My Sister Is Acting Strange - Chapter 3 - Iced Americano

The system didn’t change much, just a solitary message: “Task completed.”

Tang Huaijin often wondered while reading novels why protagonists adapted so quickly after acquiring a system or traveling to another world. Now he understood; apart from accepting it, there was nothing else you could do.

Report it to the authorities? Not unless you wanted to be dissected for research.

Fortunately, the system hadn’t shown any malice towards him.

…

Back home, as soon as he opened the door, the system popped up a notification: “Sudden task: Prepare a delicious dinner for your sister.”

“Task reward: Sister’s kiss”

“Failure penalty: None”

“Please decide whether to accept within 3 minutes.”

“Accept.”

Tang Huaijin chose to accept without a second thought.

It wasn’t about the kiss; it was mainly because his sister had been busy all day, and he wanted to reward her.

…

He sent a message to his sister, confirming she’d be back in half an hour, and started cooking dinner.

Bamboo shoot and pork rib casserole, braised pork, garlic bok choy.

These were Tang Huaijin’s specialties and also his sister’s favorites.

The kitchen was filled with smoke, and the exhaust fan was loud.

Tang Huaijin was humming a tune while cooking, when Tang Yaoyao’s soft body hugged him from behind.

It was the familiar scent of his sister. Tang Huaijin’s lips curled into a smile as he spoke, “You entered without a sound. What’s up?”

Tang Yaoyao buried her head into Tang Huaijin’s back, sounding slightly content, “Absorbing my brother’s energy.”

Then she stood on tiptoe and gave Tang Huaijin a light kiss on the cheek, “That’s the reward.”

The soft, moist touch on his cheek left Tang Huaijin momentarily stunned.

“What’s wrong? Dumbfounded?” Tang Yaoyao squinted her eyes and laughed softly.

“Nothing, just curious about what my sister was thinking when she kissed me.”

Tang Yaoyao furrowed her pretty brows, slightly displeased, “What do you mean, thinking? Can’t a sister kiss her brother?”

Then she added with a hint of grievance, “You used to always drag me for kisses when we were kids, and now you don’t even want it when I do it voluntarily.”

“Never mind.” Tang Huaijin realized his question was odd, shook his head, and smiled appeasingly, “Go rest, it’ll be ready soon.”

Tang Yaoyao gave him a sidelong glance and walked lightly back to the living room, noticing Tang Huaijin’s new phone on the table.

“Jin, you got a new phone?”

“Oh, that was from a raffle at the mobile phone store where I was working part-time today.”

“Really? You’re that lucky?”

“Yeah, really lucky.” Tang Huaijin’s tone was quite complex.

…

After issuing two tasks, the system quieted down, and Tang Huaijin spent a peaceful weekend.

Why do others with systems go on epic quests, slaying demons and gods, while I still have to go to school?

Standing on the familiar Route 2 bus, Tang Huaijin grumbled.

Still taking the bus to school…

Not even a seat…

The Route 2 bus during the morning rush was packed, and Tang Huaijin squeezed through several aunts to make space for the girl inside.

The girl held her bag in front of her chest, her face turned towards the window, her bangs slightly disheveled from the crowd, and her ponytail bouncing with the bus’s stops.

“So, no one to take you to school again?” Tang Huaijin spoke.

The girl turned her head at his voice, looking at the boy in front of her. He faced sideways, expressionless, with veins bulging on his arms from the pressure of the crowd behind him, yet the girl inside remained unaffected.

“Tang Huaijin…” The girl’s gaze was complicated, “Do you think this will make me forgive you?”

Though she had resolved not to speak to Tang Huaijin, his actions touched a chord in her heart, softening her tone unconsciously.

Tang Huaijin chuckled, turning his head, “Lin Ruoxi, can you stop being so self-centered? It’s normal to want to protect a little animal you released.”

“Little animal?” Lin Ruoxi’s beautiful eyes seemed to glisten with tears.

“What else did you think?” Tang Huaijin turned away again, avoiding her gaze.

“You’re truly an unrepentant jerk.” Lin Ruoxi bit her lip, her knuckles whitening from gripping her bag tightly.

Tang Huaijin said nothing more.

After two stops, half the passengers disembarked, freeing up some seats, and Tang Huaijin found one to sit down.

…

In class, after morning reading, the class teacher knocked on the blackboard. Once the room quieted, he announced, “Students, this weekend the school held a meeting about the exchange student program.”

“Exchange student?”

“Is it abroad?”

“…”

“Quiet, please.” The class teacher cleared his throat, “It’s a program between Rose Elite High School and Chengnan High School. The top three students in the upcoming monthly exam can apply, with tuition fully covered.”

“Those interested can come to me for details.”

The students began whispering excitedly. Tang Huaijin had heard of Rose Elite High School, known for its exorbitant tuition and affluent students, with top-tier education.

However, switching learning environments during senior year wasn’t easy for most, so the initial excitement gradually faded, and no one stepped forward to apply.

Tang Huaijin had no interest either; it didn’t matter where he studied, as senior year posed no pressure for him.

Seeing no response, the class teacher nodded, satisfied. Most teachers weren’t keen on the program, not wanting their best students taken away.

Just as the teacher was about to leave, Tang Huaijin stood up and spoke, “Teacher, I’d like to apply.”

The class erupted in surprise.

The class teacher turned, seeing it was Tang Huaijin, his face twitched, hesitantly saying, “Are you sure? Don’t you want to discuss it with your family?” In his eyes, Tang Huaijin was an exceptional student.

Tang Huaijin’s expression was slightly awkward, as the system had just issued a task.

“Pre-task: Go to Rose Elite High School”

“Task reward: Physical fitness enhanced to human limits (gradual improvement)”

“Task failed: Subsequent tasks permanently locked”

“Accept” “Refuse”

“Note: This is an important task, strongly advised to accept.”

Tang Huaijin’s physical fitness was already good from regular exercise and part-time work, but far from reaching human limits.

And it was the first time the system had emphasized an important task.

After a moment of consideration, he replied, “Yes, no need to discuss.”

The class teacher sighed, handing him an application form. This was a decision made by higher-ups, and he couldn’t ignore it.

“Thank you, teacher.” Tang Huaijin took the form.

The class teacher waved his hand, saying no more, and left, feeling weary.

The exchange student program’s commotion gradually settled, and the day’s classes quickly ended.

Tang Huaijin stretched, ready to pack up and leave.

So tired, he wanted to go home to his sister.

Just as he was about to leave, Lin Ruoxi approached, accompanied by her best friend and desk mate Li Xiaoran.

Lin Ruoxi’s expression was indifferent, her tone icy, “You plan to just leave?”

Tang Huaijin shrugged, “What else?”

Lin Ruoxi wanted to say more, but Li Xiaoran tugged her hand, scolding, “Are you stupid? Why bother with him? You saw what kind of person he is.”

Tang Huaijin smiled, said nothing, and walked away with his bag.

After a few steps outside the school, Lin Ruoxi caught up, calling out, “Come with me.”

Without waiting for a response, she walked off in a direction, her ponytail bouncing with each step.

Tang Huaijin hesitated but followed.

They arrived at a café on the street.

The café was in a secluded spot, with a cat owned by the shopkeeper on the first floor-a plump white cat that ran over to rub against Tang Huaijin’s pants, which he picked up.

The shopkeeper, Li Jing, was a gentle-looking woman with a warm smile, not particularly striking but very chatty.

Tang Huaijin had worked part-time here for a long time during his sophomore year, and they were on good terms. He greeted her with a smile, asking, “Long time no see, Jing-Jie, is there a spot upstairs?”

“Long time no see, yes.”

Surprised to see Tang Huaijin after so long, Li Jing smiled, then glanced at Lin Ruoxi beside him, asking, “Still two vanilla lattes?”

Tang Huaijin shook his head, saying, “No, I’ll have an iced Americano.”

Lin Ruoxi turned to look at him, biting her lip, “Vanilla latte.”

Li Jing said nothing, nodding.

Previously, when Tang Huaijin brought Lin Ruoxi here for coffee, she loved vanilla lattes, always needing more than one, and Tang Huaijin would also order a vanilla latte.

Two vanilla lattes were their unspoken sweetness.

Seated upstairs, Tang Huaijin stroked the cat in his arms, asking, “What do you want to talk about?”

“You still owe me an explanation.” Lin Ruoxi said, looking at Tang Huaijin.

“There’s nothing to explain; you saw it.” Tang Huaijin sighed, “That’s just who I am.”

“What about that girl?” Lin Ruoxi lowered her head, sipping her vanilla latte through a straw.

“Broke up, how could we continue after that mess?” Tang Huaijin shrugged, indifferent.

“Continue?” Lin Ruoxi raised her head, eyes red, “You still want to continue with her?”

“Not really, just tired of it, it’s convenient.” Tang Huaijin chuckled.

“And me? Are you tired of me too?” Lin Ruoxi’s voice held a hint of despair.

Tang Huaijin looked away, seeing his reflection in the cat’s eyes, speaking calmly, “The same.”

“So you plan to just leave?”

“Yeah, my reputation here is so bad, changing schools sounds good.” Tang Huaijin sipped his coffee, “I won’t say anything like ‘take care,’ I know I don’t have the right. That incident affected you greatly, it’s my fault, I’m sorry.”

“So a simple sorry is enough?” Lin Ruoxi’s face turned pale, sneering, “So you can just change places and pretend you’re a good person?”

Tang Huaijin remained silent.

The cat in his arms suddenly meowed, seeming uncomfortable, and jumped down, running away.

Without a response from Tang Huaijin, tears finally welled up in Lin Ruoxi’s eyes. She took a deep breath, grabbed her bag, and left without looking back.

The café door opened and closed, the hanging wind chime jingling loudly.

Tang Huaijin sat there, sipping his coffee, his gaze somewhat vacant.

He wasn’t worried Lin Ruoxi would follow him to Rose Elite High School; he knew her grades, the best she had done was top 20 in the year.

Li Jing came upstairs holding the cat, sitting beside Tang Huaijin, lighting a cigarette, exhaling smoke, speaking softly, “Is it really over?”

Tang Huaijin kept his head down, silent.

Seeing his silence, Li Jing removed the hair tie from her wrist, gathering Tang Huaijin’s long, messy hair into a bun at the back.

Revealing the slightly youthful face beneath, with fair skin, sharp features, and a pair of peach blossom eyes similar to Tang Yaoyao’s, with a hint of confusion in his gaze.

Jing-Jie patted his head, “I guess you won’t say anything if I ask. If it’s over, let it go. Get a haircut sometime.”

The iced Americano was cold and bitter.

Tang Huaijin softly responded, finishing the remaining coffee.