My Romance Life System-Chapter 70: Date

My entire plan was crashing and burning. I had to save this. I was about to jump in with a fun fact about ancient aliens when Nina, my glorious, wonderful pillar, did it for me.

"I don’t know," she said, leaning forward and turning to Jake with a curious smile. "What do you think they are? I heard some people think they were, like, landing strips for alien spaceships or something."

She had just served him the perfect conversational volleyball, a direct question that gave him an easy way in. I saw the gratitude in Jake’s eyes, the sheer relief of being thrown a lifeline.

"Well," he started, clearing his throat and sitting up a little straighter, his voice finally dropping back to its normal pitch. "The alien theory is popular, but a lot of archaeologists think they were probably ceremonial pathways for religious rituals, connected to water and fertility worship."

I couldn’t help but let a small, satisfied smile form on my face as I watched the scene unfold, because against all odds, my ridiculous, video-game-inspired plan was actually working.

The moment Jake dropped that bit of archeological knowledge, the entire dynamic at the table shifted, and you could practically see the relief wash over him as Ruby, instead of looking confused, leaned forward with genuine interest.

"Really? I always thought the alien thing was more fun, but the ritual pathway idea actually makes a lot of sense," she said, and just like that, the floodgates were open.

They started talking, and it wasn’t just the stilted, awkward exchange I had been dreading, but a real conversation which was completely captivating. They moved from the Nazca Lines to other historical mysteries, with Jake, who had clearly done his homework, bringing up theories about the construction of the pyramids that had Ruby completely hooked.

It was amazing, watching them get so lost in their own little world that Nina and I might as well have been invisible. They were so locked in, so focused on each other, that the rest of the library, including the two people sitting right there with them, just seemed to fade away.

I looked over at Nina, who was watching them with a quiet, knowing smile on her face that told me she had figured out my entire plan. She caught my eye and gave me a tiny nod, a silent acknowledgment that said, ’you’re not as much of a dumbass as I thought.’

’This is going perfectly,’ I thought, feeling a surge of what I could only describe as pride. ’They don’t need us here anymore. In fact, us being here is probably just making it more awkward for them now.’ My job as the commander of Operation: Don’t Die Alone was, for the moment, complete.

It was time for a tactical retreat.

I leaned over to Nina and whispered. "Hey, I’m gonna go grab a drink from the vending machine. You want to come?"

She looked from my face to the two of them, who were now passionately debating whether the Library of Alexandria ever truly existed, and her smile widened. She understood immediately.

"Yeah, definitely," she whispered back, her eyes sparkling. "All this talk about ancient history is making me thirsty."

We stood up as quietly as we could, and neither Jake nor Ruby even seemed to notice we were gone, which I took as the ultimate sign of success. This was Jake’s chance to really get to know her, and I just had to hope he wouldn’t find a way to screw it up now that I wasn’t there to subtly kick him under the table.

We walked away from the library table, and I felt this ridiculous sense of accomplishment, like I’d just cleared a really difficult raid boss using a completely unorthodox strategy.

I had to admit, my stupid plan was actually working.

Nina was quiet until we got to the vending machines near the main entrance, I could feel her watching me, her expression a mix of amusement and suspicion. I was busy trying to decide between two different kinds of soda when she finally spoke.

"Sooo" she said, her voice dripping with teasing sarcasm. "That was your master plan, wasn’t it? To ambush Ruby with a ’casual’ study group?"

’She totally figured it out. I’m not even surprised anymore.’ "I have no idea what you’re talking about," I said, punching the button for a soda. "I am simply a benevolent friend, facilitating academic success."

"Uh-huh. You’re a terrible liar." She leaned against the wall next to the machine, her arms crossed. "It was pretty clever, though, I’ll give you that. The whole ’let’s study for chemistry’ thing was a nice touch. Very subtle."

The can clunked into the slot, and I bent down to grab it, my face feeling a little warm. "I just created an opportunity, that’s all. The rest is up to him."

"An opportunity?" She raised an eyebrow. "Or are you just kind of forcing it? I mean, when we were talking at lunch, Ruby seemed pretty clear she wasn’t interested in dating. She said she just studies alone, that it’s easier that way."

She was right, and hearing her say it out loud made the whole plan feel a lot more fragile. I got another soda and handed it to her.

’She’s not wrong. Ruby wasn’t exactly putting out ’ask me out’ vibes. She seemed perfectly happy being on her own.’

"I know," I said, leaning against the machine next to her. "I thought about that. And maybe she is happy alone. But Jake is a complete mess. He was so desperate he was considering giving her a tiny pyramid as a gift. I couldn’t just let that happen."

She took a sip of her soda, a small smile on her face. "So you decided to become his strategic advisor instead? I don’t know if that’s better or worse."

"Something like that." I took a long sip of my soda. "Look, I’m not trying to push her into a date. I just wanted to give him a chance to have a normal conversation with her, you know? So he doesn’t spend the next year staring at her like a lost puppy and wondering ’what if’."

She was quiet for a minute, just looking at me with this thoughtful expression. "When did you get so mature?"

’Mature? Me?’

"I’m not mature. I’m just trying to prevent a social disaster. It’s a public service, really."

"No, seriously," she said, her voice softer now. "A week ago, you wouldn’t have gotten involved at all. This is... different. You’re actually thinking about how other people feel. It’s nice."

"I just don’t want him to be a weirdo to her," I mumbled, looking down at my soda can. "She seems cool. She doesn’t need that kind of awkwardness in her life."

"Well," she said, her smile turning a little teasing, "what are we supposed to do now that your secret mission is underway, Commander?"

"First, never call me that," I said, a grin spreading across my face. "And second, I don’t know. I didn’t plan this far ahead."

"We could go to that café," she suggested, her voice casual. "The one we went to the other day. I could use a real coffee."

’A café? Just the two of us?’ The idea sent a jolt of panic and excitement through me at the same time. "Yeah. Okay. Let’s do that."

"Great. It’s a date," she said, and then immediately winked when she saw the horrified look on my face. "A friend date. My treat, since you’re doing so much to help your fellow man."

’Right. Friend date.’

Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om