17 Katie Campbell and Alexis Owens (1)

It was now after school.

I have arrived at the area behind the school where Katie and I had our 'massage session'.

Of all the things that 'that place' might be referring to, this is the only one.

Once I reached the place, an unexpected first arrival was also there.

"Katie!?"

"Daniel!? You came as well?"

Yes, my best friend and classmate, and also a victim of Alexis's blackmail, had arrived at the promised place before me.

"That should be my line! Did Alexis get you too?"

"That means she got to you too…."

"Yeah…"

An awkward silence passed between us.

After a while, unable to take the silence, I opened my mouth to speak. It seems Katie also had the same idea.

"I'm really sorry!!" "I'm so very sorry!!"

""Eh?""

We, at the same time, expressed our apologies.

"No, I should be the one that is sorry. If I had been more careful about our surroundings, this wouldn't have happened." I charged in with my reasoning first.

"It's not your fault! If anything, it should've been mine. I was the one who offered you to do it. If I hadn't this wouldn't happen in the first place."

"You were just trying to help me with my System. You did nothing wrong. If my System wasn't like that in the first place...."

"That's not something you could control anyways!"

"Then what else was I suppose to do!?"

From merely trying to emphasize which one of us was in the most wrong to just a plain argument, why did it turn it out this way?

Unable to stop, we kept bickering. We started to argue about the many pet peeves we had with each other.

"If you hadn't....I would've…." "Like you did any better…..if it weren't' for me…."

While it would've looked like we would keep on argue forever, but it seems our breath has reached their limit.

"Hah, hah….hah….hah…"

"Hah….hah, hah, hah…..hah..."

The only thing breaking the silence now is the sound of our heavy breathing.

"Hah…ha…haha…"

"Hah….fu,fufu…fufu.."

In the next moment we began to giggle. In no time our giggles became full-blown laughter.

"Hahahah, heeheehee….hahaha!!"

"Fufu, hahaha….hihi…..hahaha!!"

I don't know when, but our stiff faces we had before had already began to relax. It was as if our argument was allowing us to vent our pent up feelings.

"Haha….we're both idiots, aren't we?"

"Fufu… that's true, big idiots."

"Hah, nothing against that!"

"Right?"

Not like I understand, but it seems our friendship has now reached a new level. It would be weird to give thanks to Alexis for making us in this situation but it was because of her we came this far. I won't thank her though.

Even so, our situation still hadn't changed.

"Ahaha! Sorry I'm late. Did you wait for long?"

As if timing it, Alexis instantly arrived at the scene just as when we finally made up.

"…Are you making fun of us? It's obvious you were watching us from the beginning ever since we both got here." It seems Katie also realized it and immediately attacked Alexis with those thorny word.

"Fufu~ So you found out! You see, I thought it wouldn't be good for me to butt in your guy's sweet moment."

"None of your business." Katie said with a huff.

I let a small smile at Katie's little antics but immediately made a serious expression towards Alexis.

"Now that we are all here….I think it is safe to say that we both want to know what the hell is it that you want."

I immediately cut straight into the meat of the problem

"I agree. What could you possibly want with us? I'll just say this though. If you were to even suggest something unreasonable, blackmail or not, you better be ready..." It seems Katie' will to fight has been ignited. As expected of the Tae Kwon Do Club 'Ace'.

"Woah there. I'm not here to fight, okay? I'm nowhere confident enough to think I can win against our Academy's Great Tae Kwon Do Club 'Ace' in battle."

It looks like Alexis had no intention of suppressing us by violence in the first place. Not that I thought she would.

"I'm telling you guys though, I'm not here to force you to do anything. I just wanted to ask you a favor."

""A favor?"" Both Katie and I harmonized together.

After putting her hand in her skirt pocket, Alexis once again took out her smartphone and played the video.

"This. I thought it was nice so I wanted a little taste of it."

"Huh?" "What!?"

While I reacted dully at Alexis's words, Katie exclaimed in shock.

I looked at Katie. With an expression you make when you thought you did something wrong, Katie looked away from my gaze, refusing to make eye contact.

"Fufu~ That's right! I mean, after looking at this and hearing rumors about Dan-Dan's System, I thought I would like that too. KC looked like she felt so good just getting a foot massage. Massage-type Systems are amazing, aren't they?"

"....You thought what we were doing was 'just' a massage?"

"Hmm? Is there something else I'm not seeing? Well, I did only have enough space in my smartphone to just film the first part of the massage until the video recording decided to cut itself off in the middle. I spent the rest of the time choosing which videos or photos I didn't need anymore and only had time, in the end, to take the picture of you two as you guys left. I missed quite a bit actually. So was there something else you guys did?"

"....No, we only did a foot massage the entire time. Katie's ankle had been hurting you see."

"Ara~is that right. I don't see it now though. Ah! Did it heal because of your massage? As expected, a massage-type. Just how I imagined it would be like. Mm, now I really want to know what it feels like."

""....""

The both of us could only blankly stare at the smiling Alexis in silence. Just for this reason, she dragged us all the way out here?

"And that's all you want? You blackmailed us and called both of us here just so you could get a massage!?"

"Muuu~ I thought this from the beginning, but why is it that you both thought I was blackmailing you two? I just wanted to show you guys what I was talking about because it would be much easier to understand."

In indignation, Alexis made a cute pouting face with her bottom lip jutting out in an exaggerated fashion. I would have thought she was only pretending, but I could sense that she actually did feel that way somewhat.

Knowing that silence is not going to get us anywhere, I asked a question I just had to make sure of.

"Let me get this straight…you're saying that you weren't blackmailing us and that this is just a favor?"

"Correct."

"And if I were to refuse, you wouldn't go back on your word and actually blackmail us?"

"Muuuu~. Even my feeling can get hurt sometimes, you know? I already said I wasn't blackmailing you. And do you really want to refuse my favor? I know a little something about Support-Type Systems. A lot of their conditions to level up is highly related to the keywords in their System's name. Since yours is a massage-type, I would think you need to massage some people. Am I wrong?"

"…."

She isn't wrong. In fact, she is 100% correct. If I don't take her offer now, I would be losing a chance to raise up my level and gain points. It's undeniable fact that being only able to massage Katie is slowing down my progress. But at the same time, is it really okay for me to just massage someone I barely know…

"….Daniel, I think you should take on Alexis's offer."

"What!?"

This time it was my turn to be ridiculously surprised. And it was a surprise coming from Katie of all people. Et tu, Katie?

"Do you understand what you are suggesting!? I would be massaging Alexis, Katie. Didn't we agree before that I only need to depend on you if I want to level up? (Besides, it seems Alexis doesn't realize what my System actually does. But if I massage her, I could be found out. Is that really fine with you?)"

In the end, I had whispered my concerns about revealing the truth of my System. While I made it sound like mostly cared about the danger of my System possibly being discovered, I was actually thinking something else.

Is this really okay Katie? Are you really fine with me massaging someone other than you? And... do you even care that I do?

Katie paused momentarily due to my words. It looks as if she is struggling against something. After a while, she looks to have made her resolve.

"I thought about it for a bit, but what Alexis said made sense. Your Systems depends on having to massage other people. I had made a promise I would help you by offering myself. However, I feel what I could possibly do to help is limited."

Katie slowly and deliberately spoke each and every one of her words carefully. With each sentence, she slowly gains more and more confidence in her answer.

"I want you to succeed and get in the College of Defense. For that, even if I have to endure seeing you 'massage' someone else…I can do it, don't worry."

The eyes that Katie is looking at me now is filled with a determination I have never seen before in her.

Having seen this side of her, there is nothing else I could say anymore.

"…I understand, Katie. I got your resolve."

"Did you guys reached an agreement?"

I turned back to face Alexis who had been silent this entire time. While she still had her usual smile, I thought I saw a little worry pass over her face.

"…Yes. I will agree to massage you, just like I did with Katie."

"Really!? I'm so glad…"

Did Alexia actually let out a sigh of relief? Was she really that worried that I wouldn't agree to her favor? I don't know.

"However, it is on one condition" Regardless I had to be firm on this one.

"Condition?"

"If I am to do this, you will delete any copy of that video and photo you have, then I will agree to massage you."

As long as that video and photo exist, I can't have a piece of mind.

"Oh is that all." With those words, Alexis merely opened her smartphone and started to fiddle with it, "Done!"

"What?"

"I deleted them," Alexis said with her signature smile.

"You really deleted them? Just like that? But there is still the bac—"I don't have any"-----what?"

After interrupting me, Alexis continued to speak, "I never made a back-up. These were the only video and photo."

Even Katie couldn't help but interject, "Eh? So that was the only one? You're not lying are you?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die."

"No way…"

I understand how Katie feels. I also felt this was unbelievable.

"…If what you say is true, aren't you worried we would go back on our deal and I refuse to massage you?"

"Fufu~ I have confidence in my ability to judge people. From my perspective, you would never do that. Am I wrong?"

'What could you possibly know?' was what I wanted to say until I saw Alexis's eyes. Her eyes looked calmer and purer than I have ever seen them when she said those words.

Against that, I could only swallow my words.

"...Yeah, I won't go back on it. I said I would massage you and I will."

"Fufu~ That's great. So now let's go!"

""Go?""

Both Katie and I harmonized again. Go where exactly?

"To go somewhere else silly! Not if you want to be caught again doing it here."

""Ahhh….""

Yeah, that would be bad. It would be a huge joke if someone else other than Alexis were to catch us doing this again even after learning our lesson.

"You say go, so do you have a plan on where?" Katie asks..

"Of course, I got it figured out. This is probably the best place we can do it in."

With a mischievous grin, Alexis raises her index finger into the sky, only to point at me in the next second.

"Let's meet in Dan-Dan's room!"