Chapter 8

<p>The messages were saying that even though Sophie hadn't awakened yet, Henry was the one who stepped up and made things happen.</p><p>That was still a pretty solid achievement. Now that Lance was fired, the new driver wouldn't have to follow Felix's orders anymore.</p><p>Sophie wouldn't get left behind like she did yesterday.</p><p>Seeing the messages, I suddenly remembered what mattered most. If I didn't handle it now, I'd be out of luck once Vincent arrived.</p><p>I took out my notebooks and lined them up neatly.</p><p>Sophie paused mid-question, staring at my desk as her face darkened.</p><p>"Why'd you stop writing?" I asked.</p><p>Sophie gaped at me. "Was there really that much homework yesterday? I don't remember any of it."</p><p>"No, these are my notes," I said.</p><p>Sophie let out a sigh of relief. "So you actually check notes too."</p><p>"Yeah, of course," I replied.</p><p>"You have that many, too?" she asked.</p><p>I slid the notebooks over to her. "Here, these are for you."</p><p>"Me?" she asked, surprised.</p><p>I nodded. "You said you had trouble with the formulas yesterday, right? These are notes I put together before. They should help you out."</p><p>Sophie picked up the top notebook and flipped through it.</p><p>It had all the formulas and definitions. Honestly, it was perfect for someone like her who was still getting the hang of things.</p><p>"Can you make sense of my handwriting?" I asked.</p><p>Sophie stared at the carefully organized notes, looking genuinely surprised. "You're really giving these to me? Don't you need them for yourself?"</p><p>"What are you talking about?" I said, feeling a bit nervous. "Of course I'm still going to study."</p><p>"But these..." she said, uncertain.</p><p>"I actually use a condensed version myself. The organized stuff is in another notebook," I explained. "These are the basics, so they're more suited for you."</p><p>Sophie was leafing through the notebook in her hands.</p><p>"These notes were really helpful for me, so I think they'll be useful for you too," I said.</p><p>I pointed to the notebooks underneath. "These are from first and second years. You probably know most of it already, but reviewing it could still be helpful."</p><p>Sophie looked into my eyes with genuine gratitude. "Thank you. I'll make sure to go through them carefully."</p><p>I nodded. "I think you'll get even more out of it if you copy them by hand."</p><p>Sophie looked a bit surprised for a second, then said, "You've already organized everything so well. I'll read through them carefully. No need to copy them again."</p><p>[Is Olivia really this nice?]</p><p>[These are all basic problems. Is Olivia suddenly acting different or something?]</p><p>[I'm actually starting to like Olivia now, but she won't stick around for long, since Vincent's about to make his entrance.]</p><p>[Today's the day Vincent and Sophie finally meet. Sophie's finally going to meet someone who truly cares about her.]</p><p>[Even if Sophie hasn't awakened yet, she probably won't fall for Felix anymore, right?]</p><p>Reading the messages, I had to admit, this kind of plot twist was pretty satisfying. But then I remembered that I was the one who'd be replaced, and that made me feel a bit down.</p><p>After finally turning things around, I was about to be separated from Sophie.</p><p>After our talk yesterday, she didn't hold anything against me for what I'd done.</p><p>I couldn't help but wonder if my next deskmate would be as nice as she was.</p><p>Sophie asked, "Why are you giving me this?"</p><p>I mumbled, "It's because of that thing."</p><p>Sophie knew what I was talking about and replied softly, "Seriously, it's okay."</p><p>"I don't need these notes anymore, and they're better off with someone who actually needs them," I said.</p><p>"Alright, thanks," Sophie said after a while. "I hope next time I'll know everything, but you'll still help me out if I get stuck."</p><p>Sophie had no idea that we were about to be split up. Once we stopped being desk mates, we'd barely talk to each other anymore.</p><p>By then, Vincent would be the one explaining things to her, so she'd have no reason to rely on me anymore.</p><p>*****</p><p>"Alright, everyone, quiet down," Jacob called out as he walked into the classroom, putting an end to the noise.</p><p>Everyone turned to look at the front of the class, where a tall, upright boy stood behind Jacob. The sunlight streamed through the window, casting a soft glow on his face.</p><p>I instantly recognized him, Vincent, the main character everyone in the messages had been hyping up. Seriously, he walked in, and it was like the universe handed him his own spotlight.</p><p>Vincent's eyes were clear and bright, his nose straight and defined, making his features stand out even more. As he looked around the room, a gentle smile played on his lips.</p><p>"This is our new classmate, Vincent," Jacob said.</p><p>Then he turned to Vincent. "Why don't you introduce yourself?"</p><p>"Hi, everyone. I'm Vincent Whitmore. Looking forward to getting along with all of you," Vincent said.</p><p>That simple introduction was enough to get everyone in the class buzzing.</p><p>"Alright, settle down," Jacob cut through the noise, then turned to Vincent. "Vincent, you're new here. Anywhere you'd like to sit?"</p><p>Vincent glanced around the room, his eyes finally landing on Sophie and me.</p><p>[Vincent's finally here. Still as handsome as ever.]</p><p>[Vincent keeps looking at Sophie. He must've recognized her. He's about to become her deskmate.]</p><p>[Their romance is finally about to start. No more Felix drama.]</p><p>[Sophie and Vincent are about to start their sweet romance.]</p><p>I knew it. I'd have to give up my seat.</p><p>At least I'd managed to get on good terms with Sophie these past few days. I'd already apologized, and she'd forgiven me. Maybe things wouldn't go down the same way as in the original story after all.</p><p>Sure enough, Vincent turned to Jacob and said, "Mr. Wales, I'd like to sit next to Sophie."</p><p>Jacob nodded. "Since you're new here, then..."</p><p>Sophie looked up, her expression calm. "Mr. Wales, I'd rather not change deskmates right now. Let Vincent get to know the other students first."</p><p>I turned to look at Sophie. Her voice was steady and calm, not a trace of emotion in it.</p><p>I glanced at Sophie, then at Vincent. Weren't they supposed to be a couple? Why was Sophie refusing to sit with him?</p><p>Jacob looked a bit awkward. "Well."</p><p>Vincent's eyes curved into a smile as he let out a soft laugh, looking effortlessly gentle and relaxed. The whole class started whispering to each other.</p><p>"Wow, Sophie doesn't even want to sit with a guy that hot?"</p><p>"Come on, everyone knows she's afraid Felix will get mad. I heard he's still mad at her today."</p><p>"But honestly, the new guy is even better looking than Felix."</p><p>Vincent said calmly, "Mr. Wales, can I sit behind Sophie?"</p><p>"Sure," Jacob replied.</p><p>I watched as Vincent walked over and took the seat behind Sophie. Sophie's deskmate was still me.</p><p>I wasn't the only one confused. The messages were going wild with questions, too.</p><p>[What's going on with Sophie? Why did she reject Vincent? This isn't how it's supposed to go.]</p><p>[Did Sophie not recognize Vincent? He literally said yesterday he was transferring to surprise her. Did she really not know?]</p><p>[Wait, does Sophie still have feelings for Felix? Is that why she's turning Vincent down?]</p><p>[No. Why are they getting separated?]</p><p>[Sitting behind her works too. They're still close, and feelings need time to grow slowly. My heart is already dying.]</p><p>My gaze drifted to Sophie. The plot was taking another wild turn. Was this going to make it even harder for her to wake up?</p><p>Does their relationship really need to be this slow?</p><p>Ever since I didn't land that slap at the very beginning, and Sophie never had her big wake-up moment, everything started going off script.</p><p>Even the messages were totally thrown off. What was happening?</p>