Chapter 4 Helping Weaker Classmates is My Duty

Alex opened the door and immediately cursed.

"Shit, a double bed."

He looked at Leonard and said first, "I''ll sleep on the bed, you sleep on the floor. We won''t interfere with each other."

Leonard closed the door, shutting out the noise from outside.

"Why can''t we sleep together?" His expression was indifferent, still with that annoying look that Alex found so irritating.

Alex grabbed his collar again. "If you want to sleep, just sleep. Don''t push your luck. Stay as far away from me as possible in the future!"

Leonard lowered his eyes, looking aggrieved but saying nothing.

Damn, why do I feel like the bad guy here?

Alex let go of him, picked up a pillow from the bed, and threw it at him. "Sleep."

Leonard said, "But there''s only one blanket."

Then Alex threw the blanket at him as well.

After turning off the lights, Alex squeezed to the edge of the bed, trying to distance himself from Leonard. He had an exceptionally good sleep quality and fell asleep quickly even with just one pillow.

The temperature dropped sharply at night, and Alex curled up into a ball, shivering unconsciously.

The faint sound of cicadas penetrated through the glass. Leonard stared at the dark ceiling, struggling to fall asleep for over two hours.

He pressed his arm over his eyes, trying to close them peacefully, and then someone rolled over next to him.

Alex had fallen off the bed, landing right beside him. Fortunately, the floor was soft, and he remained deeply asleep.

Leonard opened his eyes, covered Alex with the blanket, and then sat up.

The room was pitch black, and in the quiet night, only Alex''s snoring could be heard. Leonard took a melatonin pill from his backpack and swallowed it dry.

—

The alarm on his phone woke Alex up. He was dumbfounded to find himself sprawled over his arch-enemy like a sloth.

"Shit." He jolted back, wrapping himself in the blanket and retreating several feet.

Leonard lay there with his hands crossed over his abdomen, sleeping peacefully like a mummy, just missing a coffin.

"Who the hell sleeps like this..."

Alex cursed as he got up to wash. He splashed his face with cold water and hurried out the door.

Leonard, who didn''t look like a living person, opened his eyes.

—

"I''m asking one last time, has anyone seen Alex? Everyone, split up and look for him. If you find him, message each other immediately!" Dana was so anxious she nearly crushed her megaphone. It was just a fall outing, and she had already lost a student. If they couldn''t find him, she might lose her job.

Half the class quickly scattered in all directions, turning the memorable outing into a search mission.

The mountain echoed with calls of various sizes.

Leonard frowned the entire time, weaving through the forest. The mountain was particularly rugged, full of pits and stones. He gradually ventured deeper into the woods alone.

The deeper he went, the more mosquitoes there were. The wild grass on the ground had thorns that scratched his ankles and calves, leaving them covered in blood.

"Alex!"

He shouted with all his might, and then a faint response came from somewhere else.

The mountain was too deep, and he soon exhausted his strength, panting and wiping the sweat from his forehead.

I should have gone out with him...

He felt immense guilt.

Every passing second was torture. He wouldn''t stop until he found Alex. Soon, his school uniform was soaked with sweat.

"Alex!" His voice was hoarse from shouting.

Then he heard a weak response, "I''m here...!"

Leonard quickly followed the sound, nearly tripping over the underbrush.

When he found Alex, the latter was sitting in a thorny bush, pale and looking unwell.

"I twisted my ankle, can''t stand up," Alex tried to move, "I think it''s broken..."

He was covered in dirt, looking like he had rolled down a slope. Ignoring the dirt, Leonard hugged him tightly. "Alex."

Alex, unable to resist, could only move his mouth. "Leonard, you''re all sweaty, it''s stinking..."

Leonard let go of him, wiped the dirt off his face, his eyes a bit red. "I''ll take you back."

"Wow, are you crying?" Alex was a bit shocked. "You look much better crying than with that usual annoying face."

Before he could finish, Leonard picked him up.

Alex protested vigorously, "Leonard, put me down! I''d rather die than be humiliated!"

"Then I''ll carry you on my back."

And so, Leonard carried him back to Dana.

The journey was extremely long, each bump over a pit causing Alex great pain, making him grip Leonard''s clothes tightly.

Leonard''s movements would then become gentler, his pace slower.

Seeing Alex''s dirty face, Dana burst into tears, crying and scolding, "Alex, you little rascal, you think you''re so tough!"

But at least he was back.

She wiped her tears.

"I just wanted to look around over there, who knew I''d slip and fall." Alex regretted deeply as he applied medicine at the mountain rescue station.

Luckily, it was just a sprain, not a fracture.

Dana was almost scared to death. Alex''s class was the first one she had taken on as a homeroom teacher, and as a newbie, she had never encountered such a big situation. When she found out Alex was missing, she had even thought about where to bury him.

"Principal, we found him, we found him," she whispered into the phone, "You should suggest to the headmaster that we stop these fall outings, they''re too dangerous..."

She hung up the phone and knocked on Alex''s head. "I really want to see what''s inside your head! Do you know how dangerous the deep mountains are? You''re not a little kid anymore, but you act like a three-year-old. I think your brain is underdeveloped, and your cerebellum hasn''t developed at all!"

Zayne, who had been crying his eyes out earlier, burst into laughter.

Alex: "..." I might as well have stayed missing.

"Alex, I''m sorry," Zayne coughed a few times, trying to hold back his laughter, "You know, I don''t usually laugh unless I can''t help it..."

Dana said, "This time, it''s all thanks to Leonard. You should thank him. If he hadn''t carried you back all that way, you wouldn''t even know where you were!"

Alex finally looked at Leonard. Earlier, he had been in so much pain that his mind was a bit foggy. Now that he had recovered, he noticed that Leonard''s school uniform was torn in several places, looking like a beggar''s outfit.

Leonard modestly waved his hand. "Teacher, helping weaker classmates is my duty."

If he were an elementary school student at this moment, his red scarf would definitely be even brighter.

"Who are you calling weak..." He was about to retort but was silenced by a sharp look from Dana.

"Thank you, class president."

—

On the way back to the bus after the fall outing, Alex hobbled along with a crutch, constantly being teased.

"Hey, new gear, huh?"

"You''re really determined despite your injury, haha."

"How does it feel to be carried by the class president?"

Alex kept a sullen face the whole time. His new gear failed him at a critical moment, and he couldn''t get up the steps of the bus. The next second, he felt himself being lifted.

Leonard had picked him up.

"Leonard, are you out of your mind?!" He raged helplessly, wanting to climb the steps on his own but unable to.

The people on the bus gave them strange looks.

He swallowed nervously.

If only I hadn''t confessed to Leonard on stage!

The return trip was much quieter than the journey there. Since they had to go back to school for classes, everyone chose to sleep a bit more on the bus.

Alex only managed to get a three-seater. On his left was Zayne, drooling in his sleep, and on his right was Leonard, working on a test paper.

He silently put on his headphones, using music to block out the world.

Then he heard a sweet female voice, "Alex, can we switch seats? I want to sit with the class president."

It was Lucas.

He pressed his hand to his aching chest, imagining a little person inside him kneeling in the rain, screaming, "Why! No!"

"Alex, please?" Lucas asked again.

"Fine, fine..." He got up with his crutch.

Nothing is more painful than making your goddess happy.

Leonard grabbed his arm. "No."

"He can only sit with me."

Alex: "?"

Lucas, like a deflated balloon, walked away disappointed. "Okay."

Forced to sit back down, Alex complained, "Have you been reading too many novels? Who talks like that?"

Leonard gave him a cold look. "What''s wrong with me?"

Alex shivered at his gaze and turned away. "Forget I said anything."

—

Taking advantage of his sprained ankle, the delicate Alex took a two-week sick leave. Dana didn''t give him a hard time this time, generously approving it, saying, "It''s just as well, we''re rearranging seats during this period. You won''t be here, so the trash can spot is still yours."

The moment he got the leave slip, Alex felt liberated. Not from studying, because he never studied and had no academic worries. His liberation was that he wouldn''t have to see Leonard anymore.

Alex''s parents were both workaholics, both out of state on business trips, leaving him alone in the big house.

He played games unrestrainedly for several days.

Then he got a call from his mom, Casey. "Alex, how''s your ankle?"

"Much better, Mom. What''s up?" He popped a grape into his mouth, lounging on the sofa with his legs crossed, feeling very comfortable.

"You''re in your junior year now, and your studies are getting more intense. Your dad and I discussed it and decided to get you a tutor so you don''t fall behind."

"Mom—" Alex frowned, extremely reluctant, "Why do you think I need a tutor??"

"Oh, there''s no discussion on this. I''ve already paid," Casey said, "The tutor will come tomorrow, every evening from five to nine—top of the class, has won various competitions, very impressive. Might even be your classmate."

Alex suddenly had a bad feeling.

Top of the class, competition winner, same school... Is this tutor stacking buffs?