Can't I Just Stay Far Away?

The morning sunlight streamed in through the window.

Bai Chen asked, "Why haven't you gone to class yet?"

Gu Yun put down the book in his hands and looked at Bai Chen, a faint smile on his lips.

Looking a little embarrassed, he gently rubbed his slender, elegant thumb and index finger against the table over and over.

"I only just woke up too." He paused again, then raised his eyes to Bai Chen.

"Let's go eat together in a bit."

Actually, Gu Yun had lied. He had woken up much earlier and had simply been waiting for Bai Chen.

At those words, Bai Chen's heart sank. This is bad. He might want to be friends with me.

But he didn't want that! No, more accurately, he didn't dare.

He actually did want to be friends with Gu Yun. Gu Yun's personality always reminded Bai Chen of his old best friend, and there were always so many things he wanted to vent to Gu Yun about.

But if he got drawn into the plot and added scenes that weren't supposed to involve him, he might never be able to get out unscathed.

Besides, this was a melodramatic novel about wealthy families. The villains were bound to be people who constantly danced around the limits of the law. Usually, the protagonist's plot armor would keep him safe, and even if something happened, it wouldn't kill him. But the people around him might not survive. They could easily get caught in the crossfire.

They could end up being used by the villains to threaten the protagonist, or even become the ones who took the bullets for him.

And deaths in novels like this were usually horribly gruesome.

Bai Chen didn't dare gamble with his life.

He's hard to kill, but I'm not!

Having thought up an excuse, he scratched his head awkwardly. "Ah... but I've got something else to do today. Sorry. Why don't you go on your own?"

Then he paused and said, "Or you could wait for another roommate. I think Gu Cheng's about to wake up."

Gu Yun's expression visibly dimmed at that, and especially when he heard the suggestion of going with Gu Cheng, distaste filled his eyes.

But when he looked at Bai Chen, his expression returned to normal.

"All right. Go take care of what you need to do. I'll eat by myself today," Gu Yun said, his voice tinged with disappointment.

Buddy!

It's not just today. I don't want to eat with you tomorrow, the day after, or any day after that!

Even with that answer, Bai Chen didn't feel much relief. After all, Gu Yun might ask him again tomorrow, and he would have to find another excuse. He could dodge it once, but he couldn't dodge it forever.

"Mm." With that, Bai Chen lay back down, planning to wait until Gu Yun left before getting up.

Only after several minutes did he hear the door close.

"Phew..." Bai Chen let out a relieved breath.

Forget it. Whatever. I'll deal with tomorrow when it comes.

Afterward, he quietly climbed out of bed, afraid of disturbing the other two, especially Gu Cheng. That guy scared Bai Chen a little.

Especially since he was a hot-tempered, controlling, obsessive rich boy. He wasn't a little angel like Gu Yun. One wrong move, and Bai Chen might get beaten up.

"Keep it down! Do you have a death wish?" An angry voice suddenly came from behind him.

Even though he had been as careful as he possibly could, he had still woken Gu Cheng.

Actually, he hadn't made any noise. Who knew what had short-circuited in that guy's head?

Bai Chen actually had a temper too. Being insulted for no reason made him angry, but he was better at holding it in.

Don't get mad. Don't get mad. His brain's stunted. Don't argue with a lunatic. Bai Chen soothed himself.

After being class monitor for so many years, he knew how to handle this sort of thing.

Gritting his teeth, he suppressed his anger, walked over to Gu Cheng's bed, and stood beside it. "Sorry. I'll be more careful. Go back to sleep," he said quietly.

Seeing that Bai Chen was a pushover, and the sort with no temper at all, Gu Cheng immediately felt much better.

He snorted. "At least you know what's good for you. Stay away from Gu Yun from now on. I don't care what your relationship with him is. Got it?" His tone wasn't open to discussion. He was laying down the law.

Bai Chen: ...

Okay, he really is an idiot. Can he actually win Gu Yun over like this? This protagonist is such a letdown.

Although he wanted to punch him, he thought it over and let it go.

Bai Chen hadn't wanted to get involved with either of them in the first place. He couldn't wait to stay as far away as possible.

"Mm. Understood," Bai Chen said.