Prologue
Serra Catharina Vittori — everyone on campus knows the name. It’s a name often praised by lecturers and engraved on medals from various competitions, both academic and non-academic. She is frequently touted by lecturers as the pride of the university.
“Ser!” called out a girl as she approached her.
The girl had a feminine appearance with light yellow-toned skin, stood about 160 cm tall, and had straight waist-length hair left loose. Her lashes were long, and her nose sharp. Perfect! She approached her best friend who was sitting in the front room of the department head's office.
“Why didn’t you tell me you went to campus early?” she complained.
The girl addressed as ‘Ser’ gave a dry smile. She knew her best friend was sulking because they had agreed to meet at 9:00 a.m. for thesis guidance with the department head. However, she had left at 7:00 a.m. because she was summoned by the head of the university’s painting club.
“Yeah, mianhe... I got word from Dipta at 6 a.m. that I had to see Mr. Lukman,” she apologized.
“Huh? It’s rare for Mr. Lukman to call you,” the long-haired girl asked.
“He asked me to help preview the new students joining the painting club,” she replied.
“Ohhh,” the girl nodded in understanding.
“Oh, by the way, Ser — have you had your thesis meeting?” she asked again.
“Not yet, Lun. I was waiting for you, remember? We were supposed to meet at 9, and look at the time now!” grumbled Serra Catharina Celeste.
Often talked about on campus as Serra, she had a petite frame at 155 cm, inherited from her mother’s side. Her almond-shaped eyes were framed by long lashes, paired with a small nose and bright pink berry lips.
“Hehehe… sorry dory, I was late… had to flirt with my guy first,” Luna said with a cheeky grin.
Yes, Aluna Beatrice Crimson — often called Luna. Luna and Serra had been close since elementary school. They moved to the city together and shared a spacious boarding room while pursuing their degrees. Serra had lived at the “Kasih” orphanage since she was little and never knew who her biological parents were — not even whether they were alive or dead. She once promised Luna she would never try to find them in any context.
In contrast, Luna still had both her parents and an older brother who loved her dearly. When Luna introduced Serra to her family, they immediately adopted her. Luna was overjoyed, and Serra felt truly grateful to finally experience the love of a mother and father. Serra often wondered why Luna’s parents were so kind as to adopt her. She and Luna would play together at home or school so often that people called them “letter and stamp.”
“Do you still like him?” Serra asked, curious.
Luna blushed and nodded with a glowing smile. Serra sighed in exhaustion. She had warned Luna so many times, but her words always seemed to go in one ear and out the other. Serra often wondered how Luna never gave up even after being rejected multiple times. Clearly, Luna was born without a shred of shame — pursuing someone like that took real determination, didn’t it? Two claps for Luna, Serra thought.
“Lun, did he reject you again yesterday?” Serra asked, pulling out a stack of papers from her bag.
Luna fell silent, then answered, “Yeah…”
“Still not giving up, huh?” Serra asked — she had asked that same question countless times before.
“I haven’t won him yet, Ser,” Luna said stubbornly.
“Give it a res—”
Krieet…
Serra’s words were cut off by the sound of a door being pushed open from inside, and out stepped someone from the department head’s office, currently held by Mr. Agus Santoso. He was known to be a great listener for students' problems — though his lectures often put them to sleep.
“Serra, come in,” said Mr. Agus as he entered the room again.
Serra stood up and mouthed, “I’m going in” to Luna. Luna nodded in acknowledgment.
After waiting quite a while for Serra to finish her thesis meeting, Luna started getting bored and wanted to head downstairs. But if she left and Serra came out, she’d have to wait even longer. She looked to her right and saw about ten students also waiting to meet the lecturer for thesis guidance.
Thirty minutes later, the office door creaked open. Luna stood up, thinking it was her turn — but to her surprise, it was him walking out. Her crush. She was puzzled — how could someone from outside the department enter the head's office unless it was for Student Association business? He wasn’t even part of the Association!
She stared at him as he glanced briefly in her direction before turning and heading down the stairs.
*Happy Reading*
