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Two students, a boy and a girl, shake hands in an auditorium full of people in a vibrant illustration style. The girl has purple streaks in her hair.

Two students, a boy and a girl, shake hands in an auditorium full of people in a vibrant illustration style. The girl has purple streaks in her hair.

The Welcome Ceremony was a blur of speeches about “community” and “support.” It was during the Buddy System Kick-off that the noise started to resolve into something meaningful. A cheerful adviser called out names. "Shrikant Sharma, Masters of Marketing… you're paired with Chloe Nguyen, third-year Marketing." A girl with a warm, open smile and a purple streak in her hair waved him over. "Shrikant? Hey! I'm Chloe." She didn't just shake his hand; she looked him in the eye. "Don't worry," she said, nodding at the schedule he was still strangling. "It looks way more intimidating than it is. The first day is mostly about finding the good coffee spots." For the first time that morning, Shrikant felt a genuine smile crack his nervous facade. She hadn't seen a competitor or a foreigner; she’d seen an overwhelmed new student and offered a simple, human reassurance. He wasn't just a marketing student paired with another; he was Shrikant, and he had met Chloe. The day suddenly felt manageable. See more