Pop-Up Comments Say She Made a Dirty Joke
Hey, she said, her voice loud enough to turn heads. Aren't you going to explain why you were just touching my thigh?
Just then, the text appeared in my vision—the shimmering, translucent comments that only I could ever see.
【Yesss, here it comes. Our main character curing the broody autistic guy. Kelly's a natural!】
【Look at him pretending to be annoyed. We all know he’s secretly thrilled. He's totally falling for our girl.】
【Ugh, so annoying. The side character is about to ruin the vibe and interrupt their flirting.】
【Whatever. Even if the side character interferes, she'll just make the male lead hate her more. She's no match for our adorable new heroine.】
1
The air thickened.
David looked utterly lost, stammering, “I-I didn’t.” His knuckles were white where he gripped his water bottle.
The campus green was packed with students rehearsing for the Welcome Week talent show. The girl’s voice had carried, and now dozens of eyes were on us.
Her own eyes were bright with mischief as she giggled. "David Hayes, I thought you were mute. Look at you, using your words!"
Whispers rippled through the crowd. Under the weight of their stares and contempt, beads of sweat broke out on David's forehead. His autism already made speaking difficult; being the center of attention like this was sending him into a full-blown panic.
Seeing his silence, the girl’s smirk widened.
I was only here to give a speech as a student representative. I never imagined it would lead to this kind of trouble for David.
I switched on my phone’s camera and held it up. "Excuse me," I said, my voice level. "Just to confirm, you're accusing David Hayes of touching your thigh? Because if you are, I'm calling campus security and having them pull the surveillance footage right now."
The girl’s smile froze. A frown creased her forehead.
David stared at me, his throat working silently.
The comments began to scroll frantically across my vision.
【LOL, this side character doesn't play by the rules. Does she think this will make the male lead fall for her?】
【Dumb bitch. They were just flirting. She's about to trigger his protective-boyfriend mode and she doesn't even know it.】
【She’s just jealous the main character can get a reaction out of him. What a petty little snake.】
The girl shot me a dirty look, her voice turning whiny. "It was just a joke. You're being way too uptight, upperclassman." But the triumphant glint in her eyes screamed that I was a busybody.
I started dialing. "A joke?" I snapped. "Do you have any idea what slander is? It's a crime."
To my shock, David finally spoke, his words slow and strained. "Don't... Stay out of it." He reached out and shoved my arm, knocking the phone from my hand. It went sailing in an arc through the air.
More stares. More whispers.
David was a man of few words, but never, in all the years I'd stood up for him, had he publicly humiliated me like this.
I took a deep, shuddering breath to keep myself from slapping him. I bent down, picked up my phone, and turned to leave without another word.
Fine. I was done.
The comments were a chorus of smug satisfaction.
【LMAO, the side piece is gonna have an aneurysm. Serves her right for being extra.】
【The guy himself doesn't even care. She's like the gossip queen reincarnated.】
【She's always hanging around him, but he's never called her his girlfriend. She's just delusional.】
A second later, David was jogging to catch up with me. He tugged gently on my sleeve, the same way he always did when he knew he’d messed up. I turned, and he looked at me with that wide-eyed, innocent expression that always worked on me.
The comments exploded.
【WTF is the male lead doing? Why is he chasing after that psycho?】
【This side chick is such a drama queen. Playing hard to get? So gross.】
【David, get back to our girl Kelly! She'd go home with you tonight if you just asked. What's so great about this little snake anyway?】
I looked down, a wave of exhaustion washing over me. I knew David’s mind worked differently, but this still felt like a slap in the face. After my parents left, his mother, Mrs. Hayes, had been the one to look out for me. I couldn’t bring myself to yell at him, but I wasn't going to swallow my pride either.
I yanked my sleeve out of his grasp. "I'm tired from the event," I said, my voice cold. "I'm going back to my dorm."
The comments flashed. 【What a bitch.】
David just blinked, saying what he always said when we parted. "Be safe."
2
After the Welcome Week festivities, my senior year schedule became even more brutal. I’d already secured a spot in a top-tier graduate program, but I still had to connect with my new advisor and finish a major project for my undergrad mentor. I spent my days buried in the lab, trying not to think about how much David had hurt me.
Occasionally, I'd overhear snippets of gossip about the 'Freshman It Girl' chasing the 'Genius Upperclassman.'
Then, one evening, I got a frantic call from Mrs. Hayes. "Lara," she said, her voice tight with panic, "David has been so… distant lately. He's not home yet, and he forgot his medication." Her voice cracked. "I'm so afraid he's going to have an episode. Can you please, please take his pills to him?"
I understood the gravity of the situation immediately. After reassuring her, I grabbed my bag and sprinted to the university's art building.
But when I got to the studio, David's easel was empty.
A student I knew glanced up from his work. "Well, if it isn't David's little girlfriend," he teased. "Here to check up on your man? You're in the wrong place. He barely comes here anymore."
A cold dread seeped into my bones. The submission deadline for the International Art Competition was just two weeks away. Why wouldn't he be in the studio?
After a quick text to his roommate, I finally found him at an off-campus bar.
The moment I stepped inside, the blast of noise—clinking glasses, shouting, thumping music—gave me a headache. I couldn't imagine David, who despised loud places, being here.
The private room was dimly lit, the air thick with a cloying, intimate energy. Kelly was pressed right up against David, her face so close to his they were almost touching. I watched as her finger traced the bridge of his nose while she whispered something in his ear.
David's eyelashes fluttered. His ears flushed crimson, but he didn't push her away like he did with everyone else who got too close. They were the center of attention, and the others in the room were hooting and laughing.
The comment stream, which had been quiet, lit up.
【OMG, I'm dying! This is too sweet! He's powerless against our seductive queen!】
【LMAO, Kelly knows how to flirt. She's making me blush.】
【Taking notes! Next time I'm gonna ask my crush if what they say about guys with big noses is true.】
I knocked on the open door, just loud enough to be heard over the noise.
When David's eyes met mine, the red at the tips of his ears hadn't faded.
Kelly shot me a defiant smirk and nudged him. "Look, David, your babysitter's here. She chased you all the way to a bar. Maybe you should be a good boy and go home with her?"
"Hah! Don't tell me you're in your twenties and still have a chaperone!" someone else jeered.
The room erupted in laughter. Someone whistled. "Wow, didn't peg you as a mama's boy, Hayes! Is that your mom calling you home?"
David glared at me, his expression making it perfectly clear that I was not welcome.
Kelly looked at me like a victorious general. "Sorry, Lara. I think David wants to stay here and play with me tonight."
The comments were merciless.
【Does this side chick really think she can show up and claim him? LMAO, what a clown.】
【It’s useless. All this drama is just gonna push the main characters closer together!】
I closed my eyes for a second, then chucked the bottle from my bag directly into David's lap.
Kelly snatched it from him, holding it up to the dim light. "Risperidone?" she read aloud. "What's this for?"
David froze, then scrambled to check the contents of my bag that I had thrown at him. When he looked back up at me, he couldn't meet my gaze.
Without a timely dose of Risperidone, he was prone to severe self-harm. I knew because it had happened once before. Mrs. Hayes had been called away for a family emergency. When I let myself into their house, I found David sitting on the bathroom floor, methodically slicing at his own body with a utility knife, his face completely blank.
He seemed to feel no pain, just carving into his own flesh as if it belonged to someone else. His arms and legs were a bloody mess, the white tiles painted with crimson patterns. He was about to cut into a major artery when I dove forward and grabbed the blade with my bare hands.
The scar on my palm never fully faded. It was a permanent reminder of that day.
Ever since, I’ve carried a spare bottle of his medication in my bag at all times.
And David knew it.
3
Kelly smirked. "David, this isn't… that kind of pill, is it? Wow, Lara must really care about your… private life. You should thank her." Her eyes darted suggestively toward his crotch. "I mean, you said you two were just friends. It's so nice of her to be this thoughtful."
A stream of 【KELLY IS A QUEEN!!!】 filled my vision, followed by a dozen exclamation points, as if she’d just done something heroic. I frowned, not understanding what they were so excited about.
My job was done. I needed to get back to the lab.
As I turned to leave, David stood up. "Wait. I'll walk you back." Guilt, I assumed. An attempt to make amends.
I saw Kelly's smile tighten at the corners.
The comments rolled.
【Ugh, I'm so jealous. This bitch literally just showed up to annoy our girl!】
【Can the side character just f*** off already? I can't stand seeing her in another scene. She's such a pick-me girl!】
【It's fine, the key plot point is coming up. The male lead is gonna drop the international competition for the female lead and just stay here for grad school. Then the side chick will go to a different school, get bullied by her advisor, and commit suicide. After that, it's happily ever after for our OTP!】
I froze, staring at the words floating in the air.
Kelly stood up, blocking David’s path. “Hey, you promised me,” she purred. “You lost the bet, so you have to spend the night with me. You can’t go back on your word!”
Her words were dripping with innuendo, sending another wave of hoots through the room.
David stopped, his cheeks burning. He shot me a helpless, apologetic look.
I sighed. "You don't have to walk me back. I can go by myself." Before I left, I looked him straight in the eye. "Is our plan to go to Stanton University for grad school still on?"
I was already a lock for the program at SU. David just needed a win at the upcoming competition to secure his spot. With his talent, it should have been easy, but he'd missed the competition the last two years because his mother had been ill. I could have gone to SU for my undergrad, but I’d chosen our current university to stay with him. He knew that. He’d promised we would go to grad school there together.
I couldn’t believe he would break that promise. I refused to believe my story would end like the comments predicted.
David gave me a firm, serious nod.
Relief washed over me. The comments were just nonsense. None of that would happen.
In the days that followed, I focused on the lab, waiting for the official acceptance letters to be released. On the final day for the competition submissions, I texted David to make sure he’d sent in his portfolio.
After a long pause, he replied with a simple "OK" emoji.
I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding.
But as I was reading a research paper, the comments flickered back to life.
【The male lead just got a distress call from the female lead! Look at the change in his expression! LMAO.】
【Our girl Kelly is so smart. Faking being harassed to test his feelings. Genius move.】
【Look how worried he is! Once they meet up, they're definitely gonna confess their feelings for each other.】
My blood ran cold. I immediately tried calling David. It rang a few times, then went to voicemail. I tried again. Disconnected. Again and again, he rejected my calls.
The comments mocked me.
【Is this desperate side chick seriously calling to nag him about his art submission right now?】
【LOL, she needs a reality check. She has no idea where she stands in his heart. She can't do anything to stop them.】
【You really think you can compete with our main character? Just go to SU and save yourself the embarrassment, lmao.】
I stared at my computer screen, the words of the article blurring into an incomprehensible mess.
Late that night, a text from David finally came through.
【I think staying here for my Master's is a better fit for me.】
4
I glanced at the time. It was past midnight.
The competition deadline had passed.
Everything had happened exactly as the comments had foretold.
The next morning, I was at the Hayes's front door. I had worked my ass off for that grad school plan. Even a saint would have a breaking point, and I had reached mine. How dare he just back out?
I didn’t expect to find Kelly sitting in their living room, greeting me like she lived there. “Lara! What are you doing here? Looking for David? I’ll go get him for you.”
She started to get up, ready to shout toward his room.
A comment popped up. 【Our genius girl is here to piss off the side character again! Hahahaha!】
I took a deep breath, walked past her to David’s room, knocked three times, and pushed the door open.
David was shirtless, halfway through pulling on a t-shirt. He stared at me in shock.
Kelly shrieked from behind me. “Lara, what are you doing? He has no privacy with you around!”
More comments. 【What a bitch. Just trying to show off how much closer she is to him than the main character.】
The truth was, Mrs. Hayes had never put a lock on his door, terrified he might have an episode. I had been walking in like this for years to avoid disturbing him while he painted.
I cut straight to the point. “David, we had a deal. We were going to Stanton together. What gives you the right to just back out?”
He avoided my eyes, slowly pulling on his shirt without a word.
But Kelly jumped in, her voice dripping with false sympathy. “Lara, don’t blame him. It was my fault. If I hadn’t gotten hassled by those creeps, he wouldn’t have missed the deadline.”
“I wasn’t talking to you,” I said flatly. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
Kelly’s eyes widened, stunned that I would be so blunt.
David frowned, his voice sharp. “Lara, don’t be mean to her. This has nothing to do with her.”
I almost laughed. “Fine,” I shot back, my voice rising. “Then you tell me. Why did you break your promise for no reason? Because she had a problem? A problem she couldn’t call the police about, so she had to call you instead?”
He still wouldn’t look at me. He knew I was right.
Mrs. Hayes came out of the kitchen. “Lara, what’s with all the shouting?”
Before I could answer, Kelly interjected. “Lara, David has his own plans. You shouldn’t try to tie his future to yours!”
The comments went wild. 【Wooooow, our girl is in protective mode!】
I fixed my gaze on David. “Am I tying you down? Did I force you to apply to Stanton?”
He was silent for a long moment, then mumbled, “I want to stay here.”
The air left my lungs. He hadn’t answered my question. He had stabbed me in the back. Again.
Kelly’s smile was triumphant. “See, Lara? You can’t always expect him to accommodate you. You’ll ruin his future.” Her voice was sickeningly sweet. “He’s a genius. He knows what’s best for himself.”
David said nothing, which was as good as an agreement.
Mrs. Hayes’s expression hardened. “Lara, we’re happy for you that you got into Stanton. But if David wants to stay here, you should respect his decision.” She sighed. “He’s not a child anymore. He can’t always rely on you to take care of him. The two of you… should be more mindful of appearances.”
My heart turned to ice. My own parents were always busy, never home. Growing up, it was Mrs. Hayes who had always called me over for dinner, giving me my only taste of a warm family life. I had poured all my affection, all my loyalty, into her and her son. I took on the burden of protecting David from the world as my way of repaying her kindness. I shielded him from bullies and cruel whispers for over a decade. My entire future was planned around his.
And Mrs. Hayes knew it. She knew all about our plan to go to SU. Now, she was acting like I was a burden, her words dripping with resentment.
The comments were ecstatic.
【LMAO, even his mom is on the main character's side now! What a failure!】
【The mother-in-law probably realized Kelly is better for him. The side character is useless now! Look at our cute main girl!】
【Seeing the side chick’s face go pale is so satisfying! This is the kind of drama I've been waiting for!】
That’s when I noticed it. Ever since David had spoken up, Mrs. Hayes hadn't taken her eyes off Kelly. Her expression was full of surprise and excitement. Even she could see how differently David treated this new girl. And because of that, she had chosen her son, and Kelly, without a moment's hesitation.
All the strength drained out of me. After all these years, I was still just a useful outsider.
This wasn’t a family. And I didn't want it anymore.
“Fine,” I said, my voice hollow. “From now on, David is no longer my problem.”
5
Mrs. Hayes had tried to set me and David up before, and I hadn’t resisted. In my heart, the longing for a real family, a place to belong, had always been a desperate ache, even if I knew my feelings for David were more sisterly than romantic.
But now, she had made it clear: David didn’t need my protection anymore.
With that, my debt to her was paid. The Hayes family would never be my family. The hope I’d cherished for so long was just a childish fantasy.
As I walked out their door, my resolve hardened. I pulled out my phone and sent a message to my academic advisor, officially withdrawing my application for the graduate program.
Then, I texted a number I hadn’t contacted in years.
【Dad, I want to apply to grad school abroad. Can you help me, just this once?】
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