Chapter 19
1453 Words
Festival of Hearts Part 1
The announcement came out like a cannon blast in the middle of a sleepy Thursday afternoon. The campus had been buzzing for weeks about the upcoming Festival of Hearts, a mixed celebration of food, crafts, costumes, and talent. Posters plastered the hallways, and students clamored for committees, each trying to get a role that looked impressive on their resumes—or just allowed them to be near the person they fancied.
Ethan had been hoping to escape all of it. After the stalker fiasco, he craved normalcy: long hours in the library, quiet nights with his roommates, maybe some occasional coffee from Adrian, and nothing more.
“Ethan!” a cheerful voice boomed over the loudspeaker near the student hall. Ethan froze, pencils rolling on his desk. “You have been selected for the Decoration and Costume Committee. Congratulations!”
“Uh… wait…” Ethan mumbled, staring at the list pasted on the notice board. Sure enough, his name gleamed in bold letters. Under it, a flurry of other names — including Leo, Kai, and, to his eternal horror and secret delight, Adrian.
---
His roommates, Jamie and Mark, noticed the slack-jawed expression immediately.
“Congratulations, i***t,” Jamie said, nudging him. “You’re officially stuck. You’ve got three guys in your committee and zero survival skills.”
Mark chuckled, balancing a half-eaten slice of pizza. “Bro, do you even know what costumes and decorations mean? You’ll probably end up gluing your fingers to glitter.”
Ethan groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I… I ... I didn’t even apply for this. They just put my name—”
“Of course they did,” Jamie interrupted. “You’re a magnet for trouble and tall and ridiculously intense men.”
Mark raised his eyebrows. “Correction: three men. And Adrian’s technically second-year, so that’s cheating.”
Ethan buried his face in his hands. “I am not a magnet for anything.”
Jamie snorted. “Sure, sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night, Romeo.”
---
Adrian appeared in the doorway like a calm, polished storm. Ethan’s pulse jumped automatically.
“You’re in my committee,” Adrian said smoothly, eyes flicking to him. “I’ll be overseeing the preparations.”
“I—wait, you’re second-year!” Ethan blurted. “You’re not even supposed to—”
Adrian’s lips twitched in the faintest smirk. “I supervise. That’s all. Someone needs to make sure things don’t fall apart.”
Ethan could feel Leo and Kai behind him bristling. Adrian had that effect — calm, competent, slightly menacing in a way that made anyone near him uneasy. And for some reason, Ethan’s chest fluttered.
---
Leo, not one to be outshone, slammed his bag down on the floor with a dramatic thud. “Well, well, well. Looks like everyone’s here. And here I thought I’d have to carry the festival alone.”
Kai strolled in lazily, leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed. “I heard there’s a certain someone here who needs… supervision.” His eyes landed on Ethan, glinting dangerously. “Looks like I’ll be volunteering too.”
Ethan blinked, heart hammering. “You… you’re both in the same committee as me?”
Leo flexed his shoulders, grinning. “I volunteer for moral support. You’re welcome.”
Kai’s smirk widened. “You’ll thank me later.”
Adrian sighed, as though this level of chaos was expected. “You two, stop treating this like a game. We have a festival to prepare for.”
---
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The committee met in the multipurpose hall, which smelled faintly of paint and fresh-cut wood. Tables were scattered with rolls of colored fabric, glitter bottles, paints, brushes, ribbons, and costume pieces.
Ethan stared, overwhelmed. “I… I don’t even know where to start.”
Leo immediately snatched a roll of bright red fabric. “I got this. Stand over here.”
Kai leaned casually over the table, fingers brushing against Ethan’s accidentally as he reached for a pair of scissors. “No, no. You need this color. Trust me.”
Ethan’s chest tightened at the accidental touch. He stumbled back, knocking over a glitter bottle. It tumbled across the floor, leaving a sparkling trail.
“Ethan!” Adrian’s calm, precise voice barked. “Pick that up before it sticks to everything!”
Ethan bent down hurriedly, muttering under his breath. “I… I didn’t mean to—”
“You didn’t mean to what? Destroy my decorations?” Leo teased, leaning close enough that Ethan could smell his cologne. “C’mon, you’re supposed to be helping.”
Kai’s laugh was low and amused. “You’re really cute when you panic. Did you know that?”
Ethan’s face flamed. He didn’t answer. Instead, he tried to focus on the glitter, which only made it stick to his fingers more.
---
Next, the team moved on to costumes. They had to prepare outfits for performers in the talent show segment. Each of the three boys had opinions:
Leo wanted bold, flashy colors.
Kai argued for sleek, edgy designs.
Adrian insisted on classic elegance.
“Ethan, what do you think?” Adrian asked, holding up a midnight-blue jacket.
“I… uh… it looks good?” Ethan muttered, hoping to stay neutral.
“No, no, no,” Leo groaned. “Don’t let him pick the boring one!”
Kai leaned closer, whispering, “You like the blue, don’t you?”
Ethan froze, stammering, “I-I… I mean… maybe…”
Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Maybe? That’s your final answer?”
The debate escalated until Ethan accidentally grabbed a bright pink feathered cape, screaming as it slipped over his head. He looked like a walking carnival.
Leo laughed so hard he nearly fell over. “Perfect! You look amazing!”
Kai smirked dangerously. “Cute. But you’d look better if I fixed it for you.”
Adrian’s sigh echoed through the hall. “I leave for five minutes, and chaos reigns.”
Ethan wanted to disappear under the table.
---
As if costume chaos weren’t enough, the next task was food stall prep. Ethan had been assigned to assist with a cultural food booth, which meant slicing, stirring, and tasting.
Leo hovered like a hawk, constantly stealing bites and insisting Ethan try first.
“Come on, you have to taste it! You can’t just stand there!”
Kai, meanwhile, was demonstrating fancy knife techniques that made Ethan’s fingers twitch nervously. “See? You hold it like this. You’re too tense.”
Adrian silently chopped vegetables nearby, glancing occasionally at Ethan with a soft, approving smile that made his knees weak.
At one point, Ethan leaned a bit too close to Kai while stirring, and Kai’s fingers brushed his again. His heart skipped. Adrian noticed, Leo noticed, and Ethan was internally melting.
“Are you okay there?” Leo asked, frowning.
“I-I’m fine,” Ethan stammered, heart racing.
Adrian and Kai exchanged a look — subtle, but not unnoticed by Ethan. He wished he could disappear into the floor.
---
By the end of the afternoon, the three rivals had settled into their usual bickering mode, even in front of Ethan:
Leo loudly claiming he was the best at decorating.
Kai teasing Ethan under the guise of “teaching him proper technique.”
Adrian quietly correcting mistakes, but stealing glances at Ethan that made him dizzy.
Ethan, meanwhile, was caught in the middle, trying to focus but unable to ignore the way his heart fluttered whenever any one of them touched his hand, brushed past him, or laughed in his presence.
“Why does this feel… fun?” he whispered to himself, staring at the glitter-covered floor.
Jamie, peeking in through the doorway, smirked. “Because you’re in love with three idiots and don’t even know it yet.”
Mark snorted. “Correction: you’re already in trouble.”
Ethan groaned into his hands.
---
By evening, the hall was a glittery, colorful mess. Costumes were half-assembled, decorations hung unevenly, and the smell of food filled the air. Ethan’s hair was slightly sticky with paint, his hands sparkled with glitter, and his heart thumped whenever any of the three rivals passed nearby.
He collapsed into a chair, exhausted, but a small, secret smile tugged at his lips. Chaos, rivalry, and his heart fluttering — it wasn’t normal. It wasn’t safe.
But… it was exactly the kind of fun he didn’t know he’d been waiting for.
Adrian handed him a cup of tea, Leo plopped a snack in his hand, and Kai leaned close to whisper, “Don’t get too comfortable… there’s more to come.”
Ethan gulped. Yes, he realized, there definitely was more to come.
- Writer
