A/N: Hello again, readers! I bring the second update for January, to which I hope you guys have been waiting for! This will probably be the last update till next month, as I have recently started school again. But don't fret, I am making sure no dry periods will happen (Unlike last time -coughs-).
After suffering through the crazed antics of his family and ridiculous behavior from his best friend, will Feng Wen be able to survive the following day?
I felt a soft nudge against my shoulder as my conscious came back into the real world, "Hey, wake up!" A voice demanded, indistinguishable in my groggy state of mind.
I flipped over to the other side of the bed with a slight groan. Come on, after last night can't I just get a few more minutes? I thought wearily. I had expected another nudge, but instead I was greeted with a rather hard flick to my ear. "Ow!" I exclaimed, now wide awake from the sharp sting. "Why would you do such a thing!?" I asked my unknown assailant, starting to remove the headset begrudgingly from my head.
"Because-" They began, my vision now unhindered by the mask to reveal it was Hong Peng. "I figured you would rather have me wake you up than your mother with a dangerous kitchen utensil!"
I jerked back in surprise, startled by his unexpected presence. How late did I sleep in that he is here already? I wondered in bewilderment as I flipped the covers off of me. "What time is it?"
Hong Peng glanced at his wristwatch, "A quarter after nine. Why?"
But it's Thursday! My first class isn't till 11 and his till 12! "What in the world are you doing here so early?" I asked in disbelief as I went to my dresser to get my clothes.
"Don't you remember what your mom said last night in game?" He asked, sitting on the bed to watch me quickly rummage through my drawers. "When we were cleaning up she said that she was going to have a celebratory breakfast this morning."
"She did?" I replied, now rushing as fast as someone with a cast on their leg could go into my adjacent bathroom to clean up. Though I was honestly reluctant to hurry with the idea of facing my parents after what happened last night in mind. Especially with Hong Peng here... Now causing me to wonder if Hong Peng remembered the events that happened in-game.
"Geez of all things I would think you would remember, it would be the one thing that involves food." I heard him reply dryly through the door.
"Hufhuf, yor hurlarfious!" I remarked with my mouth currently occupied by my toothbrush, the second to last thing on my morning routine. He doesn't seem to act like he remembers, or he could be playing it off so it won't be awkward. Not that it really mattered to me, since he obviously said all those things because he was drunk.
"So you keep telling me." He replied in an amused tone through the door. He paused for a moment as I began to change my clothes, "Speaking of remembering, my memory is a little foggy as to what happened after we got to the tavern."
Only after had I finished changing did it hit me what he said, causing me to immediately open the door to look at him. "Wait, you don't remember?"
He looked at me with concern, "No? What happened?"
He doesn't remember! I thought happily, realizing that the others wouldn't remember the rest of the night either. "Oh, you know how people get when they drink." I replied casually, feeling a huge weight lift off my chest. "It's more like what didn't happen!"
"Feng Wen... What did I do?" He asked, his tone matching the expression he had. "I didn't do anything embarrassing, did I?"
I couldn't hide my sly smirk as I remembered all the hilariously awkward things he did in his drunken state. Maybe I'll have a little fun with this. "Which part? Where you were using cheesy pick up lines on a NPC she-beast or when you started hitting on me?"
This is gold. I thought, entertained by Hong Peng's reaction. His face had started to go pale before changing to settle to a bright red, his expression evident of his great humiliation. He covered his face with one of his hands, "I'm never drinking again..." He said in defeat.
"There, there!" I said, walking over to place my hand on his right shoulder. "You were actually the most normal drunk there!"
He looked at me incredulously as he stood up and adjusted his collar, "I think that's more worrisome than it is comforting, Feng Wen."
We left my room and entered the living room, where the TV played the morning news highlighting the battle from last night. "... In a fierce battle between the two most powerful figures of the Central Continent, Prince was victorious in defending his city and the heart of his kingdom, Infinite City. However while the Blood-stained Overlord featured fearsome skill against Team Phoenix, the final blow was dealt by the hotshot warrior Yi Min and his priest companion Zhi Sano..."
"At least they're not calling me a sidekick, for once." Hong Peng remarked in a bland manner as we stopped to watch the captured footage of our bloody rampage, which right now was showing me brutally destroying a warrior in the fray.
"It was hard pressed to call you one in the first place." I replied, the morning news now switching topics to the recent surge of activity between two of the largest crime syndicates in Southeast Asia.
Hong Peng just shrugged as he grabbed the remote and turned it off before we continued forward. "It's not a big deal, anyway."
Walking into the kitchen we found Mom hard at work adding to the already mind boggling amount of food on the kitchen island. Of course she wasn't alone in her work as she had Dad as well as Lan Lan helping her. That's odd, Kenshin usually helps her. The answer to my question was quickly found with Kenshin seated at the table across from...
"Uncle Fox!" I said excitedly, making this the first time I could actually speak to him in many years. It wasn't exactly a good time to sit down and chat when I was kidnapped, or while in the game with the siege looming over our heads.
"Feng Wen." Uncle Fox replied calmly, opening his eyes to gaze on the cup of tea in his hands. He turned to look at Hong Peng and I, his cool and expressionless demeanor making it difficult to read the man. Not more than a second later he turned his attention back to his tea. He took another sip before sitting the cup down gently on the saucer and getting up from his seat.
"Are you leaving?" My mom asked in bewilderment as she glanced at the half empty cup, "You haven't even finished all your tea!"
"Yes." Arctic Fox said, darting his eyes towards my mom and then to Kenshin, to which Kenshin replied with a wordless nod. With that, Arctic Fox made his way to leave the kitchen.
"What?" I said in disbelief, "I just got to see you! Where are you going?" I asked as he passed Hong Peng and I.
Arctic Fox stopped, his eyes darting from me to Hong Peng and than back again to focus on me. "Work." He replied, and then left without another word.
"He's talkative." Hong Peng remarked sarcastically.
"Says the one who barely utters a word outside of the game." I retorted back at Hong Peng.
"I wonder what that was all about..." Mom trailed off as she picked up the tea cup, emptying its contents in the sink before she started washing it out. "He never wastes a cup of tea!"
Leave it to Mom to overreact when someone wastes her food or drink. "I'm sure it's nothing, Mom. Anyway, he said he was leaving for work!" I replied, trying to soothe my mother as I sat down where Arctic Fox had been sitting previously. Hong Peng, always one to help others, decided to aid Mom in washing the dishes while Lan Lan and Dad worked on setting out the food.
"Hm..." She hummed, as if mulling over something. "Feng Wen, since we agreed not to keep secrets from you anymore, you should know what your Uncle Fox really does for a living..."
"What?" I said in confusion, "You mean he doesn't work for the military?"
"Son..." She began, letting out a sigh. "He's the Silver-Masked Fox of the Ice Emperor Syndicate."
Is there anything normal about this family!? I thought in sheer disbelief, my jaw on the verge of falling off. "Well... That explains all the stuff he taught me when I was younger..."
Hong Peng seemed to be in the same amount of shock as I, who had stopped mid-stroke of washing a pot. "That... That was unexpected. Even from this family." He remarked, causing Mom to turn to him. She looked like she was going to say something in return, but she only continued to stare blankly as if she lost her words. She must have realized she couldn't argue with that statement!
No other earth-shattering revelations were revealed after that, with breakfast being as normal as it could possibly be with my family. This of course consisted of Mom and Lan Lan trying to stop their husbands' from bickering while Shui-yima cracked open a beer with her meal. This left Yang-shushu and I to eating most of the food, while Hong Peng watched the whole scene with a 'How did I end up here?' expression on his face.
I wasn't sure what to expect after the events of last night, with the school having been previously divided as to who should or would win the battle. As usual Hong Peng had gone first in the transporter, in case fan girls would decide to try and take advantage of my current disabled state. What I hadn't expected however was the scene I saw when I got out of the transporter and into the main lobby of the school.
There was Hong Peng looking overwhelmed and extremely confused as to why a huge horde of people had surrounded him, all questioning and attempting to carry conversations with him. While most of them were guys, there was also an impressive number of girls within the ranks of the mob.
"Are you really him? The one who plays Zhi Sano?" A girl said in disbelief, looking unsure whether she should be star-struck or terrified of Hong Peng.
"Dude, you were amazing last night! I never knew a priest could even be capable of the things you did!" A man said, taking his cell phone to take a picture of him.
"U-Uhm yes... Thank you, yes..." He said hesitantly, quickly getting flustered from the sudden amount of attention towards him. He reminds me so much of how I acted when that first happened to me. I looked at him with pity, After all, the times he has been mobbed before it was because of me.
"Hey! Hong Peng!" I shouted, drawing his attention as well as the crowd's. As usual the girls' faces suddenly turned a crimson, with some gasping in excitement.
Seeing a way out of his situation, he mumbled apologies as he quickly shuffled through the mob towards me. With a nod towards the direction of my class, we began to walk down the hallway. "Are you okay?" I asked him when we were far away from the majority of the group, though there were a few who looked as they were failing to be discreet about following us.
He looked back, his expression unsure. "Yeah, I'm okay." He replied, "If anything, it felt kind of good to finally to be seen as more than just a sidekick."
His comment made me feel uncomfortable. Why is he so stuck on the idea of people thinking he's a sidekick? Isn't he the one who told me not to care about what other people believe? "Hong Peng, you know I've never thought of you as just a sidekick. We are and always will be partners, a team!" I replied.
"Yes, right. Of course. A team." He said distantly, distracted by others in the hallway who were trying to get his attention. He seemed to be quickly becoming more comfortable with this new recognition, waving back and smiling at a couple of girls who had shyly greeted him. Before long we were at my classroom, to which he finally focused back on me. "Alright, here you are. Do you want to meet back here?"
I thought for a moment, considering what would be the best option. Wobbling over there by myself could lead me into trouble, so maybe he should walk over here. A fleeting image of Hong Peng walking the hallways and suddenly being all friendly to bunch of vultures flashed through my mind, causing a sudden rush of irritation. "No, I'll meet you at your classroom. It's closer to the cafeteria, anyway."
It's true, the cafeteria is closer to Dad's classroom by about five minutes. I thought as I saw Hong Peng looked at me with concern, "Really? Are you sure-"
"Very sure. What, you think I can't handle myself around this lot?" I remarked, sounding harsher than I intended as I gestured around to the surrounding student body.
"Weren't you one who said you couldn't do anything?" He replied incredulously, "Well, since you're so certain I'll see you after class then." He ended coolly, to which he turned around to leave.
I couldn't help but feel a tinge of guilt as I walked into my class, where half the desks were already filled with gawking classmates. I really shouldn't have acted like that. You said it yourself, he's more than just a sidekick. He deserves to be recognized, even if it is by a bunch of busybodies. By the time I had gotten out my notebook and pencils, I had decided that when I saw Hong Peng I would apologize. But first I got to pay attention in class, I've got a lot to catch up on!
Damn these stupid crutches and damn Professor Wing for going over by twenty minutes! I grumbled in my mind, frustrated by how late I was. Hong Peng and I's classes ended around the same time since I had a 2 1/2 hour class versus his class which ran little under two. I'm starting to feel hungry again too, even with that big breakfast we had earlier. By the time I had finally gotten to the hallway where Dad's classroom was, it was already 2:05.
As expected, the hallway was busy with people wanting to speak or get a glimpse of Hong Peng. Some of the group he was currently surrounded by I recognized since they were also in the class that Hong Peng and I shared, leaving me to assume that the majority were his classmates. Once again it seemed to consist mainly of young men admiring his gaming prowess, however there were a couple of girls there as well- including a very beautiful brunette that Hong Peng was currently talking to. I watched quietly as she giggled and twirled her hair at whatever Hong Peng was saying to her, who was having trouble suppressing what would have been the kind of goofy grin that Dad gives Mom.
She stopped twirling her hair to grab a piece of paper and pen out of her backpack. With a few strokes, she ripped the top half of the paper off and handed the scrap to Hong Peng. Hong Peng took it quickly, failing to hide his excitement of whatever it was. With a flirtatious wink, Hong Peng and I watched her walk off in the opposite direction.
Instead of shouting like I did last time, I ignored the gazes and stares as I hobbled through the crowd to him. Even when I was right in front of him, I had to give him a light kick in the shin to stop him from staring in the direction of where the girl went. "Oh, Feng Wen! There you are!" He quickly said.
"I've been here for a couple of minutes." I remarked dryly, feeling quite annoyed as I felt a frown quickly developing on my face. "Let's go get something to eat." I gestured towards the cafeteria, which Hong Peng obliged to.