Chapter 5 - Wrong Place, Right Time

The next few days passed surprisingly quickly.

Classes.

Assignments.

Room 306.

And Kris being Kris.

Sky was beginning to settle into a routine.

A strange one.

But a routine nonetheless.

Unfortunately, routines didn't stop him from getting lost.

It happened on a Thursday afternoon.

That afternoon, Sky wasn't alone.

For once.

He was walking across campus with Mina, a fellow Fine Arts student he had met earlier that week.

Unlike Kris, Mina didn't talk nonstop.

She only talked most of the time.

"...and then he spilled paint on his own project."

Sky blinked.

"How?"

"No one knows."

Mina shook her head dramatically.

"The mystery remains unsolved."

A small smile appeared on Sky's face.

Mina immediately pointed at him.

"There it is."

"What?"

"The smile."

Sky groaned.

"Not you too."

"Too?"

"My roommate does that."

"Your roommate sounds smart."

"He's not."

They continued walking together until they reached a fork in the path.

Mina pointed toward another building.

"I have a painting workshop."

Sky nodded.

"I have to return something to the studio."

"See you later?"

"Sure."

Mina waved before disappearing into the crowd.

For a moment, Sky watched her leave.

Then he turned and headed in the opposite direction.

Unfortunately...

That was where things went wrong.

Sky sighed.

Again.

How was he still getting lost?

The building was quieter than the Fine Arts wing.

The air smelled faintly of clay and stone dust.

Students moved carefully through the corridors carrying sculptures and tools.

Sculpture Department.

Sky immediately recognized it.

The same department he had accidentally invaded on his first day.

"Not again," he muttered.

Turning around, he searched for a sign pointing toward the main campus.

Instead, he found an open studio.

Large windows flooded the room with afternoon sunlight.

Half-finished sculptures stood everywhere.

Some realistic.

Some abstract.

Some so strange that Sky wasn't entirely sure what they were supposed to be.

Without realizing it, he stopped walking.

Art was art.

No matter the form.

His eyes wandered across the room.

Studying details.

Shapes.

Textures.

The way light fell across unfinished stone.

For a moment, he forgot he was lost.

At the far end of the studio, someone looked up.

A tall student stood beside a sculpture covered in white dust.

His dark hair fell slightly into his eyes.

One hand rested against the unfinished piece.

The other held a carving tool.

Marc Collins.

Third-year Sculpture major.

One of the department's most talented students.

At least according to everyone else.

Marc barely paid attention.

Not until he noticed someone standing outside the studio.

Watching.

The stranger wasn't staring at people.

He wasn't taking pictures.

He wasn't whispering with friends.

He was looking at the artwork.

Actually looking.

As if he'd forgotten the rest of the world existed.

Marc found himself watching him.

The quiet student shifted slightly.

A sketchbook peeked out from beneath his arm.

Fine Arts.

Probably first-year.

Definitely lost.

Sky finally noticed the time.

His eyes widened.

"Oh no."

Kris was going to complain if he missed dinner.

Again.

Quickly adjusting his bag, he hurried away.

Completely unaware that someone had been watching him.

Marc's gaze followed him until he disappeared around the corner.

Then one of his classmates walked over.

"What are you looking at?"

Marc blinked.

Nothing.

Or at least it should have been nothing.

Just another student.

Just another stranger.

Yet somehow...

He found himself glancing toward the hallway again.

The student was gone.

Later that evening, back in Room 306—

Kris looked up from the couch.

"You're late."

Sky dropped his bag.

"I got lost."

Kris immediately started laughing.

"You've lived here for almost a week."

"I know."

"And you're still getting lost?"

Sky rolled his eyes.

Kris pointed dramatically.

"I've decided."

"Mm?"

"You need a tracking device."

Sky stared.

"Tch?"

"A tracking device?."

"I'm not a pet."

"The jury is still out on that."

Sky grabbed a cushion and threw it at him.

Kris barely dodged.

"VIOLENCE!"

"You deserved it."

"I welcomed you to this country!"

"You also read my sketchbook."

"Fair."

That night, long after the conversation ended, Sky sat by his desk sketching quietly.

Meanwhile, in another part of campus, a sculpture student found himself thinking about a stranger he hadn't even spoken to.

A stranger who had appeared for only a few minutes.

And then disappeared.

Sometimes...

The right person appeared at exactly the wrong place.

And neither of them knew it yet.

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