A Basket of Sugar

Shining Firsts

"It's twelve fifteen!"

"Check your emails!"

"Refresh!"

"Refresh!"

"Gahh I got it!"

"Haha suck it Jaemin I'm all good!"

"Me too!"

Chenle, Renjun, and Jaemin all turned to look at Jeno who was staring at his phone with wide eyes.

"I-I got assigned." He looked at his friends who were all failing to hide their obvious concern.

Every year investors visit the school to get a peek at what their money is going into. Naturally, the school chooses only the best and brightest of its students to represent them. Very few students from each major are chosen, and among that group few are Omegas. Jeno was one of the lucky few.

Or one of the unlucky few if you ask him.

Jeno had heard the stories. The investors always put twice the pressure on the Omegas then the Alphas or Betas. They were always so curious as to why someone as seemingly weak as an Omega would get chosen to represent their entire department. Some of the Omegas left those presentations in tears. Which Jeno was already on the brink of.

"Jeno it's okay, Jaemin will be there with you. Nothing bad will happen." Chenle tried to reassure him.

Jeno looked up incredulously at Chenle, "But Nana isn't a culinary major. It would be weird if he stuck by me the whole time."

"Jen's right." Jaemin faced their friends, "He's gonna be on his own. We're just gonna have to hope that nothing too bad happens."

At those words, Jeno felt an iron fist close on his heart. It was fear, but it wasn't just fear alone.

It was determination too.

Okay, if they wanted Lee Jeno to represent the culinary majors he would do just that. He would represent the shit out of them, and being an Omega wasn't going to slow him down.

It was slowing him down.

Jeno tugged at the tie that was, in his opinion, far too tight around his neck. The room was uncomfortably stuffy and the prying eyes of investors just a couple yards away wasn't helping. He leaned back in his chair and took a few deep breaths to steady himself. He considered sending a S.O.S text to Jaemin but he figured he was going to have to wait for a real S.O.S moment before he could send that.

They had been waiting to start for the past ten minutes but the crew seemed to be running behind schedule. All the students and their professors were seated on one end of the room while the investors were seated just across the aisle from them. Jeno was thankful his seat was on the opposite side of the investors because any Omega within three rows of them looked as if they were about to jump up and scream.

Finally their president, Moon Taeil, stepped up to the podium and was met with applause. He walked up to the mic and had to bend it down a couple inches before he could speak.

"Thank you." He cleared his throat, "Welcome to Fireflies university. We have been a running establishment for nearly fifty years and now we are considered to be one of the top 50 universities in Asia."

A light applause broke out before Taeil continued.

"That couldn't have happened without all of you. So I just want to take a moment to say thank you."

He took a moment to look up at the audience.

"But this university goes so much further than numbers and data. This university climbed its way to the top because of the hard work and dedication of the students who attend here. Which I know are the ones you really want to hear speak tonight. So without further ado I would like to present the representative of the Marine biology department Lee Haechan!"