To Be the Perfect Childhood Friend - Chapter 52

“Senior, are you attending the freshman welcome party too?”

“Me? Of course, isn’t it obvious? What else does the president do? Just speeches, nothing more.”

He chuckled, closing the book he had been reading.

“Ahem.”

Anita’s shoulder, leaning over the table, trembled. Did she hear something from behind, or was it just a misconception? She felt a warm gaze from somewhere. Anita slowly stood up.

“Is there something behind me…?”

Edmund, with a smile on his face as if finding something amusing, nodded his head. Anita turned her head backward.

“Haven’t you learned the courtesy of maintaining silence in the library?”

Anita stiffened, seeing the woman standing behind her. The woman spoke gently, as if scolding a naive child, pointing to the notes exchanged between Anita and Edmund.

“The sound of tearing paper can be surprisingly loud.”

Anita’s face turned red as she looked at the papers rolling on the table.

The two were promptly kicked out of the library.

“It’s my first time being kicked out of the library.”

Anita muttered in a disbelieving tone, as if she couldn’t believe her situation.

“I’ve even been chased by the police. Living life, you experience all sorts of things.”

Edmund burst into laughter again upon hearing Anita talk as if she were an old person who had experienced everything in the world.

“To me, it’s a serious matter in my own way.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“I recently injured my ankle, but it wasn’t that bad of an experience…”

“You hurt your ankle?”

Edmund, wearing an expression that showed little interest or concern, suddenly interrupted Anita’s words.

Anita’s lips tightened slightly at Edmund’s reaction, as if he didn’t know about her injury.

“Don’t you remember treating my ankle?”

“Oh. Of course, I remember.”

Edmund chose to take back the lie he had just told just five seconds ago, feeling the weight of his conscience. Faking amnesia might prevent him from asking about Anita’s ankle condition.

“No. Actually, I don’t remember.”

“Really?”

“I mean, when I get drunk, my memory fades away. So, what about the ankle?”

As soon as his words ended, Anita’s complexion turned corpse-like pale. Her lips trembled as if experiencing convulsions. 

“S-so, then the coat…”

“Don’t know. It probably wasn’t my clothes.”

“….”

“When I came to my senses, it was morning.”

Anita’s mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.

So, in the end, it was Rutger who treated Anita. The owner of the coat was also Rutger.

Certainly, she must have been so drunk that she collapsed on the street and fell asleep. And Rutger probably saw that pitiful sight with his own eyes.

She probably didn’t blabber nonsense while intoxicated, did she?

He must have wrapped her ankle with a bandage with his own hands. How did he feel when he saw her pretending not to be in pain, acting as if everything was fine?

Could it have been someone else from the dorm who did it instead of him? Anita tried to think as positively as possible, but it was a useless effort. If it wasn’t him, there was no way that the stoic Rutger would awkwardly offer to carry her bag.

“Are you okay?”

“Give me the bag; I’ll carry it for you.”

Only then did Anita feel a strange sense of understanding for Rutger’s peculiar actions.

Anita buried her face in her hands, feeling so embarrassed that she thought she might die.

“I’ll be going now.”

She spoke in a low, crawling voice as she turned away. Her stooped shoulders and struggling steps were unquestionably heartbreaking.

Edmund hesitated for a moment. There was a meeting scheduled for the student council soon, especially with the upcoming event. If it were any other matter, he might have skipped it due to inconvenience, but this time it was an important schedule that involved the school’s reputation.

Edmund quickly made up his mind to accompany Anita. Leaving his junior, who was dealing with an injured leg, alone didn’t feel right to him. Besides, assisting someone in need might garner him some understanding from Riche.

“Wait. Let’s go together.”

“You go. I can manage on my own.”

Anita spoke, looking far from okay.

“You said you hurt your ankle.”

“I hurt my ankle, not my head. Well, I’d rather have hurt my head… Maybe then I’d have lost my memory.”

She expressed her despair as if she had embraced all the world’s sadness.

Edmund now understood why Rutger didn’t mention the events of the previous night to her. It seemed she had caused quite a commotion. Therefore, bringing up that incident would likely make things awkward or embarrassing between them.

“Wait a minute.”

As Anita slowly made her way, her limping footsteps suddenly stopped.

Hearing the familiar voice, Anita swiftly hid behind Edmund, despite not behaving like someone with injuries. There was no suitable place to hide in the corridor in front of the library, so it was a judgment made with no better option.