“Now that’s more like it. You should’ve said something sooner.”

With that, Madison excitedly linked arms with Sebastian and hurried toward the campus exit. He tensed up and tried to pull his hand away, but she wasn’t letting go.

“Come on. Don’t be shy. We’re friends.” Then, she picked up her speed.

Sebastian blinked in disbelief that he couldn’t free his hand and wondered why she was so strong.

As they stepped outside, they nearly collided with Hansel. He had just exited his sports car with a cake in hand.

Madison frowned. “Why does he always park right by the entrance? Doesn’t he realize it causes a traffic jam?”

Sebastian thought briefly, saying, “Maybe he thinks it looks cool.”

“Cool? You mean because he gets to step out of a Porsche while people are staring at him?”

“Uh, yeah, maybe?” he said.

Madison stared at Sebastian. “Wait. Do you think it’s cool?”

He shook his head. “In our family, we think driving an Aegis is the coolest.”

She replied, “My dad and I, along with the uncles in my hometown, all agree that Lexus is the best.” She paused and said, “So why does he always drive a Porsche?”

They exchanged puzzled glances and were unsure of the answer.

But Madison added, “The cake he’s holding looks really delicious.”

Sebastian noticed her practically drooling and sighed.

Hansel had been showing up at the campus gate and noticed that Miranda often hung out with Madison and Sebastian. After a few visits, he recognized their faces.

So, he approached them directly. “Excuse me, where’s Miranda? I didn’t see her around.”

Madison replied candidly, “She isn’t here.”

“Where is she?”

“She took a leave of absence.”

“What for?”

“We don’t know.”

Hansel frowned and was ready to ask more questions. But Madison had already pulled Sebastian along. “We have things to do. See you later.”

Hansel felt disappointed. Dressed sharply in a suit and holding a cake in a box with cartoon characters, he stood at the busiest spot on campus and felt like a joke.

He figured this was Miranda’s way of getting back at him. With a bitter laugh, he turned toward the trash can.

“Hey!”

He blinked and turned to see Willow smiling. “You’re going to throw something away again?”

“Why does it matter to you?” Hansel replied, annoyed.

“You tossed flowers last time, and now it’s a cake. What are you planning to throw away next?”

He frowned and wanted to say they weren’t close enough for this conversation.

But before he could, Willow continued, “The flowers you threw away were actually pretty. I picked them up, put them in a water bottle, and shared them with my friends in the neighboring dorms. They even treated me to a hot latte.”

Hansel raised an eyebrow in surprise. “You really took them?”

“Of course. You’re not going to ask me for money now, huh? That won’t happen. You said you didn’t want them, so I picked them up.”

He was left speechless.

“Well, since we ran into each other, how about I take that cake off your hands?” Willow said.

He scoffed. “So, you can share it with the dorm?”

“Of course. It’s a big cake. I can’t eat it all, and I don’t have a fridge in my dorm. It’s better to share it. Who knows, they might even treat me to a hot latte again.”

“Can’t you just buy your own hot latte?” Hansel asked.

Willow looked genuinely earnest. “When you buy it yourself, it’s never as good as when someone else treats you.”

“Why’s that? Because it’s free?”

“Exactly.” She nodded.

Hansel smiled and handed her the cake.

Willow blinked in surprise. “Are you sure?”

“You don’t want it?”

“Oh, I want it!” She quickly accepted it with a grin.