After driving for about ten minutes, the group of four boys finally picked out a nearby place to go through the drive through of, and Rhys had already regretted his decision.
Neither gas nor money were concerns of him for the moment, but rather how annoying Xavier was. He would offer Xavier on a silver platter to the female lead. Although he was doing his best to act friendly and social, this man would not stop talking. And because Seth and Erin said nothing but looked out their windows, he was left to entertain the target.
"Let's hurry up and eat so we can get back to school on time." Rhys said, trying his hardest to change the subject to something literally anyone else could join in on.
"Awww I don't wanna! Oh oh by the way, what are you next classes?" He asked, a general question for everyone, a good enough victory for Rhys.
"I'm going to practice for basketball, so I chose not to take a fourth class." Seth said as Erin looked over to Xavier.
"I've got math." It was curt, but at least he participated in the conversation, Rhys thought. It's some progress.
"I've got English." Rhys and Xavier said, causing the small boy to excitedly cheer. Rhys mentally sighed, he hoped they were different teachers or something.
"Let's go to class together! I don't wanna be late anymore." Xavier said, starting to talk Rhys ear off again.
As they drove back, the finished their meal in the car and went their separate ways. "Do your best, Sethy! You too Rin!" Xavier shouted out as he grabbed Rhys by the hand and dragged him along.
As the two ran, they barely made it in and took their seats somewhere in the middle, spared from some humiliation. "I'm surprised you're not out of breath, Reece's. I'd think a music major would be bad a sports.
His eye twitched a little, but he smiled. "Although I do sit at the piano most of the time, I still want to remain healthy." He responded, unsure how long he'd be able to take it.
Just then, a woman with long brown hair and blue eyes swapped seats with a guy sitting next to Xavier, and began a conversation.
Eyes widening slightly, Rhys recognised her. She was the female lead, Serenity, and she was placing herself on the front lines.
Before she could even introduce herself formally, Rhys smiled at Xavier and asked if he wanted to switch seats, since someone in the front was a bit tall, so it'd be easier if he took Rhys' spot.
Agreeing, they switched, Rhys could feel her glaring at his head, but he chose to ignore it. "Does she think I'm not handsome or something?" Rhys hissed at Kane, who only laughed.
"Do you think you can compare with the male leads even if you're handsome and rich? You'd probably rank fourth amongst them even if they all had a black eye and you were in perfect condition." Kane stuck his tongue out.
"Oh shut up! I'm upgrading my handsomeness again next time. I've dealt with my fans before, a few more here wouldn't matter." He brushed it off, but Kane could tell he was agitated about not being the most good looking. What a spoiled brat.
When the woman tried talking again, the teacher walked in and began the lecture, successfully sparing Rhys. "It really was easy to separate Xavier and Serenity." he muttered to Kane.
"You don't have to be so suspicious, host! I'm nearly hurt. The only reason the tutorial was difficult was because you made a bunch of mistakes unlike anyone else!" Kane teased, floating on top of Rhys' head to take a nap.
The lecture was really simple compared to the ones he started earlier that day, as they started with introductions and a get to know your seatmate activity.
"Let's pair up, Xavier." He smiled, looking to his side. Serenity on the other hand, perked up upon hearing this, trying to pair with him.
"The activity should be with someone you don't know, wouldn't it be better if he picked me and you pick his deskmate?" She questioned, trying to sound friendly.
Although she was trying, she was nothing compared to Xavier's and Rhys' level of being bubbly or social. Showing her how to really act, Xavier took initiative.
"But we just met yesterday, doesn't that still qualify us as strangers?" Xavier questioned, clinging onto Rhys' arm. Although he knew Xavier was just being friendly, he had a faint blush on his face that didn't escape unseen by Serenity.
"I saw you guys shopping at the grocery store yesterday, remember? You can't lie about not being friends. We asked for your number." One of her firsts balling up, probably not expecting this outcome.
"I'm serious! We just moved in together yesterday." Xavier pouted, now turning Rhys to face him so they could start it.
Deciding to add a little insult to her defeat, "Compared to the amount of people who keep staring at us why does she expect us to remember who she is? She doesn't stand out amongst them." Rhys said to Xavier, purposefully loud, only to hear the bubblegum boy laugh.
Slightly growling, she turned away and did the activity with someone else, leaving Rhys to wonder. "Is Xavier a friendly person or not? Why do I feel like there are two sides of him?"
"You just noticed, host? You really are slow. This was an easy world too so it's obvious! Xavier looks cute and friendly but when people interrupt or harass the things he likes, his attitude changes." Kane commented on his observations so far.
"So, he likes me?" Rhys asked, still working on the activity. If that were the case, why wasn't his affection higher than four?
"It's probably the fact you're his roommate with Seth, who he has gotten along with. Since you're matching his energy and trying your best for the targets, he probably thinks you're an okay person." Kane responded.
Humming a little as acknowledgement, it gave Rhys a bit of information on Xavier's character. It seemed like he really liked Seth a lot, and wanted to protect him despite being the smaller boy. It was almost endearing if it weren't for the fact his energy made Rhys want to throw him into the sun.
After English class was over, Serenity once again tried to follow them out but the two boys ignored her, considering the crowd of classmates that came over to see them.
Some mentioned how they never saw them before, some had an earlier class with them, or maybe saw them at lunch. "I am handsome!" Rhys commented to Kane, who only rolled his eyes.
"Right, right. Host. You're at least better than the average man." Kane yawned, deciding to go back to sleep.
As the two finally made it out of the room and to the car, Serenity had still followed them along, which made Rhys feel creeped out.
As he was about to tell her off, she noticed Erin already standing there waiting for Rhys, and called out.
"You're the guy from class earlier! It's so great we meet again, thank you fo-" before she finished, Erin cut her off.
"Who the hell are you? Are you stalking me?" He growled out, if looks could kill he certainly would of. Rhys nearly felt secondhand embarrassment from her.
"Ah, I'm the girl who dropped the pencil that you picked up and cleaned!" She tried her best, only for Rhys and Xavier to take over
"Are you okay, Erin? I know you hate dirt so touching that pencil in the first place must of been horrible, considering she touched it." Rhys asked innocently, throwing the last part in with a gentle smile.
"Uh-huh! I'd be concerned too if a stalker owned something I touched, I can't believe she followed us to the car to stalk you!" Xavier added, irking the woman.
"Ah that's right, she followed us here didn't she? I didn't notice it at first since so many people keep staring, I thought her eyes belonged to one of them." Rhys said, giving her a three hit combo.
"I'm fine, I only picked it up since she kept dropping it, it was probably dirty beyond belief and it would of annoyed me if it touched my shoes next time." Erin responded, accepting a tissue Rhys offered him.
This caused Rhys to mentally cringe and Xavier to try and stifle his laughter. "She really is desperate, isn't she host? For someone with that face and personality she has really high standards." Kane said taking advantage of the fact she could see him to stick his tongue out at her.
"I really thought this would be harder like they'd all instantly be attracted to her." Rhys thought as he watched her retreat, too ashamed to continue.
"They might of been if they had a good first encounter or if she wasn't a corrupted female lead now, but her personality is completely changed. You can also thank the author for making the male leads the way they are." Kane said, floating in circles.
"What do you mean?" He asked as he unlocked the car, the three now waiting on Seth to come.
"The original female lead would of never purposefully try to get close to them since she has no experience, it's more like accidents." Kane replied, which made sense.
Erin seemed to hate people who got in his personal bubble due to his mysophobia, and Xavier probably didn't like her seeing how he reacted to her, yesterday and during the lecture.
"I can't believe the system was honest for once. It really is easy to separate them." He said, causing Kane to let out a whine, acting shocked that Rhys had no faith in the system.
As Seth arrived, Rhys' phone started ringing and a system mission occurred. Are you serious? He thought.
"OBLIGATORY SYSTEM MISSION"
"This weekend your parents are hosting a party with extended family and friends. They want you to return home and play the piano during the party. Find a way to persuade them to allow you to bring the targets along, and put on a great performance. Host will be rewarded upon completion, failure results in losing one memory."
"Wait what? I actually have to meet my parents? I thought they were nobodies!" Rhys said in his head as he quickly answered the call.
"That's your fault, no one said you wouldn't meet them." Kane replied, sitting down in a cupholder.
"Hello, mom." Rhys started out awkwardly, he hadn't said hello to his actual mom in a long time.
"Rhys, darling, your dad and I were wondering if you could make it back home this weekend for a bit? It's his birthday so we'd love for you to be here." The woman said, her voice was sweet, and she wasn't at all scary like Rhys anticipated.
"Of course I'd be there for dad, I'll even play the piano for him since it's his birthday." Rhys replied, letting out a small breath he held in.
Deciding to help Rhys out, Kane reached for the phone and pushed his thumb, turning the speaker on.
"That's great! We're inviting all your dads old friends and family over on both sides, it's been forever since you've seen your cousins." The woman began to blab on and on.
"Anyways, is it really fine for you to come to the party? You've just started college and I'm really sorry if you have work to do or made plans with friends." She said, causing Xavier at Rhys with puppy dog eyes, muttering take me with you.
Taking the hint, and the system's mission to heart, he responded. "It's really no problem, would you mind if I brought my friends over, though? When better to meet my family than at dad's birthday party."
The woman sounded ecstatic on the other end. "I never expected you to actually have friends, Rhys! It was a good idea to let you have roommates, I'll send you some extra money to get some nice clothes for them!" She cheered, causing Rhys to immediately click off speaker.
"Alright, bye, thanks!" Rhys quickly said as he hung up, yelling at Kane in his head. He never gets a break, does he?
Although the guys were trying their best to not laugh or snicker at Rhys, Xavier burst into laughter first, followed by Erin, and then Seth.
"I get it! I'm friendless!" Rhys pouted, still trying to hold in his anger. When they finally finished laughing, though, they each had a different reaction.
"I'm so excited! A rich person's party, I wonder what the food would be like or if Reece's parents will like me." Xavier exclaimed.
"I just hope we're not being a bother. You shouldn't of forced Rhys' hand like that, Xavier. It's his dad's birthday after all." Seth scolded.
"Why am I being dragged into this mess? I never agreed." Erin huffed, only for Seth to try to cheer him up a bit, but failing.
"I'm so sorry, but I already told my mom and I don't want her to be disappointed, she already knows I have three rommates so would you please?" Rhys asked, using his skill crocodile tears on Erin.
Sighing loudly, Erin rolled his eyes and looked away, muttering it's only because Rhys is a friendless bastard.
Satisfied that he's completed the first half of the mission, Rhys started the car and began their drive on home, his affection points rising.
Xavier was now at seven, with Seth at six. Erin's finally increased and made it to three, giving Rhys a feeling of significant accomplishment.
"And you said I'm a failure!" Rhys triumphantly said to Kane. Although it was only a few points and none of them were even 1/10th conquered, Kane let him have his moment.
"So what's your family like?" Erin asked, this time he was the first to make conversation which sort of surprised everyone.
Unsure how to answer, Rhys took a swig of his now melted drink he left in the car when they grabbed lunch and side-eyed Kane.
After hearing the explanation, Rhys put on his best act and responded to Erin. "Sorry, I was a bit thirsty. My dad is nothing special, he may seem a bit strict but he wants what's best for the family and those around them. My mom is also a really nice person." He responded.
"Oh so Reece's family is really nice! I can't wait to meet them, I wonder if they'll let us bring home leftovers." Xavier questioned, Rhys only smiled.
"Just what is with Xavier and food?" He asked, Kane only shrugged. Xavier probably watched too many dramas about rich people.
As if on cue, Seth scolded Xavier. "You watch too many movies, real people aren't anything like that." Thank you, Seth, Rhys said in his head.
The rest of the drive home was filled with questioned and conversations that everyone took apart in, causing Rhys to feel a little bit of relief. Maybe now, he may not have to stress about entertaining Xavier so much.
"That's enough progress for one day, can't I just sleep now?" Rhys asked Kane, totally serious.
"No! Now stop being lazy host, you're still far away from your goal!" Kane hissed, hitting Rhys lightly on the head. The day was halfway through, but there was still more affection to be gained.