Volume 3—Chapter 50: Entagled
Heyo, Aria here!
Today has been… something else.
I was just minding my own business, riding the super packed subway, trying to survive standing on my wobbly legs after all that dancing earlier. Then, out of nowhere, I felt someone touch my lower back. Seriously, what the heck?
Of course, I reacted on instinct and grabbed the hand. You’d think it’d be some creepy old dude or whatever, right?
Nope. Plot twist—turns out it was a girl.
About my age too! Short hair, wearing a hoodie, looking all suspicious.
At first, I was ready to yell at her, but when I saw her face, somehow the words got stuck in my throat. Instead, I kinda... whispered at her. Things got super awkward. She tried to play innocent, but come on, like I was gonna buy that act.
Long story short, I squeezed her hand a little to warn her… okay, maybe a bit hard..., gave her a scary threat, and when the train doors opened, she ran off like her life depended on it.
Well, since it was my stop too, I casually walked out of the train compartment right after that little... incident. I tried to act like nothing weird just happened, even though my heart was still kinda racing. Ugh.
Anyway, first thing first—gotta find Irana and the others. I pulled out my phone and quickly texted the group chat.
[Hey, where you guys at?]
A few seconds later, Irana replied.
[Western mall entrance! We’re chilling at that cafe across from the fountain.]
Ah, that cafe, huh. I remember it. Pretty cozy, but it’s also super popular, so it’s probably packed right now. Oh well, at least I know where to go. Huh. Funny enough, it was the same direction that hoodie girl ran off to earlier.
For a second, I hesitated.
But then again, the chances of running into her again were, like, almost zero, right?
She probably bolted halfway across the city by now after the way she ran.
So with that thought, I tucked my phone back into my pocket, adjusted my bag, and started heading toward the western entrance without giving it too much more thought.
That’s when I heard it—
"You are mistaken… can you let me go?"
It was that girl’s voice.
Seriously? Did she get caught doing the same thing again?
Before I could even properly react, a deeper, rougher voice answered her,
"I know it was you who did all of that. Don’t throw excuses—I don’t wanna hear any of it."
Huh, a guy’s voice this time?
Dang… does she target both men and women?
This girl is bold. Seriously. Respect for the bravery... but also, ew.
Well, not my business. I’ll just pretend I didn’t hear anything and keep moving on.
That was the plan—
Until something slammed into me out of nowhere.
"What the heck...!" I gasped, stumbling back.
If my body wasn’t as sturdy as it is, I’d probably be dead by now.
I blinked a few times, trying to figure out what just hit me—and then just stared in confusion.
It was the girl from earlier.
Yeah, the molester girl.
How the heck did she go flying like that?
I glanced around.
People were either pulling out their phones to film or screaming and running like headless chickens. I even heard some guy say ”is there movie being film or something?”
Like something straight out of a movie.
I looked down.
The girl was sprawled across me, basically using me as a human cushion.
I poked her side awkwardly.
"Hey... can you get off me?"
"I can’t move my body... sorry," she said, her voice weak.
Ah, right.
Getting launched through the air like a missile would definitely hurt.
Maybe I’m the weird one here for not breaking anything.
I gently pushed her to the side—
Okay, maybe gently wasn’t the right word, but whatever—and finally stood up, brushing dust off my clothes.
Just as I was about to walk away, something else rushed straight toward me.
Before my brain could even process what was happening, my body moved on its own.
In one smooth motion, I sidestepped and caught something—
Wait, what?
I looked at my hand.
I was holding onto a man’s fist.
A grown man's fist.
The guy, probably a university student judging by his age, stared at me like he couldn't believe what just happened.
"Uh... you good, man?" I said, still holding his fist.
He looked seriously shaken.
Like he'd just witnessed a glitch in the matrix.
"...The hell, who are you?" he asked, blinking in disbelief.
"Just a passerby that caught some stray," I shrugged casually, letting go of his fist.
I fully expected him to shout something like "There's no way a random passerby could catch my fist!"
You know, classic manga or anime stuff.
But instead, the guy just rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and muttered,
"Ah... sorry."
...Huh.
No dramatic cliché.
Guess real life’s not as extra as fiction.
"Did you get hurt anywhere?" he asked, glancing me up and down like he was worried.
"Uh... no... I’m—"
Before I could finish my sentence, the guy suddenly lunged forward and pinned down the girl!
Turns out, while we were chatting, she’d been trying to sneak away.
"Did she… uh… touch you somewhere inappropriate?" I asked, tilting my head a little.
The guy looked super confused for a second, before quickly blurting out,
"Huh? What—no!"
At the same time, the girl shouted,
"I’m not a pervert!"
They practically spoke in unison.
It was honestly kind of funny.
Like, come on, if you’re gonna defend yourself, at least don't sound so guilty while doing it.
"Then why did you pin her down?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
The guy looked like he got caught cheating on a test.
He scratched the back of his head, eyes darting around awkwardly.
"Uh... she..."
His voice trailed off like he was searching for the right excuse.
Yeah.
That's definitely the face of someone who got groped and is way too embarrassed to admit it.
Poor dude.
Well, anyway, not my problem.
I dusted my hands off and gave them both a quick wave.
"I’ll be on my way now, bye."
And just like that, I turned around and started walking away.
I mean, seriously, what else was I supposed to do?
I wasn’t about to stick around and play detective.
"Hey, wait, I need—!"
I heard the guy call out behind me, but I didn’t stick around to hear the rest.
Nope.
I had zero interest in getting dragged deeper into whatever mess this was.
Without looking back, I picked up my pace and dashed away.
Gotta prioritise the important things in life—like bubble tea and hanging out with my friends.
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