11 am.

After being done with my two events, I got a call from Yulia.

However, before picking it up, I reflected on something that had been bothering me for a while and still somewhat is.

Despite the fact that I'm currently holding my phone, Yulia had mentioned that I texted her earlier in order to meet up yet no matter how many times I re-check our texting history, that never happened...

Is everything alright with her? I'm worried and certainly, I planned on calling her when I was done with the morning events that I have been doing on solo, but now that she decided to call me, I picked up while leaving one of the external blocks.

"Yulia! Hey, wanna meet up?!"

I'm not sure how she's doing, but I hope that Yulia is---

"Yes, yes! Where do you want to meet up?!"

However, to my surprise, it appears that her mood is pretty good! Thus, I naturally got happy too as I heard her loud and spontaneous voice from the other side.

"Oh, let's go to Taco Bell! Whoever gets there first doesn't have to pay!"

"You're on!"

Thus, with that enthusiastic reply from Yulia, she ended the call.

As I made haste towards the zone that contained restaurants near-by the main mall, I thought about what could have happened to Yulia that made her this happy.

She's usually bright but earlier, she seemed quite depressed, so I'm just glad that whatever it is, she's feeling great!

Taco Bell restaurant.

Not too crowded, as I arrived, at the last line of tables that were located at the end of the restaurant, I saw Yulia in a happy mood stomping on the floor out of happiness.

As I walked in her direction, I also realized that I had lost our little game, therefore, I sighed upon arriving at the table that Yulia is currently in.

"Looks like I lost. My treat then."

Disappointed yet still happy because Yulia was in a very energetic mood with big bright eyes, I took a seat parallel to her.

"Nope! My treat, Sana! Hehe, I was joking about that, so order anything you want! Seriously, I mean this!"

"Okay, what happened, Yulia? You are too happy! Not that I mind it, I really like that, but just what happened?! Did you win an event or something?"

In response to my question, Yulia softly closed her eyes and flashed a beautiful smile while speaking condensing light words to me.

"Love is really great, Sana. I think that I got a good taste of it now. Like, supposedly, I should have experienced this before, but a few hours ago, something amazing happened! You would not believe me if I told you!"

"What? What? What happened? I'm curiousssss... Don't leave me here all clueless, fill me in!"

"Okay, okay! Soooo, here is what happened!"

With Yulia telling me what exactly happened that triggered this happy mood of hers, in the meantime, Yulia and I had ordered one of the menus for lunch.

But truly, I was baffled to hear what she had to say. Daniel? Crying in front of her? Plus, saying all of those words to her?

And Yulia also was strong enough to tell him what she has been through. I already knew that, since I did tell her what I also went through a few weeks ago.

We are that close.

"So that's why you are so happy! This is really good for you, Yulia! I'm positive that you and he will only continue to grow and grow more intimate! But seriously, I can't believe he said those words to you! However, you did pretty well too! I'm so proud of you! For the record, I've gotten a good grasp of Daniel's personality and I think he doesn't actually know how to properly show his feelings but if that really happened, then I guess I'm completely wrong!"

Honestly, if I heard this from anyone but Yulia then I would not believe it.

What a sweet romance! I'm so happy for Yulia too! Daniel finally manned up and decided to act properly!

It appears that all of those conversations that we had paid off!

"Sana, I never knew that I could feel this way! I... think that I really, but really, want to be more than a girlfriend to him. Because he even went ahead and cried to me. Someone who I thought that could never do that, someone that I hold very dearly, just... showed me that he actually cares!"

"Wait, wait! What are you saying!? What did you mean when you said that you wanted to be more than a girlfriend to him?"

Naturally curious to know what Yulia was implying, I accidentally closed our distance and almost collided with her face in the process.

She didn't mind this, however.

"Um... You know. I've been thinking for a little now. He said that he wanted to stay with me forever and I share that same sentiment too. And I think that as long as we keep on feeling the same way, connecting emotionally in retrospect, then... We will keep on growing older together. I really like this side of him. He might think that he is weak because he showed me his vulnerable side but I think the other way around. I think that Daniel's really strong for exposing his weak side. Because that takes a lot of courage! Like, isn't this trust so ideal?! This level of trust is practically extinct these days and if Daniel and I can keep this up until we die then... One day, maybe, I could be his... you know...!"

Currently, I have a huge smile on my face since I'm an extremely avid advocate of romance, and Yulia is making my imagination flourish right now!

Her passion and sheer embarrassment while saying those powerful words is just so pure! She has such a good soul!

And of course, I fully understood what Yulia just said.

"Mhm! I will make sure that happens! I will be by your side and I will make sure your relationship stays on its toes correctly! You don't have to worry about a single thing! This is such great news, Yulia! You managed to find a love like this in a hopeless place like this! Seriously, talk about luck."

Yulia's not the problem here and currently, there isn't a problem. However, there's no guarantee that Daniel will just keep this extremely commendable mindset, therefore, I have to act as Yulia's intermediate and make sure that everything stays in its place.

...Seeing Yulia sad as of lately has been bothering me and...

Sincerely, Hyunda's words still haunt my mind, so I needed this. Something I can place my focus and hopefully forget his words about being rewarded.

I don't feel that way whenever I'm around Yulia. She's really the one I'm most glad to have ever met!

"Hehe, thank you, thank you. I shall do my best. So, in return, whenever you find your loved one, I will do the same for you! I can't have you do all of that for me without showing some love back! But, just for the record, he's not better than Daniel. No one is!"

"Woah, bold! Already assuming that I will find love in the first place! Ah, but don't worry! If I do find that person, then I will make sure that he's better than Daniel!"

"Well, good luck! But, it's impossible! There's no better person than him! I want to grow older and older and make incredible memories with him! I'm so excited for the future!"

"Yup! You have plenty of time ahead, Yulia!"

We both traded happy smiles and sharp giggles at each other while eating our lunch, but...

Yulia, I don't need to find someone else that can satisfy my sentiments. I have a really big secret that I will never tell anyone.

Ironically, even though it's a secret, it's gigantically common and not rare at all. That being...

I have incredibly high standards for my partner. It can't just be something cheesy. He has to meet every condition in the equation and I am afraid that if I ignore this restriction that I placed on myself that...

I will undoubtedly fall in love with the wrong person while still knowing that that person isn't the one for me.

"By the way, Sana. Less about me and more about you. Do you have someone in mind? Like, just between you and me, is there someone in class that you have your eye on?"

"....Um, let me think for a second..."

"Okay, sure! Take your time!"

As I witnessed Yulia take a deep chunk out of her taco, I pretended to think.

Because, without a doubt, I am trying to convince myself that I have no one in my mind, but...

A few days ago... That certain day, at the theaters, it felt far beyond your average encounter as the individual at hand was far too bold and straight forward. But I still dislike that memory.

It was all fake. His arguments might make sense but I know. I know that Hyunda's words were fake.

Yet despite that, in my mind, unfortunately, he sits on top. Even when I try to tell myself that I don't think of anyone that way.

Oh well.

It's fine.

I mean, I won't let it go beyond that state. Sure, he might have a few assets to him that others just don't really have. Well... If I were to be honest, he's kinda dream--- No, no. No. No. That's what he wants me to think.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Aaahhh geez! Get out of my mind! You don't belong here! This is unacceptable!

I----

"Sana?! Is everything alright?! You seem to be struggling with something! I mean, your face looks so puzzled and confused!"

"A-Ah, it's nothing..."

"Really?"

"Yeah..."

My face was probably quite weird... I am weird sometimes. I tend to sometimes disconnect during talks, but it's not my intention, I swear.

Also... Well, I still want to answer Yulia's question, but there's only one damn person in my mind and I can't even pretend with anyone else. They just don't click.

So... I'll give this a shot. However, from an indirect stance.

"Say... What is your opinion about Hyunda, Yul---"

To my surprise, as I was finishing my sentence, Yulia choked on her taco transiently, which caught me completely off guard.

After drinking a bit of her cola, Yulia regained the strength to speak back to me.

"W-What... Sana, no way. Nah. Not happening. Another person, please!"

Wait, she's completely misunderstanding!

"Yulia, it's seriously not like that..."

"Sana, you can't! Hyunda's evil personified! I will not allow you to have a crush on him! Look, I hate to say this, but we probably can't do anything about Arkalee's situation at this point. She got too attached to him. Just taking a glance at her being so clingy to that ominous bastard is so staggering."

....Does Yulia hate Hyunda? Why though?

"Hold on. I'm not defending Hyunda, but what happened? Your attitude just changed completely. It's so hostile and defensive."

"Ah... It's nothing. I just don't like him. I hate him. I can't stand the type of person he is if you get me."

"Ah, I do get you. I hate playboys the most. Death to them all!"

Though, Hyunda isn't your average playboy. He's at the peak of his game.

It's just too bad that I have seen through you. Even if I can't get you out of my mind, you will not win my heart.

Also, about the reward thing. Hyunda, you are wrong. Yulia has said that she plans on rewarding me so---

Ah, wait... That was exactly his point...

D-Damn it.

"But Sana, is Hyunda the one on your mind...? Can't it be someone else?"

"Y-Yulia, it's not like that, I promise... I was just asking. But, since you already gave your answer... I think I would like someone who would go beyond my standards. Ah, ah... If we're being honest with each other, my standards are so damn high that I will probably be single for a lifetime. Like, I demand more than a six-pack. Either eight or ten. Also, I want to die with this person. But... Ah, too unrealistic I know..."

Although I said this, I need to update my standards.

Because, unfortunately, Hyunda broke several of them. I kid you not, I was not expecting that.

I have to be prepared. Yet this is assuming that he will be coming after me. Even though I like to think that he won't, his past words just prove to me otherwise.

It will happen and I have to absolutely be prepared to fight back against his flirts.

"...I wonder if he has it..."

I heard Yulia murmuring something but given that I was starting to disconnect, I snapped back to reality quickly.

"Um, Yulia, hypothetically speaking, just hypothetically speaking, if a playboy would somehow win your heart, how would you come back from that? J-Just hypothetically speaking! Don't assume that I am referencing someone, alright?!"

It would be bad if Yulia got the wrong idea here. Especially when she has a grudge against Hyunda.

The truth is though... While I do know how to prevent a playboy like him from stealing my heart... Hypothetically speaking, if that fails, and he steals my heart SOMEHOW, I need to know how I can recover from that.

Gosh, his overconfidence is so overpowering though! What is he made of anyway!?

"Sana, if you are talking about Hyunda, then just don't listen to his words. They are not true. He's a very skilled manipulator. Don't bother trying to guess what he is thinking because it never works..."

"Yulia... I said for you to not assume... Ah, well. But yeah, I was referencing him..."

I can't tell Yulia what happened though. Also, I was fairly surprised today, when I saw him approaching us in the morning without Arkalee.

..........

So he really can make her absent, huh...

"Sana... We don't know what happened to Arkalee. Like, something happened and it changed her. Hyunda's behind that. We know that."

"Um, do we though?"

Certainly, Arkalee is attached to him but we really only started talking when she was already attached to Hyunda, so...

I don't think it's wise to go as far as assuming that he is behind this. Although, I get it. The chances are fairly high.

"Sana, this isn't debatable and I need you to trust me here. Hyunda cannot be trusted. Every word he speaks has an unknown purpose so..."

"Alright, alright. Still, maybe he's not completely at fault. Maybe Arkalee is just... far too dependent when in love? Like, it's not unusual to witness cases of massive clinginess in romance, just saying."

"Mhm, that's true... I just can't relate that much, I suppose. Even though I am madly in love with Daniel as of now and I can't get him out of my mind, because, I really like this feeling, nonetheless, I wouldn't go as far as becoming clingy. I do want his attention but it's just methodologically wrong to go that far. Arkalee can't handle rejection and the fact that Hyunda refuses to tell her to get away from him bothers me. He's a coward..."

Yulia holds a lot of hatred when it comes to Hyunda.

I don't really like seeing her act like this. She also doesn't explain why she's acting like this.

Like, every time Hyunda is mentioned, her expression grows with so much tension and she shows signs of being afraid yet why...

Even if I ask, she will not answer, I bet... I'll take it slow then. No need to rush.

"But, seriously, Sana, isn't there someone else?! I can't believe you have a crush on Hyunda! Geez!"

"I don't! I don't! That's just wrong. A few things happened, that's all. Ah, but, don't get me wrong here. I was just asking hypothetical questions! Okay then! Give me your opinion then! Out of the boys in the class, who should I be with?"

"Mhm, interesting! I'll exclude Daniel though."

"He's all yours~"

Though, if I were to be honest, Daniel's just not my type. However, if what Yulia told me is true, then he's doing a good job for certain.

"Erm... Tatsu?"

"Ew, no. He's so silent the majority of the time. Big pass. I like initiative, not the opposite..."

Additionally to that, Tatsu also has an obvious crush on Arkalee. The poor guy. He has no idea, does he?

Unless he found out recently, but not that it matters anyway.

"Okay, Susaga!"

"...I didn't know he existed until now..."

"Wow, that's harsh. Though, I guess he never really came out as someone who is under the spotlight. Actually, Sana, there are boys in our class that just straight up are more known than others. I think that Tatsu, Susaga, Ryoken, Kan, and Tsudo aren't that relevant in comparison with the rest. Do you agree?"

I can see Yulia's point. However...

"Wait. What exactly just makes a boy relevant anyway? I get that there are those that stand out and those that just don't, but... The majority is pretty much hideous in that sense. Talking about Hyunda made me realize this but you don't have to stand out in order to just be a menace. Think about it, Hyunda doesn't exactly stand out yet as you described, he..."

"...You're right, Sana... But that's... That's even worse because the majority isn't aware... Well, I'll resume though!"

"Erm, wait, Yulia. Isn't it sorta dreamy? Like, show-offs that don't stand out are completely rare, don't you think? You don't even notice their existence yet here they are. Like, you don't know that you have a psychopath seating next to you, nor a genius-level manipulator and you, therefore, assume that everyone else is just boring and... That's not true, ya know?"

"Sana... You're not talking about Hyunda, right?"

"...No, I am not..."

"I don't know, Sana... I'm getting kinda suspicious. The majority of your sentences have 'Hyunda' in them. Are you sure that y---"

"Yulia, it's really not like that! I was just curious, that's all! Go, go, go, ask me what guy I should reject next!"

Due to the fact that Yulia was having the wrong idea, I pressured the previous topic.

Naturally, I was just trying to reason there. I need to know a bit more about him. He can't remain an enigma forever. Even though I'm a slave for hardcore mysteries, he shouldn't be that hard to decipher.

Ah, but wait... Why am I having all these thoughts?! If I acknowledge that I want to know more about him then he will actually think that I fell in love with him.

Okay, okay. That's just not happening. I'll ignore him. He doesn't exist. That day was just another day. Nothing that big of a deal!

I mean... We watched a movie twice. Together. ...That's a bit hard to overlook. If you watch a movie more than once with someone then that someone should be fairly important to you yet Hyunda just went ahead and ignored the rules again!

Gah, I hate this! This is not how it's supposed to be! He's destroying the laws of universal romance! He's an abnormality and a menace to virtual romance.

Well, regardless of that, we idly chatted for two hours while waiting for our digestions to practically do a full cycle. Yulia said that she wanted to partake in a sports event and thus, I said that we needed to wait like two hours, and then we were good to go.

However, the event only really started at 3 pm. Which was the relay race on the main track field.

Previously, before doing so, we had to get into our gym clothes. Yulia, however, was pretty excited about this and so, while changing our clothes I posed a question.

"Yulia, why are you so excited about this anyway?"

There were also a couple of girls, though not united, changing into their gym clothes as well.

Yet Yulia just couldn't wipe that grin off her face, as she looked incredibly confident, to my surprise.

"Hehehe. Weeeelllllll, you seeeee, I think you'll like what you'll see. You know, I don't really like to lose, and previously, in the last exam, I performed miserably. Ah, it was all my fault. I couldn't forget that. Daniel is excellent when it comes to sports for your information. Soooo, I wanted to somehow compensate for my lack of positive results, which is why..."

With her gym clothes now fully on, Yulia turned around and delivered perhaps her most confident words yet to me, who was still dressing up yet simultaneously looking at her.

"I will win this relay race and I will come out on top!"

"Wait, how can you be so confident? It's only been like a month since then!"

"Heh, well, I happen to be feeling pretty confident right now. You'll see. Right now, you and Daniel are my most reassuring sources of strength and as long as I can rely on you both, I don't think I can ever lose. So, I'm going to go ahead and win!"

Seeing her emotional strength come out of her smirk, I also felt quite motivated to partake in the relay race.

Nevertheless, despite the fact that there were 23 other participants in the relay race, if we take out Yulia and me, against all the odds Yulia did very well.

Too well, rather.

The three individuals who either placed first, second or third, at the end of the relay race, have to be awarded their respective medals and the results will be apprehended by the staff members who are present.

This is why, since I placed 13th, I was watching Yulia getting a gold medal as a reward, from afar on one of the benches. I still hadn't gone ahead and changed back to my usual uniform, as I awaited for Yulia.

By the way, Yulia had an electric look on her face as she was static from the fact that she placed first.

Furthermore, when she met up with me, she jumped so high that I got baffled over the fact that she could jump that high...

"Yes! I won! Haha! I told you I had it! Okay! Do you think Daniel's gonna be happy to hear the news?!"

I wasn't mad that I placed that low since I suck at sports and therefore, I was more on the side of the argument that supporting Yulia with her victory makes sense. Yet nonetheless, I couldn't help but be somewhat depressed about this mediocre result.

"Of course he is! I will hit him if he doesn't get happy about this. I mean, you placed first, for crying out loud. First! In a sports event! With 24 other participants. That's certainly better than me..."

"Don't worry, Sana! Next time, you too will achieve awesome results!"

"I don't know. I've never been someone who was into sports. So I wouldn't expect to win anything in the first place..."

"Well, neither did I! But, I found my source of motivation and... I have been practicing for a while in secret as well."

She's still somewhat catching her breath while standing up in front of me, which made me wonder if she isn't feeling tired to the point of seating down.

"Sana! I think that when you find your source of motivation that you will be able to feel like you can do anything too! Because, deep down, I know for a fact."

"What do you know for a fact?"

Then, Yulia lightly grinned and put up her most confident expression ever, to the point of getting absurdly overconfident about it.

"You can do it!"

"I'll try..."

I'm ashamed of myself as I have lied to you once Yulia. Perhaps when I gather a bit of resolve I can tell you about my lie as it is eating my conscious. Furthermore, receiving these encouraging words that come from you leave me with a bitter-sweet feeling as I know I don't deserve them.

Yet, I feel like if you are around, then... I will eventually come to terms with my own flaws and find the motivation that you speak of.

"Well then, shall we go and change clothes? I also need to take a shower, for the record. Winning a relay race comes with a price."

"I guess this is one the privileges of failing..."

Not exactly proud while saying that, I went with Yulia to the female bathhouse in order to also shower.

Eventually, a good set of minutes later, as we left the bathhouse and went on to another event, as we were about to enter the external block that was right behind block A, on the entrance, we both witnessed something that we weren't exactly sure that it was happening.

Arkalee, with her back against the lockers, was fiddling with her phone.

However, that wasn't exactly the surprising part. Arkalee is always with someone. Someone that doesn't even need to be mentioned at this point.

Yet she looked completely fine as his absence didn't seem to bother her.

"Arkalee...?"

Still skeptical about Hyunda's absence, Yulia spoke to Arkalee, who couldn't stop fiddling with her phone nonstop. But, eventually, Arkalee looked back at the two of us and as she did so, her eyes firmly widened as if she was ecstatic over the fact that she saw us both walk into the block.

"Ah! There you two are! I was looking for you two! Perfect timing!"