In fact, he really did lie, and Emily Carter lied too. Neither of them was late because they had slept together, but because of that tenant at home who knows nothing and especially loves to ask "why" about everything.

Emily Carter and Brian Ford, under the surprised gazes of everyone, called out "reporting in" and walked into the classroom. Emily Carter sat down, took out her textbook, perked up, and listened to the lesson attentively, while Brian Ford shoved his backpack into the desk drawer, then laid his head on the desk and started catching up on sleep.

David Clark sat next to him, head down reading comics, completely ignoring the "dead pig" beside him.

※※※

Actually, this morning Brian Ford got up relatively early. Usually, with morning reading at 7:30, he would drag himself out of bed at 7:20, then, without washing his face, brushing his teeth, or combing his hair, he’d ride his bike and dash to school.

Today, it was because of the banging and clattering at home that he couldn’t keep sleeping.

At first, Brian Ford thought it was someone outside doing renovations, so he didn’t pay much attention. But then he felt something was off. In this alley, all the neighbors are familiar faces, and everyone gets along well. He’d never heard of anyone doing renovations so early in the morning. More importantly, with these rundown houses, if you really tried to renovate, you’d probably end up tearing the whole place down...

Wearing just a pair of big shorts, he jumped out of bed, wanting to see who was making noise so early.

As a result, he stood at the living room door and forgot that he was nearly naked—because he saw a scene that left him stunned.

The boy William Reed who had suddenly appeared last night was playing soccer in the living room! Yes, that’s right, playing soccer—with the little rubber ball he always carried with him.

He saw the ball bouncing up and down on various parts of William Reed’s body—of course, except for his hands. Forgive Brian Ford for using such words to describe it, but he really couldn’t find a better way. The ball was like a living little animal, bouncing on William Reed’s shoulders, the top of his head, his toes, instep, thighs, calves, chest... jumping around nonstop. No matter what posture William Reed was in, no matter which part he used or what move he made, the ball just never touched the ground. And looking at William Reed’s movements, it was almost like he was dancing—very graceful.

Brian Ford had never seen anyone control a ball so perfectly. Maybe even those world-class soccer stars couldn’t do it—though Brian Ford had never watched professional soccer.

William Reed noticed someone was watching him from behind, so he caught the ball in his hands. Then he wiped his sweat and said to Brian Ford, “You’re up?”

Brian Ford nodded blankly, still not recovered from the shock. Only then did William Reed realize he was in someone else’s home, not his usual practice spot in the woods.

“V-very sorry! I-I forgot where I was! Waking you up is... is an unforgivable offense!” As he spoke, William Reed was about to kneel, but luckily Brian Ford reacted quickly and grabbed him. “For heaven’s sake! How many times have I told you, don’t kneel to people! If you keep doing that, people will really think you’re some Japanese invader and drag you out to get beaten up—I won’t help you then.”

Just then, the door opened and Emily Carter appeared at the entrance. Brian Ford hadn’t expected Emily Carter to arrive at this moment. Emily Carter pushed the door open and was stunned by the scene before her, and the other two were stunned as well, so they all stood there in silence for a long while.

After a moment, Emily Carter pointed at Brian Ford and exclaimed, “Oh—! So you’re into this kind of thing?”

Brian Ford suddenly realized he was still in his underwear, and now he was grabbing William Reed, which really could give people the wrong idea, so he hurriedly dashed into his bedroom.

Emily Carter watched as Brian Ford slammed the bedroom door shut, and finally burst out laughing. William Reed stood respectfully to the side, saying nothing. In his eyes, Emily Carter and Brian Ford were his lifesavers, and they seemed to have a very close relationship—probably lovers. Ahem, if Emily Carter and Brian Ford could really hear William Reed’s thoughts, who knows what they’d think.

Emily Carter looked at William Reed standing to the side. She thought this boy was really adorable and incredibly obedient. “Um... Little William.” She liked to use the “A ×” form of address for people she was close to. “We’re going to school in a bit and won’t be back until evening. You’ll be home alone, so don’t go out randomly, okay? If you get hungry at noon, just use the microwave to heat up some food.” Last night, Emily Carter had taken some time to make William Reed a serving of fried rice with egg and put it in the fridge.

“I understand,” William Reed nodded. No matter how she looked at him, Emily Carter thought he was just like the hero she imagined—every gesture and movement was so proper.

“If you feel lonely, just watch some TV.” Emily Carter casually turned on the rear-projection TV in the living room, and the morning news anchor who suddenly appeared on the screen startled William Reed. He jumped up and quickly moved away from the TV.

Just then, Brian Ford finished changing and came out. As soon as he opened the door, he saw William Reed’s agile leap. “Wow...” he whistled.

Emily Carter looked at William Reed in surprise. “Didn’t I explain it clearly to you yesterday? A TV is just a box that shows a lot of things inside...”