Chapter 18: Happy Birthday, Rhys

"Are you sure we're allowed here?"

"...Yes."

"Feels like we're breaking the rules. Kinda makes you nervous, no?"

"You weren't allowed to bring people in your dorms, Ms. Lina?"

"Just call me Lina, and no—I have never been. I was in the Explorer Academy, but that's not really a school. By the way, is…

…this all you have? Did you just move here or something?"

Even with Lina's presence adding to Rhys's room, it still felt completely bleak and empty. Throughout his 6 years in Old York High, this was probably the first time that someone else was inside his room—and an outsider, at that.

Rhys wasn't really actually aware of the dorm rules. Even though he had lived here for years, he didn't consider it a home. It was just a place to sleep and whittle his time away, four walls and a roof.

No, throughout his isolation, the only thing he considered his home was his sister… was.

"Yes…" Rhys's lazy and somewhat smooth breath whispered in the corners of his empty room.

"...And how long have you been here?"

"About 6 years."

"..." Lina could really only walk around the room, not failing to notice how spacious it was—and not just in the sense that it was empty, no—the room truly was spacious.

A suitcase, and a mattress without pillows.

"Are they… mistreating you?"

"...Not at all," Rhys shook his head, "I'm… just treated like any other Lowborn, Lina."

"That's—sorry," Lina sucked in a breath as she approached Rhys's bed, "I… haven't really talked with your… I haven't talked much with a Lowborn before."

"It's fine," Rhys just once again shook his head as a small chuckle escaped his lips, "I would offer you a seat, but—"

"I'll sit here," Lina shrugged before letting her butt fall to the bed. And although her breasts were nowhere near Katarina's size, it was still bountiful enough to jiggle as she lightly bounced on the bed; her short skirt, however, completely folded and showed more of her thick thighs… squeezed by the garter of her somewhat frilly panties.

Lina, however, did not seem to mind that her underwear was exposed; pretending ignorance as she once again looked around the room.

"Are all the rooms in this dorm this big?" Lina's voice contained a slight hum.

"Just mine."

"Huh…wait, is that a toilet?" Lina then blinked a couple of times as she saw a door.

"A… bathroom."

"A bathroom!? Well shit…" Lina giggled as she looked up at Rhys; her eyes, completely turned up, "So…

…coffee or juice?"

"..." Rhys watched as Lina once again offered him a drink; shaking her hands as she handed her a can and a bottle. Rhys did not really think long, however, as he just grabbed the bottle of juice.

"Do… Explorers usually stay up this late?" Rhys then asked, "It's 4 in the morning now and I could still hear them outside."

"Oh, shit… If you're sleepy, we can just—"

"No," Rhys shook his head before Lina could stand up, "I… won't be able to sleep with all this noise anyway."

"...Yeah," Lina awkwardly chuckled as she looked at the windows, only to see them fully covered with newspapers, "Well, to answer your question—We don't really have a set time to work. I won't even consider it work."

"Hm?"

"Holes can open up at any time and anywhere; well, not in the city—this is an isolated case since cities are supposed to be fully holeproofed already and—I'm blabbering on, aren't I?"

"No, go on…" Rhys looked at the 4 empty Hearts floating above Lina's head, "...You're the first Explorer I have ever talked with."

"No," Lina, however, placed the can of coffee she was holding on the floor, "I wanna know more about you instead. You… have this air of mystery around you."

"There's… not much to know, really," Rhys turned his head down; his breaths, long and somewhat exhausted.

'I want to know more about you.'

"I… suppose I'm just like any other person in this world," And as Rhys said that, the memories of him being beaten almost to death for years resurfaced in his mind. His skin being burnt; his bones being shattered—he was more accustomed to pain than breathing, "Life…

…life gave me challenges."

"I say cheers to that," Lina chuckled, before leaning back and placing both her palms on the bed.

"..."

"..." Rhys thought several things to say, but that was all that was coming out of him—thoughts.

"So…" Fortunately for him, Lina quickly broke the silence that almost filled the room, "Are you interested in becoming an Explorer?"

"Hm?"

"'Coz you asked me about it, do you want to be one?"

"Oh…" Rhys slightly groaned as he looked away, "...I can't, I'm… not allowed to be one."

"You can be a Porter," Lina said as she very subtly moved closer to Rhys, slightly crumpling her skirt as she did so, "I can introduce you to my guild if you want. We're pretty small, but we're good."

"That—"

"Don't worry, I can protect you," Lina then crossed her legs…her knee, now touching Rhys's leg.

"...If the time comes, then," Rhys also very slightly faced Lina.

"..."

"..."

"Do you have any social media?" Once again, Lina was the one to break the silence between them.

"I… don't."

"Seriously!? You're graduating already, right? You're like… 17?"

"18 today, Lina…" Rhys nodded, "Well, I suppose yesterday."

"O…Oh," Lina slightly stuttered as she heard that, "That's... that's goo---I mean, happy birthday, Rhys Wilder."

"...Thanks."

"Now to find you on the internet," Lina then let out a mischievous giggle as she grabbed her phone from her pocket, "There's no way I can't find a trace of you somewhere."

"...Don't," Rhys's breaths started to stutter as soon as he saw Lina typing his name, "There's… nothing there."

"Aw, no need to be shy, birthday boy," Lina waved her hand as she scrolled through her phone.

"N—"

'I want to get to know you more.'

Rhys was about to say something, but Lina's desires once again entered his mind. He looked at the Hearts above her head before gritting his teeth and just looking away.

"Let's see here…" Lina once again hummed as she looked at her phone, "Oh… there's quite a lot. A video? Are you a streamer?"

"..."

Lina then clicked the video with a smile on her face… a smile that did not really last long as her eyes reflected the images in front of her. Lina then quickly closed her phone, throwing it on the bed as she looked at Rhys.

"That… that was you? I'm…" Lina started stuttering; her eyes, no longer knowing where to look, "I'm… sorry, I…"

She subconsciously stood up from the bed, and as her eyes once again scanned the empty room and the covered windows; suddenly, everything makes sense.

Lina then turned to look at Rhys. And although his eyes were completely covered by his hair, the distraught contained in them was obvious.

"I…" Lina opened her mouth… before just deciding to kneel in front of Rhys as she held his hand, "Shit. I… really didn't know."

"It's… fine, Lina," Rhys shook his head.

"No, it's not fine," Lina whispered as she placed Rhys's hand on her cheek. She then closed her eyes; her lips, now touching his hand.

"..." And as she opened her eyes, they reflected only Rhys.

"Happy… birthday, Rhys…

…let me try and make it up to you."

And with those words, Lina leaned closer and placed her lips upon Rhys's.