Stepping inside the Intro to Programming lecture hall had become quite a different experience after the first week or two. The once packed-to-the-brim lecture hall now sat half-empty, many of its prior residents having decided that attending wasn't worth their time or effort.

I wonder how many of them are right. I mean, I got a lot out of the class the first time around. But if this is required for ALL CS majors… maybe a lot of them are already way past this?

Kaitlyn let the heavy door close behind her and angled toward the back corner. Ian was easy enough to find, sitting in his usual spot there. He lifted his head as she approached, face brightening.

"Hey!" He reached out and lifted his backpack off the seat next to him. "You're early today."

"Yeah? Speak for yourself," she retorted as she settled in. It wasn't entirely necessary to save her a seat, considering how many empty spots there were around here. But the gesture was appreciated nonetheless. "Why are you always here before me? I didn't realize you loved the class so much."

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right. My Calc class is right next door, so I just pop over after it's done. It's pretty convenient."

"Oh." That made sense. A lot more sense than him actually putting in effort to be punctual. If he couldn't be on time for Bara Bash, then making it to a class he clearly didn't enjoy seemed entirely out of character.

"Yeah," he scratched his head, face flushing slightly. "I, er, don't always make it on time for that one… but this class I'm pretty good on! Oh, want to see the progress I made on the bow?"

They talked until the lecture began, both about Ian's game and other things. Like Kaitlyn's progress in Kingdom Spades. She had gladly taken the guy up on his PlaySphere offer, diving into the highly-recommended title whenever she had time. There were still enough other activities vying for her attention that she couldn't focus on gaming singlemindedly, of course. Still, she had to admit, Ian had good taste.

It's a good game. REALLY good. The story's kind of cheesy, but the gameplay is just as awesome as he made it out to be. And the music? She shook her head. Someone definitely cared about their work. It's way better than it has any right to be. I'm going to have to see if I can find sheet music for them…

Most of the time, she'd play the game during her own regularly-scheduled relaxation time. When the pair were hanging out, they'd still play friendlies, practice, and occasionally work on Ian's own project. Though Kaitlyn herself wouldn't call her own contributions anything close to "helping."

I'm literally just being a sounding board. I mean, if anything, I'm the one being helped. I'm learning just by watching him work.

The painfully basic lecture droned on in the background as she thought. To her right, Ian tapped away at his laptop, similarly ignoring the professor in favor of his own work. He insisted that just having someone to bounce ideas off of was incredibly helpful. Still, it didn't feel like nearly enough. Though reading the code over his shoulder reminded her just how little she could contribute directly.

…But maybe that's for the best? I mean, the last thing I want to do is overstep again…

Eventually, her gaze began to rove around the room and survey the class. About half were paying attention to the lecture, while the other half occupied themselves with other things. Some browsed the web or busied themselves with completely unrelated tasks. One girl a few rows ahead of them was even watching a soap opera.

Kaitlyn watched the show for a little while before she felt a slight nudge at her elbow. Glancing over, Ian had a triumphant grin on his face. "Look."

He tapped a key. The game sprang to life in a new window, the polygonal main character standing in its center with a bow in hand. Ian navigated him around for a little while, shooting arrows in rapid flurries, broad arcs, and precise lines.

She couldn't help but grin. It seemed like he'd finished working out the last of the bugs. That meant another weapon was done.

"Can I try?"

He nodded, sliding the laptop over to her. She ran the bow through its paces, darting across the screen as waves of enemies swarmed toward her. The arrows felt good, way better than they had only days before. The shots were responsive and landed just where they were supposed to.

Eventually, she got caught out of position. A meaty cuboid fist slammed into her, claiming the last of her health bar. She let out a sigh of defeat as the window faded to black.

"What do you think?" Ian whispered over.

"I like it. I'll need to practice with it though," she admitted. "Those Brutes are a lot harder to handle now. I have to put so many shots into them before they go down. Especially when I'm already trying to dodge the Skulls…"

"Yeah? Good." Ian let out a chuckle. "Then it's working as intended. I want the different enemies to feel different for each weapon, you know?"

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"Fair. The Eyes are way easier to handle with this than the sword… But it doesn't feel unfair, you know? Maybe—"

Someone loudly cleared their throat, sending Kaitlyn's head jerking upward. A student a few seats down was glaring in their direction, shooting both her and Ian a dirty look.

Whoops. Guess we got a little loud.

Wincing, she mouthed a silent "sorry" at the guy and slid the laptop back over to Ian. His own face looked about as flushed as hers felt, guilt written plain across it. With a grimace, he tabbed out of the window and into his note-taking one.

The sight pained her a bit. Ian had obviously been neglecting his classes, more so than ever before. They had taken a few opportunities to study, at least, though they usually didn't last without her pushing things along. But despite a clear sense that midterms would be a trainwreck, he seemed so much happier. It left her conflicted.

I have no idea if this will actually work out. Maybe we're both overcorrecting or something… but it's definitely different than last time. So I might as well see it through.

Turning forward again, she continued to think about her own to-do list as she watched the soap opera. Eventually, the professor's droning came to an end and the lecture hall burst into a flurry of motion. She and Ian tucked away their laptops, rising to join the crowd of exiting students.

"Finally," she stretched gratefully. "Want to walk back together?"

"Ah. I'm actually going to grab food." Ian confessed, shoving his hands in his hoodie pockets.

"Food?" She frowned. "It's pretty early for dinner, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but… I kind of forgot to eat lunch?"

She just stared at him. "You forgot?! Ian, it's three o'clock already! How are you not starving?"

His stomach grumbled in response, speaking up in protest of its treatment. His eyes fell to the ground bashfully. "I'm fine. Really! You know how it is. Sometimes, you just get wrapped up in something and lose track of time."

"Yeah, until you get hungry. That's supposed to remind you to take a break! You had breakfast at least, right? Right?"

The silence was more telling than any words he could have said. Sighing, she ran a hand down her face in disbelief. Him being obsessive was one thing. But this?

I'll support him doing his game, but there are limits. He's gotta take care of himself, too.

Kaitlyn shook her head. "Geez, Ian… c'mon, let's go to Cappy's."

"I thought you were heading back to the dorms?"

She crossed her arms resolutely. "Nope. I have to make sure you eat. If I let you go yourself, there's every chance you'll get distracted on the way or just 'forget' again. We're going to Cappy's and I'm not letting you out of my sight until you have an actual meal."

He blinked in surprise, a small smile creeping onto his face. "Geez. What am I, a kid?"

"No. Obviously. Even a kid would have more sense than you."

They kept walking toward the cafeteria. Luckily, it wouldn't be crowded at this time of day. Three o'clock was a strange enough time, awkwardly far away from both lunch and dinner, that Kaitlyn knew they wouldn't run into any lines.

The pristine white walls of Cappy's came into view a short while later. Despite the dense crowds of students milling about the area, very few entered the building. Most were headed toward their next classes.

"You really don't have to come in with me," Ian reminded her once again. "I will eat. Promise."

Kaitlyn shrugged. "It's not that I don't believe you. I'd just rather be safe than sorry. What am I gonna do if my doubles teammate starves to death?"

"I wouldn't starve to death! I'm not that bad!"

"Mmm-hmm. Yup. Totally believe that." She poked him in his ribs. "Should I start calling you Mr. Bones?"

"I'm not—! I eat, ok?!"

"Sure, mister I-haven't-eaten-today. Sure." She flapped a hand dismissively. "Besides, I've got stuff I can do here, too. I can pick up some ingredients or something."

"Ingredients?" His expression turned confused. "For what?"

"Oh!" That's right. I haven't told him this loop. "I run a little side business selling meals and desserts and stuff. I've been seeing whether I can use some of the premade stuff from Cappy's to cut down on prep time for the desserts."

Most of the desserts she sold were entirely homemade, of course. Even doctoring up the stuff from the cafeteria didn't bring them up to her standards. However, crumbling up the oatmeal cookies for a nice topping or using the cake slices to make cake pops? Those were entirely on the table.

"Wait, seriously?" His jaw fell open. "Since when?"

"Since… the start of the semester?" She shot him a half-cocked smile. "You're not the only one with hobbies, you know."

"Apparently not… still. That's way cool. And people buy it?"

"Of course! I've been told I'm a pretty good cook. In fact…" Her expression brightened as an idea struck her. She'd already done a lot of the prep work for Kate's Kitchen tomorrow. Her fridge was chock-full of ingredients and options. So why not take advantage of it?

"C'mon. Let me make you a meal."

"Here? At Cappy's?" Ian looked skeptical.

"No, not here." She just laughed. "At the dorms. I've got a setup and everything."

"Are you sure? I don't want you to go through the effort—"

Kaitlyn just rolled her eyes, angling toward the dorms. "It's fine. Seriously. Let's go already!"

As they rerouted toward home, Kaitlyn's mind was already whirling with ideas. Her inability to help with the game was one thing, but this? If there was one thing she felt like an expert in, it was food. Especially food that college students loved. And what was the point of having knowledge if not to use it?

This guy's about to get hit with a feast fit for a king. I hope he's as hungry as he sounds.