Male Lead, Don’t Push, Pull!

The clouds that briefly obscured the sun didn’t happen to be human-shaped, did they?

Of course not. Yikes.

I turned my head cautiously. Sure enough, there was Kyle, standing right behind me.

“Hehe. Hey, Kyle,” I greeted him casually.

I was embarrassed, especially after witnessing the confession. Of course, it wasn’t entirely voluntary.

But Kyle, you’re too quiet.

You’re embarrassing me, so say something!

Kyle glanced at the floor where I was sitting and slowly opened his mouth.

“Why are you sitting on the floor? Get up from there.”

“It’s okay because the grass is soft….”

“But you’re not supposed to just sit there like that – come on.”

I took Kyle’s outstretched hand and my body heaved ever so slightly. I blinked as I sat up in an instant.

I pushed him away lightly, trying to calm my slightly pounding heart.

“You scared me, thanks.”

“What? Why were you hiding, anyway?”

“…You wouldn’t believe me if I told you I didn’t hear anything.”

“Yeah. I knew Vivi was here the whole time.”

“Eh.”

I couldn’t even hide it in the first place, I finally sighed and answered honestly.

“There was no way I was getting out of here if Flora was so eager to confess.”

As it turned out, Flora was strangely hostile to me. And needless to say, it was because of Kyle.

She’s wary because I’m his best friend.

To me, it’s just unfair.

Kyle and I are just family. Family!

“I didn’t want to get caught and be seen by Flora and her followers.”

Somehow, the cliché of childhood friends becoming lovers and lovers becoming a couple didn’t work for us.

There were several reasons why I came to this conclusion.

If I had to name the person I was closest to over the past seven years at the academy, it would be Kyle, without a doubt.

I’ve made other friends, including Daniel, but none of them were as close as Kyle.

Maybe it’s because we’ve been together ever since I remembered my past life.

Anyway, because of this, I was the one who watched Kyle grow up very closely.

Kyle grew from day to day, like a bean sprout from a seedling.

Obviously, he was smaller than me at first, but then he started to outgrow me, and now he was a whole head taller than me.

He even said he was still growing. My growth plates have been closed for a long time.

And he’s not just taller, he’s in great shape.

His shoulders were angled and squared, and his body was muscled and toned from swinging his sword nonstop, day in and day out.

His voice has changed to a pleasantly deep voice as he passed through his metamorphosis.

His baby-faced face lost some of its milkiness, and his lines thickened, giving him a more masculine appearance.

Kyle even had good looks, which is a basic trait for a male protagonist in a novel. And it only got better as he got older.

So, it’s not strange that I felt the opposite-sex attraction for Kyle, the kind of thing any teenage girl would have.

In fact, when I realized it, my first reaction was surprise.

I had been with Kyle since he was a snotty little boy and had taken care of him like a little brother, so I didn’t expect to have this kind of attraction for him.

It was a confirmation that even if I have memories of my past life, they were only memories, and my real self is Vivian.

Once I realized that I had the hots for Kyle, I became self-conscious, and my heart skipped a beat whenever I saw him. I felt like a teenage girl falling in love for the first time.

Honestly, I blame Kyle for this.

With that handsome face and the way he treats me, I couldn’t help but have a crush on him.

But despite that, I didn’t go out with him.

For one thing, I wasn’t sure if he felt the same way.

Of course, Kyle was the nicest to me out of everyone else. He was also the closest to me. But, as I said before, it was also true that we felt like a family.

He must feel the same way, because when he was with me, he looked the most relaxed.

It was like he was at home.

On top of that, Kyle kept it friendly, but never crossed the line into being more than a friend.

I would say his behavior speaks for itself….

The more I thought about it, the more confused I became about whether or not Kyle considered me part of the family….

As time went on, my excitement slowly faded.

I don’t think it was anything special, really.

It wasn’t like I was going to die for Kyle like Flora, it was just a light-hearted thing.

Originally, when you were in puberty, that’s how you felt about boys your age.

“Did you have lunch at least, Kyle?” I changed the subject. I didn’t want to talk about it anymore. It was embarrassing.

Luckily, Kyle was oblivious to my intentions.

“No, not yet.”

“Then do you want to go get something to eat?”

“Sure.”

We headed out to the cafeteria together, and when we got there, I spotted a familiar head of mauve hair.

“Daniel, hi!” I waved wildly in greeting, and Daniel spotted me and came over.

“Hi, Vivian. Hi, Kyle, as well. Are you here for lunch?”

“Yeah, and you?”

“I already ate.” Daniel laughed softly. There wasn’t the slightest hint of a frown in his smile.

If you were to find someone who had grown as much as Kyle in the last seven years, it would be Daniel.

He’s a little shorter than Kyle, but he’s also gotten a lot taller.

I don’t know how boys grow so fast.

I can’t believe it.

“Too bad. If you’d come back a few minutes earlier, I could have eaten with Vivian.”

And his personality has changed a lot.

With the successful development of the Yttenum mine and the family’s financial problems resolved, he felt a sense of security.

As a child, Daniel was a rather timid boy who stuttered a bit when he spoke.

But now, he is so cheerful that you can’t remember his childhood self at all.

Maybe he’d always been this way, just suppressed by a depressing family history.

I gave a small smile and said playfully, “Then have another, so we can eat again together.”

“That’s Vivian, the official number one eater in Arene.”

“What? Are you serious?”

“Come on, Vivi, let’s go inside.”

Kyle gently pulled on my shoulder, and as he did, we both heard Daniel whine.

“There you go again, Kyle. I’m not eating you.”

“Don’t be silly and go back to your department when you’re done eating.”

“I’m thinking of going anyway. Oh right. Vivian, take this.”

Daniel shoved something into my hand. I looked at it, and it was the same violet lollipop he’d given me the other day. Daniel chuckled.

“You seem to like them, so I ordered more. Tell me when you finished them, because I bought a lot of them.”

“Wow, thanks. These are delicious….”

But then the box of candy disappeared from my hand. Kyle had reached over and grabbed it out of nowhere.

He then handed the candy back to Daniel.

Dumbfounded, I yelled at Kyle.

“What the hell?! Why did you give it back?!”

“Vivi, you’ve been having cavities lately.”

Ugh, how did he know that?

It was the result of being up close and personal while studying.

“It’s not a cavity,” I grumbled. “It’s just a little toothache.”

“The rest of the world calls it a cavity, Vivi.”

“I’ve been brushing my teeth after eating sweets, and most importantly, I’ve already had them treated.”

I felt a little embarrassed. It’s not like I’m a seven-year-old asking my mum for permission to have a snack.

“Kyle, I’m eighteen, right?”

“Yes, you are,” Daniel interjected. “And I gave these to Vivian, so I don’t want you to give them back to me again.”

The candy box that had been spinning in circles was back in my hand.

Kyle glared at Daniel. Daniel glared back and smirked. Fierce sparks flew between them.

“No, why are you guys suddenly fighting?”

I quickly stepped between them.

These days, the two of them were often seen quarreling over trivial matters.

They must have hit puberty late.

I don’t get it!

***

“Isn’t that jealousy?” Margaret said, pushing up her glasses after hearing my story.

Aunty Darlene handed me a bowl of brownies and added, “I also think he’s jealous.”

“You think so too, huh, Auntie?”

“They’re growling at each other about wanting the same girl.”

“No, I don’t see how that’s jealousy.”

What the hell are you jealous of, my cavity?

“It’s nothing like that, we’re all just friends.”

“Hmm, so is that why you argued with Kyle and Daniel yesterday?”

“We didn’t argue, but…. wait, that’s not about me, is it? I thought we were talking about my friends?”

“This is your story, Vivian.”

“It’s not!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Margaret giggled. She didn’t believe me at all. 

I felt deeply frustrated.

Of course, I was worried about Kyle and Daniel. But this romantic relationship advice wasn’t the kind of advice I wanted to hear!