“Teacher?…..You’re a teacher at our school?…..Ah, I remember now! You’re from the Health Room, um, called….”
Bried crossed her arms in thought, six “?” floating above her head.
Beiren fully understood Bried’s confusion.
Who remembers every teacher’s name at school, anyway?
Back when she was a student, besides the Homeroom Teacher, she barely remembered the surnames of the other teachers.
Especially in a place like the National Explorers Academy, where students have healing abilities themselves.
There were only classes in the morning, and students were too lazy to even make excuses to skip class.
Although there was one person who did make excuses to skip class and come to the Health Room—it’s possible that person remembered the names of everyone in the school…..
That infuriating F Class student, Academy ID AC2021086, who appeared pure on the outside but was the complete opposite inside, suspected of gender fraud.
“I’m Katy Gewina, the Health Room teacher. We met briefly a few days ago when you all toured the school.”
Hearing this, Bried clapped her hands in realization.
“Bye-bye, enjoy your snacks. Personally, I recommend the Blueberry Mousse. It’s made with salted cream and has a unique flavor.”
“Please wait, Teacher Gewina.”
Bried gently tugged Beiren’s sleeve after only a few steps.
Bried’s cherry lips moved as she looked at Beiren with a troubled expression:
“I’m Bried Taros. If it’s not too much trouble, could you keep me company for a bit? Um, I accidentally bought too much and can’t finish it….”
So cute.
“Well…..alright. I don’t have anything urgent to do, and if you don’t mind chatting with an older woman, it’s not awkward for me.”
She reflexively agreed without thinking.
Bried smiled:
“I don’t mind, Teacher Gewina.”
Mm, definitely very cute.
***
The setting shifted to a coffee shop that Beiren frequented.
Blueberry mousse cake was placed before her. Beiren took a sip of Mantening Coffee and then cut off a piece of mousse to taste.
The bitterness of the coffee and the refreshing sweetness of the mousse blended perfectly together.
Beiren liked the taste and showed a satisfied expression.
Meanwhile, Bried, who had treated her to the cake, was busily adding White Sugar Cubes to her coffee.
Bried took a sip of coffee with six White Sugar Cubes, yet still found it bitter and stuck out her tongue.
“If you don’t like it, you don’t have to force yourself…..I can drink this cup for you, or do you want to switch to Caramel Macchiato? That one is less bitter.”
“It’s okay. If someone treats me, I always finish it.”
Bried furrowed her delicate brows and drank the coffee with a pained expression, pairing it with bread.
No need to push yourself.
Beiren smiled sweetly.
As for why Beiren had noticed Bried, the reason was simple.
A vibrant girl with an orange high ponytail, carrying a mountain of bread, was simply too eye-catching.
Combined with her outstanding looks, Beiren immediately remembered she was one of the students Priss had brought along during the tour that day.
“Teacher Gewina, are you shopping alone too?”
“I originally invited a Friend to come along, but that person said it was a rare day off and wanted to catch up on sleep. Even though she sleeps all the time….”
Beiren took another sip of coffee.
“It’s similar for me. My Friend helps out at a coffee shop on their days off, so they couldn’t accompany me.”
“No, that person really was just sleeping. Not busy or anything.”
“I see….By the way, Teacher Gewina, you bought so many clothes.”
“Eh? Is it a lot?”
“Mm, a lot. Are you going on a trip?”
“Damn….I got carried away….It’s not a trip.”
Beiren closed one eye in embarrassment.
“Next month, I have to meet with a Friend—no, with a certain someone. A self-important guy. Not that I especially want to see him, but I lost a bet…..Right, I’m acting as a Witness! It’s a formal occasion, so I bought more clothes than usual!”
Beiren’s words tumbled out incoherently, her face twitching as she made an ambiguous excuse.
“Witness? Oh, like going to congratulate a friend’s new store opening?”
“Mm-hmm, something like that.”
Bried actually believed her.
Beiren cleared her throat with a light “ahem” and took another sip of coffee.
“So, what did you want from me? I don’t mind chatting, or do you want me to go shopping with you?”
“Mm, there’s something.”
Bried fidgeted with her fingers, and then, as if making up her mind, downed her coffee in one gulp.
“Teacher Gewina, since you’re the Health Room teacher, is listening to students’ troubles also part of your job?”
“…Mm, it’s fine. If there’s something you want to say, you can tell me. Our conversation won’t be shared with a third person.”
Seeing Bried’s seriousness, Beiren switched to a gentle, teacherly tone.
“Just to confirm, it’s not about romance, right?”
“No, it’s not that kind of topic.”
“That’s good….”
Bried held the empty coffee cup—her yellow gemstone eyes sharp and focused on Beiren.
“This is about a Friend’s Friend.”
People still start stories like that these days?
Beiren suppressed a laugh and maintained a kind smile.
“When she and he were kids, their parents knew each other. They got along well and played together often through elementary school.”
“In middle school, he already looked like a girl, which led to misunderstandings. Others often teased him about his appearance, making him gloomy and dislike school. He barely graduated with just enough attendance.”
A boy who looked like a girl, huh…..
Beiren thought of someone, but it was clear he was entirely different from the person in Bried’s story.
So this was the classic childhood friend story. That “she” must be referring to Bried herself.
“What was ‘she’ doing at that time?”
“……She tried to help, but could only offer words. Deep down, she looked down on his timidness. So after middle school, she distanced herself from him.”
“So, she’s feeling guilty now because she couldn’t help him back then?”
“No. She knows this isn’t something that can be changed by others. To come out of darkness, he needed to rely on himself.”
Bried put down the cup:
“The main point is now. For reasons unknown—and it’s quite incredible—he got accepted into a high school that’s very difficult to get into, the same school as her. On the first day, he was different. He actively made Friends and helped classmates. Honestly, it startled her, but….she was also happy.”
Bried smiled faintly.
Beiren could see she was genuinely happy for the other’s growth.
“The next day, he even came to her for help with studying. She felt relieved, thinking he finally moved past those trivial matters. But then he set a condition……”
At this, Bried hesitated.
Beiren knew this was the key part and focused intently.
“What kind of condition?”
Bried took a deep breath:
“He said, ‘Don’t fall in love with me.'”
Beiren’s lower left eyelid twitched.
Relying on professional composure, she managed not to laugh out loud.
Are there really people who talk like this in the world? What a weirdo.
“So, what is it that’s troubling her now? Isn’t everything developing positively?”
“A few days ago, she found the ‘Marriage Agreement’ from their childhood.”
A childhood Marriage Agreement—that’s just kids playing house, right?
Beiren urged Bried to continue with her eyes.
“She started thinking about the present, and soon realized….she was being too kind to him, caring too much, and the closeness felt dangerous. Does that count as breaking the promise?”
Bried’s expression was extremely conflicted:
“She felt that this ambiguous relationship was wrong and tried to keep her distance, but that made her uncomfortable…In the end, what should she do….”
Bried bit her lip tightly, clearly troubled.
Beiren, who had listened quietly, drank her now-cold coffee, pondering the meaning behind Bried’s words.
This, could it be……!!
She couldn’t even put it into words.
After all, all her knowledge of relationships came from TV dramas and medical textbooks.
Her social interactions were limited to family gatherings on New Year’s and the occasional rare outing, and she wouldn’t even go shopping without a clear purpose.
Acting out textbook scenarios was one thing, but this time, the other person was truly pouring out their heart.
Beiren felt completely lost, with zero practical experience, and playing the role of a caring big sister for the first time was not her forte.