Tasha walked back to her dorm, her head spinning. She couldn't shake the image of Liam playing the guitar, looking so different. She found Sabrina sprawled on her bed, scrolling on her phone.
"You will not believe what I just saw," Tasha said, sitting heavily on her own bed.
Sabrina looked up, eyes wide. "What? Did Liam finally get hit by a bus?"
"No," Tasha sighed. "Worse. I saw Liam... playing the guitar. He was in this hidden courtyard, and he was really good. And he looked so... peaceful. Not arrogant at all."
Sabrina's jaw dropped. "Liam Carter, playing a guitar? Are you serious? The king of rude is actually a softie?" She laughed, then looked at Tasha with a knowing grin. "Okay, my theory. You totally have a crush on him."
Tasha's eyes widened. "What?! No! Absolutely not! Are you crazy? He's annoying, he's rude, he thinks he's better than everyone! I hate him!"
"Sure you do," Sabrina teased, sitting up. "But admit it, seeing him with a hidden talent, looking 'peaceful,' makes him a little less hateable, right? Makes him human?"
"It's just... confusing," Tasha admitted, picking at a loose thread on her duvet. "I thought I had him figured out. Rich kid, arrogant, only cares about himself. But then I see him like that, and it's like... who is he?"
"Exactly!" Sabrina clapped her hands. "That's why he's so interesting! He's not just a flat character. He's got layers! Maybe he's only rude because he's shy, or secretly sad, or something."
Tasha scoffed. "Shy? The guy who called me clumsy and demanded I move in line? No way. He's just complicated, in a super annoying way."
"But still complicated," Sabrina insisted. "And you, Tasha, you love a good mystery. This is just a new type of mystery for you. The Liam Carter Mystery."
Tasha rolled her eyes. "There's no mystery. He's still the jerk who ruined my shoes. It's just... a different kind of jerk."
Sabrina laughed. "See? You're already thinking about him differently. Just wait. This 'hate' of yours? It's going to turn into something else. It always does in these stories."
Tasha threw a pillow at her. "Stop talking! You're making things weird! I just want to finish this project and never see him again."
But even as she said it, a small part of Tasha knew Sabrina might be onto something. The image of Liam, eyes closed, lost in his music, kept replaying in her mind. And it was deeply unsettling.