Chapter 8: Play Games with Laughter!

Description

“Two-player puzzle game… what is it?”

“It Takes Two~ Haven’t you played it before?”

“I haven’t played it, but I’ve heard of it…”

“Okay, so do you want to play? If you do, I’ll download it for you right now.”

“I can give it a try…”

“Great, then I’ll download it now~”

“Sister Lisa always feels… so full of energy… I used to think scientists were all like Sister Zhiyi.”

Lisa manipulated the controller, searching for It Takes Two in the PS5 library.

“Well, it’s normal to have stereotypes about scientists, since when they promote themselves, they’re all like little Zhiyi~”

“Calm, rational, intelligent… but before being scientists, we’re ourselves first. Being ourselves doesn’t require anyone to define us.”

“…I see.”

Liuli watched Lisa, who was smiling as she downloaded the game, and took another bite of the big fruit.

Delicious.

‘First… myself. What am I like… Bad grades, clumsy… and timid… ugh… I shouldn’t think about these things.’

“By the way, little white bird, you’re a high schooler, right? A freshman?”

“Mhm… second semester of freshman year, we’ve already been split into tracks.”

“What subjects did you pick?”

“History, Politics, and Geography.”

“History, Politics, and Geography… Ah, so you guys pick individual subjects now?”

“Mhm, first we pick between the History and Physics categories, then we choose a combination from the remaining ones. If not enough people pick a combination, the class might not open, so we’d have to run between classes.”

“That sounds so nice… so youthful, even running between classes. Back in our day, we picked a major track and sat in a classroom, bored to death.”

“Is running around really that great…? My body’s weak, so I feel like it’s pretty tiring.”

“By the way, little white bird, why did you pick liberal arts? I remember schools usually say liberal arts is high pressure and science has better prospects, so they push everyone toward science.”

“Mhm… because History, Politics, and Geography are all subjects I really like. They let me learn a lot about the outside world. About knowing what’s right and what’s wrong.”

“Eh… that’s nice. For me, those things needed memorization, and that was such a pain, so I picked science without hesitation.”

“There really is a lot to memorize… but I still really like History, Politics, and Geography. I also like Chinese and English. It’s just math… no matter how I study it, I can’t do well. I only score around eighty-something.”

Liuli lowered her head, pressed her hands together into a fist, and fidgeted with her fingers.

“If you can’t do well in math, just make up for it with other subjects. What matters isn’t the score—it’s what you’ve learned and whether it helps your future life.”

“Besides, you have household registration in A City, right? Both Little Zhiyi and I came from five-tier cities by passing the exams. Though she skipped grades, while I took the normal route. If I hadn’t gotten in through exams, I’d have to stay in some small place—why, there aren’t even any arcades there!”

“Is that so… Small cities. Medical care and transportation are really inconvenient there. The roads are narrow, the population is sparse, the economy doesn’t develop, people’s mindsets are conservative and behind the times, and there’s not much vitality. Public security wasn’t great before, either.”

“Mhm, true… Huh? Little white bird, how do you know all that so clearly?”

“Ah… mhm… I’ve watched some videos? The books teach some of it too.”

Liuli scratched her head.

She didn’t remember why she knew it so clearly either.

It must have been from watching videos.

“I see. Hey, the game’s downloaded. Local network really is faster than the internet, huh.”

Lisa opened the game, then handed a controller to Liuli.

“Ah… I’ve never opened this PS5 before. There were two controllers?”

“They probably gave a few extras in case you broke one. Look.”

Lisa pointed to the right of the TV, where PS5 controllers in different colors were displayed.

“Oh, oh…”

The two began playing the game, chatting while they played.

“Mhm hm… I want to play this chubby baby! Chubby baby, chubby baby, so cute, so cute~”

“Th-that… what is that…”

Liuli couldn’t quite understand.

“It’s a meme. I think it’s funny. People should enjoy themselves—being happy is what matters most. If you pursue being serious and meaningful about everything, then nothing’s meaningful anymore.”

“Hey, help me push that crate down…”

“Oh, oh… okay…”

“Nice! Great teamwork~ The two of us are practically legendary twins!”

“Mhm… mhm!”

Even though it was just a game, Liuli’s lips unconsciously curled upward.

Somehow… this is really fun!

“Ah! I fell down, hahaha~”

Lisa’s character accidentally dropped to the bottom.

“Gotta run back again~”

“Mmm…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing… I was just thinking that even after falling down, Sister Lisa can still laugh.”

“It’s just a game. Relax. Not everything has to be done perfectly. Besides, doesn’t a big chubby baby falling down look just like a bomb?”

“Mhm… I don’t get it.”

“Sometimes you don’t only get to laugh when you win or do well. Think about it—if it’s a competitive game and only the winners can laugh, then only half the people get to have fun, right?”

“Ah… mhm… that’s true… Losing would feel really frustrating.”

“But with games, the most important thing is having fun playing. When you play, you play with a smile—even if you fail, you still play with a smile. If you’re not happy because of a game, then you’ve got your priorities backwards.”

“I guess that’s true…”

“Hey hey, I’ll jump down and step on this plank. You shoot that nail over to secure it…”

The two played for another two hours without clearing the stage.

In the middle, there was a boss fight that got them stuck.

“Man… looks like that’s all for today. Surrender, surrender~ Let’s play again next time. I’m getting a bit hungry.”

Lisa put the controller back in its place and stretched out on the sofa.

“Mhm… phew…”

Liuli lay on the sofa and let out a long breath.

‘It’s been so long since I played games for two hours straight. It feels so refreshing…’

“Happy?” Lisa asked.

“Mhm… really happy…”

“If you’re happy, then smile a little. I feel like your face is always so tense.”

Lisa scooted closer to Liuli, pressed her finger against the corner of her mouth, and pulled it upward.

“Come on, smile~”

“Wah wah… I-I am smiling!”

“That doesn’t count as a smile~ Smile bigger~”

“Eek—”

“Ugh…”

“Don’t cry. You look prettier when you smile.”

“I… I… ah, Sister Zhiyi.”

“What are you two doing?”

Lin Zhiyi had already pushed open the door and walked in at some point, catching the exact moment Lisa was forcing a smile onto Liuli’s face.

“Well, I just wanted to make little white bird smile…”

“If she doesn’t want to, you shouldn’t force her.”

“Eh… fine, fine.”

Lisa turned her head toward Liuli and pressed her palms together.

“Slap!”

“Sorry, little white bird!”

“Eh… um… it’s fine, it’s nothing… Sister Lisa was only trying to make me happy.”

“But if there’s something that makes you unhappy or uncomfortable, you should say it out loud. That way others will know and can make changes. Don’t accommodate others too much.”

“Exactly, exactly. If you’d told me, I wouldn’t have done that~ Ouch! Little Zhiyi, you hit me again!”

Lisa got tapped on the head by Lin Zhiyi’s tablet and looked up at her with some displeasure.

“…Let’s put that aside for now. Let’s talk about the real matter.”