EP9

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[Alexus’ POV]

 

“TA-DAH!” Arin showed me her booklet. Her score in the finals was just above average.

 

“Great job.” I told her. “But, why are you standing so far away?” I ask her. “Did you catch a virus?” She was like standing about one and a half meters away from me.

 

She put her booklet down. She’s been acting weird. Everytime I talk to her she gets jumpy. She stutters and cant even look at me in the eye. Is she unwell?

 

“I-I’m fine!” she says. “B-but, I deserve a reward, right?”

 

Hmm, that seems casual enough. Although I’m curious about what’s going on with her. “Yeah, I’ll treat you éclairs and black forest float. How about that?” With that much, please come with me to Florian’s, Arin. Tell me what’s going on.

 

“Honto?!” Her face lit up.

 

“Hai!” hearing her spout random Japanese made me pick up a few of her words to add to my vocabulary.

 

“Guys! Everyone’s on board!” Hyo says.

 

“You know what this means?!” Jaden sounded so excited. “KARAOKE!!!”

 

With that said, everyone went hyper. They’d yell, “Karaoke” from time to time.

 

Hyo put an arm around my shoulders. “Let’s goooo! Karaoke time!”

 

“Ah, sorry. We can’t.” I say.

 

Everyone stopped and looked at us. Awkward.

 

“We?” Chiaki says. “Exactly who is we?”

 

“Me and Arin.” I say. This is the problem with my friends. They like to make things look complicated than what they actually are.

 

“Daebak. Are you guys dating already?” Hyo blurt out. Danielle gasped.

 

“What did you guys confess to each other that night?” Dani sounded really creepy for saying it the way she is saying it right now.

 

“What that night?” Arin and I ask together.

 

“That night when you carried her upstairs to our room?” Dani says, folding her arms across her chest.

 

“What?! He did?!” Chiaki gasps. “No way! You two never talked to each other.”

 

I wanted to say something, but Hyo cuts in saying, “Come to think of it, when I found them in the common room, she was sleeping, her head on his shoulder...” he pointed at me and Arin as he said ‘his’ and ‘she’. Then he continued, “... And I think Alexus...”

 

“Sh-shut up, we’re going!” I didn’t want Arin to hear that from someone else. I held Arin by the wrist.

 

“WHAT?! HE DID WHAT?!” Arin’s face is flustered as she went up to Hyo. “Naaaaniiii????”

 

“Urusai!” I literally dragged her away. Somehow, hearing her say that word several times when she’s embarrassed everytime her friends would made me realize that it actually meant “shut up” in English.

 

“We’ll catch up with karaoke after our appointment.” I told everyone. While we were walking away, I heard Dani mutter, “It’s so suspicious that he just spoke in Japanese.”

 

Whatever. When you have friends like that, small things become an issue between everyone. Although, I know it’s just their way of teasing you.

 

“Oy! Chotto matte!”  Arin wasn’t pulling her hand away, so we continued to walk like that. I suddenly felt her presence beside me as she ran to catch up with my pace. “Where are we going? What are we going to do?”

 

“I’d like to talk about that.” I told her.

 

“Oh, well...” she seemed to be thinking about what to say for a moment. Then, she added, “I was about to ask you about it after we hang out with our friends.”

 

“I didn’t like how uncomfortable you were with me. It’s like you were thinking I did something shady that night.” I say. It’s true. I didn’t like it that she was probably thinking about that in that way.

 

We entered Florian’s and I got her what she wanted to have. Meanwhile I just had a cup of Banoffee Shake.

 

“Congratulations on your exam.” I say.

 

“Thanks! You were far too great though.” She said. “Five more points and you’d get the perfect score.”

 

“Yeah. Still I’m grateful for my score. I prayed hard for it.” I told her.

 

“That’s good, Jinyu-kun.”  She says. “Now, about the matter at hand...”

 

“Ah, yeah.” This is embarrassing. “Well, I just couldn’t help... staring.” I lowered my head. This is definitely embarrassing.

 

[switch]

The reason why I wanted to get my reward today was that so I can talk to Alexus alone. Whatever happened that time, I just can’t shake it off my mind! It gnaws at the edge of my brain and it’s so annoying! I could’ve gotten a higher score if I was only able to focus on studying, hundred percent!

 

After that awkward departure from our friends, I’m now sitting here at a table by the window, eating éclairs and sipping black forest float with Alexus.

“Well, I just couldn’t help... staring.” He answered. He was looking down at his cup. He looks flustered. His ears were starting to go red. Then all of a sudden his hand went up to the back of his head.

 

“Staring at what?” I ask.

 

“Kao.” He barely said it, but I heard it.

 

“Woah... I’m amazed by how you’re keeping up with my Japanese. Where did you learn?” I ask. “And what was on my face that time?”

 

It feels awkward. By the way he’s acting right now I feel like he didn’t just stare at my face.

 

“I told you I have the dictionary. I was randomly reading when I get bored.” He said. “I don’t know if you will believe me. But I am being honest when I say, I stared at your face because... because...” he took a deep breath, then exhaled. Then he looked at me straight in the eyes. “Because, you were sleeping peacefully, it was... it was just nice to look at.. and.. ah, what is this.” He scratched the back of his head again. “You suddenly drooled, so I wiped it off with the tissue on the table.” He laughed a little, but he looked too uncomfortable to laugh.

 

I wasn’t in the mood either to indulge in a joke like that. With the way he’s acting I suddenly feel flustered.

 

“I-is that all?” I ask quietly.

 

“Oy. I’m not an indecent guy. It’s against my religion to even think of such things. I just couldn’t move since you look so peaceful, sleeping soundly like that.” His eyes were suddenly staring at something distant, like he was mentally drifting off to somewhere. “I didn’t want to disturb you. Hyo came. And he started talking about it like something weird did happen, when in fact there wasn’t anything weird.”

 

Now, he looks angry.

 

“Honto ni?”

 

“Oh. Honto. If I was lying I’d make up something more believable.” He took a sip of his banoffee shake.

 

“Then, all’s well.” I told him. “Sorry about that. They were fussing about it, I couldn’t stand it.”

 

“Don’t let that get to you, baka.” He flicked a finger onto my forehead. “We both know how bad that is, even just thinking of such things. And if our friends joke about it, no matter how playful they get, don’t ever take it seriously.” He says.

 

Of course, we’re the same. I shouldn’t be thinking bad things like those. But that flick on the forehead hurt though!

 

“Haiyaku.” I say. “Karaoke...  ikuso.”

 

“Yokai.”

 

I couldn’t help giggling. “You’re starting to learn huh.”

 

“I only know the same things you always spout off. The more often I hear you say something, the easier they are for me to pick up and add to my vocabulary.” He answered.

 

“Haaah... sugoi.” Was all I could say.

 

“Hiiiiii! Xu!!!” A familiar voice rang in the room. Johani approached us, she was with this familiar girl this time.

 

Where did I see her again?

 

“Yo.” He greeted them.

 

“Are you free today?” The girl asked. She looked at me sideways. “Didn’t you promise to tutor me today?”

 

“Ah, well, I told you before if it’s my exam then I wont be available for the whole day.” Alexus answered.

 

“Ahh-huh... Well, do your exams always reach a whole day? It’s already four in the afternoon.” She said. And we promised to meet here today.”

 

“I did tell you last night I have an exam, right?” He told her.

 

“Yeah, well... you did, but I happened to see you and I have questions.” She looked at me sideways again.

 

“Ano..” I was about to say something, but Alexus muttered, “Urusai” at me. So I kept quiet.

 

“Uru-what?” I heard Johani mutter.

 

“I can’t just leave my date right now. So, if you have questions you can ask here. I’ll be glad to help you out.” He told her.

 

“Really?” She sounded a little happy but with a hint of a little dissatisfaction.

 

“It wont take long. Just enjoy your food for a bit.” Alexus told me.

 

“Anata wa, honto ni baka.” I told him. Of course it was a joke.

 

“Urusai. Tabemasho no haiyaku.” He said. It was flawlessly said.

[Shut up. Hurry and eat.]

“Sugoi...” I say. His ears turned red again.

 

“Xu, please, these are the questions.” The girl interrupts. Johani excused herself to join her friends at the table outside.

 

The girl sat next to him. I watched her giggling and purposely making her shoulder touch his shoulder. She was being demure on purpose too. I don’t know if Alexus is annoyed, or not. But he was able to joke with her casually.

 

I don’t feel awkward or uncomfortable. But it sure does make me look like I’m the kid and they’re my parents flirting in the restaurant during a family dinner.

 

Alexus finished quickly than I expected. The girl was a bit disappointed. It was clearly written all over her face.

 

She thanked him and left, hesitating a little.

 

When she was out of the store, I told Alexus, “You’re quite popular, aren’t you.”

 

“Yeah? That was my ex-girlfriend.” He said.

 

I was sipping black forest float when he said that. I choked.

 

“Eh?! Honto?!” No wonder she looked so familiar!

[Really.]

 

“She’s been texting me a lot, telling me to meet her here and there because she needs help now and then.” He says in a bored manner. “But I can see through her act, though. Although she did want to learn, knowing her for three years, I can tell she also secretly wants to get me back.”

 

“Wow. What about you?” I ask.

 

“Yada.” He answered.

 

“Hah, what’s with that.” I say. It’s unusual to hear him speak to me in Japanese.

 

“For a week I counted how many times you’d say a Japanese word or phrase. Do you know what your top three are?” He smiled.

 

“What?”

 

“Sugoi. Yada. Baka.” He answered. “The word ‘yada’ tops it all. You averagely say that word about sixteen times a day.”

[Awesome. Don’t wanna. Stupid.]

 

“Eeeeehh... Have you been stalking me?” I ask.

 

“Yada, baka.” He says. “We’re always hanging out with our friends so I just cant help hearing you speak. When you’re speaking in Japanese, it’s your voice that I could hear and your words are clear that it drowns the rest.”

 

“Eh...”

 

He suddenly looked at me. “Ah, right. Ikuso. Karaoke.” He said.

[Let’s go. Karaoke.]

 

 

[SNIP]