Devin made a sarcastic sound, “Oh, so she’s here for her boyfriend’s basketball championship.”
“I don’t have a boyfriend,” Alex answered at once. At this point, she realised that she might be saying this a lot for the next few days.
She and the secretary exchanged eye contact. Subtle hostility flexed in his dark eyes. On the other hand, Alex’s demeanor remained unwavered. The gears in her head slowly started to wonder if something else was the cause of this. She hadn’t bothered him except for when she called his name. That was only out of politeness too.
Something told her that he could be trying to provoke her instead.
Well, she wasn’t about to let him win.
“Poor guy…” Devin said, snapping his head in another direction.
“It is a big event since we’re the home team,” Henley pointed out with a nod. His smile melted the tension, “And other clubs will be there. The Cooking and Baking Club would be selling some snacks. They’re going to need a booth. Band Club would also be present. I’m sure more will come in for a proposal.”
“I’m happy to help with anything.”
“Well, I’m sure you and Colin can figure that out” the president continued, “Take your seats. You can borrow a laptop to look through the current plans.”
Alex bowed her head, “Thank you, President Henley.”
He laughed heartily, ginger hair swaying, “No need for that. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask me.”
“If she’s that incapable then, what’s the use of having her?”
“Would you SHUT. UP?!” The same girl from before yelled at Devin. She slammed a stack of papers on the table. Her hazel eyes blazed, “She JUST got here and you’re already firing at her like a machine gun. In case you’ve forgotten, Alex has always been reliable when we really needed her. ”
“Initiative is a much better character trait, Reya.”
Reya threw her hands in the air, “And she’s right there! What more are you asking for?”
“Please refrain from fighting” Henley cut in, taking his seat back, “If not, I’ll suspend you both and have Alex take over for the time being.”
Denvin was the first to protest, “Absolutely not!”
“Then, behave.”
The president used a mellow tone but his expression meant business. He held the secretary’s stare until Devin relented. The both of them silently went back to work. Henley kept his words direct and concise whenever he gave out instructions.
Reya fumed in her place. A part of her felt glad that Devin was in his last year. That also meant it was Henley’s last year too. She was only a sophomore but, at least, she was mature. Another part of her felt sad about that one. It seemed like losing a big brother.
Alex headed for the table while Colin went to grab a laptop. She chose the sport farthest from Devin, of course. She found herself next to the other girl on the table.
Concentrating on the rows of pictures in front of her, Selene leaned on the backrest with her arms over her chest. The tips of her ash blonde ponytail blended into a pink ombre highlights. Black round glasses framed her brown eyes. Her nose wrinkled at something that displeased her sight.
Alex glanced at the photos. Each one seemed candid and from around campus. It ranged from sports activities to simple ones like a stroll in the front. Collectively, they didn’t form a theme. They seemed more like scraps from a camera roll.
A moment later, Selene sighed. She cupped her cheek and folded her arms on the table, “Deng it! I can’t believe I don’t have a single photo of Alex before her transformation!”
Colin pulled the chair beside Alex. The two of them whirled their heads towards her. To say that Alex was baffled would be an understatement. She couldn’t tell if Selene was serious or not. What did her photo have to do with anything?
Reya nudged the girl’s arm with the back of her hand, “Yo, Sel… you do know she’s right next to you, right?”
“Who?” Selene blinked back at her.
Reya froze for a moment. She should have known that the girl hadn’t listened to any of the conversation earlier. Why did it still surprise her? Selene always had the habit of spacing out. It was a lot harder to call out to her when she’s in the middle of work.
Instead of answering, Reya pointed to Selene’s other side.
The girl obliged. She moved swiftly that it startled Alex. Their expressions were reflections of each other. Both sets of eyes popped out of their sockets. The sudden attention made Alex feel like a specimen under a microscope.
“Alex, hey!” Selene exclaimed, giggling. She clapped her hands, “Perfect timing! I was thinking—”
“Are you really sure this is a good time to say it?” Reya interrupted. She could already tell what the other would say. It hadn’t been a secret around this room. Anyone who had ears knew.
Selene pulled a heartbroken face, “But I really do think there should be a cover about her in the school newspaper.”
“The newspaper?” Alex asked.
Of course! She hadn’t thought about that. She never really held one since attending the school. If she wasn’t mistaken, it also had a website and a blog. It probably also had other social media accounts. It would have been the fastest way to reach the entire student body.
Right now, she also happened to be the hottest news on campus—thanks to someone’s video post. It would be nice to strike while the iron was hot.
But with what?
“Yeah!” Selene exhaled, “I mean, I know you enacted a part of your story but… Hello? We exist? Your fellow council members? You can even write the article yourself. Use us too for whatever you need. We have each other’s backs.”
Warmth seeped through Alex’s chest. Best case scenario, she thought she’d find herself in a group that would tolerate her presence. Never in her wildest dreams did she think someone here would be willing to support her.
Devin snorted, keeping his eyes on his work, “Selene, stop acting like you’re her best friend.��
“Well, I could be her best friend.”
“I think Logan would protest,” Colin coughed.
Selene shook her head, “But he’s a boyf—”
“What kind of reporter are you for assuming something like that?” Reya butted in. She wanted to bury her face under her hand. These would have been avoided if Selene had been listening.
“Oh, I’m sorry!” Selene gasped, realizing her mistake. She grasped Alex’s hand, “That really was out of line.”
“No worries” Alex replied. She pulled her hand back. The energy began to overwhelm her. She did entertain the idea but she didn’t want to do it right this second.
“So when you have the time, we can talk about your feature in the paper” Selen explained, “We can even have a Q&A. The students would send their questions and we’d pick on what to answer in the article. I’m sure some of them would give troll questions. This way we can filter them out. We can also have a photoshoot unless you already have pictures you want to use—”
“Let the Club Event Coordinator do her job first, please?” Devin spoke up again, “Talk about that later.”
“For once, I agree with the devil” Reya added, “She’s here for the championship game event. Let her do that so Mr. Prissy Pants can zip his lips already.”
Selene’s posture slumped. She caved in, using a meek voice, “Okay.”
Colin patted Alex on her shoulder. He moved the laptop towards her and presented the working file they had. It had all the clubs listed out for the event and what they’d do. The Art Club had been put in charge of the banners and other decorative pieces. The Cooking & Baking Club did have an approved booth setup for their goods.
A few others would be performing, Marching Band, Dance Group, Glee Choir, Cheer Team…
A draft for the program had been written. Alex pulled the laptop closer and skimmed through all the information. The amount left her astonished. It seemed more like Foundation Day than a Basketball Championship.
“Is it always like this for any major game?” She couldn’t help but ask.
“Well, yeah, as long as it’s the championships and we’re the host” Colin confirmed. He chuckled, “There’s usually already an audience while the teams prepare for the game. This is pretty much the entertainment portion.”
“Then, there’s the pep rally, right?”
“Yep, the cheer team would be in charge of that.”
“What can I do to help then?”
“You…” Colin paused for effect, grinning mischievously, “… will be helping out the school newspaper cover the event.”
Alex processed the words slowly. From what she understood of her position, she’d be more involved in the planning and executing process of club events. The task Colin stated didn’t seem to fall into that category.
“Write an article about it?” She voiced skeptically.
“Write, take photos, interview… depends on what you can think of. If we win, this would take up more than a page. It should be blog friendly too. Basically, you’ll handle every outlet the club has.”
No matter how she looked at it, that sounded like the newspaper club’s job.
“As the Club Event Coordinator, you have a macro eye on the scenes” Colin cleared up. Her confused look gave her thoughts away, “Our plans must have a purpose and they should be highlighted so each club participating gets a shoutout. In order to do that, you’d also need to coordinate with the clubs about their activities.”
“I didn’t think I’d be making a public article about it,” Alex finally said. Honestly, the work didn’t seem that bad. Maybe she just expected more?
Or was she belittling it too much?
“It’s something we’ve worked on since last year” Selene supplied, “It’s much better when we get the perspective of someone involved in the event. Of course, we’d still be helping out—But! You’re the person that knows everything about that event.”
“It’s the best one I can think of for you” Colin admitted softly, “You’ll be able to meet a lot of people with this job. You can also be as creative as you want if the newspaper club allows. I’m sure Selene has a lot in store.”
Once the idea sank in, Alex’s mind raced with ideas. Small posts about the preparations could add to the hype. If she kept it versatile, no one would be bored.
Interviews could be done in live videos. As the interviewer, the focus won’t be on her. What others would be able to see was her approach on the matter. She could also reach out to majority of the student population if she thought hard enough.
It might just come together.
