The campus canteen was buzzing with students rushing to queue for the favourite stalls, clinking trays and the faint hum of overlapping conversations. Bella sat on the edge of a side bench, half-listening to the noise. She wasn't particularly hungry but the routine of having a meal gave her something to focus on.
She had just started picking at the food when Emily slid into the spot beside her, dropping her phone and a cup of bubble tea onto the bench with a theatrical sigh.
"Ugh, I hate Wednesdays," Emily muttered as she untucked her chopsticks from their paper sleeve. "The lectures drag and the queue for food is always insane. I was two seconds away from yelling at someone cutting in."
Bella smiled and arched her eyebrow. "And yet you look like you just walked out of a photoshoot."
Emily shrugged, flicking her hair over one shoulder. "I suffer beautifully."
They were about to start on the gossip of the day when a voice interrupted them. "Hey, mind if I sit here?"
Bella looked up. It was Logan from her economics class. He held a tray in one hand and a half-shy smile that made it clear he knew he was intruding. Bella kindly replied, "Uh, sure. Go ahead."
Bella watched the way Logan settled in, polite but relaxed and for a moment, it struck her as oddly intimate, this quiet kind of triangle, the easy rhythm of people trying to figure each other out without saying too much. Then, she noticed the slight ripple in the crowd before she saw them. Logan wasn't alone.
Trailing behind him, though hanging back a few paces, were two other guys from the basketball team. She recognised them vaguely. One was named Chris, tall and lean with an easy smile. The other was Nate, the kind of guy who always had wireless earbuds in, even when he wasn't listening to anything. They carried their trays casually, scanning the canteen for open spots.
Logan must've noticed the way Bella glanced over his shoulder. "They're with me," he said, almost apologetically. "Mind if they sit too?"
Emily was already shifting her things to make space. "It's fine. Just don't talk about basketball the entire time."
Chris dropped his tray down with a grin. "No promises."
Nate gave a short nod to Bella and Emily as he sat, pulling his earbuds out and tucking them into his shirt collar.
The table settled into a loose, easy rhythm. Logan quietly started in on his lunch, occasionally chiming in as Chris recapped a dramatic foul from last night's scrimmage with way too much energy. Emily, ever the social chameleon, leaned into the conversation like she'd known them for years, teasing Chris, rolling her eyes, but clearly enjoying the attention.
Bella didn't say much at first. She mostly listened, watching how Logan's laughter came late but genuine, how Nate rarely spoke but paid more attention than anyone realized. Every now and then, Logan would glance across the table at Emily, not in a dramatic, movie-scene kind of way, but just... aware. Present.
"Hey, were you in the lecture this morning? Econ? Prof Tan was talking about that behavioural theory model… the one with the sunk cost fallacy?" Logan asked.
Bella blinked. "Yeah. I was there. Kind of hard to miss when he kept yelling about mobile phone upgrades."
Logan laughed. "Right? I zoned out halfway through. You mind sending me your notes later? I feel like I missed the actual point."
Before Bella could answer, Emily spoke up, casual and quick. "You could just join our shared Google Drive. Bella uploads everything there."
Logan turned to her, playful. "You have a shared Drive?"
"She's organised like that," Emily said, poking a straw through her bubble tea. "You wouldn't think it, but her folders have folders."
Bella looked down at her tray, biting back a smile.
Chris, mid-sip of his drink, added, "You're that kind of student, huh?"
Bella shrugged. "I just like knowing where things are."
Logan leaned back a little, eyes still on Bella. "So… what's the best way to get access? Do I go through Emily? Or should I ask you directly?"
Bella hesitated, not because she didn't want to give it, but because she wasn't sure if he really wanted her notes. "I can send you the link," she said, finally.
Logan smiled. "Perfect. Want to drop me your number?"
Bella gave a small nod and reached for her phone. "Sure." She unlocked her phone and pulled up her contact QR code.
Logan leaned in and scanned it smoothly. "Nice. Efficient," he said, his tone light as her name popped up on his screen.
She gave a small shrug. "I don't like repeating my number."
A moment later, her phone buzzed with his contact request. She accepted it quietly.
Then, Logan turned to Emily, lifting his phone toward her with a half-smile. "And you?"
Emily didn't rush. She set her bubble tea down and said simply, "I'll scan you," already unlocking her own phone. Her screen lit up. She saved the contact, locked her phone and slipped it back into her pocket without sending anything.
The pause that followed wasn't long, but it was noticeable.
Logan chuckled. "Guess I'll wait for that text then."
Emily gave him a smooth, unreadable smile. "Mm," was all she said, reaching for her drink again.
Logan just grinned, not quite fazed, but not quite sure what had just happened either.
Bella, watching it all from the side, couldn't help but feel a little thrown. Emily had a way of keeping people exactly where she wanted them, interested, but off balance.
And somehow, it always worked.