"Hello, anybody home?"
"Oh, Peter! How's school going, kid?" Uncle Ben was watching TV when he saw Peter and stood up.
"Well... hard to say, but I guess it's fun?"
"Fun is good enough. If anything's going on, just let me know." Uncle Ben ruffled my hair, making me feel a bit shy.
"Oh, right, Uncle Ben, take this."
A stack of cash.
"What?! Where'd you get all this money?!" Uncle Ben was flustered and looked at me suspiciously.
"I didn't steal it! I earned it with my friends!"
"..."
Uncle Ben looked at the money and then handed it back to me.
"Money isn't that important to me, kid. You keep it—"
"But Uncle Ben, we're in debt, the TV's ancient, the house is falling apart, the bed's torn, we're short on stuff, and both you and Aunt May are getting old. This money isn't just a gesture—it's necessary for our family!"
"..."
Uncle Ben was speechless because I was right.
But this was Peter's money. He can't just take it without giving something back...
"By the way, where's Aunt May?" I looked around.
"She's at the supermarket."
"Okay, then I'll leave the money—"
"Wait, Peter..." Uncle Ben grabbed my hand.
"...?"
"Ahem... We're old, Peter. We don't have much time left. We're planning to sell this house so you can use the money to buy a new one. So keep the money, think about your girlfriend, okay?"
"Uncle Ben..."
I gave Uncle Ben a smile.
"Don't try to pull the emotional card to distract me! Girlfriend can come later—family comes first!" I placed the money in Uncle Ben's hand.
"..."
Having a nephew like Peter is a blessing for seven generations of this family...
"Alright, I'm heading out! Tell Aunt May later, okay?"
"Oh... yeah."
I closed the door, and right in front of me was Gwen, waiting.
"Ah! How'd the talk with Uncle Ben go?"
"Lucky I put on some pressure, or he wouldn't have taken it, phew!"
"So, where to now? Another date? I'm so excited!"
"To Harry's place."
"...tch."
"Don't click your tongue!"
The Baldi game needs more updates. I can't just abandon my brainchild like that.
"Let's go, Gwen."
"No!"
"?"
I looked at her. She was puffing her cheeks and turning her head away.
"...Why not?"
"No means no!"
"...Are you sulking?"
"Yeah! I'm sulking! Sulking because we don't spend enough time together! Dummy!"
[Dummy!]
'What now?!'
[What? Am I not allowed to show up?]
Ugh, a clingy girl sticking to me like glue and a talkative outer god in my head—what a headache.
No wonder when I look back, I don't talk or joke as much as my other self from another universe.
...Or maybe it's because my life's pretty stable now, so I don't need to talk a lot to relieve stress?
[By the way, that Baldi game thing? You did pretty well. I can feel the fear from people. Nice job!]
'Oh, thanks.'
"Are you ignoring me?!" Gwen shouted.
"No?! I was just... talking to my other personality—"
"You don't have multiple personalities!"
[Hello! I'm Peter's second personality, representing perversion! I like Morrigan and often watch 18+ videos when everyone's asleep—]
'SHUT UP!!'
I don't have enough energy to deal with both of them!
"Alright, calm down, Gwen! Didn't you cling to me enough after school? Harry even left us alone so we could have fun!"
"Not enough!"
[Peter! Now that I think about it, we need more chaos! Can I mess with Israel? Please?]
"I want more! I want to spend more time with you!"
[Or maybe PETA! They deserve it!]
"If you don't, I'll cause a scene! I'll wreak havoc until you agree to stay with me!"
[On second thought, China might work... but Webnovel's made by them, and I'm worried the fanfic might disappear.]
Both voices kept buzzing in my ears, pushing me to the brink of my patience.
"Peter!"
[Peter!]
Veins popped on my forehead.
"ENOUGH!!!!"
My voice was so loud that even strangers backed away.
Gwen, terrified, hid behind a lamppost.
"Gwen, you want to be with me, right?! If you want that, you need to listen to me first, and then you can have whatever you want later! Got it?!"
"Y-Yes, sir!"
'AND YOU!'
[Oh shit, my turn?]
'Shut up and be patient! You're not gonna die, and you're actually my top priority, got it?!'
[Aww, that's sweet.]
"Now, to Harry's place! Agreed?" I grabbed Gwen's hand and looked her straight in the face.
"...Gently."
"Huh?"
"Hold my hand... gently." Gwen blushed, her lips trembling.
"..."
So her weakness is when I take the lead, huh?
***
Her name is Emma.
She's the girl who bumped into Peter and was helped by him and his friends.
For ordinary people, when someone bumps into you and apologizes, it's normal—it's what should happen. If they don't, they're just rude.
But what about Emma?
Her entire life has been like hell.
"EMMA! WHY DON'T YOU LISTEN TO ME?!"
Her father's slap struck her cheek, sending her crashing to the floor.
To her, this was normal. It happened every single day.
"Goddamn it! A useless daughter who's good for nothing! You can't even sleep with someone for money—do you hate cash that much?!"
Her father was a butcher, so he was physically strong.
Her mother? She ran away, leaving Emma with this cruel man.
"The money from selling meat is barely enough. No one wants to buy it! You need to think about this family, Emma! I raised you to help me, not to be a freeloading leech like you!"
'Liar…'
He had money—so what? He spent it all on booze, never doing anything to make this family better.
He even planned to turn her into a prostitute? This father was the worst of the worst.
Stingy with every penny, no wonder she was never allowed to take care of her appearance. Her hair covered her face, hiding it from the world.
No friends. Her family was like a prison. School was like a second prison.
...But at least there was one boy who showed her kindness.
She knew it because she could read people's emotions. Living with her awful father and his sleazy friends had honed that skill.
So when she saw that boy's face, it was the first time she felt... warmth.
He was like a golden retriever, radiating sunshine.
His words were gentle, too—almost... innocently so.
...She thought she shouldn't get close to him.
She was afraid she'd taint him if she did.
But then what?
He saved her from being bullied.
...
"So kind..." She lay on her bed, touching her swollen, bruised eyes.
Maybe... she thought she could keep going for a few more days. Who knows? Maybe something would change in her life.
*****
Alright warning about Emma, Im gonna cook her in the worst way as possible, so dont hope at anything like "Yayy!! Peter has Harem?! So cool! He deserve it!"
Pfft no, there's only one Heroine in this fanfic and this is not Harem R18 fanfic