The library was supposed to be quiet. Peaceful. A place of focus.
Keon stared blankly at the chaotic mess of personalities seated around the study table and sighed. So much for peace.
Their group project had only just begun, and already, it was spiraling. The teacher, in their infinite wisdom—or perhaps sheer sadism—had assigned him to a group with some of the most uncooperative students in the entire class. Kira, who treated the whole thing like a joke; Fuyu, who acted like team activities were beneath him; Daiki, who couldn't shut up if his life depended on it; Reina, the queen bee with a sharp tongue; and Hina, the only person actually taking notes—though she barely spoke above a whisper.
Nova, of course, lurked a few tables away, pretending to be inconspicuous. She was failing at that.
Keon tapped his pen against his notebook. "Okay. If we don't split the work, we're going to fail. Let's just assign sections—"
"I'll do the introduction," Reina said immediately, not looking up from her phone. "No one else has the presence to open properly."
Keon didn't bother arguing. "Fine. Hina?"
She flinched slightly when her name was called. "R-research," she murmured. Her voice was barely audible.
"She said research," Daiki translated dramatically, as if he were interpreting for a shy cryptid. "Honestly, I think she and I would make a great team—"
"No," Fuyu interrupted. "One disaster per task, please."
Daiki grinned. "Aw, you do care."
"I really don't."
Kira rolled onto his back over two chairs and lazily raised a hand. "I want to do the dramatic part. The climax. Something with explosions."
Keon gave him a look. "It's a report on urban planning."
Kira groaned. "So no explosions?"
Reina sighed loudly. "Why am I stuck with these people?"
Keon pinched the bridge of his nose. "Because fate hates me."
No one disagreed.
The first hour of their meeting was spent mostly arguing, dodging responsibilities, and enduring Daiki's constant jokes. Hina quietly typed on her tablet, eyes focused but hesitant, as though she was afraid someone might take even that from her.
Reina, clearly annoyed by the lack of order, stood up and wandered behind Hina's chair. Keon noticed too late.
"That's what you're working on?" Reina said, her voice thick with condescension. "That's a diagram? Are you five?"
Hina froze. Her fingers stopped moving. She didn't say anything.
Keon reacted on instinct. "Reina."
His voice was sharp—sharper than he intended—and the table went quiet.
Reina turned to him slowly, raising a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. "What?"
"If you're not helping her, don't criticize."
For a moment, something flickered across Reina's face. Not anger. Surprise. She didn't expect Keon to defend Hina. Especially not like that.
She scoffed, flipped her hair, and returned to her seat without another word. But the way she glanced at Keon afterward was… different.
The tension didn't ease quickly. Hina was quieter than usual for the rest of the session, her shoulders hunched. Keon tried to reassure her with a small smile, which she shyly returned. That tiny gesture was enough to make him feel like maybe he'd done something right.
But Reina's gaze lingered.
And when Keon turned to check the time, he noticed Nova staring daggers at Reina from across the room. The kind of look that said I will end you if you touch him again. Reina noticed too. She looked away quickly.
The Next Day
They met again in the same spot. This time, the table was a little more organized. Just a little.
Daiki had brought snacks. "To fuel our brains," he said, even though he ended up eating most of them himself. Kira arrived ten minutes late with sunglasses and an iced latte, claiming he had been "meditating in traffic." Fuyu sat down without a word, arms crossed, giving the vibe of someone forced to attend a funeral. Nova, as always, was in the background. Watching. Waiting.
Keon expected more chaos.
But to his surprise… things sort of worked.
Reina didn't say much. She kept her eyes on her notes. She didn't look at Hina. But she didn't bother her, either.
Hina, emboldened by yesterday's defense, offered a suggestion about their visual aids. It was soft-spoken, but it was a start. Keon nodded encouragingly, and she lit up just a little.
Daiki's nonsense actually helped break the tension. His jokes—some awful, some actually funny—kept the atmosphere from collapsing under Reina and Fuyu's mutual disdain for everyone.
And Kira, surprisingly, threw out a good idea. "What if we did a mock city plan with color-coded sections?" he suggested. "We can make it look cool. Visually appealing. Easy points."
Fuyu raised an eyebrow. "That's… not bad."
Kira smirked. "You're welcome."
Even Reina agreed, albeit with a dramatic sigh. "Fine. I'll adjust my intro to match the theme."
Keon blinked. Was that… cooperation?
By the end of the second meeting, he was cautiously optimistic. It was still messy. Still full of friction. But something was shifting.
Maybe it was Daiki's endless energy. Maybe it was Kira's unexpected competence. Maybe it was Reina deciding—for whatever reason—not to sabotage things.
Or maybe it was Hina, quietly working, shoulders a little straighter now, thanks to a little kindness.
Whatever it was, Keon could feel it.
This group was chaos.
But slowly, it was becoming his chaos.