Monday, 1:00 PM
Liam could be seen having a conversation with one of his classmates. He was a rather strange guy who, for some reason, looked up to Liam and was always seeking his validation or approval.
At first, Liam was simply curious as to why. But after a few days of becoming friends, he realized that Randy was a rather strange soul—strange in the sense that he was naive and also wanted a close friend. Although Liam knew he couldn't keep someone as naive and gullible as him as a friend—in the sense that he might continue to take advantage of him—Randy wasn't making it easy at all. And as such, Liam had to go with the flow.
However, after Class 4, Randy moved from downstairs to upstairs at Ashford Hostel, and they became rather close. He was probably the only person Liam could share most of his secrets with.
But currently, Randy was rather a pawn and a tool to cure his boredom. And Liam didn't really feel bad. If anything, he made sure to solidify that fact—making sure Randy would blindly trust and follow him.
"Are you that desperate? I'm telling you that people are saying I'm using you only for my benefit, and you're not even making it easier for me to deny it!" Liam said seriously, looking Randy dead in the eyes.
Of course, deep down he was joking. He already knew that true friendship would never be possible between him and most people—it would only be covered under mutual benefits. That was a serious lesson he had learned since he was a child… well, until he actually met a true friend, that is.
"What's the big idea? We're just chatting, right? They don't know what they're saying!" Randy said, bringing out a plastic can of soda and giving it to Liam.
Liam could only facepalm himself inwardly, but still put on a calm smile outside. To be honest, he'd brought it upon himself. It is said that when someone is at their lowest point and you're the only one there for them, they're most likely going to develop an almost unshakable trust and respect for you. Although Liam couldn't quite remember the details, he knew that Randy was once at that point, and he had just randomly decided to give him advice. Since then, Randy began to ask for more advice, and that was how his friendship with Liam was formed.
"Why are you giving me this all of a sudden?" Liam asked, confused, but accepted it anyway. After all, stuff like this was part of the benefits.
"I promised you last week Monday during evening prep. Maybe you can't remember!" Randy said.
Liam nodded. To be honest, he wasn't really feeling good. He was already starting to feel sick, and the worst part? Two days from now was the beginning of the exam. He remembered coming back from home to write them.
"Okay, thanks. You're going to afternoon dining, right? You can take my food," Liam said, resting his head on the table.
Randy's palm fell on his neck as he tried to check his temperature. "You're burning hot! Are you sick?"
Liam nodded his head.
"If that's the case, you need to go to dining so that you can eat and take drugs from the sick bay!" Randy said, genuinely concerned.
But Liam simply rejected the idea, saying there was no need—he would be going home this evening.
"Okay. Get well soon, bro. I'll leave you to rest!" Randy said before getting up from Liam's seat and going back to his own.
Just then, Edwin and Noah sat beside him, seemingly laughing. When those two were laughing together, you'd know someone else was currently cursing them internally and on the brink of tears.
If there was one thing that ran deep in the body of every member of Westfield Academy, it was the fact that they could never miss an opportunity to taunt and tease someone. The only way to potentially escape this was if the people about to tease you all respected you, or were far weaker than you—combined with the fact you weren't too close, or if you yourself were known for being a bloody soul yourself. In other words, you were a natural teaser yourself.
Lucas, Edwin, Liam, and Noah were one of the most deadly combinations of teasers, each with appropriate styles that complemented each other. It wasn't a stretch to say they could take the happiest person in the world and put them into depression. That was how deadly they were—especially if you wanted to fight back with words. You'd only end up lengthening your sentence.
"Why don't you advise your friend?" Edwin said, still laughing uncontrollably.
Noah only started laughing again after seeing Edwin laughing without restraint.
"Which friend?" Liam asked, raising his head barely.
"Dylan!" Noah said, still laughing and periodically coughing.
Of course it had to be him. Liam and Dylan naturally became friends due to the fact that they both wrote novels, although the quality of both novels could be judged by value. While people read Dylan's novels for free, Liam's often came at a price—could be money, or their food from the dining. Although it didn't mean that Liam was a better writer than Dylan, you could say it was more of experience versus talent, combined with the fact Liam knew what people would actually pay to read.
While Dylan was more experienced in writing, Liam, on the other hand, was more of a natural talent and also knew how to include the necessary things to make his novel worth paying for.
Well, you could say in a school where composure mattered a lot, Dylan could be called the concept of anti-composure. Although most people refrained from outright saying things to him since he could potentially be among the upper echelon in terms of strength—however, strength doesn't naturally equal respect or fear.
"I think bro was reading one of your novels in the walkway when he fell into the gutter. Like whyyyy!" Noah said, emphasizing the "why."
It was hilarious to watch, also noting that junior students had to be watching. But it would probably hurt less than the fact that Noah and Edwin were witnesses and actually taunted him while he was still in the gutter.
"Where the fuck is Noah and Edwin!" Dylan said with a frown on his face.
Luckily for him, the gutter was dry, and he only had a few stains on his white sleeves.
"What did I do again? Did I not help you out?" Noah said, still laughing.
"Why would you say that I am your witness when you picked him out of the gutter when he had nothing? Does that make sense to you?" Edwin quickly said, trying to paint Noah as the villain.
"You think it's funny? Be careful around me, I'm warning you! And you, Edwin! Count your days in this school!" Dylan said in fury, turning to leave.
But Noah couldn't miss the opportunity to say something in this situation. The two most popular styles of roasting with a reply were: first, forming a random word from one of the speaker's emphasis, and second, putting the speaker in his own words as if he was referring to himself. Noah had chosen the latter.
"Are you that eager to go home?" Noah said, causing everyone around—even Liam—to laugh, but only barely, though.
"You're senseless!" Dylan said, still boiling in anger.
"With all your senses, you still fell inside the gutter!" This time it was Edwin who had said this, causing Dylan to pause in his tracks for a few seconds. From the look on his face, it was obvious he was considering getting violent.
"I don't have your time!" Dylan said, turning to leave.
But Edwin and Noah kept spamming replies.
"Timetable!" Edwin shouted first, but Dylan knew better than to turn back.
"Timekeeper!" Noah said.
After Dylan had left the class completely, Liam said one final word, causing the whole class to burst into laughter.
"TIMITE!"
Of course, everyone knew he was trying to say "termite," because twisting words to fit the rhyme was most times even funnier.
"How can you do that to your friend!" Lucas said.
Liam simply laughed before resting his head back on the table.