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Idia swore under his breath.
He rarely did get up, and out of his room to venture out into the wilderness that was the school campus. As much as Ortho would berate him for not going out to get a sufficient amount of vitamin D, Idia would rather he basked in the warm rays of the sun as it filtered through his Miku Hatsune and Touken Ranbu wall scrolls that he used as curtains.
Good morning, Miku-chan. Good morning Mikazuki-sama, Izuminokami-sama.
The characters smiled back at him in response. Unmoving. Unwavering. Painted on to last until it fades one day.
Fleeting moments, much like the emotions that were drawn on the fabric of the wall scrolls; like human interaction and sentiments.
Blech.
Sentiments made him feel queasy, and nauseous. Kinship made him break into cold sweat. These are only some of the reasons why he’d much rather avoid people like the plague. He was already in his third year anyway; won’t be long until he never had to see any of these people again, so what was the point of even approaching them, getting close to them, if they’ll less than likely interact in the future?
It was useless, anyway.
Whatever he chose to do won’t matter, won’t last, anyway.
It was for the best.
Today was a Saturday morning, just ten minutes shy of eleven AM, or at least according to his Macross Frontier Sheryl alarm clock. It’ll be lunch time soon, but he wasn’t in the mood for take-out. Maybe he can pop in at the cafeteria to grab some food, and then head back, all in the guise of “looking for Ortho” since he knew his brother always explored the campus on the weekends. And with most of the student population having gone home for the weekend, there was little to no chance of meeting anyone who would stop to talk to him on the way to the cafeteria. (If his data was correct and up to date – it always is – the Octavinelle trio would be staying in their dorm, as would the Housewarden, and Vice Housewarden of Scarabia. Diasomnia's Housewarden and Vice Housewarden were elusive, so Idia hadn't had the chance to update his data on them, but he's sure they stay at their dorm over the weekend, save for their loud freshman.
As for Ramshackle dorm, its base is still a long way from the main campus grounds, so it was virtually impossible to bump into the peculiar Housewarden. (As for their talking cat familiar, there was still a whopping 37% of his chances that they'll cross paths. Darn it.) But for the rest of the dorms, they went back home.
Which only meant he could safely come down to the cafeteria, maybe have his meal there, and then head back to his room and stay there until it was time to go back down for dinner.
And for the first time since he moved past first year, there was a spring in his step as he headed for the bathroom to wash his face. Once he was done, he wore a comfy pair of sweatpants, his old VDC tech support team shirt, and for such a nice day like today, he pulled open his bedside drawer and pulled out a spray bottle– he combed through his hair as he sprayed some Sea Breeze into his tresses, smiling as the pleasant scent hit his nose.
(He'll need to order some more of that again since he's almost out, and maybe try Tsukki's advertised scent while he's at it.)
With his hair smelling less like earth and whatever odours clung onto him from his last Alchemy class yesterday, he sets off for the cafeteria.
Go beyond! Plus ULTRA!!
— — —
Today couldn't get any better than this, he reckons, as he walked down the hallway with little to no other student in sight. He could hear the occasional chatting, but that still sounded far, far away from him, so he let out a sigh of relief at that.
Just as he arrived at the entrance to the cafeteria did his nerves start going haywire; what if everyone was just quiet for some reason, and were all in the cafeteria?
What if this was all just a sort-of realistic dream VR simulator that he came up with?
(Maybe taking five consecutive 5-Hours last night just so he could grind for some Dias so he could make one last, pull from the Kuko-Sasara banner wasn't such a good idea now.)
Before he could even go through the possible responses to get the good ending in this playthrough, he walks into something hard and sturdy, like a wall, and promptly falls back on his bony behind.
"Oh, oops. You okay, man?"
Huh? Since when did the walls talk? Was this all part of the simulation?
He looks up to curse at the offending, incorrect code; he was expecting to see the grey walls of the hallway, but instead got a hand extended out to him, and a whole lot of red. Oh wait.
Is that mine?
"Dude," the wall said, as he felt something warm hold his hand. "Dude- you good there? Sorry for bumping into you! I should’ve been looking where I was walking, but I got too complacent- -” The wall spoke at a steady pace, his voice calm, and not to mention handsome, and Idia was left standing there with his knees turning into jelly at every word.
“I feel faint,” he heard himself say, and the wall started cursing now. And even that sounded hot.
He then felt himself get pulled against this presence, hoisted up by whatever had a strong grip on his hand; his feet leaving the floor for a split second, before he’s leaning all his weight against the warm… wall. Something thick and strong snaked around his waist, and held him closer against it.
“Sheesh, if you were feeling bad, you could have asked Ortho, or someone to get you food.” The wall said exasperatedly. With his head feeling like a thermos full of hot chicken noodle soup, he blinked away the star-shaped noodles, and really, really looked up and saw one of Night Raven College’s studs looking at him with concern. “You finally with me, bud? Should I ask someone to look for Ortho so he can help you back to your dorm? Or do you want me to take you there myself?”
Trey Clover was holding Idia against his person. “Finally sobered up?”
If Idia was sure sure that this was just some VR simulation set-up of one of his wet dreams, then he can just close his eyes, right? And when he opens them again, he’ll wake up. It’s just a dream. A simulation. This can’t be real.
“It’s all real, buddy. Did you just wake up, though? Your hair’s kinda, you know, not usually tied up in a messy bun?” Trey Clover told him. Oh. Had he been saying all those things out loud?
Darn it.
Idia pursed his lips, opening them slightly, only to close them again, unsure what to say exactly in this situation. This one hasn’t really come up in any of the simulations he’s run in the past- where he makes contact with a hot guy, and is then rendered speechless. There was no point in preparing for them, anyway, given that Idia himself scarcely left the confines of his room; it was his personal choice. And there wasn’t a day since applying for this position did he regret that choice- - not like he had anything else to do. He was already doing a great job at it. And no hunk can deter him from his tasks- - 2D, or otherwise.
Once he was finished running quick playthroughs in his head on how he could go about removing himself from this (not so)unfortunate situation, he blinked twice, and looked back to Trey Clover, who was still there, and watched him with a patient expression. Just how much does this guy have to go through everyday that he has the patience of a saint? Did the guy not have anything on his agenda? Idia barely hid a scoff at the thought. As if!
Whereas Idia only had a couple of ongoing game campaigns to speed through this weekend, so he had no time to fraternise with hot guys. He’s just far too busy.
“Can you- won’t you join me for brunch as an apology for bumping into you?”
What are you doing, me?
This flight of fancy won’t land you anywhere near the answers you’re looking for!
“I, hm,” confusion clouded Trey’s face for a brief second before it morphed into amusement. Great. He must think I’m a joke now. “Sure. I don’t have anything to do until late this afternoon, anyway. We can hang out after we eat, if you want?”
No, no thank you. I have much grinding to do before the Hypmic Quest 3 banner closes.
“Okay, let’s go.”