「 featuring 」 one-shot compilation

autumn leaves | joy and taeil

Prompt: taeil is joy's sunbae in college. they met each other in an english class that they are both taking.
Word Count: 3312

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College has always been busy from the moment that it started. Lectures here and there, readings and homework on almost every subject. Only a few weeks have passed but the amount of stress that the students are getting were can now be accumulated into a year's worth.

And that does not end there. Because it is just the beginning. The beginning of a more hectic and busy days that await.

Just like today. A young lady in her white summer dress and black low top Converse is panicking and running across the student filled corridors. Her black hair disheveled from all the running, she sprints away the busy crowd. Not minding all the stares that she is getting from the other students that she passes through. Because she is one to know that it is more important for her to arrive at her class than– you know, mind these people.

Knowing that if she did not run faster, she will be late on her English subject, the girl took larger and faster steps while shouting "Excuse me!"

At last! After a few minutes of squeezing herself to the sea of people in the corridor, she is now inside the lecture hall where her English class is being help. Ragged breathing and beads of sweats trickling down her forehead were all she got from running but it was worth it. She arrived just in time for the lecture to start and she also had an enough time to find herself a decent seat.

Still catching her breath from the 'amazing race' that she had just finished, Park Joy, a sophomore in this university settled down on her chair. Quietly, she gets a pen and a notebook from her bag.

As soon as the lecture started, Joy intently focused herself on the professor. Noting the important words that she said, and some things that is worth jotting down.

Their topic for this day is about the reading that was assigned to them last week. An American contemporary-classic novel titled "Their Eyes Were Watching God." Joy is all smiles during the whole period of discussion. She is very much immersed on how their professor tackled and summarized the book. All her thoughts upon reading it are pretty similar as to how it was scrutinized.

The lecture went on for an hour and a half. But before the professor dismissed the class, she assigns the class to do a review, and a very in-depth analysis of the book.

They were given a month to finish it but they are required to have a partner.

Joy's smile immediately goes away after hearing it. She knows that she will be doomed. Why? Because first, she does not want to work with other people when it comes to tasks like that. And second, she is just... more comfortable working alone. No matter what this task may be.

But she understands that working individually in a task that was assigned to be worked on by twos is not possible. And there is also the possibility that it might take a toll on her semester grade if she will not follow the instructions.

"Hey!" a male voice cuts through Joy's introspection.

"Huh?" she mutters while taking a look around to find who dared to her.

A red-haired guy sitting next to Joy waves at her. She got surprised by the sudden action of her seatmate but she did not spend more than a second to arrange her composure. Brushing off the shock that entered her system.

"Do you have a partner already?" her seatmate asked.

"No... I don't have. Why are you asking?"