At first, Elion didn't understand what had happened. Then, after blinking a couple of times, he turned his head toward the person who had annoyed him.
In front of him was a girl about his age with reddish-brown hair tied back in a ponytail that left a few strands hanging down over her face. Her eyes were bright green. A cheerful smile lit up her face, and she was clearly holding back laughter. She wore a beautiful white blouse that seemed to emphasize her lighthearted nature, and a bright red scarf was tied around her neck.
Elion stared at her smile but said nothing, only frowning slightly.
"Ah, how nice that you silently agreed to let me sit next to you. If you hadn't, it would've been an awkward misunderstanding. But of course, since you didn't say anything against it, you're happy that I sat down with you, right?" She leaned toward him slightly, turning her head a little, all the while keeping her sweet smile.
Elion looked at her but said nothing. The girl's eyes were filled with barely contained joy.
The guy closed his eyes slightly and moved to the very edge of the seat, paying no more attention to her as he continued to look out the window.
"Hehe, so you're happy, aren't you? You probably recognized me right away, didn't you?" she asked, laughing sweetly.
"..."
"You probably recognized me, didn't you?"
"..."
"You probably recognized me, didn't you?"
After a few seconds of silence, she whispered,
After a few seconds of silence, a sweet whisper sounded right next to the guy's ear,
"You recognized me, right?"
Elion knew this trick because he had used it before, so he knew that if he didn't respond, the teasing would continue.
With a heavy heart, he turned around and stared at the girl from a distance of a few centimeters.
"..."
After a few seconds, Elion shook his head and began to turn back.
"Wait, wait! Like this?" She stopped him quickly, patted him on the shoulder, and began showing him something.
She changed her facial expressions quickly and showed him some tricks with her hands. Then, she started drawing an invisible picture and showed the guy a cute monster she made with her fingers.
"... " Elion silently watched this.
"Well? Do you understand?"
After looking at the figure for a couple of seconds, Elion finally nodded.
"Hehe. Well done!" The girl laughed happily and showed him her raised thumb.
"..."
Well done!"
With his eye twitching slightly, Elion turned his face back toward the sunlight.
"Hehe..." The girl laughed sweetly and began patting the boy on the head.
" ..."
"Hehe..."
"..." If Elion's silence could be understood, what was he thinking?
The answer was nothing.
Elion was in shock.
"Hehe..."
"..."
"Hee hee."
*Thud*
The young man tapped loudly on the table with his twitching finger, managing to snap out of his stupor. He blinked hard and was about to put the cheeky girl in her place when someone beat him to it.
"Hey, girl, why are you sitting with this guy?" Look at him. He has hair like a girl. Not to mention, he's short. You're better off sitting with us. We're future heroes, and we're ready to accept you into our company," said the man from the bottom row. He looked to be closer to thirty years old.
The girl looked at him, smiled cheerfully, and began patting her neighbor on the shoulder.
"Haha, did you hear that? You have hair like a girl! It's true. Yours is even similar to mine, only lighter!" She intertwined their hair, still smiling.
Elion ignored the unpleasant things said about him, but he was tired of this "unobtrusive" physical contact. He thought about how to put the cheeky girl in her place, but she didn't seem to care.
"Hehe... Oh, wait!" She stared in shock at the man who had called to her from below. Opening her mouth wide, she cried out and pointed at him.
"You're almost bald!"
"..." The man froze.
"It can't be... Are you jealous of him?!" The girl put her hands on her cheeks and feigned deep surprise.
The man opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out. He pretended nothing had happened, turning back to his companions.
"Wow... Can you believe he was jealous of your hair?" The girl patted him on the back, but Elion wasn't listening to her.
He looked up at the man, who was complaining to his friends. Elion began to think to himself,
I don't understand. He should have already passed that age. He's probably almost thirty, but he's still chasing teenagers. Elion looked at the girl explaining something to him and continued to think.
She looks about 14 or 15... But then, why would a man twice her age crave her attention? Do our laws say anything about this? What about the moral code of men? Does it turn a blind eye to this, too? Have I misunderstood something? The boy asked himself these questions when the girl's voice brought him out of his reverie.
"Hey, by the way, I think you have beautiful hair..."
The boy's eyebrows shot up, and a logical question invaded his mind, disrupting the harmony that had reigned there.
Is she crazy? He thought, turning to the bright girl.
"Ooh... Did you really like the compliment? You know, I could say a lot more..."
*Thud*.
The boy knocked harder on the table with his index finger, but she didn't seem to care.
"Oh, I didn't think it would embarrass you so much. Maybe it's because it's l..." The girl began, approaching the boy.
Elion knew this trick well, so he stopped her right away.
"O..."
*Pum*
With a light sound, the approaching girl's forehead was hit with a small slap.
"Ouch..." The girl leaned back slightly, rubbed her forehead, and smiled cheerfully.
"Hey! I knew you'd like it."
But she didn't have time to finish her sentence before the auditorium doors opened again and someone new entered.