Cleo wasn't sure what to call what was happening between him and Riz.
They weren't dating. Not officially. No labels had been dropped, no late-night confessions scribbled into the backs of notebooks. But they were spending *a lot* of time together. Studio hours blurred into midnight snack runs, group projects into spontaneous rooftop conversations. Cleo had even—reluctantly—started sharing ideas with Riz, asking for feedback.
Riz, of course, gave it with his usual half-grin and casual brilliance that drove Cleo mad in the best way.
And there was touching now. Subtle things—knees brushing under tables, Riz's hand on Cleo's lower back when they passed through a crowd, a quick squeeze of the shoulder when Cleo was deep in thought.
It was both nothing and *everything*.
---
"I saw you with Riz again," Julia said one afternoon as they worked on a project in the engineering lab.
Cleo didn't look up. "Yeah?"
"You guys... together?"
He paused. "I don't know."
Julia gave him a sideways glance. "You seem happier."
He let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "It's terrifying."
"That's how you know it matters."
---
The change was subtle, but people noticed. Rumors always bloomed quickly on campus.
Some students whispered. Some stared. Most didn't say anything at all—but Cleo could feel the shift, the weight of being *seen* differently.
He wasn't sure he was ready for that.
Which is why when Riz casually slung an arm over his shoulder in the courtyard, Cleo tensed.
"Relax," Riz whispered. "No one's looking."
"That's a lie," Cleo muttered.
But he didn't push him away.
---
One night, Riz invited him to a house party. Just a small one—mostly Archi kids, laid-back music, lights strung across the backyard like fairy dust.
Cleo wasn't a party guy, but he went anyway. For Riz.
He stuck close to the edge of the scene, drink in hand, scanning the crowd.
Riz, ever the social butterfly, was already surrounded, laughing with his studio mates, one hand animated in conversation, the other casually around the waist of a girl Cleo didn't recognize.
She was tall. Pretty. Close.
Too close.
Cleo's heart sank.
He didn't wait. He turned and left the party, walking fast, the sound of laughter and music fading behind him.
---
It wasn't until the next afternoon that Riz found him.
Cleo was in the library, tucked behind the old engineering shelves no one ever used. Headphones in, eyes glazed over a blueprint he wasn't really reading.
"Hey," Riz said softly.
Cleo didn't look up. "Busy."
"Bullshit."
Cleo sighed. "Who was she?"
Riz blinked. "Who?"
"The girl. At the party."
"Oh. That's Bea. My classmate. She's like... a sister."
"You had your arm around her."
"She was cold. I was literally keeping her warm."
"You smiled at her."
Riz crossed his arms. "Cleo. Are you *jealous*?"
Cleo didn't answer.
Riz stepped closer. "Look at me."
Cleo looked.
Riz was calm. Serious.
"You have nothing to be jealous of. I'm not interested in her. I've never been interested in *anyone* else."
"That's hard to believe."
Riz moved in until there was barely any space between them. "Then let me make it easier."
And before Cleo could protest, Riz kissed him.
Right there in the quiet corner of the library, behind the forgotten shelves of weathered textbooks and dust, Riz pressed his lips to Cleo's—and the world narrowed down to touch and breath and heat.
Cleo didn't pull away this time.
He kissed him back. Harder. Fingers twisting in Riz's jacket, heart racing like a circuit overloaded. When they broke apart, Cleo was breathless.
"You can't just kiss me every time I get mad," he said, voice rough.
"Yes I can," Riz whispered against his lips. "Because it works."
Cleo smirked, barely, and pulled him in again.
And this time, there was no one to stop them.
---
End of Chapter Five