“How was the exam?”

Aei’s superficial miasma is low, hirs deep miasma was the same as yesterday. Xe’s probably in a good mood.

“I did okay. I should be able to do it this time. I asked my friends about the History paper and found out that I got a lot of the questions right.”

“That’s good to hear.”

Xe drove the car down slowly. The streets were rather empty, many people no longer considered getting a car.

The car we have was a gift from grandpa.

[He hasn’t approached his locker in forever. I suggest you at least prod him to visit it, if not the meeting time will pass before he even reads it.]

“Uwm..”

That’s so unfair. Love letters should normally be dropped inside one’s locker, right? That’s how students romantically profess their love in the olden days, right?

Avner.. go to your locker, go to your locker..

The anxiety is killing me.

It’s too late to take back the letter, I can’t access the locker. What was I thinking?

[If not, I also suggest you tell him upfront.]

If I did that, then what’s the point of the love letter? It took so much pain to find a clean envelope.

“Are you not feeling well?”

“N-Nothing, I’m alright.. just tired from the exam.”

“We’ll celebrate by having a nice dinner after this, how about it?”

“Yes!”

No doubt about it, aei is in a good mood. How about mom?

The car parked into the garage. I made my way down, aei hooked it up to the charger. I took off my shoes and entered the house.

A normal house with nice furnishings. Aei and mom were clean freaks. They were so strict with it, I remember how they used to check my room everyday to make sure things were neat and tidy. Sometimes I would get scolded if there was dust. Even now, it happens whenever mom is angry.

“I’m back mom!”

“Welcome back Pu’er, how’s the exam?”

Her deep miasma gauge dipped, and superficial miasma was also low. Perfect!

“It was great! The questions were easy, I finished everything and had loads of time left to check.”

“That’s good to hear. Ah, did you find anything suspicious happening in school today?”

“Suspicious? No?”

“Pu’er, take off your soaks and go wash your feet first,” aether interrupted.

“O-Okay! No, I didn’t see anything suspicious.”

I tossed my bag on the couch and made my way to the bathroom. I took off my socks.. troublesome socks and tossed them into the basket. I also made sure to soap my feet and wipe it dry before coming back to the living room.

“NtBM happening in other schools?”

“Yes, the most recent news.”

Mom was discussing with aei about NtBM. I brought my bag to the first floor where my room was.

After that I came back down.

[Here’s the news article they were discussing.]

“Thank you Lily.”

It’s a nearby school. AImore Private, a school known for the classes that were strictly divided based on gender. Males, females and elves were separated by class. I wasn’t sure if they could meet during breaks or what not. I heard they don’t allow that either.

“Everyone in your class is acting alright?”

“Yes.”

Opps. I said that without thinking.

In actuality, I find that Avner is very suspicious. The new article says here that this student with NtBM didn’t act out of the ordinary until one day her behavior underwent a drastic change. From a cheerful and bright girl, to someone evasive of others.

Nobody suspected much of her change in attitude until two weeks later that..

How long has Avner been acting that way? Today marks a week and a day, doesn’t that mean next Thursday he’ll..

“U-Um.. there is someone in class that..”

“Huh. Who?”

“A-Avner..”

“Who is he?”

“Oh, that boy.”

“Which one?”

“The one who always copies Pu’er homework.”

“He stopped borrowing since last week.. and just like in here, he became very quiet..”

Aei and mom looked at each other.

“What should we do?”

“Report it to school authorities.”

“Shouldn’t someone have reported it already?”

“I-I’ll tell the teacher about it next week.”

“How long has it been since he’s been acting that way?”

“A week.”

“Exactly a week?”

“A week and a day, it was last Thursday, he began acting weird, I think.”

“No, I think we should notify the school about it as soon as possible. I don’t want to risk my daughter’s safety.”

“You’re right.”

My throat felt dry.

===

“Lily, do you really think Avner got the virus?”

[Nanovirus.]

“Both are the same thing right?”

[I also suspect that Avner is infected with NtBM, however, from Cynthia’s call, the teachers said that he had already submitted his test result. It showed negative.]

“Huh? Since when?”

[Last Sunday.]

Then why..

“Did they really say that to mom? What if it’s a lie?”

[I don’t believe school authorities would do such a thing.]

“You’re right..”

I returned to typing. I lost track there, what article am I working on again? Oh, right. About the concept of this repetitive pattern of downs and ups and a family. One week everything is perfect, the next week, the family gives each other the cold shoulders. Another week, things return to normal, and the fourth week, all hell breaks loose.

It’s a loop. Sometimes the loop is shorter, other times it would be longer.

“Done!”

[The article is short compared to the others you have written.]

“It’s hard to come up with ideas you know..”

[It’s understandable. Your total readership is 2145, with 12 subscribers.]

“So slow..”

[You could attempt to post it on more sites.]

“I’m too lazy..”

How exactly do people make money writing articles. I hate writing them but they say you have to persevere.

“What do you mean we should not let her go to school?”

“At least until that student is confirmed as negative can’t you think of Pu’er’s safety here?!”

“Didn’t the school authorities already prove that he’s negative? She’ll miss out on class, and who will take care of her at home?”

“What? You think I can’t take care of her? Pu’er herself already said that he’s acting suspicious. And the teacher also said that he’s become a different person. ”

“Not again..”

I covered my ears.

My door is locked.

I think I should go to bed early today as well. But I still haven’t checked my TinyArmies account the entire day today.. ugh..

[“Pu’er, how are you doing?”]

Brunette texted me.

[“Not good.”]

[“Why?”]

[“Avner. I made a mistake and told my parents that he might be infected with NtBM.”]

[“He is?!”]

[“No, he’s actually negative. He even went to test his results.”]

[“Want to call?”]

[“Okay.”]

That’ll take my mind away for now..

I shouldn’t have said anything. Then this wouldn’t have happened..

[“Oh, you’re going to sleep already?”]

I nodded. Brunette’s face was shown on the other side of the screen. Hirs little bunny AI was hopping around hir.

[“You said about Avner being infected with NtBM, his test was negative? When did he even do test?”]

“Sunday. Last Sunday.”

Or Saturday?

[“Do you know where he did his test?”]

[From the document, he tested it at the Alska General Hospital.]

Thank you Lily.

[“Really? Then he’s probably negative then. By the way, has Avner taken the bait yet?”]

I shook my head. My hair kept slapping my face. It was annoying, grr..

[“I’ll tell him to go check his locker. When is the date you two will meet up already?”]

I hadn’t asked mom or aei if I could go out to meet him at that time yet..

In the past, I remember seeing him walking at the park. When I did a little digging, I found out that his house is actually close to mine.

“Next Friday”

[“Then he better open the letter.. I’ll send a text to him right now, watch.”]

Brunette and Avner chat often?

He doesn't even take the initiative when it comes to me..

[“There, we’ll see what reply he gives.”]

For a moment, I imagined the scene of Avner biting me at the park.. making me his..

Ugh, what am I thinking?!