Seeing the stern expressions surrounding him, Nobita's panic intensified.
"It's really not like that!" Nobita whined defensively, sounding genuinely aggrieved. "It was just a prank! I didn't mean anything else by it! Why is everyone reacting so strongly this time? It's just like other times!"
As this thought crossed his mind, his gaze towards Lin Yu hardened with resentment. This is all his fault! Nobita fumed internally. If it weren't for this guy showing up, I wouldn't have wanted to pretend to be a transfer student, and none of this would have happened!
A child's resentment isn't as easily masked as an adult's, and Lin Yu clearly registered Nobita's shift in mood. He chuckled inwardly but saw no need to comment further.
This mischievous kid, Nobita, clearly hasn't learned a thing from this, Lin Yu thought. He shows no real remorse. Expecting him to change overnight was impossible. After all, even in the original story, after countless adventures and lessons, Nobita largely remained... well, Nobita.
Still, Lin Yu had achieved his primary goal. Dealing with Nobita was like handling a toad – not poisonous, maybe, but definitely annoying. Lin Yu needed to focus his energy on practicing manga; having Nobita constantly trying to pull stunts would be a major hassle. This incident would hopefully make the more sensible Doraemon think twice before carelessly lending out gadgets, at least for a while, especially for Nobita's potentially disruptive schemes. And, in a way, Doraemon now arguably owed him a small favor. That might make future interactions—or perhaps borrowing a gadget himself someday—a bit smoother.
"Everyone, let's not argue anymore," Lin Yu interjected smoothly, stepping into the tense silence. "I'm sure Nobita didn't really mean any harm, right? We're all classmates, friends. He's already admitted he was wrong, so we should give him a chance to learn from this."
"Besides," he added with a sincere smile, "being able to have dinner here at Nobita's house today was truly a wonderful experience for me."
Lin Yu's diplomatic intervention effectively defused the situation. Children, after all, are relatively easy to mollify. And Mrs. Nobi, while exasperated with her son, wasn't about to disown him over this. Hearing Lin Yu speak so maturely only increased her fondness for the polite young man.
"Nobita, apologize properly to Lin Yu this instant!" Mrs. Nobi ordered sternly. Then, turning back to Lin Yu, "And Lin Yu, please rest assured, if anything like this ever happens again, I absolutely will not let him off lightly!"
Nobita pressed his lips together, rebellion clear on his face. But one look at his mother's stern expression had him lowering his head and mumbling reluctantly, "S-sorry, Lin Yu."
"It's alright, don't worry about it," Lin Yu replied cheerfully, patting Nobita's shoulder with a friendly smile. "We're still classmates and good friends, aren't we?"
Nobita gave a silent nod, his head still bowed, hiding his expression. But Lin Yu knew inwardly that the apology meant nothing; Nobita wasn't convinced he'd done anything truly wrong.
"Well, Auntie Nobi, thank you again for everything, but it's getting late, and I should really be heading home now," Lin Yu said politely.
"Oh my goodness, I almost forgot!" Mrs. Nobi exclaimed, looking concerned again. "It's so late! Your family must be worried sick! Let me walk you home, dear, I can explain to them what happened..." She hated the thought of this polite boy getting into trouble because of Nobita.
"That's very kind, Auntie, but it's alright," Lin Yu reassured her. "There's actually no one home at my place right now, so it's fine."
With that, Lin Yu waved goodbye to Mrs. Nobi, Nobita, and Doraemon. "Bye Auntie, bye Doraemon, bye Nobita! See you at school tomorrow!" He then turned to the others. "Come on, Shizuka, Gian, Suneo, let's walk back together."
Watching the four children walk away, Mrs. Nobi let out a soft sigh. Sometimes, she really wished she had such a sensible child, instead of one who seemed determined to cause trouble all day long.
The moment his mother shut the door, Nobita made a dash for the stairs, hoping to escape the inevitable lecture. Based on long experience, he knew what was coming. Sure enough, before he'd taken two steps, Mrs. Nobi's voice rang out, "Nobita! You get back here this instant!" Nobita clutched his empty stomach and bolted upstairs, and the familiar sounds of a Nobi household argument filled the air once more.
...
On the walk home, Gian and Suneo were still fuming.
"That Nobita! Just because he has Doraemon, he thinks he can get away with anything! He's going too far!" Gian grumbled.
"Yeah! And I actually thought he'd learned his lesson today!" Suneo added indignantly.
Shizuka, however, walked quietly beside Lin Yu, glancing at him with concern. "Lin Yu... are you really okay after... everything that happened today?"
Lin Yu met her worried gaze with his usual gentle smile. "It's nothing, really. I'm quite used to it," he said cryptically. "Sometimes, revisiting that kind of feeling... maybe it isn't entirely a bad thing."
"What are you guys talking about? 'Used to it'?" Gian interrupted, looking completely lost. "Sounds like a riddle."
"Oh, n-nothing!" Shizuka quickly stammered, shaking her head. Knowing Lin Yu's family situation, she didn't want to probe into something potentially painful for him.
"Hey, Lin Yu," Suneo piped up, suddenly remembering what Lin Yu had said earlier. "Do your parents always come home really late? How about we hang out at your place next time?! We just won't invite Nobita – let him stay home and think about what he did!"
"Sure, that's..." Lin Yu nodded, about to agree, when Shizuka cut in softly, her voice hesitant.
"Is that... really okay, Lin Yu?"
Lin Yu looked at Shizuka and saw the uncertainty in her eyes. He instantly understood her hesitation stemmed from concern about his family situation.
"It's fine, really," he reassured them with a smile. "We're all friends, aren't we? You're welcome to come over anytime. Just... there might not be anyone there to play host," he added lightly. "Most of the time, it's just me at home. Alone."
Hearing this, both Gian and Suneo stopped in their tracks, stunned.
Gian scratched his head, confusion written all over his face. "Alone? But then how do you...?"
Before Gian could finish his blunt question, Suneo quickly jabbed him with an elbow. Compared to the sometimes dense Gian, Suneo was quicker on the uptake and sensed they were treading on sensitive ground.