Chapter 5 — Summer On The Terrace

The student union meeting took place in the first-floor multipurpose room, where the projector warmed up before the presenter. Bao Long put the garden proposal on the screen, but did not show the sponsorship contract. Vy sat next to Quan, My and Ha, each holding a note.

The association president asked: "What does the group want the association to support?"

Vy said: "A document requests that the school suspend dismantling, allow safety inspections and open user consultations."

One member asked: "Are there any data yet?"

Quan presents current load, surface temperature and drainage error. You didn't say the garden was perfect. He said the large tray of soil had to be abandoned, the old tank was not up to par, and the maintenance schedule lacked people.

The association president frowned. “So you want to keep a place with many errors?”

Ha replied: "We want to keep a system that can be used and repaired. If it's all removed to put a sign, no one knows if the roof can withstand the new frame."

Long turned the slide back to the funding source. The New Sun logo appears in the corner. My immediately asked: "Why is the logo here?"

“They sponsor the contest, not the garden,” Long said.

“This slide is from company documents?” Vy asked.

Long did not answer immediately. The association president asked him to explain. Long said the company received the operational description for support consideration, but did not receive technical data.

Quan looked at the screen. “Why is the file name rooftop_data_v2?”

Long turned to him. “Can you check my file name?”

“It shows up on the slide.”

The atmosphere in the room changed. Long admitted that he sent a data sheet including temperature and amount of vegetables to Ms. Nhan, thinking it was operational information. He hasn't sent the loading drawings yet, but the board has the name of the person in charge of each irrigation shift.

My asked: "Did you ask if they were allowed to use it?"

“I think the group's data.”

“The group's data is not meant to be sent arbitrarily.”

Long blushed. “I want sponsorship. Otherwise, we can't buy the sensor.”

Vy did not scold. She asked: "Where did Ms. Nhan use the data?"

Long opened his phone. Ms. Nhan sent a photo of a company presentation, in which the garden was introduced as a "test model for the Summer Roof campaign". There is no student name, just the company logo.

Quan said: "They used it before asking for rights."

The association's chairman asked Long to temporarily stop all communication with the company. The Association will send a letter requesting an explanation. But another member objected: if funding is cut, the library cannot be repaired.

Vy stood up. "No one is against the library. But a sum of money does not allow for deletion of creator names and user data."

The meeting lasted long. In the end, the student union agreed to support the group in submitting the petition, but did not commit to a budget. Long will still be in charge of sponsorship, with the condition that all transactions from now on must be public.

After the meeting, Long stood in the hallway and did not follow the group to the rooftop. Vy comes.

“Are you mad at me?” Long asked.

"I'm angry that you sent the data without asking. It doesn't mean I want you to disappear."

“I'm afraid if I lose sponsorship, the team will say I'm useless.”

"You're not useless. But you did something wrong."

Long smiled tiredly. “Do those two sentences exist together?”

"Have."

The army passed by and heard it. He said: "If you want to fix it, ask for permission from the user, not just apologize to the group."

Long nodded, then sent an email to each volunteer, stating the submitted data and asking if they would allow the company to keep it. Some people agreed to the recall, some did not reply.

On the rooftop, Vy and Quan checked the faucet that had been opened the day before. The auxiliary valve was pried, not turned on by itself. Uncle Sau noted and requested to lock the technical cabinet.

Vy asked Quan if he suspected Long. Quan said there is not enough data. “B.L.'s name on the board could be the one who opened it, or someone else could use his name.”

My ran up the stairs and announced that the contest had just sent a revised rule: contestants had to submit all designs to the sponsor and agree to allow the images to be used for five years.

“They fixed it after receiving Long's data,” My said.

Vy looked at the email, feeling cold even though it was hot. The company doesn't just want to put up signs; they want to own the story of a student garden.

“We are not participating in the competition,” Quan said.

“No,” Vy replied. “We ask them to amend the public charter.”

“What if they don't fix it?”

“We withdraw and explain the reason.”

My turned on the recorder, then turned it off. “I won't post before everyone agrees.”

Ha brought up a basket of vegetables and placed it between them. "The kitchen cannot sponsor much, but can sell meals to raise funds. No need for a company."

Vy looked at the vegetable basket, then at the group. An imperfect but empowering plan begins to take shape.

At the end of the terrace, a new piece of paper was tucked under the technical door. On it is a drawing of an advertising frame, with a red mark at the exact location of the old water tank.

The group sent a request to amend the contest rules to the entire organizing committee, not just Ms. Nhan. They state three points: raw data must belong to the creator, design can only be used within the scope of the contest, and images need to be individually approved by the user.

Other teams signed along, but some teams were worried about losing their opportunity. Vy organized the exchange without a logo, letting everyone decide for themselves. One student said his scholarship depended on the award. Quan replied: "Don't let someone who doesn't take risks force you to choose for them."

Long listened and said: "I chose it because I was afraid of losing sponsorship. I didn't want others to repeat it."

The organizing committee replied that the regulations cannot be changed because they have been announced. They proposed adding a voluntary addendum, but still retained the right to use it for five years if the team won the award.

My asked: "Is it still voluntary if it comes with a prize?"

Hanh advises the group not to take the exam if they do not accept permission. Vy regretted that the contest was the only channel to send applications to the council, but Ms. Huong said the group could submit independently.

“It's not the door with the logo that's the door,” she said.

Vy withdrew her application from the contest and made her reasons public. Several other teams followed suit, some still participating. The group does not criticize them.

Immediately afterwards, the company posted an article saying the group "excluded themselves from the playground due to lack of ability". Vy wanted to respond, but My suggested posting the technical file instead of arguing.

They open a page of general documents: approved drawings, measuring methods, budget, rights regulations. Readers can view but cannot download personal data. Long manages access with the student union.

Ha posts kitchen schedules and actual output. One month the garden provides more than three thousand servings of vegetables, but not enough every day. She recorded dehydration all day.

Quan posted a report of faucet and tray errors, with instructions on how to fix them. A student asked why the group admitted their mistakes. Quan replied: "So that the next person doesn't have to guess."

The advertising frame paper with the red stamp was sent to Ms. Huong. She confirmed that it was a company survey, not a construction design. They don't post photos, just write down the profile code in the text.

Long asked Mrs. Nhan why Why does the company have a copy? She said the school shared during the negotiation process. Long asked who approved it. She did not answer.

In the evening, the irrigation system is replaced by a manual calendar. Quan designed the valve board, Ha divided the ca. Vy made a diagram of the path. My recorded audio instructions for people who cannot read small print.

A freshman signed up for the first shift, but asked if he could change if he took the exam. Ha added a rule for changing shifts, not punishing those who reported in advance.

Vy saw that the group began to resemble a real organization, with absences and limitations. She no longer wants everyone to be excited all the time.

Long received an email from Ms. Nhan requesting a private meeting, promising to "resolve quickly". He forwarded the email to the group before replying.

Quan said: "Meet with the two of you and take a record."

Long agreed.

Before closing, Vy saw that the advertising frame paper had disappeared from the technical door. No one in the group took it. Uncle Sau checked the camera and discovered the person wearing the green hat was on Long's evening shift.

On the schedule board, the name of the person on duty that day was still “B.L.”

Long asked who the person wearing the green hat could be. Quan said the cameras weren't enough, so he didn't guess. They sent a request to protect the door log to the security department.

The next morning, the log showed that the company's guest account was used during the evening shift, but the signatory was a student union employee. Long said the signature was not his.

Hanh asked the student union to keep the books intact and not make any changes. Long followed suit, even though it caused him to be called to explain.

Vy asked Long if he wanted her to come with him. Long said: "I have to say my own part."

“I'll be outside if needed.”

"Okay."

Meanwhile, the team removed a large tray according to the correct procedure, recording the load before and after. Ha felt sorry for her mulberry tree, but someone sent a note to receive the tree and bring it back for temporary planting.

The military inspected the exposed area and discovered that under the tray there was a slightly bulging waterproof layer. Uncle Sau asked to stop all new trays until it was fixed.

Vy looked at the drawing and added a restriction that was not in the plan: no planting trees to conceal the roof. She underlined the date of construction of the waterproofing layer.