Canteen Conflict (part 1)

2.5 - Canteen Conflict

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During the walk to the canteen, I was quite afraid of running into his friends for our little lunch date. But, apparently his friends are nowhere to be seen.

And… not even Nico can be seen.

I arrived at the canteen, and I looked around the seats to see the handsome blonde boy. I tried searching for his hair, but I couldn't find his nose anywhere.

I sat down at one of the empty seats and waited. While waiting, I kept an eye on the people arriving at the canteen area, but I couldn't find him after a while.

I thought it was because he just hasn't arrived yet, but apparently it was because of something else. The canteen is not too far from the school's backyard, so I can see the wide and open school field very clearly from the seats. And from here, I can see that there is a whole class of students doing their physical education lesson.

It's already lunch break, and their class still hasn't ended…? Surely, the students would complain, wouldn't they?

… Wait…

Nico isn't here… couldn't that be…?

I stood up from my seat immediately and began to rush walking towards the field. I arrived not too far from the field, near a crowd of students who were also watching the class doing their physical education lesson.

Now that I'm close, my suspicions were confirmed. This was indeed Nico's class.

Class A is still having their physical education lesson, even after the lunch break arrived. From the looks of it, the teacher is quite annoyed by something, and he was just shouting words to the students playing basketball.

Oh. They are having basketball exams. I had this back on Monday.

I turned to the students playing, and I noticed that two of them are two guys that I know very well. One of them is Nico, and the other is the tall glasses idiot called Link.

Looks like they are going against one another. Link is very tall, so I'm sure that he is very good at basketball. Surely, his team has an advantage in scoring with Link on the team.

But… that's not at all what is happening. After watching for a little bit, it looks like Nico's team is scoring the most. And the best part was, Nico is the one scoring a ton.

As I watched Nico score, I noticed the crowd around me cheered for the guy who scored. I turned to them and noticed most of them were girls, and I was quite expecting that Nico is their favorite player.

Well, the guy is just so handsome. And he is good at basketball as well? Man, how is he so perfect?

The game ended after Nico scored a three pointer which made every student watching cheered, whether they are from class A or just a bystander crowding up to see the handsome boy. After it ended, the two teams shook hands with one another for the great game.

But after shaking hands, Nico landed his eyes on the crowd of bystanders watching him. His eyes gaze around the area outside the field, and it arrives exactly at where I am standing.

Oh, did he spot me?

Nico then lifted his hand quite high and waved at me. His mouth curls into a wide grin, and he looks so happy seeing me. I was about to wave back, but…

"""Kyaaa!!!!!"""

W-What the hell…?

The crowd of senior females not far from me shouted so loud at him, as if they were the one Nico was waving to. Seeing this, I got dumbfounded and lowered my hand. I turned to Nico, and he too looked very surprised hearing the girls cheered.

He then got strangled by four other guys who got jealous of him, and his eyes were taken away from me.

Well… that was quite funny.

Looks like we have a lot to talk about.

I walked away since class A is about to finish up their class. They started grouping in front of the teacher, and I thought this might be a good time for me to leave.

Since Nico's class is about to be done, I should get something to help him freshen up.

I returned to the canteen and bought two bottles of mineral water. I also bought a cold tea for myself. After ordering chicken noodles, I sat down at an empty seat and waited for Nico to come. I played around with my phone for a while, until finally the guy came to my seat.

"Hey! Were you watching me play the entire time?"

Nico asked as soon as he arrived. He looked sweating, and he looked very happy seeing me here.

"Not all of it. I came right after the bell rang."

I handed him a bottle of water, and he grabbed it quickly.

"Sorry the class didn't end earlier. Some of the girls came to the field quite late. Nobody really knows what happens, but the class ended up starting quite late."

Oh…? Some girls, huh?

"Is it Alica and her followers?"

"How did you know?"

"Well, she was called to my homeroom teacher's office with me."

"Oh… that's no coincidence at all. But, why did she come late? Did something happen?"

Something.…does happen. But, I don't think what I did would make her be so late to the lesson. After all, I returned to class right after talking with Alica, and the lesson started immediately.

"I don't think… Actually, I'm not too sure. I was talking to her until nearing the bell, but we didn't do anything that would take that much time. We just talked, that's all."

"Odd.…Well, in any case, I'll know the answer later when I return to class."

"You're not returning?"

"Huh? No. You're here, already. If I leave you, then who's going to keep you company?"

"I'll be fine, so return if you have to. It must feel horrible being in that sweaty uniform."

"It's fine! I'll feel bad for leaving you here. Anyway, have you ordered something?"

Nico then began pondering what he wants to buy, and I can only stare at him annoyingly. He just stopped exercising, and he immediately wants to eat something? What if he pukes?

But, knowing Nico and his reckless behavior, such a thing probably never crossed his mind. He will play like a ten year old for ten hours a day, then come home to eat ten plates of rice. Then, he would puked ten times.

I should stop him…

"You shouldn't eat right away after you exercise… If you're hungry, just get something light first. You can eat two to three hours later."

"Two to three hours from now is filled with classes! This is my only chance to eat!"

"Then, don't eat too much or you'll puke!"

"Ugh, fine. I'll get noodles."

That is still… kind of heavy…

But, if that's what he lowered himself into, then his original aim must've been much worse. It's probably better to just accept his decision.

Nico got up and ordered chicken noodles, just like my order. And while he was ordering, I was finishing up the cold tea on the table while playing with my phone.

I noticed a person came up to me, and I thought it was Nico. I turned my gaze to the person standing next to my seat, but it was far taller than Nico.

He is… an upperclassman?

"Are you Elizabeth? From class D first year?"

The senior asked me, but I was too startled to reply to him. His build is quite large, and he is rather muscular. He had quite a little facial hair around his mouth, and I noticed he might grow a beard in just a few more years. He is quite tall as well, possibly as tall as Link.

A third year…? Even for a third year, he looks damn old.

"Yes, I am. May I ask who is asking?"

"I'm just curious... What kind of girl was it who dared mess with Alica?"

Ah… everything just came to me on a silver platter. Another enemy. Another victim of my schemes.

Looks like he hasn't heard of my methods yet. Otherwise, he wouldn't be confronting me like this.

"And you are… who?"

"Ardis Kenton. Alica's older brother."

Whoa… huh?

He doesn't look like Alica at all…

"You don't look like Alica…"

"She's my sister from a different mother. Now, tell me. What did you do to make Alica so scared?"

He asked me coldly with cold eyes, and I began to understand the situation better.

There are plenty of students around me. If I cause a commotion here, surely everyone will be able to see. There are no secrets to be kept in a place like this. Even now, some students near us are already listening in on our conversation.

His body is quite built. Not just that, there is also a possibility that he has friends around this place. Beating him up physically should not be an option…

Or… should it?

Actually, now that I think about it…

It might work?

Suddenly, I had an idea. However, the possibility of it succeeding or not will fully depend on my strength. It will attract so much attention, but it will also put a stop to every single person who will try to harm me physically.

I will have to think of words to say to everyone once the attention falls on to me.