Page 3 of The Cuffing Game
Mia pressed her lips into a firm, unhappy line. She opened her mouth, then closed it again, and Noah smiled at how she was clearly stumped. “How so?” she asked, begrudgingly.
“Well, it’s one of the main ways people find out about movies these days. Millions flocked to theaters forBarbenheimerbecause it became a trend on social media. And to this very day, people still discover classics likeThe GodfatherorAlienbecause they stumble across random clips and fan edits on their feeds. Short-form is simply a—”
“You didnotjust sayAlienis a classic.”
“Well, it is.”
“It’s not.”
All around them, the lecture hall erupted with protests. A house divided, hundreds of voices agreeing with either Noah or Mia. Others had something else to contribute to the discussion entirely, and someone even mentioned she watchedAlienwith her grandma “at least twenty times.”
This, after all, was film school. None of them would have been there if they didn’t have strong opinions about movies. Most of the voices he could make out seemed to agree with him, though, so Noah sat back in his seat, his arms folded triumphantly across his chest.
Mia scowled.
Noah grinned. He couldn’t help it. He normally wasn’t the competitive type, but when it came to Mia, he relished every victory. Despite being only a first year, she was just so sure of herself, a stickler for her high and mighty beliefs aboutcinema.
“All right, that’s quite enough, class,” Dr. Thompson said, waving his hands in an attempt to pacify the room. “Ms. Yoon and Mr. Jang, thank you for starting us off on such a... lively note. As always.”
The class burst into laughter. Noah watched as a blush blossomed on Mia’s face. He had to admit it: she was cute. It was too bad she was also an asshole.
As Dr. Thompson continued his lecture on... something, Noah entered the password on his laptop and went through his unread emails.
As a fourth year, Noah was only in this lower-division class because it was an arbitrary and totally unhelpful graduation requirement. If it had been up to him, he would have skipped the class entirely. He’d already learned most of the material the old-fashioned way, by going out there and shooting things with both a camera and his phone himself. Like a proper filmmaker should.
Unfortunately, the administration had disagreed, so he was stuck taking a class on creating content for social media. With mostly first years, second years,anda professor who followed him on said social media.
Dr. Thompson liked almost every video Noah posted. Noah didn’t normally track who liked what video, but seeing the professor’s avatar—an adorable golden retriever that looked like she was smiling—pop up in his notifications was always a highlight of his day.
It was the little things.
Noah would never admit it to her, but some part of himwas glad Mia was in this class. Dr. Thompson was probably a great guy—he at the very least had excellent taste in dogs—but he was a dull lecturer. Noah probably wouldn’t even stay awake in class if it weren’t for her.
He scrolled through his inbox some more before coming to a stop at a rather interesting subject line.
WANTED: CAST AND CREW FOR THE SPC’S NEWEST PROPOSED SHOW,CAMPUS CRUSH
Marlon University’s Student Production Center—or the SPC as everyone called it—frequently sent out email blasts to recruit people for student-created movies and shows. Since he was already busy making his own things, Noah usually didn’t even bother reading these emails.
But this one caught his attention. He didn’t have a crush of his own. He was far too busy for that sort of thing. But he did love drama. Well, watching it anyway.
He opened the message.
Do you have an unrequited crush? Or do you want to work on a show about one? Then consider applying forCampus Crush! The show will follow four college students with unrequited crushes as they go about their lives and confess to the people they like. A cross between a reality TV show and a documentary, it raises the questions: What happens when we act on our crushes? And arethey worth our time? BIPOC and LGBTQ+ students are encouraged to apply.
Noah scrolled down to see what sort of evil mastermind had come up with this idea. When he saw who, he stifled a laugh.
Short-form-is-cancer-and-pop-culture-is-bad Mia Yoon was helminga reality TV show. Well, “a cross between a reality TV show and a documentary.” Whatever helped her sleep at night.
Noah pressed his palm against his mouth. But the more he thought about it, the funnier it became. A small, strangled noise escaped from his lips.
“Mr. Jang, was there something funny about what I just said?”
Noah slammed his laptop closed. Dr. Thompson stood right in front of him, a perplexed look on his face.
Well, damn.Noah regretted sitting in the front row. He did so out of habit only because Mia did too on her side of the room. It made it easier to hear her when they were arguing. But maybe he needed to start sitting in the back.
He cleared his throat. “No, sir. Sorry, I was, um, thinking about something else. I’ll pay more attention for the rest of class.”
