Your Girlfriend Calls Me Daddy-Chapter 85 - 86 | Contingencies and Other Forms of Hope

We finished breakfast and headed to Building C. Homeroom started in fifteen minutes and Cheon was already twitchy about being late.

The classroom was half full when we arrived. Nolan sat in his usual spot next to Aurora. Mera headed straight for the back row and I followed.

Cheon hesitated at the door, then walked to her seat in the front like nothing had changed.

Professional to the end.

Solana walked in exactly on time and started taking attendance. I zoned out immediately and pulled up the quest details again in my peripheral vision.

[ORCHESTRA OF ANIMOSITY]

Team Two Members:

- Rome D’Angelo [Adaptive-Type, 89 RP]

- Noel Stark [Astral Dive, 412 RP]

- Usagi Honjō [Pinky Gum, 298 RP]

Analysis: High interpersonal friction. Low coordination. Victory requires strategic realignment of team priorities.

Yeah. That tracked.

I glanced across the room at Noel. She sat three rows over, her violet hair perfectly styled and her posture rigid. She was staring straight ahead like she could burn a hole through the whiteboard with sheer willpower.

Still pissed about something.

Probably me.

Usagi sat two rows behind her. Pink and blue hair in a messy ponytail, brown eyes focused on her notebook. She was doodling in the margins instead of taking notes, and I watched her sketch what looked like a rabbit before she caught me staring and immediately looked away.

Right.

These were my teammates.

This was going to be a disaster.

After homeroom, Solana announced we’d have the rest of the day for team coordination and strategy sessions. No regular classes. Just prep time before tomorrow’s trials.

"Team Two," she called. "Conference room 2-B. You have until lunch."

Noel stood immediately and walked out without looking at anyone.

Usagi gathered her things slowly, like she was hoping someone would tell her this was all a mistake.

I caught up to them in the hallway outside the conference room. Noel was already inside, sitting at the table with her arms crossed and her portfolio case open in front of her.

Usagi hovered near the door like she wanted to bolt.

"Hey," I said.

She jumped. "Oh. Hi. Um. Rome, right?"

"Yeah."

"I’m Usagi. But you probably knew that. Because Solana said it. In homeroom. So. Yeah."

She was nervous. Visibly, painfully nervous. Her hands twisted together and her tail, wait, no, that was a belt. Not a tail. Just a belt.

I needed more coffee.

"Come on," I said, holding the door open. "Let’s get this over with."

We sat down at the table. Noel didn’t look up from her notes. Usagi sat as far from both of us as physically possible.

Silence stretched out like a rubber band about to snap.

Finally, Noel spoke. "We need a strategy."

"Agreed," I said.

"I’ve analyzed the other teams. Team One has the highest coordination score and the strongest overall Essentia output. Team Three has raw power but poor synergy. If we get Team Three, we can leverage Usagi’s capture ability to neutralize Marcus while I handle Kaito in astral form. That leaves Hana isolated and vulnerable."

She said all of this without taking a breath.

Usagi raised her hand. "Um. What about Team One?"

"We hope we don’t get them."

"But Nolan is really strong. And Aurora’s beams are super accurate. And Hae-Won, I mean, Cheon, she’s really smart and she’ll figure out what we’re doing."

Noel’s jaw tightened. "That’s why we hope we don’t get them."

"But what if Team One is our opponents?"

"Then we adapt."

"That’s not really a plan though."

"It’s a contingency."

"It sounds like we’re just hoping they don’t notice us."

Noel’s eyes flashed. "Do you have a better idea?"

Usagi shrank back. "No. I just. I don’t know if that’s going to work."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"I don’t know!"

"Exactly. So perhaps you should let me handle the strategy since I’ve actually prepared for this."

Oh my god.

Bruh.

I needed male friends so badly it hurt.

"Hold on," I said, leaning forward. "Let’s take a step back."

Noel finally looked at me. Her grey eyes were cold. "What."

"Maybe we should figure out how we’re working together before we start planning who to fight."

"We don’t have time for team-building exercises."

"I’m not suggesting trust falls. I’m suggesting we actually talk about our abilities and how they complement each other."

"I already know what your abilities are. You’re registered as an adaptive-type with low output and no combat record. Usagi is a support-class emitter with inconsistent application. I’m the only one on this team with an S-rank ability and actual combat experience."

"Cool. So you’re carrying us."

"Yes."

Usagi made a small wounded sound.

I rubbed my temples. "That’s not how teams work."

"It is when one member is significantly more capable than the others."

"You sound like a fucking elitist."

"I sound realistic."

"You sound like someone who’s going to get blindsided because you’re too busy looking down at everyone else to notice the knife coming."

Her face went red. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

She stood up so fast her chair scraped backward. "You have been at this school for three days. Three. And you think you can lecture me about combat strategy?"

"I think you’re so obsessed with proving you’re better than everyone else that you’re missing the point."

"The point is winning."

"The point is not losing. There’s a difference."

"Semantics." 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Ask Latitude how his semantics worked out at Eastport."

That hit. I saw it in the way her hands clenched and her breathing changed.

Usagi was staring at both of us like we were about to start throwing punches.

Noel sat back down slowly. Her voice dropped into something quieter and infinitely more dangerous. "You’re insufferable."

"You’ve mentioned that."

"I mean it. You walk into this school with your family name and your smug attitude and your complete disregard for anyone else’s effort, and you expect everyone to just fall in line."

"I don’t expect anything from you, Short Stack."

Her eye twitched. "Don’t call me that."

"Why not?"

"Because I hate it. Ugh."

"Noted."

"And stop smirking."

"I’m not smirking."

"You are. Ugh."

Usagi cleared her throat nervously. "Um. Maybe we could. I don’t know. Try the strategy Noel suggested? And if it doesn’t work, we can adjust?"

"Fine," Noel said.

"Fine," I echoed.

We spent the next hour going over Noel’s plan in excruciating detail. She had contingencies for contingencies and backup strategies for scenarios that would probably never happen. Usagi asked clarifying questions every five minutes, and Noel answered each one with increasing frustration.

By the time lunch rolled around, I wanted to throw myself out the window.

"We’ll reconvene after lunch," Noel said, gathering her notes. "I expect both of you to review the engagement protocols I’ve outlined."

She left without waiting for a response.

Usagi looked at me apologetically. "She’s. Um. Intense."

"That’s one word for it."

"She’s really good though. At strategy. And fighting. So maybe we should just. You know. Trust her?"

"Maybe."

Usagi smiled uncertainly and hurried out after Noel.

I sat alone in the conference room, staring at the whiteboard covered in Noel’s color-coded battle plans.

Tomorrow was going to be a nightmare.