Chapter 16: An Unusual Excursion
Duyên's voice was low, carrying a hint of sadness. Before I could respond, she turned to me with a smile.
"But I believe in you. You can do this."
For a moment, my eyes stung. I felt like a castaway stranded on an island—alone in my struggles, surrounded by skepticism, even doubting myself. More than anyone, I knew how much Duyên wanted this opportunity. Yet, she put aside her own disappointment to encourage me.
I gave a wry smile. "I don't know."
Duyên grinned. "Come on. Our class has a field trip tomorrow. Just forget about everything for a day."
I nodded. I decided not to think about the pile of English documents Mr Aunt had dumped on me. I needed to de-stress before diving into this madness.
When our networking professor entered, he asked before starting his long-winded lecture:
"Who is Vũ Trang Vân?"
I was caught off guard but quickly stood up. It was strange—he was known for being friendly and approachable. Was he trying to imitate Mr Aunt's strict teaching style? If so, I was doomed.
"Uh… That's me."
He stared at me for a moment before saying, "Alright. You may sit."
I obediently sat down, still puzzled by his intentions.
But then, in the following classes, multiple professors started calling on me. At that point, I had no doubts anymore.
None of them had known who I was before. But now that Mr Aunt had chosen me, everyone was curious to see the so-called "genius" he picked.
What a pain.
Over the weekend, my class invited Mr Aunt to visit the museum to celebrate his recovery and return to class. I had no idea what our class president was thinking. He was never gentle or gallant with the girls in our class, yet with Mr Aunt, he was clearly trying to flatter him. Ugh. One day, I had to prank him just to feel better.
Normally, Duyên would go home to visit her parents on weekends, but this time, she stayed back for the excursion. I knew for sure it was because of Mr Aunt.
I wasn't foolish enough to stay in the dorm, fearing that Beautiful Butt might come to bother me again. If I wrote an order forbidding him from contacting me, he would probably just send someone else instead. So, I dragged my injured leg along and went to the museum with the class. Hải Anh stuck to Duyên like glue, carrying her things for her. Surprisingly, I didn't feel as left out as before, because standing beside me was the mighty Mr Aunt. Mr Aunt walked next to both me and Duyên. Honestly, we looked like two couples. Somehow, that felt a little awkward.
Me and Mr Aunt… a couple? Not even in my dreams.
I whined about my injured leg and dumped all my stuff on Mr Aunt. Duyên walked beside me, holding an umbrella to shield me from the light sun. It felt like Mr Aunt kept looking at me; meanwhile, Hải Anh was watching Duyên, and Duyên was looking at Mr Aunt. What a weird cycle. I was the only normal one in this group.
First, Mr Aunt chose me for the competition. Now, Mr Aunt kept secretly glancing at me (well, that was just my assumption, but still). Could it be that Mr Aunt had fallen for me? I wasn't super pretty, but I had my hidden charms!
Throughout the trip, Mr Aunt never walked ahead of me, always staying by my side or slightly behind me. Maybe it was to silently protect me. Isn't that how male supporting characters in movies always loved the female lead? And I usually preferred the male supporting characters over the main ones. If that was really the case, I wouldn't let Mr Aunt suffer a tragic unrequited love like those movie characters.
At noon, Mr Aunt treated the class to ice cream. Mr Aunt sat next to me and casually asked:
"Your leg is injured, yet you still came on this excursion. Do you have a cognitive problem?"
I was too frustrated to speak. So earlier, Mr Aunt had been looking at me like I was an alien, not like I was some fairy princess. Ugh, what a wicked step-Mr Aunt, even her thoughts were so sharp-tongued! If I argued back like usual, it would be too ordinary. This time, I had to give Mr Aunt a real shock, something that would make him fear me.
I turned to Mr Aunt, smiling sweetly.
"I dragged myself here… all for you."
Just as I turned, I met Mr Aunt's gaze—so warm. For a brief moment, I froze, unable to control my heartbeat. Mr Aunt, too, looked at me as if something supernatural had taken over.
Just then, Duyên and Hải Anh arrived, handing us our ice cream cones. I took mine and bit into it aggressively, even though the cold sent chills straight to my bones. Mr Aunt also turned away and started eating her ice cream slowly.