Your Girlfriend Calls Me Daddy-Chapter 17 | My Rival Called Me Insufferable, Then Offered to Help Me

Chapter 17: 17 | My Rival Called Me Insufferable, Then Offered to Help Me

The bell rang and Reeves looked up from her laptop.

"Good work today. I expect to see those same critical thinking skills applied during field exercises. Speaking of which, your hero outfits should already be submitted to the support department. If you haven’t done that yet, get it done this week. We have basic training Friday and I want everyone properly equipped."

A chorus of affirmative responses filled the room as students started packing their bags.

I stayed in my seat.

Hero outfit.

Right.

The original Rome probably had something commissioned months ago.

I have no idea where the fuck it is.

Noel hadn’t moved either. She closed her laptop with a soft click and stood up, her posture perfect as always.

"I need to ask Professor Reeves something."

I glanced at her.

"Okay. What does that have to do with me?"

"Nothing. You can leave."

"Not yet, Short Stack."

Her head snapped toward me so fast I thought she might give herself whiplash.

"What did you just call me?"

"A short stack."

The purple-haired girl’s face went through about five different emotions in the span of two seconds. Shock. Indignation. Fury.

And then something else underneath it all.

Wait.

Is she happy?

"Do not call me that."

"Already did."

"You’re insufferable."

"Heard that before."

She turned away sharply, her bob swaying with the motion.

"Whatever. Stay or don’t stay. I don’t care what you do."

I stood and walked toward the front of the room where Reeves was organizing papers into neat stacks.

Noel followed a few steps behind, keeping distance like proximity to me might be contagious.

Reeves looked up as I approached.

"Rome. Something I can help you with?"

"Yeah. Hero costume. I don’t actually have one."

She raised an eyebrow.

"You transferred in late so you never submitted the paperwork."

"Exactly."

"That’s a problem. Support department needs at least a week to fabricate anything custom."

Great.

Another thing the original Rome should’ve handled.

Before I could respond, Noel stepped forward.

"I can take him to the support department."

Reeves glanced between us.

"You sure?"

"I don’t mind."

I shrugged. "Alright. Works for me."

Reeves nodded and went back to her papers.

"Go see Professor Hargrave in the design lab. Tell him I sent you. He’ll get you sorted."

"Thanks."

I turned and headed for the door.

Noel followed, her footsteps lighter than mine but no less deliberate.

I held the door open as we stepped into the hallway.

"Let’s go, Short Stack. I’ve got a date later."

She stopped walking.

"Don’t call me that. And a date? With who?"

"Why? Jealous?"

"Rome!"

I kept walking.

Her smaller legs had to move faster to keep up, which I found funnier than I probably should have.

After a few seconds of fuming silence she caught up and fell into step beside me.

"Where’s the support department anyway?"

She huffed.

"Follow me. I suppose I can give you a tour of the school while we’re at it."

Tour.

That sounds familiar.

Someone was supposed to do that.

Who again?

I searched my memory.

Panda panties.

Right.

Cheon.

The uptight class rep who grabbed me this morning.

As if summoned by the thought, I caught movement in my peripheral vision.

A familiar tuft of light blue hair peeking out from behind a pillar about twenty feet down the corridor.

No way.

I focused.

Yeah.

There was an ahoge sticking up from behind the column.

She’s hiding.

Watching me.

Which means she either forgot about the tour or she’s waiting to ambush me later.

Noel didn’t notice. She was too busy scrolling through her phone with her free hand.

"The support department is in Building E. West side of campus."

"Lead the way."

She pocketed her phone and turned left at the next intersection.

I followed.

The hallways thinned out as we moved away from the main academic buildings. Fewer students. More open space.

Noel walked with her chin up, her shoulders back, projecting confidence like armor.

We exited Building A and crossed a open courtyard dotted with benches and decorative trees.

The ocean breeze hit me immediately, cooler than it had been earlier.

Noel didn’t seem bothered by it.

She kept walking, her pace brisk and businesslike.

"Building E is straight ahead. The fabrication labs are on the second floor. Third floor is research and development. First floor is administration and equipment checkout."

"You’ve been there before."

"Obviously. My family’s company supplies half the support gear used at this academy. I’ve been in those labs since I was twelve."

We reached Building E and she pushed through the double doors without breaking stride.

The interior was different from the other buildings. More industrial. Exposed ductwork running along the ceiling. The faint smell of metal and ozone in the air.

Noel headed straight for the stairs.

I followed her up to the second floor where the hallway opened into a large workspace filled with workbenches, machinery, and students in coveralls hunched over various projects.

A tall man with greying hair and safety goggles pushed up on his forehead stood near the back, inspecting something on a tablet.

Noel walked directly toward him.

"Professor Hargrave."

He looked up.

"Miss Stark. What brings you to the labs today?"

"Professor Reeves sent us. This is Rome D’Angelo. Transfer student. He needs a hero costume fabricated."

Hargrave shifted his attention to me.

"D’Angelo. Angelo Corporation?"

"Yeah."

"Your father’s company supplies our composite materials. Good stuff."

Small world.

Or maybe just a small industry.

He set the tablet down and gestured for me to follow him toward a side office.

"Come on. Let’s get your measurements and specifications logged. Miss Stark, you’re welcome to wait here or come back later."

Noel followed us into the office without asking permission.

Hargrave pulled out a datapad and stylus.

"Alright. Let’s start with the basics. What’s your Essentia?"

I hesitated.

"Passive Null. Officially."

He frowned.

"Officially?"

"The scan came back inconclusive. I’m waiting on a retest."

"That complicates things. I can’t design proper support equipment without knowing what you’re working with."

Noel crossed her arms.

"He demonstrated significant physical strength during training today. Boone flagged him for possible unregistered augmentation."

Hargrave’s eyebrows went up.

"Is that true?"

"I hit a dummy hard enough to crack the base. Draw your own conclusions."

He tapped the stylus against the datapad.

"Without confirmed Essentia data I can only provide baseline protection. Reinforced suit material. Impact resistance. Nothing specialized."

"That’s fine."

"You sure? If your ability activates during field training and your suit isn’t calibrated for it, you could damage the equipment or hurt yourself."

I shrugged.

"I’ll take that risk."

Noel made a small noise that might have been disapproval.

Hargrave sighed.

"Alright. Your funeral. Let’s get measurements."

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