Milun smiled when he spotted Autumn at the French society meeting. It was held in one of the seminar rooms, the tables arranged like in a school classroom. Most students had already arrived and sat in groups, chatting while they waited for the meeting to start. Autumn sat alone in the back of the room, supporting her head with one arm and her pretty eyes staring emptily.

Milun waved towards the students he recognised and said hello to some of them; it took him quite a while to reach the back row. It was the first time he could fully appreciate Autumn’s features: hazelnut-brown shoulder-long curls, long eyelashes, and pink lips—so beautiful! Yet, as if wanting to hide her alluring physique, she was dressed casually: a light-blue formless sweater and worn-out jeans. 

“Hi, can I sit here?” Milun asked, trying to sound casual, while pointing towards the empty chairs next to the brunette.

But his beautiful Autumn only gave him a condescending look. “Fuck off.”

Milun’s jaw dropped in surprise. He didn’t know what to say—how could her well-formed lips speak such foul words!

“Don’t you know who she is?” Oliver, a student who lived on the same floor as Milun, asked. “She’s with that gangster dude. He’s gonna kill you for sure if you make a move on her.”

“All I did was say hello… That stupid Crow can’t stop me from following my heart, can he? Ah, Autumn, I didn’t mean to say that your boyfriend is stupid. Of course he’s not!”

“He’ll kill you,” Autumn said calmly. “Because I’ll ask him to. I hate guys and I hate you.”

Milun’s heart sank upon the instant rejection. When the society meeting started and the president introduced the committee and their plans for the year, he didn’t listen. Instead, Milun wondered whether Autumn meant that she wasn’t into guys or that she simply didn’t want to talk to anyone. Pretty as Autumn was she probably also got hit on a lot and perhaps was tired of the unwanted attention. Or maybe she was shy?

His chain of thoughts ended when Oliver shoved a stack of paper his way. “You need to fill in the form to sign up for the activities you want to do,” his flatmate whispered, probably realising that Milun hadn’t paid attention.

Autumn ticked the box for French beginner lessons, so Milun did the same. Nobody needed to know that it was his mother tongue. 

“Dude, why are you signing up for beginner lessons?” Oliver looked at Milun’s form. “Didn’t you tell me just yesterday you were from France? Didn’t you promise to bring me some pastries next time you go home?”

Milun laughed awkwardly. “French Grammar is complicated—I never really understood it, I think these beginner lessons can help me figure it out!” 

After handing in his form, he left as quickly as possible, before anyone else would question his grand plan. 

“Hey, are you free? Are you on campus?” he texted Ryvan, the only person he could think of who would be able to help him. Milun waited for exactly two seconds before he added, “You aren’t busy, aren’t you? Meet me at the library cafe, it’s an emergency.”

The library was the most modern building on campus with two large sliding doors that led into a spacious lobby. Inside, there were a few sofas, their velvet upholstery still shiny new, spiral ceiling lights, and a cafe tucked away in the corner. As it was still the beginning of the year, only a few students were around and most of the seats were empty.

Luckily, it seemed Ryvan had been close by already and he even found Wren in the library lobby. “Come with me,” he dragged his bespectacled friend to the cafe. Wren was always studying too hard anyway, a break wouldn’t hurt him. 

The cafe was small; it only consisted of a small counter and some colourful chairs and tables. Because Milun felt guilty for disturbing Ryvan and Wren, he bought them a muffin each: Blueberry for Ryvan and chocolate for Wren. 

“Thanks, Sophie,” he nodded towards the girl at the counter. Milun had met her at a party before, she studied literature, or was it drama? After he held a muffin in each of his hands, Milun realised he had no more money to buy anything for himself. He shrugged, tap water would do.

“You need to ask your fiancée to give me makeup tips,” Milun said as soon as the three sat down on the cold metal chairs. “I need to look like someone else by next Wednesday.” Ryvan was a nice guy—although he sometimes used strange words and seemed to like dressing in expensive-looking clothes, so Milun was sure he would help him.

“Averie probably doesn’t know how to do makeup. She doesn’t like it and only wears it when her makeup artist does it,” Ryvan explained; his voice was calm given the unusual request. 

“Is that what girls do in this country? Man, I had no idea!” England really was different from Milun’s hometown in France where his sisters spent hours upon hours in their flat’s tiny bathroom trying to look just a little bit better. 

“Why do you need to change your looks? Do you think that’s a good idea?” Wren took a bite from his muffin, talking while he ate. Milun felt jealous. 

He nodded as a reply. Of course it was a good idea—or at least the best he could come up with. “As I’m now, Autumn hates me. I need to look more like a girl to get on her good side. You’ll see, she’ll like me once she knows my qualities.”

His friends’ raised eyebrows told him that they couldn’t follow him. “Your only outstanding quality is your French accent,” Wren remarked snarkily. 

“Right, I have to do something about my voice, too…,” Milun thought out loud. If he turned up to the French lessons unprepared, his accent would give him away immediately. Wren was really smart! 

Meanwhile, Ryvan had taken out his phone and scribbled down a number on the serviette that had come with his muffin. “These are the contact details of my family’s makeup artist. She’s good with doing makeup for guys, maybe you can work something out. You probably also want to speak to a stylist,” he added, writing down a second number.

Milun didn’t understand why Ryvan had a makeup artist and a stylist but it didn’t matter. All he knew was that he was lucky to be friends with him. “Thanks, man, you’re the best!”

He looked forward to meeting Autumn again at the next society meeting. But before that, there was a lot of preparation to do.