POV Aisha
That night, the computer lab remained brightly lit.
Aisha and Bela sat side by side, books spread open, notes scattered across the desk. They began studying—straight to the heart of it: basic operations, fractions, simple equations, and then, little by little, the harder material.
Hours slipped by.
The soft tapping of keyboards, the scratch of pens against paper, and their occasional whispered exchanges filled the room. They studied with quiet determination, taking turns explaining concepts to one another, pausing often to double-check their work—making sure no mistake went unnoticed.
Time kept slipping by. The computer screens cast a soft blue glow over their faces as drowsiness crept in, but neither of them let their focus waver. Heads bowed, eyes fixed on numbers and formulas, they pressed on.
Suddenly, a voice cut through the quiet.
"Hey, upperclassmen! It's late. What are you still doing here? Go back to the dorm!"
Zidan, on night duty, stood in the doorway of the lab with his arms crossed, his gaze stern.
Aisha and Bela exchanged a quick look, then nodded.
"Alright, we're heading back to the dorm," Bela said, slowly shutting down her computer.
"Heh… turns out he does care," Aisha muttered under her breath, still a little annoyed at Zidan. She hadn't forgotten how he once mocked her fried rice.
They stood, tidied the table, and walked out.
A few nights later, the same scene repeated itself—except this time, they had truly fallen asleep in the lab. Computers hummed softly, notebooks lay scattered, and the blue glow still filled the room.
Raiz lounged lazily at the night guard post, staring at the dim garden lights. Suddenly, Zaki hurried over from the direction of the gate.
"Raiz! I think there are still some girls in the computer lab. It's almost midnight. I wanted to tell them, but… it feels awkward. You go instead," Zaki said, pointing toward the lab building.
Raiz frowned, clearly reluctant. Before he could refuse, one of the guards beside him patted his shoulder.
"Raiz, go. Don't let anything improper happen in the pesantren."
Raiz let out a long sigh. "Ugh… what a pain. What are they even doing there at this hour?" he muttered, getting to his feet.
As he walked toward the lab, his eyes caught sight of a familiar pair of sandals.
"Heh… those are Ruqayyah's. What is she doing here…?" he thought.
When he stepped inside, Raiz froze. Aisha and Bela were asleep at the table, heads resting on the surface.
"Wow… they're really diligent," he murmured, holding back a smile. "This must be Bela's influence—studying until they passed out."
He rubbed his chin. "Hmm… I should wake them up."
Without overthinking it, he bent down, picked up a small stone from the ground, and tossed it toward the lab door, aiming near the wall so the sound would echo. The sharp crack rang out, loud enough to jolt both girls awake.
They stared at each other, still half-asleep, faces flushed in shock.
"Heh… we fell asleep here," Bela murmured, her voice shaky and drowsy.
Aisha slapped the table lightly and gathered her notes.
"Let's go back to the dorm. Before rumors start," she said quickly.
Out in the corridor, Raiz peeked from behind a pillar, making sure they truly headed back. A small sense of relief washed over him when he saw them leave the lab safely.
Meanwhile, Aisha walked beside Bela, still startled and a little embarrassed.
"Mmm… who do you think threw that stone?" Bela whispered.
Aisha sighed, looking up at the corridor ceiling.
"I don't know. But it feels like… someone's been watching us," she replied, yawning.
Bela shook her head, then laughed softly.
"This is starting to feel like a late-night action movie. We really should sleep earlier."
Aisha nodded, adjusting the strap of her bag.
"Agreed. No more sleeping in the lab."
When they reached the dorm, the door opened to hushed whispers from girls who were still awake.
"Huh… must've been meeting boys," sneered one of them—Rina—speaking loudly to Dina beside her bed.
Dina replied dramatically, "Mmm… maybe they're just desperate for male attention," her tone exaggerated and irritating.
Aisha and Bela knew the remarks were aimed at them. Just as Aisha opened her mouth to respond, Bela gently held her hand.
"Forget it. Let's sleep. We're exhausted from studying anyway. They're not worth it," Bela said softly.
Aisha exhaled, lowered her head, and went straight to her bed.
Just as she was about to drift off, the system suddenly chimed.
[Ding!]
Aisha's eyes snapped open. She sat up immediately.
[Host! Because of your diligence in studying, you have received a side quest: place your hand on Raiz's head.
Reward: Automatic mastery of Basic Mathematics.
Time limit: Half a day starting tomorrow.
Note: Basic Mathematics consists of seven levels:
Addition – adding numbers
Subtraction – subtracting numbers
Multiplication – multiplication tables
Division – dividing numbers
Fractions – parts of a whole
Decimals – numbers with decimal points
Basic Geometry – simple shapes and measurements
Completing this quest grants mastery of Level 1, sufficient for foundational understanding.]
Aisha nearly screamed.
"What?! Master basic mathematics?" Her mouth hung open, almost drooling in disbelief.
A younger girl in the dorm, who had woken up to go to the bathroom, saw Aisha's expression and laughed.
"Sister Ruqayyah… are you dreaming?"
The comment snapped Aisha back to reality. She quickly shut her mouth, sat properly, and dove under her blanket, pretending to sleep.
The next day in class, Aisha kept stealing glances at Raiz. Inside her head, she was endlessly grumbling.
"Stupid System Qadar… giving me such a ridiculous task. How am I supposed to put my hand on Raiz's head?" she thought, frowning.
Raiz noticed her stares and felt uneasy. His mind drifted back to the previous night—the stone he'd thrown at the lab door.
"Does she know it was me?" he wondered, narrowing his eyes.
Aisha tried to act normal, but every time Raiz moved, her thoughts spiraled. She imagined countless awkward ways to complete the task without being noticed.