The days moved fast after that night in the penthouse. Campaign posters multiplied across the school, speeches were practiced in empty classrooms, rumors spread every lunch break and somehow Greshina and Veneri had slipped into a rhythm where discussing election strategy between classes became normal.
What started as one strange Friday night had quietly become a routine. She'd slide notes toward him in class asking if an opening line sounded too stiff. He'd scribble blunt corrections in the margins. Sometimes she glared at him for being ruthless. And to everyone else in class, the two of them talking so naturally had become so common no one questioned it anymore.
Then the day of the campaign speeches came.
The atmosphere in class buzzed with that restless pre-event energy. People were barely pretending to study. Bags were half-packed. Conversations were louder. Everyone knew after the speeches in the hall today, elections would begin the next morning. Veneri, meanwhile, had his head on one hand and was yawning over his desk like he'd been dragged out of the grave.
Beside him, Greshina was checking speech notes one last time. Without lifting his head, he muttered:
"I'm not going."
She looked over.
"To the speeches?"
"Yup. I'm heading to a cooking contest."
That got her full attention.
"With the rival school? Today?"
He finally looked at her.
"As club president, apparently I have responsibilities. Too bad. I actually wanted to see your speech but duty calls."
A faint smile touched her face.
"You're abandoning me."
"Temporarily. If I could be there, I would. But you'll do fine."
"Thanks for helping me all this time."
The whole class heard it. Someone from the back immediately called out,
"Wait, are you supporting Emberforge?"
A few heads turned. Veneri looked genuinely offended by that question.
"I'm not even voting."
That made half the class laugh. One student pointed at him.
"That sounds suspicious."
"She asked how to improve a speech and I helped. If other candidates asked for advice instead of trying to use me as decoration for their campaigns, I probably would've helped them too."
That shut a few people up because everyone knew it was true. Suddenly he stood. He turned towards the boys and girls from the cooking club in class.
"Alright, get ready. We're going to wipe the floor with them today. We're going to show them exactly how absurdly good we are."
That got cheers immediately. One of the boys slammed his desk.
"Cooking Club!"
Another shouted,
"Destroy them!"
The whole room broke into laughter and hype. After a moment of cheering, the classroom door opened. Vivian walked in, saw the chaos and sighed.
"Why does it sound like you're invading a country?"
Veneri pointed.
"Competitive spirit."
"I see. Anyway, it's time. Oh, and Greshina, don't worry. If he tutored you, you'll be fine."
Greshina actually looked relieved hearing that.
"Thank you, Vivian."
Vivian turned back to Veneri with a serious expression.
"Claire's leading their team. She may be your childhood friend but don't go easy on her."
His eyes lit up.
"I wasn't planning to."
"If we win this, management releases funding. We'll have better equipment, expansion and we could even start selling commercial bakery products if we win."
Some members nearly lost their minds. Veneri grinned.
"Now you're speaking my language. I'll handle main dishes. They won't know what hit them."
The club members started leaving in a wave like an army marching into culinary war.nVivian walked beside him and the others followed.
Before he left, Veneri glanced back at Greshina. For a second all the noise dimmed when he smiled.
"You'll do great. Good luck."
Greshina watched the door a little longer than she meant to. A girl beside her nudged her shoulder.
"Don't look so nervous. The whole class is voting for you."
That made Greshina blink. Another chimed in.
"If our class gets the student president, we all benefit. We'll get more resources, better club funding and less admin nonsense."
Someone laughed.
"And honestly we just want our class to win."
Greshina looked around. Everyone was supporting her. People who, a year ago, barely spoke to her.
"Thanks."
Last year, this would have been impossible. Last year she had been distant, cold and unapproachable. People respected her but didn't approach her. She had kept everyone at arm's length so naturally she barely noticed she was doing it.
Then Veneri had shown up, sat beside her, talked to her like she wasn't intimidating, argued with her, teased her and included her. And somehow because he did, others followed. Classmates started speaking to her and before she realized it, she was part of them. She had changed because of him.
Sitting there now with campaign notes in hand, surrounded by classmates promising their votes, she felt a strange warmth in her chest. Still, as she looked toward the door he had left through, a small thought lingered.
She wished he were here to hear her speech.
°°°°°°
By the time the bus carrying the cooking club rolled back into the school grounds, the sun was already sinking into gold and orange. The ride home had been strangely quiet the whole way back. Anyone watching through the bus windows would have thought they had lost. Some students had dozed off against the glass and others sat clutching bags and containers in silence. Even Veneri leaned back in his seat looking unnaturally calm.
The moment the bus doors folded open, the first person jumped down shouting.
"WE WON!"
Students poured out cheering so loudly it echoed through the courtyard. Someone lifted the trophy and the screaming got even louder.
"COOKING CLUB!"
"WE DID IT!"
People still leaving school stopped in place. Students turned. Teachers looked over. More students rushed closer as the club flooded the school entrance like a victorious army returning from war. Even students who had no idea what contest had happened started cheering because the excitement was contagious.
Veneri was in the middle of it laughing. His hair was a mess, his tie was loose and was holding one side of the trophy while three boys practically fought over who got to raise it. Their club advisor came down the steps trying—and failing—to look stern.
"You should all calm down," he said, though he was smiling too much to mean it. "There are elections tomorrow."
A boy from the club shouted;
"This is bigger than democracy!"
Veneri looked at the others with a dangerous grin. He pointed at the advisor.
"Boys. Raise him."
"No wait!"
The boys hoisted him into the air while shouting the club slogan at full volume.
"COOK WITH HONOR! SEASON WITH PRIDE! DOMINATE THE TABLE!"
The teacher was half laughing, half panicking.
"PUT ME DOWN YOU MANIACS—"
No one listened. Even girls in the club were laughing. Students gathered around were filming. The teachers nearby had given up intervening. They finally set him down after throwing and catching him. The poor man looked dizzy.
Veneri stepped forward, took the trophy and handed it to him. He scratched the back of his neck, suddenly almost shy.
"Sir… thanks."
"For what?"
"For putting up with us. Keep it. One day we'll all leave and we'll graduate and move on but…"
He nodded toward the trophy,
"…this stays. This is proof of something we built as a club."
The teacher took the trophy with both hands and his eyes got suspiciously wet. Immediately one boy shouted,
"Sir's crying!"
Another gasped dramatically.
"The head chef has emotions!"
"Quick! Someone season the tears!"
The teacher covered his face laughing.
"I hate all of you."
"Oh he's definitely crying."
That made everyone lose it. Then while the chaos kept going, one of the girls from Veneri's class slipped over beside him. She leaned close and whispered in his ear. He froze and turned.
"What?"
She nodded seriously. After that they stepped aside and talked. Others noticed but pretended not to. Their phones came out and something was exchanged. He looked at his screen and smiled. When the girl left, several club members immediately crowded him.
"What was that?"
"Who was that?"
"Secret lover?"
"Scandal?"
He rolled his eyes and held up his phone.
"It's Greshina's speech."
That shut them up. Everyone leaned in when he played it. The recording started and as they listened, even the joking faded. She was really good.
"She actually sounds like a president."
"She might win."
Vivian, listening beside him, smirked.
"She used your corrections."
He looked weirdly proud.
"I know. I didn't expect her to actually have a causal tone."
When it ended, there was a moment of silence. Veneri looked at everyone and gave an order as club president.
"Vote for Greshina tomorrow I'm serious. If she wins, we'll get more club funding, student resources and possibly better kitchen facilities."
One boy nodded solemnly.
"I am moved."
Another grinned.
"We'll vote for your girlfriend."
"Oi. She's not my girlfriend."
The teasing intensified instantly.
"Oh yeah, sure. Not your girlfriend."
"Just the girl sending you private recordings."
"Very political."
Vivian looked deadly amused.
"You smiled at your phone."
He pointed accusingly.
"Et tu, ma copine?"
One of the boys clasped his shoulder.
"Brother, we support this relationship."
"There is no relationship!"
Nobody believed him so the teasing got worse. But underneath it, he didn't mind because he was still looking at the screen.
"She did it."
Somehow that made him happier than winning the contest almost had.
"Tomorrow, we vote."
They raised their hands dramatically.
"We vote for the First Lady!"
He nearly threw his phone at them. Laughter echoed through the courtyard. And in that ridiculous warm mess of victory, teasing, friendship and exhausted happiness, Veneri stood smiling at a speech recording on his phone.