Inside the Café
The mont they stepped inside, Rina’s other friends were already seated comfortably on a plush sofa positioned right in front of a table large enough to accommodate all of them.
There was one young man among them, and alongside him were two young won who looked stylish and trendy, even though their current outfits were rather casual and relaxed.
The two young won greeted Rina in a girlish and affectionate manner, with light hugs and soft handshakes. Their atmosphere resembled that of a small group of people who had been close friends for a long ti and shared many mories together.
Al rely observed everything quietly from behind.
So she’s actually quite feminine as well. I really thought she only knew how to fight people and lift dumbbells all day long, he thought to himself with a slightly surprised look.
The three of them asked briefly about what had just happened outside. Johan gave a short explanation, and all of them were shocked, unable to believe that Rina had been the one involved in such an incident. They quickly apologized for not checking on her earlier. But Rina understood completely. After all, their presence out there would only have made the situation far worse and might even have put them in danger as well.
Their gazes then inevitably turned toward Al, the person who had been at the center of the confrontation. Their mories briefly returned to the jokes they had made earlier, and they found it slightly amusing because Al was truly far from anything resembling nobility or elitism. However, they were aware that it would be inappropriate to laugh at him. That brief amusent stemd only from their earlier banter, not from any real intention to belittle him.
Rina then began to introduce them one by one, starting with introducing Al to the rest of the group.
"Let introduce you, this is my high school friend, Al. The one I’ve been talking about recently. He’s a bit strange, so I hope you’ll feel comfortable with his presence here."
Al only gave a small nod and raised his right hand slightly, waving halfheartedly. A faint smile flickered across his lips, more like a formality than any genuine friendliness.
"Yo."
The three of them responded politely enough, a clear sign that they still maintained so respect toward Al. Armin nodded with confident composure, Karen gave him a quick glance accompanied by a stiff smile, while Zaza waved a little too excessively, clearly the type of person who was naturally cheerful.
"This is Armin," Rina continued, gesturing toward the young man who looked sharp and intelligent.
"This is Karen," she said, pointing at the young woman with bangs.
"And this is Zaza," she finished, looking at the last young woman.
The three of them waved their hands simultaneously, nodding their heads while speaking in unison: "Nice to et you, Al."
And thus, the gathering officially began. Rina sat on the sofa between Al and Johan, though she appeared to be leaning slightly closer toward Johan. anwhile, the other three took seats on the sofa across from them.
They started talking about many things, reminiscing about the past and sharing their sense of longing for one another—sothing Al could not relate to at all. He simply focused on his drink and the snacks in front of him. From ti to ti, he fiddled with the straw using his fingers, his eyes blank, doing his best to suppress his boredom.
He only joined the conversation when the topic finally shifted toward their education. From that exchange, Al learned that Rina’s friends all ca from different educational institutions.
"You’re in HIHS, right, Al? I go to Makazhar Elite School, though unfortunately I wasn’t able to participate in the school festival last ti," Armin said in a friendly tone.
Al nodded while sipping his drink, then muttered sothing faintly under his breath. His words were nearly drowned out by the noisy chatter filling the café.
"Ah, the sa school as David," he murmured—words that seed to co from nowhere, probably because he didn’t know how else to respond.
"Oh? You know David as well?" Armin asked in mild surprise.
"Of course he knows David. Who in our generation doesn’t know him, haha," Zaza added quickly.
"Really? So he’s that famous?" Al replied.
Zaza nodded enthusiastically.
"Of course. Only the most unfortunate souls don’t know him. He’s like a child who must have been born in heaven. He excels at everything. He’s handso. He’s charming. He’s the heir of the Virellano family. Uuuuhhh." Zaza’s face flushed brightly as her eyes sparkled with admiration. She clenched her fists together like a nun praying devoutly to her God.
"Ugh... there she goes again," Rina muttered with annoyance. She rolled her eyes and let out a long sigh before glancing at Al. "This girl is a hardcore fangirl of popular guys. That includes David. So don’t take her too seriously."
Rina quickly interrupted the conversation about David because she assud that Al had so issue with him. However, Al seed relaxed and unconcerned. In fact, technically, Al himself had been the one who started that topic.
"So... are there really many popular guys on the sa level as David?" Al asked, though the question itself was trivial. He only asked because he wanted to join in the conversation in any way he could.
"Of course," Rina replied, glancing toward Johan at her side.
Johan, who usually acted cool and quiet, looked slightly embarrassed at that mont. Yet a trace of discomfort also surfaced—more like jealousy, because he couldn’t converse with Rina as smoothly as Al did. And now Al was sitting right next to her. Johan glanced at his glass, trying to keep his expression from showing too much.
"What about Zaza, Johan, and... what was it again?" Al glanced at Karen, clearly forgetting her na. "K-Ka... Karen, right? Where do you all go to school?" he asked with another template-like question.
"Zaza and I studied abroad, in Germania," Johan answered flatly.
"I’m also in HIHS, just like you, Al. I attend the morning classes with Rina," Karen said. "You probably never noticed , right?"
"Ah! Really? Haha... sorry, sorry about that," Al laughed awkwardly while scratching his head.
"Huff..." Karen sighed while crossing her arms over her chest, her face slightly pouting.
"Hehe."
Al furrowed his brow as he turned his gaze back to Johan, who looked tense, and Zaza, who seed lost in thought. "Wait, you studied abroad but the national exams here are just around the corner. Why co back to Indorosia now?"
Johan nodded.
"In Europe, and I think also in Arica, school ends earlier than in Indorosia. We’ve already finished our final exams and are just waiting for the graduation ceremony."
"We happened to return because we had sothing to take care of," Zaza added. "Though, to be honest, it’s not entirely because we wanted to co back right now, but..."
"But?" Al asked, pretending to be curious.
"One of our friends asked us to accompany them back ho, so we decided to follow along," Zaza answered.
"Oooh. I thought it was sothing more serious," Al nodded, though inwardly he felt a little annoyed, as if three precious seconds of his life had been wasted listening to such an unimportant answer. He exhaled through his nose, took another sip of his drink, and then set the glass down with a light tap against the table.
"She was actually planning to co here as well, but she’s ridiculously fussy, so she’ll probably take longer. Even longer than Rina," Karen added.
"And I hope you get to et her tonight," Armin said with a smile.
"Why ?" Al asked in confusion.
"Don’t think too much about it, Al. It’s not important," Rina quickly interjected.
Al, who honestly didn’t care, simply nodded in agreent, though deep inside he sensed that sothing felt off. He noticed how they kept exchanging silent glances, acting strangely, as if they were hiding so sort of secret plan.
In truth, Rina’s real reason for bringing Al along to this gathering was because of that woman who would soon make her appearance.
Forgive , Al, Rina sighed inwardly.
Al sat calmly, one hand propping up his chin while the other hand held his nearly empty glass. The atmosphere had beco sowhat stiff and quiet ever since the topic of that woman ca up. Their eyes occasionally t, only to quickly look away, creating a silence that grew heavier by the second.
anwhile, the other tables in the café remained lively with cheerful conversations. It was as if Rina’s group was nothing more than a bunch of young people who ca in, sat down, ate their snacks, and would soon leave. This ruined Al’s expectation of what this hangout would be like, though it didn’t bother him too much, since he generally preferred quiet anyway.
Eventually, he chose to speak when a random topic popped into his mind. His face carried almost no expression as the quiet young man suddenly decided to break the silence.
"By the way, the national exams are next week. Aren’t any of you studying for them?" he asked, directing the question mainly toward Rina, Armin, and Karen—those who still had to take the national exams. Johan and Zaza, on the other hand, followed a different curriculum abroad.
His words instantly shattered the silence, drawing out small bursts of laughter. Zaza even covered her mouth with her hand, while Armin slapped his forehead as he laughed.
"Hahaha, relax, Al," Armin replied in a laid-back manner. "Sorry if this sounds a little arrogant, but we’re children from elite families. I an... well... anyway, we don’t really care about the national exams. Our lives aren’t determined by them. As long as the results aren’t embarrassing, that’s good enough for us, haha."
"Exactly," Karen chid in.
Rina rely nodded casually.
"The national exam isn’t my priority either. I want to focus on entering a martial arts academy later. What’s the point of the exams, really? Hehe."
And so irony revealed itself.
Al, the one who was usually the most laid-back and lazy, ended up being the only person who actually reminded them about studying—leaving everyone surprised and a little amused.
"Wow, so Al is actually a very diligent person, huh? You even rembered the national exams," Armin teased.
"Ushh... don’t underestimate him. Al was the top scorer in the last tryout exam at HIHS," Karen suddenly revealed with a smile, then added with a slightly cornering remark, "Though there’s a rumor that he cheated. But who really knows, right? It’s only natural that soone as smart as Al would care about the exams."
"Really? So he’s that Al. No wonder the na sounded familiar," Armin comnted.
"Seriously? He was the top scorer at HIHS? That ans he even beat Idham and Dila?!" Zaza exclaid. "But why was he accused of cheating?"
Rina nodded.
"Many people just couldn’t accept it. An orphanage kid with a scholarship, outperforming children from elite families—it rubbed a lot of people the wrong way," Rina explained.
Johan nodded as well, agreeing with whatever Rina said, trying to appear a little more active and responsive.
And then, everyone turned their eyes to Al without speaking, as though waiting for him to clarify.
Al looked back at them, feeling slightly uncomfortable with their stares. He rubbed the back of his neck lightly, his gaze shifting toward the door as if trying to divert attention elsewhere.
"I don’t think it matters. It was just a tryout anyway," he said.
And they all nodded. Al had a point. What importance did a tryout really hold? What truly mattered was the national exam itself.
Rina chuckled softly. The image of Al she had always known as lazy seed to shift slightly in this gathering. It was as though Al had beco the diligent one, while she appeared to be the lazy one instead.
But that lightheartedness lasted only for a short mont. The conversation was abruptly cut off, and the air grew tense once more. The previously warm atmosphere instantly turned cold when, from a distance, two figures appeared, staring directly at their private room. The sight stirred commotion among the other tables, as more and more people began to notice the arrival of those two individuals.
Aside from Al, who looked indifferent as ever, the rest of them stared at the two figures with unease and a hint of fear. Armin clutched his knees tightly, Karen swallowed hard, and Zaza leaned closer to Karen. Rina and Johan looked as though they were preparing themselves for whatever might co next. Their gazes were sharp, filled with tension.
Whatever stood before them now, it was definitely not sothing to be taken lightly.
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