NOVEL WEB Chapter 3: Date
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Paul walked across the streets surrounding their college, Chris following him closely behind. The teasing boy’s smile never went away from his face. It felt like Paul was being tested every second and every minute.
On their way there, Chris quickly started a conversation after noticing that Paul was the silent type. Luckily, he was an incredibly outgoing person, so he could talk for hours about whatever he could come up with.
“So since when have you been living in Los Angeles, Paul?” Chris wondered.
“Ahh, that…” Paul muttered. “For a while now, I moved with my family, like... a couple of years ago? I had to finish the last years of high school here. It wasn’t too awful; I mean, it was ok.”
“So you moved, huh~” Chris nodded. “Why?”
“Does he have to be so curious about everything?” Paul sighed internally. “Well, it was... because my parents divorced, so I came to California with mom; she found a job here as well; she opened a bakery.”
“Oooh! Isn’t that nice?” Chris smiled. “Glad your mom’s a hard worker; her son better work hard too! Don’t distract yourself too much in class, Paul. I see you sometimes watching me a lot; you should be looking at the teacher instead~”
“I swear, every time he finds a way to…” Paul was slightly irritated by that comment. “I wasn’t looking at you! I was looking at what you were drawing. YOU should be paying attention in class, Chris; it’s really important for our future. Don’t you want to work at programming too?”
“Kinda, I mean... Yeah, sure. I’m doing it mostly because my parents told me that at least I should get myself some sort of title,” shrugged Chris. “I remember I once wanted to make video games, so programming was kind of the way to get to that, I think?”
Paul’s eyes rose a bit as he heard Chris open up a bit more too, for once he was more serious and not teasing him about everything. With this, he also learned that he had a full family unlike him and that they spoiled their son so much that they just told him to get a title “just in case," without that even being a requirement for his future.
“So you’re both an artist and a soon-to-be programmer; that’s actually a really good combination; you could probably make your own game like that,” Paul commented. “Your art’s… Well, it’s really good; you have amazing skills. Are you an artist in training?”
“I mean, yeah, I guess I am?” Chris wondered. “Been drawing for the last ten years, I think... I mostly drew... lewd stuff, but I don’t want to get to that. Anyway, I’m not really taking art classes or something, so it’s all kind of self-taught, you know. It wasn’t easy.”
“I see…” Paul nodded.
Silence again.
Paul was really bad at continuing conversations.
Chris felt slightly angry at that, but it couldn’t be helped.
“At least you gotta continue the conversation, Paul~,” Chris said. “You’re not good at long talks, aren’t you?”
“W-What? I am... not good, yeah,” Paul didn’t fight back, admitting his defeat.
“Hahah, it’s fine, dude! I’m going to train you into an actual talkative person. All the girls are going to flock around you once you become more social. You already got amazingly good looks after all,” Chris winked at him.
“C-Chris…” Paul blushed a bit after his compliment. “Huh? Wait, he once more praised me and said I had amazingly good looks?! Is he gay? Wait, why should I care anyway…”
Paul didn’t want to admit it, but the possibility of Chris being gay somehow brought a strange feeling of…
Hope?
If such a cute twink liked guys, then…
No, wait, he didn’t want to think about that!
“Yeah, yeah, you got all red like a tomato~” laughed Chris. “We’ve only met for two days, but I am getting used to your clumsiness. So is this the place?”
Chris poked Paul’s face with his index finger. Paul noticed his nails were painted black too, making him look even cuter and more feminine. Chris indeed had some sort of goth vibe to him, but Paul couldn’t tell completely.
“Y-Yeah, I mean, don’t poke my face…” Paul gently pushed Chris' hand away.
But when he did that, he had to gently grab it, and he felt Chris’ porcelain, soft, and slightly cold hands. Although they were very delicate and small compared to his, he noticed that Chris' thumbs were a bit rough and hard, perhaps because of years of drawing constantly every day.
“Haha, so this is the place?” Chris didn’t want to admit it, but he had gotten slightly embarrassed after that, pulling back his hands after feeling Paul’s big, warm hands wrapped around his.
In front of them was a small café called “Café le Pierre." Paul nodded.
“Yeah, this is the place… It’s a café, but they also sell a lot of lunch dishes,” he commented. “Come in; I’ll invite you to lunch at least.”
“You’re so nice, my guy. I guess if you wanted to buy my friendship, you already did!” Chris quickly sat down with Paul on a small table at the corner of the shop.
The floor was covered with white rugs, the tables were made of beautifully painted white wood, and the chairs were silver-colored.
The entire place looked rather good. Chris liked the vibes and the aesthetic a lot; he had never come here before, so he found it pretty interesting.
“I’m not trying to buy your friendship or something... I mean, are we really friends? We’ve met for a little while, and I just want to... Well, pay back the lunch you bought for me,” Paul said. “That’s all.”
“So you don’t want to be friends?” Chris wondered; his big eyes looked like those of a cute puppy. “Man…”
“I-I mean, sure, if you want?” Paul asked. “I… I don’t really have any friends. You must be new here, right? Well, last year, I… kind of made no friends at all.”
“I can tell!” Chris laughed. “You are such a loner; there's no way you’ll make any friends if you stay silent through the entire day, dude. You don’t even talk with your classmates.”
“T-That’s too much, Chris; I try...” Paul sighed. “Ugh…”
“Hmm…” Chris sighed, raising an eyebrow. “Maybe I overdid it,” he thought.
The waiter arrived, and they gave the two the menu; this time they were not just told, “Just use the QR code,” as usual in most places.
“Oho, they got a lot of coffees here... Hmm, and drinks! I want this one, the juice with tons of fruit in it,” Chris said. “Fruity Mix? Wow, what a stupid name.”
“Hahah! I guess you are going to be ordering the fruity one; it fits you well.” Paul suddenly gained some confidence and ended up joking with Chris, teasing him back.
“W-Wha…?! What are you implying, you loner?” Chris got slightly angry, as he was caught off guard by that comment. “Are you calling me fruity?”
“Nah…” Paul shrugged. “I think I’ll order green tea, and... This Bolognese sauce lasagna is pretty good.”
“Seriously? It looks dull,” Chris laughed. “Pfff, I guess it fits you too.”
“Hah?!” Paul got angry again.
“Hahaha! Calm down; I was just joking~” Chris said. “You did the same, right?”
“Dammit…” Paul quickly realized that he had to take a bullet if he shot one too.
After thinking for a while, Chris ordered a double-patty burger with fries and a strawberry cheesecake. It was quite clear he liked food with lots of calories and carbs.
“If he eats like this every day, it makes sense he has such fat thighs…” Paul thought, eyeing Chris, who was drinking his juice while checking his phone. “Wait, why am I even thinking about his thighs? He’s a dude.”
“Hm~?” Chris suddenly looked back into Paul’s eyes. “What? You’re looking at me again…”
“N-Nothing, I was looking behind you, actually,” Paul said. “Anyways, err, you said you came to college just in case? You don’t plan on getting into a career seriously?”
“Ah! That…” Chris put his phone down. “It’s not exactly like that, I mean... Kind of? I am pretty well off myself; my family is supportive too, and I earn well already. So it’s more of an afterthought, but better have it than not.”
“Wait, what do you work on then?” Paul wondered.
“Heh~ You wanna know? It’s kind of... kind of lewd,” Chris smiled teasingly. His adorable face, mixed with his teasing, slightly sexual innuendo, made Paul slightly shiver.
“What… what is it?” Paul asked.
“I draw stuff… Sometimes cute things, sometimes… well, you know,” Chris said.
“What?” Paul wondered.
“I have to tell you?” Chris smiled. “It’s pretty popular, and it brings in a lot of money. As a grown man, I think you have used it a lot as "material," seeing how you’re a bit of a weeb, definitely.”
“You mean… Wait, you draw… hentai?” Paul wondered.
“Nah~” Chris laughed. “Not that much, lol! Why would I draw hentai? You’re pretty perverted.”
“Eh?! Weren’t you implying that?!” Paul gasped, feeling even more embarrassed.
“Pff, hahaha!” Chris only laughed back at him. “I was joking! I draw a lot of stuff, I do commissions on Twitter, I also write… novels sometimes, fantasy stuff, and I earn money as an author and an artist.”
“Woah, you’re an author too?!” Paul asked. “You’re full of talents, damn.”
“Haha, you praise me too much, dude,” Chris giggled. “That drawing I made of you, that portrait? It usually goes for like five hundred bucks a piece, and I made it for you for free, so you better be grateful to your good friend.”
“That expensive?” Paul wondered. “Artists earn better than I imagined…”
“Not really; it’s a struggling job sometimes; that’s why I complement it with writing my stories,” Chris said.
“W-What are your stories about?” Paul got more curious as he heard about Chris.
Was there anything uninteresting about him? He was just way too cool, as simple as that.
“Hmm, I’ve written like four so far… They’re your basic jam: power fantasy, romance, sometimes classic Isekai, and that one new genre, like, similar to the Korean webtoons and solo leveler.”
“Ooh, that’s so cool, and you earn well with that?” Paul asked.
“I don’t really like to disclose how much I earn, but I earn well enough to live on my own.” Chris nodded, crossing his legs. “Anyways, when is my burger coming? I'm super hungry, man.”
“They don’t take too long; they should be here soon.” Paul smiled.
“Ah, she’s here! Thank you so much!” Chris winked at the waiter as she giggled and left the food on the table.
Paul was left speechless. Chris' cheerful demeanor, wink, and cute smile instantly made the cute waiter giggle and smile back at him!
“He’s really good,” Paul gulped. “Man, I want those skills,” he thought.
“Hmm!” Chris gave it a bite. “Hey, this burger’s pretty different; it has, like, lots of veggies inside? I don’t know if I like it that much, but it does have a unique flavor. The sauce’s also interesting… Hmm, not bad.”
Paul felt like he skipped a beat when he saw Chris cutely eat his burger, his cheeks puffing like a hamster who had stuffed himself with seeds.
However, to not get reprimanded again for looking at him too much, Paul quickly started eating and pretending he was chill and didn’t care.
“Phew, that was good~” Chris ended up eating the burger in less than ten minutes and then moving directly to the cheesecake. “Hmm, oh, this is better, nom... It tastes nice, the cheese is not too strong, and the strawberry sauce is actually really sweet and not too citric—my favorite kind of cheesecake.”
“He’s definitely a foodie,” Paul nodded to himself. “He’s talking too much about the food; nobody does that normally.”
Paul quickly found one of Chris’ weaknesses, he likes delicious food!
"Seriously, you gotta try this, Paul. Have some,” Chris offered Paul a piece of cheesecake, it was from an area where he had already taken a bite.
“Wait, doesn’t it…?” Paul felt nervous, growing redder.
“Sure…” he nodded almost obediently.
Yet inside his head, he was dying!
“Wait! Why did I say “sure”?! It has his saliv-”
He ended up eating the piece of cheesecake anyway; it was really delicious, as Chris said.
Paul, of course, was dying of embarrassment again.
“Tasty right~?” Chris smiled very teasingly. “Heh…”
“Guh?!” Paul muttered. “Cough… Y-Yeah, it’s good…”
Paul’s mind was in turmoil!
“Did he know it had his saliva?! Did he purposely… and he feels… what is he feeling right now after doing that? He’s such a devil!” Paul kept crying inside while trying to keep a calm and composed face outside.
“Man, that was a good lunch~” Chris finished drinking the juice.
“You got some ketchup there, Chris…” Paul sighed in relief, finishing his meal.
“Hm? Where?” Chris wondered, his cute face approaching Paul.
“Ah! Way too close out of nowhere!” Paul thought, panicking inside.
He gently used a handkerchief to clean his cute face.
“Eheh, thanks~!” Chris winked at him.
“Am I his servant now or something?!” Paul was grasping the handkerchief very tightly.
After the meal was over and Paul paid everything, which ended up being roughly $60, they quickly decided to move back home.
On the way back to the train, however, they kept talking about stuff. Any random thing they could think about. Paul slowly became more talkative over time.
Talking with Chris was helping him become more social, indeed!
However, it would still be a slow process, and it also relies on his own self-confidence, something he still has to work on.
“Anyways, so what games do you play anyway?" Chris asked.
He had already talked about being a gamer with Paul; as he openly admitted it, Paul did the same, and both clicked even better after sharing their favorite games, which ended up being both JRPGs. Paul’s favorite game was Final Fantasia 7, and Chris' favorite game was Dragon Questers 11. Both agreed they were really good games.
“Like, nowadays?” Paul wondered.
“Yeah, yeah, I got myself a VR capsule; you got one?” Chris wondered.
“I do; I got it some time ago using my savings.” Paul seemed excited. “I’ve been currently playing Fantasy Story Online; it’s amazing how everything is so realistic... And well thought out, though sometimes a bit weird... It’s an overwhelming game. It feels like you’re truly isekai’d into another world.”
“Woah, seriously? I got it too, but I haven’t tried it; I have been busy replaying the Golden Star remake that came out recently. Chris smiled. “So would you be okay with player two then, bro?”
“P-Player two? I mean…” Paul stuttered a bit. “Sure? I wouldn’t mind… But my character is on Obscuritas, and right now I have no idea how to move between Realms…”
“Hahah, okay, I’ll make a character there then, mister gamer~” Chris smiled. “For saying you were so good at VR that you don’t even know how to move around... Kind of silly~”
“Hah… Maybe, yeah…” Paul had to nod at that; he was indeed quite silly sometimes.
“Well, being silly has its charms! Anyway, see you. I’ll text you later, dude,” Chris said. “Thanks for the meal!”
Chris gently patted Paul’s arm and then walked away.
“Yeah, see you tomorrow, Chris…”
Paul gently waved his hand as Chris walked away from the train.
His heart was beating faster as he saw him move away.
What was this feeling?
It felt slightly similar to when he had a crush on a girl back at school.
“Nah, forget it…” Paul tried to forget it, and he quickly decided to move back home. “I have a lot to do…”
As he was going back home, he checked his “to-do” list of things he had to work on with FSO.
<Vlad’s to-do list>
-Go to the library to learn magic spells or something related to it.
-Get a Subclass and investigate which Gods I can get a blessing from.
-Look for information about Vlad’s family, interact with his sister and mom, and get someone he can trust.
-Find a way to somehow fight back against the flaw that makes Vlad’s body almost completely paralyzed.
-Find where there are dungeons or a big city where players gather to level up and get quests.
-Prepare for the retaliation of Vlad’s brother…
-Use the Heavenly Treasury to get as strong as possible.
“Hah, lots to do, but it sounds fun…”
Once he returned home safely, he already had a message from Chris.
His Whatsup profile picture was of a cute anime girl, as expected.
[Chris ;3 <3]: [Hey dude, I just started the game. What do I do? lol]
[Paul]: [What do you mean “what do I do?” Just make your own character…]
[Chris ;3 <3]: [But there are too many options lol Wtf I am an author but this is too much for me lol]
[Paul]: [Then hit the randomizer, but you might not appear in Obscuritas…]
[Chris ;3 <3]: [Guess I’ll do that lol Whatever happens happens, right?]
[Paul]: [I guess? Something crazy might happen, so be prepared for a weird character background. Don’t say I didn’t warn you later…]
[Chris ;3 <3]: [Bruh, what’s the WORST that could happen? lol]
[Paul]: [Yeah, sure, keep that mindset…]
“He sure writes lol all the time…” Paul wondered, opening the door to his house. “Wait, what’s his age? He sure looks younger than me, he’s smaller too.”
[Paul]: [I was wondering, you’re like a midget, are you actually underage?]
[Chris ;3 <3]: [What?? I’m not underage! I’m 20!]
[Paul]: [Seriously?! You’re older than me? No way, stop lying midget.]
[Chris ;3 <3]: [Who are you calling midget, you loner! Lol here~]
Chris ended up sending a photo of his damn identity card, and he was indeed born in December 2003, so he was 20 and soon to be 21!
[Paul]: [I guess some people get taller and others… Well, don’t.]
[Chris ;3 <3]: [What??? I am fairly tall… You’re just a walking skyscraper, lol]
[Paul]: [Shut up, goblin]
[Chris ;3 <3]: [Ok troll, lol.. how’s the weather up there??]
“This cheeky brat…”
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