MEREDITH’S professor sent them out immediately to go to the club they wanted to join after their introduction. She’s now heading to the Cooking Club when she heard someone calling her nickname.

“MER!”  

When Meredith turned around, she saw her second cousin, John Person, the son of her mother's first cousin. 

“Hey, cous!”

Her cousin is a senior Architecture student and the MVP for four consecutive years of the Swimming Club.

“Have you decided already which club you want to join?” he asked when they started walking on the pathway.

“At the Cooking Club,” she answered.

John Person nodded. “Then I will accompany you there so you don’t get lost.”

Her mood lightens up. “Really?”

“Yup!”

She smiled. “Thanks, cous!”

When they got there, her cousin bid his goodbye because of a sudden meeting at the Club for the try-out of freshmen.

“Alright! I'll see you later,” she said while he ran away from her.

Meredith greeted the people when she arrived inside the Cooking Club. “G-good morning. . .”

She looked down when silence welcomed her. She knew that all the eyes of the members there were just focused on her. She felt that she was not welcome in that club. But the two girls approached her.

“Hi, I’m Carlota! But you can call me Lota for short. I’m the President of this club,” she said then give her a hand for a handshake which she immediately accepted.

“H-hello. . . I'm Meredith from BSBA Faculty.”

“And I’m Joebeth! The Vice President.”

“Thank you for choosing our Club out of the clubs here at BSU,” the president stated.

“Actually, I chose this club because we had a small cake and dessert shop. My Mom is good at baking, while I’m good at different kinds of desserts,” she answered.

“So, how many years has your business been operating?” The president asked.

“Almost five years,” she answered.

Chenny, the assistant, interfered with what she said. “Great! We finally have a dessert maker!”

She looked back and forth at them. “Y-you mean none of you know how to bake desserts?”

Chenny nodded. “We have been looking for a member who is good at desserts for a long time. Because when there are events here at the university, we always spend a lot of money just to order outside.”

“So. . . A-am I in or out?” she nervously asked.

Carlota handed her a paper. “Register here first. Then, write your contact details and social media accounts too, so that we can inform you about our upcoming activities this year.” 

She quickly nodded and fill-out the form.

“Welcome to our club!” they congratulated her in unison when she finished her registration.

“Pres, aren‘t we going to try her dessert-making skills first before accepting her?” someone in the back suddenly shouted, making everyone stop.

The president approached the woman. “You heard what she said, right? She bakes and their shop has been open for almost five years, so I‘m sure she’s good, because if not, maybe their business won’t last that long.”

The majority agreed, so the woman who questioned her did not say any word.

“Once again, welcome to our club!”

She smiled. “Thank you all for giving me this opportunity. I promise that I will make the best desserts in the world.”

They all agreed and smiled.

After their meeting, she left the club, happy. She couldn’t believe that she’s now an official member of the cooking club. But that smile fades away when she heard a loud explosion that made her stop walking back to their classroom.

“Ah!” she screamed at the top of her lungs, causing her to cover both of her ears. She also knelt on the grass when her phobia was triggered.

“Hey, Miss! Are you okay?” a baritone voice asked who’s now kneeling in front of her to help her stand up.

When she looked at the man, her world stopped. It’s the guy who wears a black hoodie, her classmate. 

They were very close to each other. He’s very charming and captivating. In short, he’s so attractive. She could also smell his manly scent.

“Are you alright?” the guy asked again, causing her to return to her senses.

“I-i’m fine! I just tripped,” she lied while removing the dirt from her uniform.

She felt embarrassed, so she hastily turned away from him to hide her reddened cheeks when he grabbed her left arm.

“Wait! Have we met before?” he asked out of the blue.

There were those deep stares from him again, causing her heart to beat faster. His gaze can turn her knees into jelly.

What was that feeling?

The guy wanted to ask her something again when suddenly someone called him.

“Hey, Randall! What on earth are you waiting for?! Our try-out will start in a minute!” the guy shouted far from them.

The man named Randall looked at her. “Ahm, I’ll go ahead. Next time be careful, okay? Look where you’re going.”

She nodded then he ran towards his colleagues.

She held her chest. She felt like she had known that man for a long time. But what surprised her the most was that she easily controlled her phobia when she got close to him.

She asked herself. “Who really are you?”

THE NEXT DAY, Meredith woken up from the knock on her door. It was her mom, saying that she was going to be late for class. She quickly got up and went to the bathroom. She wakes up late again even though she goes to bed early at night.  

And just like before, she was surprised again when she saw the dry tears on her face.

“Am I having a nightmare again?” she asked herself from the mirror.

Later on, memories from her dreams appeared in her mind again.

__________________

ONE NIGHT, a couple were hanging out in a park watching the stars in the sky when the guy suddenly asked the girl when he notice that she had been quiet for a while.

He lifts her chin. “Hey, what happened? Why you’re so quiet?”

“I already admitted to Dad that we’re in a relationship. He investigated you and he thinks that you were only just after my money. He’s so cruel as if it was your fault you were born poor.”

“You can’t blame your father for reacting like that. He doesn’t want you to end up just like what happened to your Mom.”

The girl did not commented. He just put his arm around her and leaned her head on his shoulder.

The girl sighed then clasped their hand. “If the day comes that we die and live again in this world, do you think we can find each other again?”

The boy laughed. “What are you saying? You’re so dramatic. You should stop watching dramas.”

The girl slightly hits the right arm of the boy. “Hey, I’m serious!”

Another long moment of silence draped over them before the boy finally answered. “Of course! If we are really destined for each other, we will meet again in our next life.”

“Really?! Do you really think that it will happen again?”

The boy nodded. “I promise you that no matter what happens, I will find you. I will not stop until I see you.”

“What if we were born in different places or countries?”

“I will fly all over the world. I will even cross the seas, rivers, and mountains just to find you.”

The girl smiled. Her heart was overflowing with happiness.  

“I also promise you that I will find you no matter what,” she said then raised her little finger in front of him.

The boy smiled and accepted her little finger as a sign of their commitment to each other.

“I love you so much,” the girl said passionately.

“I love you too,” the boy said without taking his eyes off of his girlfriend as they pressed their foreheads together.

______________

MEREDITH wiped her tears. She was disturbed again by those lovers whom she had not met until now. Sometimes, it suddenly appears in her mind for reasons she doesn’t know. The lovers look happy in her dreams, but why does she wake up in tears?