Olivia, still not looking up, replied with a polite but uninterested tone, "I like sketching, that's all."
The other students around them couldn't help but laugh quietly. "He's like a chewing gum," one of the girls whispered. "Once he sticks to you, he's impossible to get rid of."
"I know, right?" another girl giggled. "Olivia is the campus goddess. There's no way she'd fall for someone like him."
Eleanor, who had been listening to all the comments, jumped in with a bright smile. "What are you all saying? Mateo isn't like that," she said, stepping forward.
"He likes Olivia, and that's perfectly fine. If Olivia doesn't feel the same way, that's her choice. But Mateo has every right to pursue her."
The group looked at her in surprise, unsure of what to make of her defense of Mateo.
"Wait, are you really Olivia's friend?" one girl asked, raising an eyebrow. "Or do you have a thing for Mateo?"
