Kevin walked toward the empty bus stop. He needed to get home before the orphanage locked its doors. Otherwise, he’d be stuck outside and wouldn’t be able to sleep in his bed. No one would willingly sleep outside when they had a warm, comfortable mattress waiting for them.
As he was about to sit down, his eyes accidentally caught sight of someone familiar nearby. He hadn’t noticed them on the way here, so why did he have to run into him now?
"You?! What are you doing here?" Kevin blurted out, glaring at the person he disliked.
Revan gave him the same look, equally displeased by his presence.
"This is a public place. I assume you’re not dumb enough to ask something so obvious," Revan replied flatly.
"What?! You’re so arrogant!" Kevin snapped, then narrowed his eyes at Revan, scanning him for clues.
"Mind your own business!" Revan shot back.
"Weird. You look like someone who ran away from home," Kevin guessed randomly, unable to find any clues.
Unexpectedly, his words struck a nerve.
"What’s it to you?!" Revan growled, suddenly stepping forward and grabbing Kevin by the collar.
"Just because you work outside the house and I look like I’m doing nothing, don’t go assuming things!"
Kevin was too stunned to respond. He hadn’t expected such an aggressive reaction.
"What’s so great about being a pizza delivery boy, anyway?" Revan added coldly.
Kevin froze. "What?! What do you mean by that? Are you insulting me?" He grabbed Revan’s shirt in return. How did Revan even know about his job?
"HEY!"
A loud voice called out from the distance, getting closer. Both Kevin and Revan turned to look.
They saw Diana approaching on her bicycle. A few seconds later, the sharp screech of her brakes echoed as she stopped behind the bus stop. She got off her bike and separated from the two boys by the long bench.
"What are you two doing?" Diana asked though she didn’t need an answer. It was obvious—they were fighting.
She hadn’t expected to run into them twice in one day, let alone twice in a way that disturbed her peace. This time, it was worse.
After understanding the situation, Diana sat down between Kevin and Revan, crossing her arms. They were now on her right and left.
"One is nosy and loud. The other is unfriendly and hot-tempered," she muttered, sarcastically addressing both of them—just like she had earlier in the school library.
"Diana, you’re getting involved? You usually don’t care about others unless you have to," Kevin pointed out.
"True," Diana admitted bluntly.
"Then why? Don’t tell me—you’re like his fangirls? You like him too?" Kevin gasped dramatically, pointing at Revan.
Diana frowned. Of all the things Kevin could have said, why didn’t he assume she cared about him too? He was usually so confident, but now he seemed to lose all of it when facing someone as "cool" as Revan.
She sighed. "Sorry, Kevin. Does this mean you’re going to give up on your feelings now?"
Kevin’s eyes widened. Even Revan looked at Diana in surprise.
"Huh? So you do like him?!" Kevin looked horrified.
Diana gave him a resigned nod.
"No! I won’t give up! I won’t let you be with someone like him!" Kevin declared stubbornly.
Diana found his attitude ridiculous.
Silence fell. She stared at Kevin for a long time. Did he not realize his words made it sound like Revan wanted to be with her? As if he had a say in it?
Kevin started feeling awkward under her gaze.
"Uh, Diana..." he mumbled, thinking she was touched.
But then—
"Aah... I thought you’d give up. I tricked you, but I guess it was pointless. I didn’t expect you to say something like that," Diana sighed dramatically. Her acting had been flawless, but Kevin turned out to be too persistent.
"...Huh?" Kevin looked lost. Revan raised an eyebrow.
"I was lying," Diana admitted casually.
Kevin’s jaw dropped. "Wait, so you pretended?"
Diana nodded, completely unfazed. "Just think of it as a joke."
She stood up, looking at both of them, who were still processing what she had just said. They were slow.
"I’ll stay with you both until the bus arrives," she announced.
"Heh?"
Now what? Both boys thought.
"You can pretend I’m not here. But you can’t fight until you’re on the bus. No—until you both reach your destinations. Even ignoring each other is fine. Just don’t fight."
Without realizing it, Revan and Kevin exchanged glances.
Who even cares about her? She’s the one who should be ignored, they both thought.
Then, they simultaneously looked away from each other.
You two are so in sync if only you knew, Diana mused.
"Sit down. You don’t want your legs to get sore waiting for minutes, do you?" Revan said after a while. They had all been silent since Diana stood up.
Diana raised an eyebrow, considering it. Finally, she sat back down in the middle.
"You’re still in your school uniform?" Revan suddenly noticed. Kevin also turned to look at her.
"Why do you care?" Diana shot back.
Kevin laughed. Guess she doesn’t like him, he thought with relief.
At least she’s not one of his fangirls.
"Forget it," Revan grumbled, furrowing his brows in annoyance.
Wow. He is bad-tempered, Diana thought.
She opened her mouth to explain, "I went straight to work since it’s closer to my house. It’s on the way, too. I can eat and shower there, just like at home. So yeah, now I’m heading home."
For some reason, she didn’t want Revan to be mad at her. Maybe it was because he had shown some concern.
"Oh, right. You still haven’t answered my question, Diana," Kevin spoke up.
"Hm?" Diana hummed, signaling him to continue.
"Why did you get involved in stopping our fight?" Kevin asked.
Ah, that. Diana exhaled. "About that..."
She was about to answer when a metallic sound rang out.
Diana instinctively turned around.