"What's with this shit?" Kayla muttered, lost in her thoughts as she accidentally opened one of her R18 books.
She couldn't understand why the conversation suddenly went dark, but after checking the title of the book, she immediately understood.
Kayla blushed as red as a tomato from embarrassment. She never would have expected that the first time she'd read her R18 books would be when she was supposedly "learning" how to "converse" with a man.
Curious, she opened the book to a random chapter, which happened to be a hot sex scene. The male lead whipped the female lead as both of them lay naked, the scene intensifying. Clearly, this was way out of Kayla's league. She immediately slammed the book shut and threw it far from her.
"Holy mother of pearl! What was that scene!?" Kayla covered her face as if to hide from the world, but the words she just read kept replaying in her mind.
"No! Get out of my head! No! Kayla, don't imagine it!" She tried her hardest to forget what she had just read, but every time her gaze landed on the book lying on the side, her face immediately turned red—much redder than the cover of the book.
She quickly grabbed the book and stuffed it back onto the shelf as if she were a thief. Just then, her phone rang, startling her out of her wits.
[Laura Calling]
Seeing the caller ID, Kayla felt a bit relieved that it wasn't who she thought it was; otherwise, she might have felt utterly embarrassed. But despite the relief, a sense of unknown guilt washed over her, making her hesitate to answer the call. Only when the ringing was about to end did Kayla snap back to her senses and answer it.
"Yeah, hello?" Her voice quivered as she answered.
"Kayla? Are you whispering? Why does your voice sound weird?" Laura asked, her tone filled with suspicion.
"Huh? It's already 7 in the evening. Don't tell me you just woke up?" Laura's voice rose in annoyance by the end of her sentence.
"Uh… hmm, yeah!" Kayla was about to share what happened with Matthew, but with Laura's current mood, she decided not to say anything.
Even though she knew she did nothing wrong or anything that crossed the line, Kayla still felt guilty, probably because she was hiding the matter from her beloved friend. Eventually, she was found out due to her own carelessness.
Changing the subject, Kayla immediately asked, "Why did you call?"
"I was just checking on you. Good thing I did. Look at you. Just because it's summer vacation doesn't mean you're supposed to slouch all day in bed."
Laura kept on rambling, scolding Kayla about the importance of going out and living her life.
Kayla let her friend continue. This wasn't the first time she had received a scolding, and it definitely wouldn't be the last.
"Calm down. As a matter of fact, I went out to the park earlier to roam and unwind. I just felt a little sleepy after I got home," Kayla twisted some of the truth.
Laura paused. She went silent for a few seconds before continuing, "Oh. Good for you. Since you've just woken up, go and freshen up. Eat your dinner. I won't disturb you then."
Laura, ever considerate, ended the call. Kayla also felt a bit relieved since she couldn't stand lying to her best friend. It wasn't that she didn't want to tell Laura about what happened with Matthew; she just knew how Laura would react, and it would complicate things. Plus, it wasn't like there was a relationship developing just yet.
Feeling rather hungry, Kayla quickly took a bath and went to the sofa. She sat down and opened her phone, feeling too tired to cook, so she ordered takeout.
Laura's words about moderating takeout echoed in her head, making her pause for a moment.
"Well, she just said 'in moderation,' right? And she was the one who told me to eat dinner," Kayla nodded to herself, trying to convince herself that it was fine.
"I am hungry. And I'm too tired to cook. So, this is fine!" she reasoned as she continued her order.
After ordering online, she turned on the TV, browsed through the channels, and settled on a drama series about a soldier and a doctor doing their work in the midst of a calamity.
It wasn't long before the delivery arrived. She quickly paid the rider and took out her food, which consisted of simple Chinese fried rice and some dumplings. She quietly ate her dinner while watching TV when her phone suddenly rang. It was a message.
[1 Instagram Notification: Matthew sent you a message]
[Hi Kayla! Have you eaten dinner?]
"Wow, is he psychic?" Kayla was a bit shocked by Matthew's message. It was a coincidence that he asked that question just as she was in the middle of eating.
[1 Instagram Notification: Matthew sent you a message]
[Don't forget to take care of yourself, okay?]
"Wow! That was fast." Probably because she had just read some romance books earlier and learned a few tricks, she confidently replied.
[Thank you. You too.]
Their conversation lasted an hour before Kayla excused herself under the pretext of sleeping early. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk, but after a few replies, she was stumped. She didn't know how to continue the conversation. It would practically be boring if she could only provide responses and never initiate any topics.
"Why is it so hard to communicate with men?" Kayla sighed, feeling her energy drain. She regretted losing the opportunity to talk more to her ideal prince charming, but the thought of making him feel bored with her nonchalant personality made her prefer ending the conversation first and trying again later.
Kayla thought for a while and decided to muster her courage. Realizing her situation, she knew her status with Matthew would go nowhere if she didn't step up. After all, it takes two to tango.
Kayla comfortably lay in her bed before calling her best friend—the one person she could rely on when it came to experience in the field of romance.
Of course, it was all under the pretext of not understanding the scene she was reading in her book.
[Calling Laura]
"Hmm? What is it? Do you need something?" Laura immediately answered her phone. Her voice seemed excited, despite being grounded and unable to go out.
It was just 8 in the evening. Typically, at this time on a normal night, Laura would be at a bar, dancing and having fun, probably meeting a new man or woman to flirt with. But since she couldn't go out, she was stuck in her bedroom, living in boredom.
Perhaps to Laura, Kayla's call was a saving grace. Rather than staring at her ceiling all night, she would rather chat with Kayla.
"You see…" Kayla didn't ask right away. She timed it perfectly so her true thoughts wouldn't be obvious.
"Remember that book I just bought? There was this scene where the girl is socially awkward, and a man approaches her for a conversation. But since I couldn't understand the scene, how do you think the girl would reply?"
"Oh? That's easy. She should try to go with the flow of the conversation, introduce another topic, and then try to find some common ground between them." Laura rambled on, sharing all her knowledge and experience.
Kayla felt overwhelmed by the information, only managing to grasp the basic idea of "talking."
"This is getting nowhere…" Kayla sighed. Despite her friend's efforts, she couldn't absorb all of it.