the Cafeteria war zone

Dunk immediately dragged him toward the nearest men's restroom. Boom, Winny, and JJ followed, the seriousness of a stained shirt outweighing their need to be on time for anything.

“Off. Now,” Dunk commanded once they were inside, peeling off his own clean, oversized hoodie.

“I’m not taking off my shirt in a public bathroom, Dunk,” Phuwin protested, shivering slightly as the cold, sticky residue of the iced coffee clung to his skin.

“You’re either going to classes smelling like a melted frappuccino, or you’re wearing my hoodie until you can get back to your dorm,” Dunk countered, holding out the familiar grey fabric. “Pick one.”

Phuwin grumbled but quickly swapped the drenched, ruined shirt for Dunk’s hoodie.

The fabric was soft and smelled like clean laundry, a stark contrast to the sugar and shame he'd been wearing moments before.

“That’s better,” Winny said, adjusting the hood over Phuwin's head playfully. “Now you look like a mysterious, slightly damp vigilante.”

They left the restroom and headed to their 8:30 lecture together.

Despite the drama, Phuwin focused on the class, trying to banish the image of Pond’s smug, laughing face from his mind.

He needed his concentration for his studies, not for the university’s resident rich brat.

The class finally finished at 10:30 AM. Phuwin and his friends were really hungry.

“Cafeteria, now!” JJ shouted. “I need food after that boring class.”

They quickly grabbed a table in the busy cafeteria.

Phuwin was trying to eat his noodles when the room suddenly felt colder.

He looked up, and there were Pond, Joong, and Aou.

Pond looked perfect, as always, and was holding a nice-looking, cold fruit smoothie with a strawberry on top.

Pond put the smoothie right in front of Phuwin. “Phuwin, I’m sorry about the coffee. To show I really mean it, please take this.”

Phuwin looked at the drink, then at Pond’s face. He knew Pond wasn't truly sorry.

This felt like a trick.

“I don’t want your ‘sorry’ drink, Pond,” Phuwin said, pushing the glass away

😈 😇 innocent FACE 😇 😈

Pond frowned a little, looking innocent. “Come on, Phuwin. Don't be difficult. It’s fresh and tastes great. I made sure they washed out all the coffee germs.” He leaned closer. “Just drink it. It’s Monday. Let’s start over.”

Dunk and Winny looked worried. Boom looked ready to jump up.

“Just drink it, Phuwin,” Winny whispered. “Get it done with.”

Phuwin was annoyed by the attention.

😒 side eyeing pond 😒

He gave Pond a look, picked up the glass, and took a big gulp.

The sweet fruit flavor was there for one second.

Then, a terrible, sour, bitter taste flooded his mouth. It was so bad it made him feel sick right away.

Phuwin coughed.

He looked straight at Pond, who was trying hard not to burst out laughing. Joong couldn’t hold it in and let out a huge, loud laugh.

Aou was hunched over, shaking and hiding his giggles behind his arm.

They had tricked him. They had put something bitter inside the ‘apology’ drink.

Phuwin’s face turned bright red. He wasn't just angry about the taste; he was furious that they had done this right in front of everyone.

They thought he was their clown.

Phuwin slammed the glass down, spilling the liquid. He jumped up so fast his chair screeched across the floor.

Pond stopped laughing and looked up, a triumphant smirk on his face. “Told you it was—”

Phuwin didn't wait. He grabbed the glass and threw the rest of the bitter smoothie in a fast, wide sweep

SPLASH!

The cold, colorful drink hit Pond right across the chest and neck, soaking his very expensive jacket.

The whole cafeteria suddenly became silent.

The noise of lunch trays, talking just stopped. You could only hear the slow drip of the smoothie from Pond’s jacket.

Pond stood frozen, his eyes wide, the smug look wiped clean. A purple streak of fruit ran down his jaw.

Phuwin stood there, breathing hard. He wasn't soft or smiling anymore he was cold and extremely angry.

“You wanted to mess with me?” Phuwin said, his voice quiet but shaking. “Well done, rich brat. You just started a fight.”

....

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