"No! No way!" Hearing his mom invite Lin Yu to stay for dinner, Nobita immediately blurted out, somewhat panicked.
"Nobita!" his mother, Tamako, snapped. "Your classmate came all this way to see you, how can you behave like that!" Tamako Nobi's brow furrowed. The full force of a mother's displeasure instantly filled the air.
Seeing his mom was genuinely angry, Nobita wilted, not daring to meet her eyes. He lowered his head and stared at his toes, silent.
Seeing this, Lin Yu quickly stepped in with a smile to smooth things over. "It's alright, Auntie. It's getting late, and I should head home for dinner too. Since Nobita seems to be okay, I'll get going."
With that, Lin Yu stood up and politely bid farewell to Tamako and Doraemon.
"Are you sure you won't stay for dinner? You only just arrived..." Tamako started.
"No, thank you, Auntie. Thanks for your hospitality, but I shouldn't impose any longer." Lin Yu smiled politely, gathered his newly bought supplies, and headed for the door.
His visit this time was purely to make a good impression. After all, if he ever wanted to borrow any of Doraemon's gadgets in the future, establishing a good relationship was essential. As for Nobita himself... well, Lin Yu didn't really care much about his opinion. He trusted that any discerning person would know how to view a brat like Nobita.
Watching Lin Yu leave with his arms full of bags, Nobita harrumphed. Even though Lin Yu had been the one to offer to leave, Nobita felt a ridiculous sliver of pride, as if he'd successfully defended his territory.
But that pride didn't last long. Tamako Nobi's stern voice cut through the air.
"No! Bi! Ta!"
"How could I have such a rude child? You have no manners at all! Your classmate came all this way out of kindness to see you, and that's the attitude you show? You're making me furious! When will you ever be as considerate as other children?" Tamako stood with one hand on her hip, poking Nobita's forehead with the other, the very picture of exasperation—that 'wishing iron would turn into steel' look.
"I..." Nobita wanted to explain, but if he recounted the day's events, he knew he'd just get another earful. He'd already been bullied by Gian and his gang today, then he saw Lin Yu 'dating' Shizuka, and now his own mother was yelling at him. The injustice of it all overwhelmed him.
"You don't understand anything!" he blurted out angrily, wiped his tears, and ran upstairs.
Watching him go, Tamako rubbed her temples, a headache forming. Her expression grew even angrier. "Nobita! If you don't realize you're in the wrong, you can just skip dinner tonight!"
"Fine! I won't eat then!" came Nobita's muffled shout from upstairs.
Doraemon, caught in the middle, sighed helplessly. "Mama, please don't be angry. I'll go talk to Nobita." With that, Doraemon pattered up the stairs on his short little legs.
Reaching Nobita's room, Doraemon found the door closed. He gently pushed it open and saw Nobita curled up on the floor, silently crying. He closed the door quietly behind him.
"Nobita, what's gotten into you today? Did something happen?"
"Waaaaah!" Doraemon's words seemed to open the floodgates, and Nobita's crying intensified. "Doraemon! Waaah! You have to help me! Shizuka might not become my wife anymore!" Nobita threw himself at Doraemon, clinging to him and sobbing.
"There, there, Nobita," Doraemon patted him. "Tell me what happened. If you keep crying all over me like this, I'm going to rust..." Doraemon said helplessly, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket to dab at his own metallic fur where Nobita's tears had landed.
Doraemon didn't believe a word of Nobita's dramatic declaration. After all, he'd heard similar pronouncements countless times over the years. Every time, Nobita would exaggerate wildly to gain his sympathy and get him to pull out a gadget.
After a while, Nobita's sobs subsided. He snatched the handkerchief from Doraemon, blew his nose loudly, and then tried to stuff the used handkerchief back to a visibly disgusted Doraemon. "Today... it was that Lin Yu... He and Shizuka... they went on a date!" he choked out.
"A date?" Doraemon discreetly tucked the handkerchief away and placed a round paw on Nobita's forehead. "You don't have a fever... Are you delirious?"
"It's not nonsense!" Nobita slapped Doraemon's paw away, his face a mask of misery. "It was a date! He even walked Shizuka home! It's because he's a transfer student, that's why everyone likes him! Even Gian and Suneo are nice to him, but they're always mean to me! I've never even walked Shizuka home..." he wailed.
Doraemon looked at Nobita, speechless. He didn't know about the other claims, but getting worked up over someone walking Shizuka home was just ridiculous. Nobita and Shizuka had played together countless times, and Nobita had never bothered to walk her home despite having plenty of opportunities. Besides, it wasn't a big deal; it just meant Lin Yu was more polite.
"Nobita, you're definitely overthinking things..."
"No! It has to be true! Doraemon, you have to help me! I want to become a transfer student too! Then everyone will like me! Gian and Suneo won't bully me anymore, and Shizuka will go on dates with me!" Nobita didn't care, stubbornly tilting his head up, pressing his demand relentlessly.
Seeing this, Doraemon tried to sneak away. He often helped Nobita, but this request was just silly. "But you..."
"I don't care! If you don't help me, I'll never speak to you again!" Seeing Doraemon was reluctant, Nobita's bratty side resurfaced. He grabbed Doraemon's legs and started rolling around on the floor, throwing a full-blown tantrum.
Doraemon grimaced. He knew if he didn't produce something, Nobita wouldn't give up. With a sigh of resignation, he reached into the fourth-dimensional pocket on his belly and started rummaging. "Alright, alright! Let me see what I can find..."
"Really?!" At these words, Nobita instantly stopped crying. The misery vanished from his face as if it had never been there. If it weren't for the tear tracks, one would never believe he'd been bawling moments ago.
With an exasperated sigh, Doraemon rummaged in his pocket for a bit longer and then pulled out a stack of round, colorful stickers, similar to sticky notes.
"Ta-da! The Substitute Stickers!"
"All you have to do is write what you want it to substitute for on the sticker with a pen."