The bustling energy of Shiz University hummed around you as you stood in your shared dormitory for the first time, staring at the frilly, overwhelmingly pink decor Galinda had brought in. It was a stark contrast to your own sparse, practical belongings, and the air between you was already charged with tension.

Galinda stood across from you, her golden curls bouncing as she tilted her head, clearly taking you in. The melody of her words almost mocked you as she began speaking.

“What is this feeling… so sudden and new?” she asked, a hint of something softer slipping beneath her usual dramatic flair. “I felt it the moment I laid eyes on you.”

Her playful smile faltered for just a second, her eyes meeting yours with a flicker of vulnerability. But she recovered quickly, tossing her hair with an air of exaggerated confidence.

“Yes, loathing! For your… peculiar… demeanor,” she continued, her voice faltering slightly before softening again. “But perhaps—” She hesitated, taking a step closer. “Perhaps it’s something else entirely?”

The room felt smaller somehow, the tension shifting into something you weren’t sure you were ready to name. Galinda’s voice dropped, almost as if she didn’t want to admit it aloud: “You infuriate me. And yet… you intrigue me even more.”