Chapter 44: The Best Friend’s Role

“Ahem, let’s talk about you, Chick-chan.”

Xiao Xi had no interest in linking himself with Mia. Yet, his current flustered reaction inadvertently exposed that an interesting story must have unfolded between them.

‘Oh~?’

Chick-chan revealed a playful smile, then playfully rolled her eyes at Xiao Xi. She was certainly curious how Xiao Xi had come to know that eccentric, chuunibyou girl, and it was clear he was trying to change the subject.

Still…

She mused, ‘It wouldn’t hurt to tell Xiao Xi about the President and me, would it? Haha~’

“Then, then, then… let’s talk about me! Xiao Xi, I feel like the President and I are almost a couple! He talked to me so much today. Could the next step be a confession? But… he seems so dense sometimes. He might not be the type to actively confess to a girl. What do you think? Should I be more proactive?”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk~” Xiao Xi propped his chin, clicking his tongue twice before speaking. “A girl in love~ What if you get rejected?”

“Mmhmmph!” Hearing this, Chick-chan pressed her tongue against her teeth, letting out a protesting whimper that made Xiao Xi instinctively recoil. ‘Good heavens, are you a puppy? Biting at any unfavorable comment!’

‘Did I give you the wrong nickname? It seems you shouldn’t be called Chick-chan; ‘Teddy’ would be more fitting!’

“Hmph! If I fail, I’ll transform into a demon and drag you, Xiao Xi, into an alley to play games with you ‘intensely’!”

‘Whoa, whoa, whoa, what kind of dangerous talk is that? Are you a potential criminal, Chick-chan? And what does your failed confession have to do with me? While the saying goes, ‘if you can’t have it, destroy it,’ if you’re going to resort to force, go find your President-sama! Don’t involve me!’

Though he grumbled countless complaints internally, facing Chick-chan’s serious expression…

Xiao Xi felt she was being entirely serious, so he decided it was best to be a little timid.

‘Sigh~’

Girls in love are truly terrifying. Fortunately, he had never dated.

‘Ah, it seems I skipped dating and went straight to marriage…’

‘…

Damn it!’

****

After their conversation ended, Chick-chan returned to her seat to draw. ‘Ah… it’s truly strange. Why does Chick-chan, who clearly adores Student Council President Nan Feng, draw pictures related to me instead?’

Xiao Xi sat beside her, silently watching her draw. The sudden silence between them made Xiao Xi feel a little unaccustomed, but… such abrupt endings to conversations were actually quite common.

‘How should I put it…’

‘I think I’ve seen this kind of scene in certain gal games, haven’t I? The best friend, a campus information expert with a wealth of knowledge, shares information with the protagonist, then quietly goes back to their own business. If you go back to them, they’ll say…’

‘”What’s wrong? Is there anything else you don’t understand that you’d like to ask me?”‘

‘Then they’d repeat the same three options. If you actually chose them, they’d really just parrot it back to you…’

‘Or, if you ended the conversation at that point, they’d say:’

‘”Alright, if there’s nothing else, I’ll get back to work. Come find me if anything comes up~”‘

‘Hey, are you really the protagonist’s best friend? Are you sure you’re not just a tool character created by the game designer? What happened to being good buddies? Can’t I even seek you out when there’s nothing specific?’

‘It seems…’

‘The entire purpose of such a best friend is to serve as an early-game information tool. Later, the protagonist goes off to flirt with his harem wives, and the poor best friend is completely abandoned at school. Tsk, tsk, tsk~’

‘Screenwriters for gal games or RPGs, please, consider the plot’s rationality!’

‘Hmm…’

‘Chick-chan wouldn’t be like that, would she?’

“Chick-chan, Chick-chan~” For some reason, Xiao Xi suddenly wanted to chat with her again. Chick-chan, gently nudged twice by him, slowly lifted her head and spoke:

“What’s wrong? Is there anything else you don’t understand that you’d like to ask me?”

‘Uh…’

“N-nothing…”

Xiao Xi looked at Chick-chan with a touch of embarrassment. ‘This, this, this… how could it be so accurate?’ Chick-chan nodded at his words and replied:

“Alright, if there’s nothing else, I’ll get back to work. Come find me if anything comes up~”

Holy crap!

Xiao Xi stared dumbfounded as Chick-chan lowered her head and resumed her work. Many sci-fi suspense plots flashed through his mind. ‘This, this, this…’

‘Am I living in a story like The Truman Show?’

‘Ah, this…’

Xiao Xi hurriedly looked up, panicked, at the other people in the classroom. This was a rare, long break, and the students’ activities were quite varied.

Some formed small groups of two or three, chatting and laughing. Their topics ranged from novels and anime to esports and soccer, and even science and philosophy. It was quite a diverse range.

Others were playfully wrestling and joking, breaking off chalk tips to practice throwing them. The targets would practice dodging and look for opportunities to retaliate. Honestly, he wasn’t good at throwing, but if the homeroom teacher saw this scene, they’d probably start crying again from anger…

And some were sleeping, heads down on their desks. ‘Did they stay up late again last night? Oh, while staying up late isn’t good, but… uh, Xiao Xi seemed to have stayed up late yesterday too. Oh no, seeing that person sleep is making me feel a bit sleepy myself~’

‘Ah~’

He yawned widely, opening his eyes to look at the sunlight outside. Occasionally, one or two cute little birds landed on the air conditioner’s exhaust fan, chirping about the crisp morning. However, as the sun climbed higher, the sunlight occasionally streaming into the classroom made Xiao Xi feel uncomfortable. It was too bright. He… he was allergic to sunlight. Oh, it wasn’t that scary, just a slight itching sensation.

Occasionally, a few wisps of breeze drifted into the classroom. Xiao Xi closed his eyes, preparing to rest for a while; he was truly feeling quite sleepy.

“Hey, hey, hey, don’t sleep! Did you watch Xiao Xi again last night?”

“Damn it, don’t talk nonsense! Xiao Xi is back; do you want me to die of social embarrassment?”

What kind of outrageous things were those two boarding students saying? ‘Please, next time, change your target to that young and pretty English teacher, okay? Wait… that won’t work either! Or else, how about you just stick to watching anime…’

‘Wuwuwu…’

Suddenly, he felt the reality of this world. Xiao Xi lay on his desk, closing his eyes. ‘If I graduate in the future, will I miss this school life? Will I miss these sounds in the classroom?’

‘Hmm…’

Just as Xiao Xi delved into philosophical thought, his arm was suddenly tugged. Xiao Xi opened his eyes to see Xiao Meng, her hair tied in a small ponytail today, standing before him, looking at him with a wronged expression.

‘So cute~’

“Hmm? What’s wrong, Xiao Meng?” Xiao Xi asked, a little bewildered. Xiao Meng lowered her head, speaking with a touch of sadness:

“Brother, besides a few good friends, it seems no one noticed I haven’t been to school for a long time~”

“Ah, this…” Xiao Xi narrowed his eyes. ‘This…’

‘This world is truly realistic!’

“Alright, alright~ There, there~ Don’t think too much. They definitely know. If you don’t believe me, ask Chick-chan~” Xiao Xi poked Chick-chan, signaling her to quickly comfort Xiao Meng. Chick-chan looked up, furrowed her brow in thought for a moment, then quickly nodded and said:

“Ah, yes, yes, Little Grass classmate, welcome back~”

…