Popularity

Despite the almost constant flirting, everyone manages to keep their hands to themselves. Even Gina, who seems to be practically attached to Keith, never takes it beyond an arm around his shoulders or waist, at least for now. For all that it’s only been a bit more than a day, Keith is already settling into a comfortable place within the little group.

One thing stands out during the conversations, though. Both Devin and Ava seem to be pulling out their phones quite often. Curious, Keith brings it up.

“Something important going on? You two seem popular.”

Ava blushes and sets her phone aside. “No, no, not really…”

Devin, though, simply laughs. “Well, unlike our little bookworm here, I do have a bigger circle of people I know.”

Ava scowls slightly. “Just because I don’t flirt with everyone like SOME people.”

Devin shrugs, still grinning. “I can’t help if I’m cute! But this isn’t about me. It’s actually about you, Keith.”

Keith blinks. “Me? What do you mean?”

Devin raises an eyebrow. “You went out and about today. And a certain nosy catgirl saw you, yeah? Word spreads quickly.”

Ava nods. “There are a lot of questions about you, is all. As we said, you’re going to be quite popular.”

Keith glances at Gina. “How come your phone isn’t blowing up?”

Gina laughs, snuggling against him. “It is, stud. I’m just ignoring it ‘cause I got a cutie like you next to me!”

She reaches into her pocket and pulls out her phone, making sure she leans in against Keith to do so. Grinning, she holds it up so he can see. Keith blinks in surprise.

“Fifty notifications?”

Gina laughs, putting her phone away. “Yup! You’re the talk of the campus, stud!”

Keith shakes his head. “I’m not sure how to feel about that, really.”

Devin smiles. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not like you’ll get mobbed in the streets or anything.”

Ava nods, her smile reassuring. “Yes. It’s more that it’s unusual for students like us to be involved. On the rare occasion that true humans appear, it’s usually due to higher levels of magic users wanting to study.”

Gina chuckles. “Yeah, it’s not usually horny college students.”

Devin giggles. “Basically, yeah. Most times, this sort of thing is super controlled.”

Keith nods, slowly. “So, the interest is as much about you three as it is me?”

Ava shrugs. “A bit. You’ll still get a lot of strange looks, and a few bold propositions, but it won’t be overly disruptive.”

Gina grins again, and leans in closer. “Speaking of bold propo-whatevers…I’m getting a bit antsy here. You wanna…go have fun?”

Keith laughs. “Subtle.”

Gina shrugs. “Do I look subtle to you? So…wanna?”

Devin rolls his eyes. “Go on, you’re not going to miss anything here.”

Keith chuckles. “I wasn’t about to say no. Yes, Gina, let’s…”

He doesn’t get to finish his sentence, as Gina leaps up, grabs his hand and hustles him towards her bedroom.