Beatrice's.
"Sure, I'll send them. Why don't we make a group on Lacebook?"
And they did—right then and there.
However, they did not expect what they would see when Beatrice sent the pictures moments after she got home.
"This is…" Beatrice covered her lips.
"…" Kathrine was speechless.
"Woah," Kenneth moved closer to his screen.
"Seriously?" Justin blinked multiple times.
"…" Gabriel stared at them for a good while.
Luca chuckled, "That's a good gift there."
In all the pictures, Harmony was smiling. Though not as wide as the others—except for Gabriel, who sported his usual simple smile—Harmony was wearing a real smile.