Milady's Fine Gentleman 232 NATIONAL BESTFRIEND

"That table over there is still empty. Let's take it." Xue Guangxi nodded his head towards where he wanted to point at. They were at the cafeteria.
Kang Sola and Xue Guangxi stood side by side near the counter, both hands occupied with their own trays of food for lunch. Noticeably, Kang Sola didn't carry a bag. The boy signaled her to walk first towards the empty table.
Xue Guangxi followed right after. Noticeably, he was carrying two bags slung on his shoulders: his backpack which was securely fastened onto his back, plus a brown feminine sling bag on his right shoulder.
People turned their heads towards their direction, but no one brave enough commented.
"Save the seats." He ordered and left consequently.
Upon settling down their trays and propping their bags on an empty chair, Xue Guangxi went towards a corner pillar where the utensils were. He took two sets, then stopped at the vendo machine for drinks. He pressed it and acquired two sodas.
Only then did he sat across Kang Sola. Distributing the utensils and sodas, he felt satisfied with himself and started to dig into their food.
It had been like that ever since they resumed their classes at the university.
Xue Guangxi and Kang Sola both returned to the university. The boy, after his mishaps, and the girl, upon returning from her internship. They were in their sophomore year. Due to their respective activities, they were delayed and extended for another year or two to finish their degree as subject offerings were seasonal.
Since Xue Guangxi was not allowed to participate in the company events, he became a full-time student, only concerning his studies and nothing else.
For some reason, his parents felt guilty towards him, too, as if they were the ones who pushed him towards the edge, thus the manifestation of his unpleasant behavior. In a sense, they were giving him the opportunity to become a child and make the most out of his youth. What better way to do it than to be a focused, exemplary university student?
Although he was without riches which he was born with and was used to due to his punishment, the family made sure he was still taken care of and provided for. He was still pampered after all.
Each day he went to school at seven in the morning and should have left the premises at six in the evening via the transportation his parents arranged for him.
Every single day, upon reaching the school premises, Xue Guangxi would immediately look for any signs of Kang Sola in the campus, without alerting her. He had her schedule memorized by heart. He knew her breaks well.
Although he would have wanted to concentrate on his classes, he frequently found himself spacing out. When his consciousness returned, he would find sketches of her in his notebook – something she shouldn't discover. Or else… The repercussions were dire.
At first, Kang Sola was taken aback by Xue Guangxi's demeanor, but the latter explained that she shouldn't give color to it as he was only 'making up' for his rude behavior before.

Afterwards, Kang Sola became numb to it, and eventually it became a norm to them – Xue Guangxi would casually take Kang Sola's bag from her shoulder and carry it himself, or Xue Guangxi would take extra care into getting what Kang Sola needs. Everything he had done without speaking of it. He just did it. Automatically.
Of course, for the boy, there's certainly color to it – vibrant, even, at its finest. But he knew where his place was, and he's contented with it.
He silently followed her around, thought of her, got flustered about her, without her knowing.
'I'm just a friend, but I better be the bestest best friend she could ever have. I should excel on it.'
'Don't know if I can accept it if even that title will be stolen from me.'
'If I can't be the boyfriend, might as well be the best friend who's always there for her – a confidante whom she could share her joy and sorrow with. A listener to her rants and complains. Her punching bag. Anything she needs, actually. I would be it. Silently, though, never attempting to cross that invisible line.'
Kang Sola and her boyfriend James were still on steady. They had decided on trying out the long-distance relationship status. At times, Xue Guangxi found Kang Sola so immersed into sending cute emoji messages to her James. Sometimes, he caught a glimpse of some lovey-dovey content in her messages, which, by the looks of it, hurt his eyes tremendously. It was as if rays of sunlight pierced his eyes – an inverse Cyclops effect. The hurt in his eyes went straight to his heart and pierced it like how a laser would. He could only gulp and dissolve the lump forming in his throat.
Who was he anyway? Just a friend. Her best friend.
One time, there was intramurals in their school. Kang Sola joined volleyball while he played baseball, his favorite sport.
It so happened that the schedule of their matches coincides. He played and did his best, and God knows he enjoyed the game so much.
They won. He jumped up and down in ecstasy.
After the game, the first thing he did was look for Kang Sola to share with her the exhilarating news. He found her sitting on the gutter, hugging her left knee. She was injured.
He rushed towards her upon seeing her current state. She was gritting her teeth from the pain. She had scraped her bare knee onto the abrasive ground.
"Anyone please call the medics!" He shouted in a frenzy.
The referee who was left behind retorted nonchalantly. "We already did. They're on their way."
"What? There's no medics team assigned here?"
"Boy, the game ended a while back. She didn't utter a word back then. Now that the game's over, you want special service for her?"
Rather than answering back and wasting any more of the time, he weighed his options and chose to tend to the wounded Kang Sola. Every second mattered.
He bent forward and picked her up princess-style. Of course, the girl struggled in his arms. "Guangxi put me down! Where are you going?!"
"To the infirmary." He said curtly.
"I can walk. Put me down." Kang Sola insisted. He could sense the annoyance in her voice.
He obliged. "Okay. But I'll help you reach the infirmary." He grabbed her arm and swung it around his shoulders. The girl skipped her way towards the infirmary.
"Thanks, Guangxi."
"But sometimes, I feel you're going overboard already."
The boy froze. 'Am I? Have I?'

Chapter end

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