Morning at Campus-2 always lied.
It always looked clean from a distance. The tower glass caught the sun like it was proud. The pavement dried fast. The courtyard noise rose and fell like a normal campus. Even the air smelled ordinary, faint coffee, cheap deodorant, warmed concrete.
But the Health Track group woke up inside a different season.
They were dressed for a future they did not fully trust.
XH stood in front of his mirror with a black shirt in his hands, staring at it like clothing could decide who he would be today. He had tried two outfits already and none of them felt correct. One looked too serious. One looked too casual. One looked like he was trying too hard.
He settled on the black shirt, the jacket he always reached for when he wanted to feel solid, and simple shoes. He ran a hand through his hair, blow-dried it slightly the way he had learned to do after Year One, not for vanity, for control. The image in the mirror looked like him, but quieter. His eyes still looked like they had seen a different campus.
His phone buzzed with a notification from the new grading platform.
Campus-2 had rolled it out like it was a "modernization" win. Students called it a different name depending on how angry they were that day. The official name was something sleek and corporate. The reality felt like a scoreboard.
A dashboard. A percentage. A rank.
The top of the screen showed:
Health Track Module Progress
Anatomy Written: 82%
Microbiology Written: 85%
Clinical Fundamentals: 78%
Overall: 81%
Below that, a small line that made every student's stomach tighten.
Cohort Standing: 14 / 137
It was not a bad number. It was not a great number. It was a number that could shift with one exam, one assignment, one unfair curve. XH stared at it for a beat, then closed the app.
He did not want today to be about ranking.
He wanted today to be about breathing.
A message popped up in the class chat.
NC: "Meet under Campus-2 entrance at 4:30. Be early. Look decent. No chaos."
JP replied immediately.
JP: "Chaos is my culture."
NC: "Not today."
TZ: "We'll be there."
Kitty: "on my way."
June did not reply.
NS did not reply.
Cherry did not reply.
The chat stayed normal anyway, as if silence did not weigh anything.
XH grabbed his jacket and stepped into the hallway. The boys' dorm was louder than usual, but it was a performance loud. People were trying to sound alive.
JP's door was open. JP stood in front of his mirror adjusting a collar like he was auditioning for a drama. His buzz-cut made him look sharper, almost too sharp, like he had cut off softness on purpose.
When XH passed, JP leaned out.
"Look at you," JP said with fake admiration. "You look like you're going to apologize to someone's father."
XH glanced at him. "You look like you're about to get banned from an embassy."
JP grinned. "Exactly. That's the vibe."
TZ stepped out of his room behind XH, hair short and clean, face calm. TZ looked like he had decided to be composed today, which meant he was nervous. TZ's nerves always hid behind quiet.
"You ready," TZ asked.
XH nodded once. "Yeah."
TZ nodded back. "Good."
NS's door was closed.
It stayed closed.
XH paused for half a second, then kept walking.
Down the hall, the air felt colder near the stairwell. The dorm smelled like detergent and old carpet. Someone had hung a small poster near the notice board about "Wellness Check-ins" and "Care Resources." The poster had a smiling face on it. The smile looked like a command.
XH pushed it out of his mind and headed toward the entrance.
Under the entrance of Campus-2, the courtyard looked different at this hour. The sun was lower. The shadows were longer. The light bounced off the tower glass and made the entrance feel like a stage.
NC was already there, of course.
She stood near the entrance pillar with her arms crossed, looking like a big sister and a supervisor at the same time. She wasn't strict because she liked being strict. She was strict because she knew people fell apart when details got sloppy.
Anna stood beside her, simple outfit, neat hair, calm eyes. Anna always looked like she belonged anywhere as long as she stayed quiet.
Jihye stood a little to the side, holding her phone up like she was filming a documentary. She had dressed cute but practical, her expression half excited and half anxious.
Cherry arrived next, dressed like she was going to court and wanted the judge to fear her. Cherry's arrogance was armor. Sometimes it worked. Sometimes it made her lonely.
JP walked up like he was late on purpose, even though he wasn't.
"We're early," JP said proudly.
NC looked at him. "You're on time. Don't act special."
TZ arrived beside JP, calm.
XH arrived last from the boys' dorm line, not because he was late but because his body had slowed down without permission the closer he got to a public moment.
NC's eyes flicked over them, assessing.
"Good," NC said. "Nobody looks like they're wearing pajamas."
JP put a hand over his heart. "That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."
Kitty arrived a minute later.
She didn't rush. She didn't make noise. She walked in like she belonged under that entrance arch, blonde hair catching light, outfit clean and simple but still unmistakably her. Her face was calm, but her eyes were alert, scanning.
Her gaze found XH immediately.
They didn't smile big.
They did that small, quiet thing again. Recognition.
Kitty stepped closer to NC first, greeting her, then nodded at the boys.
JP looked at Kitty and whistled softly.
Kitty didn't flinch. "Don't."
JP raised his hands. "Respectfully, queen."
Kitty's mouth twitched slightly. Not quite a smile. But close.
Then XH noticed something that made his stomach tighten.
June was not here.
It wasn't late yet. The Uber wasn't here yet. There was time. But the air already felt like June wasn't coming.
XH checked his phone.
No message from June.
He did not want to ask Kitty or NC and turn absence into gossip.
He looked at the class chat.
Still no June.
Still no NS.
Still no Cherry, but Cherry was here in person, which made that specific absence irrelevant. The real absences were the ones that carried story weight.
XH swallowed and tried to keep his face neutral.
He didn't want his disappointment to show. Not because he didn't want people to know he cared, but because caring was a weakness VT's world would exploit, and the shadow of VT still lived in their year.
Jihye leaned toward Kitty and whispered loudly enough for everyone to hear.
"June not coming."
Kitty didn't answer immediately. Then she said quietly, "Probably her mom."
Cherry scoffed. "Of course."
NC looked at her phone again and frowned slightly, not dramatic, just practical.
"She hasn't confirmed," NC said. "But we can't wait. Andrew said strict schedule."
JP mimicked a posh accent. "Embassy schedule, darling."
NC shot him a look and JP shut up, grinning.
A sound of tires rolled across the pavement.
Everyone looked up at the same time.
A black Uber pulled up, clean, expensive, the kind of car that looked like it cost more than most students' tuition payments for a semester. The window tint made it look private and untouchable.
The driver stepped out, polite, professional.
"Andrew's group," the driver asked.
NC nodded. "Yes."
The driver opened the door.
The interior looked too clean. The seats looked too soft.
JP stared into it like he was seeing heaven.
"This is not a student car," JP whispered.
TZ muttered, "Don't touch anything."
JP immediately touched the seat with his fingertips.
NC pointed at them. "No chaos."
Jihye lifted her phone. "I'm filming the moment we entered the rich car."
Cherry rolled her eyes. "Stop filming everything."
Jihye smiled sweetly. "No."
They began seating.
There was a small pause, the kind of pause that happens when people pretend seating order doesn't matter while everyone knows it matters.
NC took the front passenger seat because she was the organizer and also because she knew the back seat was where tension lived.
Anna slid into the middle row seat calmly.
Jihye followed, phone still up, filming their faces.
Cherry sat near the window in the middle row like she was claiming territory.
JP and TZ approached the back row.
XH stepped toward the back row too, then froze for a fraction as Kitty approached the same door.
Kitty paused too.
They both knew.
If they sat together, it would mean something.
If they avoided sitting together, it would mean something too.
Kitty's cheeks flushed slightly, barely visible, but enough.
XH's throat tightened.
He opened the door wider.
Kitty stepped in first, sliding toward the window seat.
XH slid in beside her.
Their shoulders brushed by accident.
Not a dramatic brush.
Just enough.
Kitty's fingers tightened around her bag strap.
XH stared forward, trying to act normal.
JP climbed in next to TZ, immediately noticing.
JP leaned forward between the seats with a grin that looked like he had been waiting his whole life for this moment.
"Oh," JP said softly, dangerously. "This is what we're doing."
Kitty didn't look at him. "Don't."
XH didn't look at him either. "JP."
JP grinned wider. "Look at the blush. Look at the spacing. Look at the silent panic."
TZ elbowed JP. "Stop."
JP whispered loudly, "They're sitting like they're in a wedding photo."
Kitty's ears turned a little pinker.
XH's chest felt hot.
Jihye turned around from her seat, phone camera pointed toward the back row like she was a reporter.
"Say hi to the vlog," Jihye announced.
Kitty lifted her hand lazily. "No."
XH gave a small nod.
JP waved enthusiastically. "Hello followers. We're going to become international doctors and also gossip."
Cherry snapped, "Stop talking."
JP smiled innocently. "No."
The driver closed the doors, sealing them in.
The car pulled away smoothly, and Campus-2 began shrinking behind the windows.
XH watched the entrance arch recede and felt something settle in his chest. Leaving Campus-2 for one day should have felt exciting.
It felt like stepping out of one script and into another.
Kitty sat beside him, posture straight, face composed, but her fingers kept adjusting the same spot on her bag strap. A nervous tick.
XH kept his hands on his lap, still.
He didn't want to reach for her.
He didn't want to make the car feel smaller.
JP continued teasing from the seat behind.
"So," JP said with fake innocence. "Where's June."
Nobody answered immediately.
NC in the front seat replied finally, voice neutral. "Not coming. Family schedule."
XH felt the sentence land like a small punch.
Kitty's eyes flicked toward the window, not at XH, but her jaw tightened slightly.
Cherry scoffed. "Her mother again."
Jihye sighed dramatically. "Free June."
TZ muttered, "Don't make it loud."
Cherry leaned forward. "Where's NS."
NC's voice stayed neutral. "NS didn't confirm. He's not coming either."
That made the car quieter for a beat.
JP blinked. "NS isn't coming."
No one joked about it.
XH stared forward, feeling a slow tightening in his chest.
NS missing an event like this didn't feel like a mistake.
It felt like a choice.
Kitty's voice was quiet. "Did he say why."
NC glanced at her phone. "No."
Cherry muttered, "He's always doing something."
JP tried to make it funny. "Maybe he's scared of treasure hunts."
But even JP's joke landed weak.
The car moved through the city.
Buildings passed. Traffic lights. People on sidewalks. Ordinary life.
XH's phone buzzed.
A notification from the grade platform again.
This time it showed a ranking list update.
Clinical Fundamentals Quiz 3 posted.
XH's score: 76%
Cohort Standing changed: 18 / 137
The number had shifted down.
Not dramatic.
But it was the kind of tiny shift that could snowball later.
JP leaned over from behind. "What's that face."
XH locked the phone. "Nothing."
TZ glanced at him. "Grades."
XH nodded.
Kitty's voice was soft. "It's one quiz."
XH didn't answer.
Kitty's tone stayed gentle. "You always act like one quiz is a verdict."
XH looked at her then, surprised by the honesty.
Kitty's cheeks flushed again and she looked away quickly, like she had accidentally revealed she cared too much.
JP whispered, "Look at them."
TZ elbowed him again, harder.
JP hissed. "Ow."
NC's phone buzzed.
She glanced at it and frowned.
"Andrew says the host is Luis Enrique," NC said, mostly to herself.
Cherry raised an eyebrow. "Who."
NC replied, "Old embassy chancellor. Apparently he likes talking politics."
Jihye perked up. "Politics."
Cherry said sharply, "No."
Jihye smiled. "Yes."
XH sat quietly, feeling the car hum under him, feeling Kitty's warmth beside him without touching her.
Then his phone buzzed again.
This time it wasn't grades.
It was HS.
HS's name on the screen made XH's throat tighten immediately.
He answered quickly.
"HS," XH said softly.
HS's voice came through, too calm.
"Hey," HS said. "You busy."
XH looked at the car interior and lowered his voice. "We're going out for a networking event."
HS paused. "Oh. Nice."
The word nice sounded like it was trying too hard.
XH's chest tightened.
"How are you," XH asked.
HS laughed lightly, but it wasn't real. "Fine."
Fine again.
Everyone was fine until they weren't.
XH swallowed. "For real."
A pause.
HS's voice dropped slightly. "I'm okay. Just… tired."
XH stared out the window. The city blurred past.
"You eating," XH asked.
HS answered too quickly. "Yeah."
XH heard the lie.
Kitty glanced at XH's face, her expression sharpening with concern.
XH lowered his voice further. "Do you want me to come see you this week."
HS hesitated. "No. It's okay."
XH's throat tightened. "I want to."
HS's voice softened for a second. "You're always worried."
XH said quietly, "Because you matter."
Another pause.
HS's voice turned lighter again, forced. "Don't be dramatic."
XH almost smiled, then couldn't.
"I'll call you after," XH said. "Later tonight."
HS replied, "Okay."
The call ended.
XH stared at his phone for a second too long.
Kitty leaned slightly closer, voice quiet. "He's not okay."
It wasn't a question.
XH nodded once.
JP saw XH's face from behind in the reflection of the window and didn't joke this time.
TZ looked away politely, giving space.
Cherry was staring out her window, arms crossed, pretending she didn't listen.
NC glanced back briefly, eyes softening.
Anna said nothing, but her gaze lingered on XH like she was storing this detail for later.
XH swallowed hard and tucked his phone away.
The car kept moving.
In another part of the city, NS sat at a private table under warm lighting.
A dinner he did not mention to anyone.
VT's circle was there, laughing softly like life was a game and other people were pieces. The conversation wasn't loud. It didn't need to be. Power never needed to shout.
VT leaned back and smirked. "You're softer now."
NS's expression stayed calm. "Am I."
VT laughed. "Campus-2 softened you. Junta school should have kept you."
NS didn't react. He lifted his glass slowly. "I'm thinking."
VT's eyes sharpened. "Think faster."
NS's mouth twitched. "I don't rush."
VT leaned forward slightly, voice low. "Junta school is always open for you. Transfer, continue. Your choice."
NS's eyes stayed calm. "I'll take time."
VT's smile widened. "Take all the time you want. We can wait."
Back in the Uber, XH didn't know this conversation existed.
He only felt the absence.
He only felt the way the group was reorganizing.
June missing. NS missing. Cherry present, but sharper. Kitty beside him, warm and tense. NC controlling the plan. JP trying to hold humor like a shield. TZ steady like a quiet spine.
XH's phone buzzed one more time.
A private message.
From June.
Short.
"Have fun."
XH stared at it.
No emoji.
No extra words.
Just a sentence that sounded polite and tasted bitter.
He typed back.
"Wish you were here."
He stared at the message for a second.
Then he deleted it.
He typed instead.
"Thank you."
He hit send.
Kitty watched his thumb movements without looking like she was watching.
Her cheeks flushed again, and she turned toward the window.
JP leaned forward again, pretending to be casual.
"So," JP said, voice fake light. "If there are rich doctor graduates, I'm going to marry one."
Cherry snapped, "Shut up."
JP grinned. "I'm healing."
TZ muttered, "You're annoying."
Jihye laughed, and the laugh loosened the car atmosphere a little.
The city opened up ahead.
A more polished neighborhood.
Trees lined properly.
Gates looked expensive.
The car slowed slightly.
NC straightened in the front seat like she could feel the embassy approaching.
"Everyone," NC said, calm and firm. "Be normal. Be polite. No chaos."
JP whispered, "Chaos is my culture."
NC said without turning, "JP."
JP shut up, still grinning.
XH looked at Kitty beside him.
Kitty's hands were folded neatly now. Her posture was calm, but her eyes were bright and alert.
She looked like a queen walking into a room that might judge her and deciding it wouldn't.
XH felt something in his chest soften.
Not romance yet.
Not confession.
Just admiration.
The Uber rolled forward, and Campus-2 was now far behind them, shrinking into a memory in the rear glass.
XH breathed out slowly.
The embassy was ahead.
Three acres of space.
New faces.
New hope.
New pressure.
And somewhere in the back of his mind, the grade dashboard numbers still existed, waiting to shift again when he wasn't looking.
He didn't know yet that some numbers mattered less than one accidental camera angle.
For now, all he knew was the car was moving, Kitty was beside him, and the day was beginning whether he was ready or not.