NEWFOUND HAPPINESS - PART 9

OTHER PARTS  |  ALL STORIES Part 9: Physical Contact Tracy decided to rush in to help. Though her current appearance was that of a beautifu

OTHER PARTS  |  ALL STORIES

Part 9: Physical Contact

Tracy decided to rush in to help. Though her current appearance was that of a beautiful girl, adored by thousands at university, her thoughts remained those of a young man who had once worked in this chaotic place. Of course, Tracy’s efforts were in vain, for her strikes lacked any real strength.

Tracy’s actions successfully drew the thugs’ attention. They abandoned their original target, the tall male student, and turned toward her instead. At that moment, from the ground, the male student hurriedly grabbed their legs, shouting, “Run, don’t worry about me!”

Tracy didn’t know what to do. She didn’t want to abandon someone else, especially someone who had just risked himself to help her. Clearly, he didn’t have to do that, they had only exchanged a brief glance, not close friends by any means. Tracy clenched her teeth. Perhaps today, she would be in real danger!

Suddenly, a deus ex machina appeared, just like in so many online novels. A voice rang out from nowhere, “You little brat, why aren’t you in school and instead out here fighting? I work my ass off at the mechanical workshop not so you can skip school and mess around!”

Tracy found the voice strangely familiar, and when she finally saw who had arrived, her thoughts were confirmed. It was none other than Tyrus, her former and closest colleague. For a moment, she thought he was talking to her and was about to snap back, “What does it matter to you if I go to school or not?” but immediately realized something was off. She was no longer Bastian.

Tyrus’s defiant tone drew the attention of everyone present. It was now clear who he was addressing, the tall student lying sprawled on the ground, clutching the thugs’ legs. The young man said, “Big bro! They were trying to hurt my friend, I was just trying to help!”

Tyrus let out a sigh, “That big body of yours is only good for playing sports, not for playing the hero.” With that, he immediately rushed in to break things up. His method was no different from how I used to do it, a fifteen-inch wrench. The fight never broke out, as the thugs had already backed off. They decided it wasn’t worth the risk just to fight over a university girl near Tyrus’s workshop.

And so, the only one left in a miserable state was the male university student. Tracy hurried over to help him up. Tyrus squatted down, looking at him with amusement, “Well, you’ve got good taste, I’ll give you that! Sacrificing yourself for this girl, worth it.”

Tracy meant to shoot Tyrus a glare. She thought to herself, “We were working together just a few days ago, don’t start messing around like that.” But it remained just a thought, because she knew that even if he were given Gandalf’s eyes from The Lord of the Rings, there was no way he could guess she was his former colleague.

The male student wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said, “Don’t talk nonsense! There’s nothing going on between me and her. I only met her just the other day.” And of course, the look in Tyrus’s eyes made it clear he didn’t believe a word of it.

The three of them headed to the infirmary at the mechanical workshop. Tyrus carried the male student over his shoulder. He told Tracy to go back to school first, but she refused. She believed this had all happened because of her, so she had to take responsibility.

Tracy was the one who dressed the male student’s wounds. Tyrus said, “I’ll leave it to you then, never been much good at first aid myself—”

“I know!” she replied. When it came to attention to detail, Tyrus was nowhere near Bastian, so he often ended up getting injured. In times like those, it was Bastian who helped him with first aid.

Tyrus looked puzzled, “How would you know that?” This time, it was Tracy’s turn to be flustered. She thought to herself, “Damn! I accidentally mixed up Bastian’s life with Tracy’s again.” She blurted out to cover it up, “Just a guess!”

After the bandaging was done, Tyrus drove both of them back to the university. He advised his younger brother to take the day off, but the young man firmly refused because the student council had a meeting that day. Thanks to that, Tracy learned his name was Tamir, the current student council president and two years her senior.

Tamir limped into the school courtyard. He told Tracy to go to class first and not to worry about him. Tracy ignored him. To Tamir’s surprise, she hoisted him onto her back and carried him toward the student council office. It was a bit much for Tracy’s current strength, but with some effort, she could manage it and she felt it was her responsibility to try.

Class had already begun, but many students without a lesson were still sitting around the schoolyard. The sight of Tracy carrying the student council president was seen by many and quickly became the subject of hushed whispers. Tamir was utterly embarrassed, his face burning red, but Tracy didn’t care much. In her mind, she was still a young man helping out another guy.

Tamir stammered, “C-Can you put me down? I can walk on my own!” Tracy once again ignored him. She asked, “Even though I’m truly grateful you came to my rescue, why did you follow me in the first place?”

“I wanted to meet you to invite you to join the student council.”

Tracy asked, “Why? I’m just a first-year student. I’ve only been in school for a few days.”

“Your entrance exam scores were pretty impressive. And… I heard from the others in the council that you’re very pretty, that would make students feel more positively toward the student council.”

Though she still carried the thoughts of an eighteen-year-old guy, Tracy couldn’t help but feel embarrassed when someone called her pretty. She tried to hide her expression, but Tamir’s next words made her face flush bright red, “It’s true. From the moment I first saw you, I was impressed. You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen! You’ll probably be nominated as this year’s campus beauty in no time.”

“Stop saying that!” she cut him off before realizing her voice had come out a bit too loud. Embarrassed, Tracy fell silent for the rest of the walk.

The weight of the sun, combined with Tracy exerting herself to carry Tamir, had soaked her shirt with sweat. Tamir grew flustered as he noticed her bra faintly visible beneath the white uniform shirt. It was only then that he truly realized how close he was to the girl who might soon become the campus beauty. Despite the sweat, Tracy’s body still gave off a faint, natural fragrance, even though she wasn’t wearing any perfume.

Tamir wondered to himself, Why is this girl so unbothered by physical contact? Let’s not forget, we’re still a man and a woman. And so, the two of them, each embarrassed for their own reasons, remained silent for the rest of the walk to the student council office.

As Tracy set Tamir down on a chair in the student council office, she was about to head straight back to class when he suddenly draped his jacket over her shoulders. She turned back, a puzzled look on her face. Tamir said, “Sorry, but the sweat made your bra show through.”

Upon hearing that, Tracy looked down at her white blouse and immediately noticed her pink bra clearly visible beneath it. Her face turned red, and she quickly pulled the jacket’s flaps closed to cover herself. She looked at him, eyes slightly glistening. She whispered, “Thank you,” then turned away right after. Perhaps even she didn’t fully understand why she felt so embarrassed about someone seeing her bra. These past few days, she had grown so used to it that she no longer remembered the odd sensation it brought to her chest. But this moment reminded her, she was now truly a girl.

The sight of Tracy, eyes shimmering with tears and cheeks flushed as she turned away, struck Tamir like a bolt. He froze for a moment, feeling his heart pounding wildly in his chest.

That very evening, news about Tracy and Tamir caused a stir on the university’s online forum. There were those who envied them, and others who eagerly shipped them as a couple. Most believed that Tracy and Tamir had officially become lovers. After all, such intimacy wasn’t something an ordinary guy and girl would share.

Meanwhile, the person at the center of it all had no idea what was unfolding on the university forum. She was sitting in her bedroom, hugging her knees in thought after finishing dinner. And once again, the reason behind her mood had nothing to do with her, but with her mother.

Earlier, when Tracy came downstairs hoping to speak with her mother, she saw her parents sitting on the sofa watching TV. Only... her mother’s head was bowed unusually low, while her father leaned back, face tilted upward in clear enjoyment. She even heard a few strange sounds coming from her mother’s throat. Even if she were the most clueless person in the world, she still would’ve known exactly what her mother was doing to her father.

She had hurried back to her room, doing her best not to make a sound, and had been sitting there hugging her knees in embarrassment ever since. Just last night, her parents had been doing “that” right in the room next to hers. And now, her mother was “playing her father's flute” out in the living room. The sudden shift overwhelmed her, shocking her all over again. Was this really the same person who used to be her father? Her mind involuntarily replaced Hallie’s image with Turner’s, imagining her former father engaged in “that” act with her new father. Her face turned ghostly pale, drained of all color.

PART 10 >>