Knocks came to their door, and Claude got off his bed to answer. He brushed his hair along the way before opening the door. Tommy stood before Claude, seemingly torn between laughter and tears. He didn't say anything but beckoned Claude to come with him to the main lobby.
It didn't help that Tommy kept inviting everyone they ran into. Something must be waiting for them.
"… who the fuck ordered this?" The deputy's voice echoed from the main lobby. When Claude saw him, he looked for anyone guilty around him. He then found Tommy and Claude descending the stairs, along with others. "Tommy, did you put this on the dorm's expense tab?"
"It's free…" Tommy laughed, beckoning Claude to come closer again. "Lavallee, please tell me we didn't have to return these. I didn't realize Eugene was serious!"
Claude saw the open package on the lobby floor. It was addressed to no one, but Tommy figured it was Psi Saint Alpha's answer to Eugene. Then again, Claude knew Eugene was only negotiating with Len and not the whole brotherhood. He just giggled into his fist.
Another person walked into the lobby, and the dorm adviser flinched when he saw the big delivery box. He peered inside and saw high-end pieces. The box had a projector, a screen with a stand, a karaoke machine, and a gaming console. Some peripherals were also thrown into the mix to make sure everything would be used when convenient.
The dorm adviser glared at the ten students who were up before the sun even rose. "Please tell me that didn't go into our budget for this year, Tommy. Why the hell would you buy these?"
"Uhm, these are gifts to Claude!" Tommy didn't want to tell everyone the truth. For now, he made use of Claude's popularity as an excuse. He even smiled widely to fool the deputy and the adviser. "Some rich kid is trying to woo him!"
"Oh…" The adviser checked the items. "If these are gifts for him, why are these all for the dorm to use? Do you think I'll believe you?"
Claude stepped out of the adviser's vision. He quickly texted Len and told him to call within minutes. Before Claude could slip his phone back inside this pocket, it started to ring. He didn't even know if Len just happened to be holding his phone by then. The violinist said, "Merwin, the suitor is calling. Do you want to verify it?"
The dorm adviser collected the phone from Claude. He picked up the call. "Hello, this is Lavallee's dorm adviser. I'm asking about what you sent him today."
"I see." Len chuckled at the other end of the line. "I'm sorry for the bother, Mr Merwin. Claude has been in our dorm twice now. He told me he wished his dorm also had an entertainment system to share with his friends. He can keep my gifts, can't he?"
"Sorry for bothering you. I'll let you talk to Lavallee now." Merwin handed the phone back and waited for Claude to end the call.
Claude whispered into the phone, "Hey, lemme call you back later. We're going to sort this out first. And, yeah… thanks a lot!"
For not ignoring him, not pointing a finger at Eugene, or not creating trouble for them…
"I'll take it as Lavallee is willing to share with everyone." Merwin smiled and patted Claude's shoulder. "Why don't we declutter first and find a place for these little guys? Tommy, pack the delivery up and keep it safe for now. You guys still have classes to attend to. How about we find a designated time for these guys to come out?"
…
A cacophony of voices resounded around Claude as he ate his lunch. Eugene discussed what to play later to test Claude's gifts with everyone. The other freshmen also agreed and argued, creating a plan they would put forward later for Tommy to review. They shouldn't do anything excessive without the dorm leader giving them a green light.
Heels clicked toward them, and Claude recognized the sound it made. He didn't look for the origin, but he leaned into his hearing to catch any telling signs of the person's identity.
A slender arm reached from behind Claude, trapping him from one side. The discussing boys looked up at the newcomer and stayed quiet. Her deep smile and low necklines made them zip their lips. She was also someone they had seen before.
"Hey, Eugene, do you remember me?" the girl asked. When Claude looked up beside him, the girl flicked her gaze at his face. "Hey, handsome. What about you? Do you remember me?"
"…yeah…" Claude answered, "Reina, right?"
Reina smiled deeper and moved to take the vacant seat beside Claude. "That makes me happy. But… I came here to speak to Eugene. Is it okay for me to ignore you for a moment, sweetie?"
Claude frowned at her for other things. However, he only kept it to what he knew the school raved about. "Why? What are you planning to ask him? If you're here to warn us about your boyfriends, we already heard about it. No need to threaten us anymore."
Reina chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, babe, I'm here for something more important. It's something only he could answer."
"What are you going on about?" Eugene frowned straight at the girl. He attracted her sharp gaze, and his body trembled. However, it was nothing close to Len's glare. Thinking about that guy somewhat reminded Eugene not to fear anything. He turned his nose up at her. "I don't have anything to speak to you about. Go back to your table."
Reina pulled on a corner of her lips, distorting her smile. She glared right into Eugene's gaze. "Eugene Roth, why don't you just produce Gracie today, okay? That way, no one gets hurt."
The whole table flinched, and everyone stared at Eugene. Eugene gritted his teeth. He even rose from his seat in anger. "Hey, what do you mean, produce? Do you think I have her in my pocket or something? Why are you asking me?"
"Don't be like this, baby girl." Reina chuckled, and Claude felt a strange aura coming from her body. It even caused the atmosphere to grow colder. Reina leaned on the table and almost lunged, grabbing Eugene's collar. She pulled him up and closer to her face. With a horrifying voice, Reina whispered, "Where is Gracie? I know she went to find you again after we got back."
"I don't have her." Eugene's eyes still quivered in fear. It was as if he had gone face to face with a witch casting a curse on him.
A hand reached from behind and tapped her shoulder. Reina glared in the owner's direction, only for her to release Eugene and back off. She smiled in confusion. "Hey… Len…"
Len curled his lips, standing at Claude's other side. He then used the same hand to stroke Claude's hair. He looked down at Claude's face instead. "Aren't you a little too confrontational? Didn't you hear anything from Courtney yet? Why are you going after other people?"
"I'll ask her then." Reina stepped back again. Without another word, she fled.