We arrived at the cafeteria dragging our backpacks after an entire morning of classes. The moment we walked through the entrance, the smell of coffee, freshly cooked food, and fried snacks greeted us. At that hour, the place was packed; every table was occupied, students were talking over one another, and the constant clatter of plates against trays filled the room.
It took us a few seconds to find an empty table until a hand shot up from one in the back.
"Over here!" It was Lalo.
He had already claimed almost the entire table with his design portfolio, a stack of papers covered in sketches, and a plate of tacos that was disappearing at an alarming rate.
I dropped into my chair with a sigh. "What a week..."
Lalo looked up from his notebook and grinned. "You look awful. Didn't you sleep, or did your piano teacher tried to kill you?"
Oriol dropped into the chair beside me before answering for me. "Don't exaggerate. I just smacked him once."
"I think that counts as student abuse. A teacher hitting his own student... I could probably sue you. What do you think, Lalo?" I looked over at him.
Lalo pretended to think about it while taking another bite of his taco. "I've got an uncle who's a lawyer. He could help you... although I think you'd end up spending more money than you'd win." He let out a laugh.
"Eh... never mind. Too much trouble," I said as I settled into my chair.
The three of them laughed.
Daniel set his backpack on the chair and sat down between Lalo and Oriol. "So? Did you actually learn anything?"
I rested my elbows on the table. "I learned that Oriol enjoys hitting people way too much."
"That's part of the training too," he replied without the slightest bit of remorse.
The jokes continued for a while as we waited for our food. I watched them for a few seconds. It was strange. Ever since I had discovered the system, I couldn't help wondering just how far they could go.
Without drawing any attention, I mentally activated the interface.
Three translucent windows appeared above them.
══════════════════════
Oriol
Keyboard: 9
Music Editing: 15
Skill: Keep the Rhythm
══════════════════════
Eduardo
Musical Ear: 11
Video Editing: 12
Skill: Bargaining
══════════════════════
Daniel
Drums: 2
Bass: 3
Lyric Comprehension: 14
Skill: Inspiration Under Pressure
══════════════════════
I rested my chin on my hand as I looked over the numbers.
"I've got someone who could become a great keyboardist, another who can design, edit videos, and has a great musical ear... and Dan understands lyrics much better than I do."
I sighed to myself. "The problem is still me. I still have a long way to go before I can catch up to them."
Learn piano to Level 3. Finish my own song. Put together a band capable of performing in front of ten thousand people. The three missions seemed connected somehow, but I was still missing the piece that would set everything in motion.
Before I could keep thinking, a tray appeared in front of us.
"Excuse me." I looked up. Christina had just arrived carrying several drinks.
She placed my glass in front of me and smiled. "Lemon water. Just like always."
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
Christina set a couple more glasses in front of Oriol and Daniel before picking up the tray again. She stayed beside the table for a few moments, taking advantage of the fact that the cafeteria had quieted down a little.
"So, did you all survive today's classes?"
"Barely," Oriol replied. "Ren almost fell asleep during Philosophy."
"That's slander."
"I saw you yawn three times," he said, pointing at me.
"That's because the professor has the power to make people fall asleep."
"Excuses," Oriol replied.
Daniel looked up with his usual serious expression. "I can confirm it was four yawns."
The three of them laughed while I simply shook my head.
"How nice... I can always count on you guys for emotional support." I slumped across the table.
Christina covered her mouth to hide a smile. "Well, at least you're still looking forward to going out today."
"There was never any doubt about that," Oriol replied. "Are you done with your shift?"
"Almost. I just need about fifteen more minutes to close the register, then I'm free."
I nodded as I took a sip of my lemon water. "Then we'll eat at our own pace and wait for you. It'll still be a while before everyone else gets out."
"Perfect." Just as Christina was about to head back behind the counter, a familiar voice came from the cafeteria entrance.
"Already making plans without us?"
Hannah walked in with her backpack hanging over both shoulders, waving as she approached. Right behind her came Luz, casually chewing gum while resting her jacket over one shoulder.
"Good morning... well, good afternoon," Hannah corrected herself with a small laugh.
"About time," Oriol commented. "I thought they'd locked you up at work."
"Only Christina," Luz replied with a shrug. "They almost made me live in the lab."
Hannah let out a small laugh. "You're so dramatic."
"I'm not exaggerating. If I smell one more chemical today, I'm going to pass out."
Lalo closed his portfolio and looked around at everyone gathered at the table. "Well... now we're all here."
He rested his arms on the table and smiled. "So, what's the plan?"
Oriol had clearly been waiting for that question. "First, we're heading to the arcade downtown. I've been wanting to try the new racing machines for weeks, and I heard they also got some really good rhythm games."
"How surprising," I commented. "You wanting to go to an arcade? Nobody could've seen that coming."
"Then we'll find somewhere to have dinner," he continued, completely ignoring me. "And since Luz is performing tonight..."
Everyone turned toward her.
"...we'll end the day at the bar."
Luz gave us a thumbs-up with a grin. "My band's on at ten. If you get there early, I can even save you a good table."
It sounded like a pretty good plan. Arcade, dinner, live music, and a Friday with no urgent assignments. After the kind of week we'd had, it was exactly what we needed.
"I like the plan," I said.
Christina nodded as she took a step back with the tray still in her hands.
"Then give me a few minutes to finish up here, and we'll head out."
"Deal," Hannah replied with a smile.
As I listened to them argue about who was driving, who would lose first at the arcade, and who would end up paying for dinner, I couldn't help but smile.
Just a few days ago, my life had been completely normal. Now I had a mysterious system, three impossible missions... and even so, moments like these with all of them were still the best part of my life.