"President… can I skip class today?"
At breakfast, 永恒流星 asked the question in a voice so small it nearly got swallowed by the morning quiet.
Last night, when she was making cakes, she'd decided not to make any for people she wasn't close to. A gift could become a burden—an awkward obligation to return it. At the time, that logic felt airtight.
Now, though, a different scenario kept replaying in her mind: someone who loved big group gift-giving. Someone who would hand things out to everyone. And then… her empty hands.
It would be mortifying.
Across the table, 鲁道夫 paused mid-bite.
"Are you feeling unwell?"
Her first instinct was medical—because yesterday she'd seen that ridiculous wheelchair moving like a missile.
"No, no." Meteor waved it off quickly. "It's just… when people look at me with those pity eyes, I feel awful all over."
It was a reason that matched her usual attitude—and, inconveniently, it was also half true.
Mockery didn't bother her. Ridicule didn't land. But that gentle, careful, concerned treatment—especially when she knew she was only playing up the injury—made her skin crawl.
Rudolf thought for a moment.
"Then come with me to the student council room."
Meteor blinked.
"I don't really want to move. I want to stay in the dorm and lie down."
She didn't say the real reason: she hadn't made a cake for 气槽, and she was already considering whether to ask 东海帝王 to deliver the cakes for her.
As for why she wouldn't just let Rudolf deliver them?
Because Rudolf was getting a surprise tonight.
Meteor had already imagined it: Rudolf thinking she'd been forgotten, quietly stewing for hours—then discovering not only that she had a cake, but that it was the biggest and most dramatic one.
She'd look so happy.
"I'm not comfortable leaving you alone," Rudolf said, calm and direct.
Meteor's eyes narrowed into a thin line.
"…Sigh."
Rudolf said things like that with no awareness of how lethal they sounded. Early on, Meteor had actually flushed once or twice. But living together had taught her the truth: Rudolf wasn't flirting. She was just… painfully sincere. A straight-faced block of hardwood with excellent grades.
"President," Meteor said, genuinely trying to help her, "I strongly suggest you read a book about emotions. If you say things like that outside with me, be careful—you might end up getting hauled off by the police."
She immediately pictured herself dragging Emperor and Teio to visit Rudolf in jail.
The image was so strange her brain rejected it outright.
She shook her head hard to fling it away and took a large sip of porridge.
Rudolf stared at her, baffled.
"But I really am not comfortable. What does that have to do with the police? Or… was that a joke?"
Meteor watched as Rudolf's ears twitched—just slightly—whenever "joke" came up.
Meteor closed her eyes for a second.
This woman was unsalvageable.
"It wasn't a joke." Meteor sighed. "And… don't you think you've been worrying about me a little too much lately?"
She looked back up.
"I know you mean well. But I'm not completely disabled. You don't need to treat me like I'll break if I breathe wrong."
Since the strain, Rudolf had become… jumpy. If Meteor wasn't in her line of sight, she'd get a message. If Meteor went anywhere, Rudolf wanted someone else looped in. The moment Gold Ship and that wheelchair stunt happened, the fact that 西崎龙 had shown up at the track was practically a confession.
Rudolf hadn't been like this when Meteor had been wrecking herself before.
So why now?
Rudolf opened her mouth.
"But—"
"No 'but.'" Meteor cut her off smoothly. "Today I'm not going anywhere. I'll stay in the dorm, lie down, and play on my phone."
She tilted her chin toward the smart lock on the door.
"And that lock you installed… it can tell you if I open the door, right?"
She'd been bored one evening and used image search to identify it. The spec sheet alone was several screens long. The price was noticeably higher than normal smart locks.
Who installs something like that on a school dorm?
Rudolf's posture stiffened.
"Meteor… don't misunderstand. I just… I'm scared."
Her voice trailed off until it almost disappeared.
Meteor's expression softened before she could stop it.
"Scared of what?" she asked, quieter. "I'm right here. I'm fine."
She wiped her fingers with a napkin, then reached out and gently rubbed Rudolf's ear between her fingertips—slow and careful, like smoothing a wrinkle out of silk.
It felt oddly familiar.
Rudolf's ears were soft—far softer than her usual sternness suggested. Meteor hadn't touched them in a long time. The contrast made something in her chest tug, faintly uncomfortable.
But she didn't let that show.
She kept her voice light, coaxing, firm—because if she didn't correct this now, she could already see the trajectory:
More locks. More monitoring. Fewer permissions. A cage built out of kindness.
"I'll take care of myself," Meteor said. "And when you come back…"
She leaned closer, smiling with a little mischief.
"I've got a surprise for you."
Rudolf looked at her for a long moment, as if trying to decide whether she was allowed to believe that.
Then, finally, she nodded.
"…Okay."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter116)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 118
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 111
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 80
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 112
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 80
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 74
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 48
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 50
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 47
Uma Musume: From Beginner 42
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