My Kind of Crazy

Eve’s POV The campus felt alive in the worst way. Too loud. Too bright. Too close. Music spilled through the air, uneven and restless, tangling with laughter and voices until it all blurred into one constant noise that pressed against my head. The courtyard was crowded, bodies moving in every direction, stalls glowing in colors that demanded attention I didn’t want to give. Everything felt like it was reaching for me. I resisted the urge to step back. They called this fun. I called it exhausting. I lingered near the corner longer than I should have, watching everything like I wasn’t part of it, like I didn’t belong in something this loud, this carefree. I still didn’t know why I let Catleya drag me here. “I swear,” she said beside me, “if you leave me here, friendship over.” “I’m not,” I said, trying to explain myself. “I’m just staying out of the way.” She turned to me, like she wasn’t entirely buying what I said. “You seem like you’re about to report this entire event to the administration.” “I’m considering it,” I answered, laughing like it wasn’t serious at all. And before I could step away, she slipped her arm through mine, as if I had a choice. “Come on,” she insisted, tugging me along. “It’s tradition. You don’t come here just to stand in the corner and judge people.” “I came for food,” I said. “And maybe a quiet place where no one talks to me,” I admitted, because I just wanted a moment where nothing expected anything from me. “Tragic,” she murmured. “This is why I keep you. You’d forget how to live without me.” I rolled my eyes, but a small smile slipped through anyway. It always happened with her. I resisted, and she ignored it until I gave in. The deeper we went, the worse it got. The noise sank into my skin, into my chest. Even my breathing felt out of sync with everything around me. Too many people. Too many voices. Too much. Then Catleya stopped. I almost ran into her. “Oh my God,” she whispered. My stomach dropped immediately. “What?” I followed her gaze. And immediately wished I hadn’t. A booth stood ahead, decorated in red and gold, trying a little too hard to stand out, like it was waiting for someone to make a bad decision. A banner stretched across the top in bold letters. GET MARRIED FOR A DAY. I stared at it, hoping I read it wrong. “I’m leaving,” I said flatly. Catleya could barely contain her excitement. “No, you’re not.” “Yes. I am.” “Look, they have a blind option.” I turned to her slowly. “That makes it worse.” “That makes it interesting,” she mused. “You don’t even know who you’ll end up with.” “Exactly. That’s the problem.” “Eve,” she said through a laugh, like I was missing something obvious. “You’re acting like you’re actually getting married.” “It’s ridiculous.” “It’s fun.” “It’s crazy.” “You haven’t even tried it,” she said, like the answer should’ve been obvious. “I don’t need to.” I shot back. She tilted her head, studying me in a way that made me uncomfortable. So I folded my arms, trying to steady myself while standing by my decision. “Because things like that never end well.” “Not everything has to end badly,” she insisted, like she wanted me to believe it. “It usually does,” “Hi,” a voice said gently from the side. I turned too quickly, already stepping back. “I think I’m going to leave.” Catleya caught my wrist. “Wait,” she tugged me back. “Let’s hear her out.” “Catleya,” I protested, pulling lightly against her grip. It was too late. A staff member stepped in, smiling like she already knew how this would end. And her eyes settled on me. “You’re here for the blind setup, right?” “No,” I said quickly. “There’s been a misunderstanding.” She lifted a hand. “Just a second,” she pleaded. “This one’s different.” “I didn’t sign up for anything.” “You didn’t,” she agreed. “But this falls under a sponsored pairing, a requested match.” I had a bad feeling about it. “Requested,” I repeated. “By who?” She glanced toward the booth. “By him.” The way she said it made it feel like I was supposed to understand something I didn’t. “And who exactly is ‘him’?” Her lips curved into a small, knowing smile. “He’s an invited alumnus.” I swallowed, already annoyed that I was still listening. “And?” A pause stretched between us, like she was letting me in on something. “He’s the reason this place has been packed all day.” Something about it set my nerves on edge. I folded my arms, tighter this time, like I needed something to hold onto. “That still doesn’t explain why I’m involved.” “It does,” she said gently. “He asked for a blind pairing this year.” My stomach tightened. “And I’m… what? The unlucky winner?” She didn’t answer. Which was answer enough. Beside me, Catleya leaned closer, barely holding back her excitement. “Eve… this is actually interesting.” “This is exactly how bad decisions start,” I muttered. “He sounds hot,” she whispered. “He sounds like trouble.” “That’s the same thing,” I shot her a look, but she only smiled wider, like she was enjoying this too much. “It’s ten minutes,” the staff member explained. “I’m not doing this.” “Please,” Catleya pleaded. “Just once. For me.” I looked at her. I should have said no. I always said no. But the word didn’t come. And that was enough. The staff member gently took my arm. I stiffened, but for some reason, I didn’t pull away. “I’m going to kill you,” I whispered to Catleya as we walked. Catleya laughed under her breath. “You love me.” The crowd closed in behind me until there was nowhere left to slip away. Then suddenly, the booth felt smaller, closer, like it had been waiting for me all along. Before I even had the chance to react, something was pressed into my hands. A bouquet. It felt wrong the moment it touched my hands. And before I even had time to make sense of it, the curtain was pulled open. “Go ahead.” “I didn’t agree to this,” I said, but it came out weaker than I wanted. “You’re here.” That wasn’t an answer. I should’ve stepped back, but I couldn’t make myself move. And I stood there, caught between stepping back and stepping forward, waiting for something inside me to decide. This was stupid. I knew it was stupid. And still. I stepped in. The curtain fell closed behind me, and the noise outside vanished completely. The silence that followed felt heavier than it should have. For a moment, I didn’t move. Then it hit me. I wasn’t alone. I exhaled as I lifted my gaze. For a second, nothing made sense. Just shadows, and the outline of someone standing where the light didn’t quite reach. But the longer I looked, the more certain I became. He was already looking at me. And it was worse. I didn’t even realize what I was stepping into until his voice cut through the silence, pressing under my skin. “I was starting to think you’d run.”