ICYM Ch 25

Episode 25

Was that really something worth asking with urgency while forcing myself halfway up like that?

I acted like I didn’t care at all when it was about my own body, but now I was suddenly asking who saved me?

The nurse looked at me strangely, like they were seeing someone who didn’t make any sense.

When I didn’t back down and just looked at them with bright, unrelenting eyes, the nurse, after a moment of silence, answered with a troubled expression.

“When you arrived here, I was out of the room.”

“…Huh?”

“When I came back, you were already lying down. I was so focused on checking your condition, that I didn’t ask for a name.”

“……”

“There wasn’t exactly time for introductions with a student collapsed in front of me.”

They added that unless it’s a student who visits the infirmary often, they don’t usually remember names.

They didn’t know his name…

“…Ah.”

When I made no effort to hide my disappointment, the nurse hurriedly added, “But whoever it was said he’d be back after this period since he reported you were leaving early.”

“Really?”

The moment my face brightened, the nurse let out a dry chuckle and said firmly, “So lie back down. Now.”

At the nurse’s words, I quickly lay back down.

“Yes.”

“If you start feeling worse, let me know.”

“Okay.”

So I can find out who it was. Thank goodness.

I thought I was well enough to move again, but the moment I lay down, the aching returned all over my body.

As I shifted into a more comfortable position, sleep quickly washed over me.

* * *

“Hayden…”

“…Mm.”

“Hayden? If you’re still not feeling well, should we stop by the hospital?”

“No… Huh—!”

Half-asleep, I answered without thinking, and then suddenly, memories of where I was and what had happened before I fell asleep flashed through my mind.

Unintentionally, I jolted upright with a start, flailing without meaning to, and the person sitting beside the bed took half a step back in surprise.

“…Senior?”

“You flailed like a freshly caught fish and scared me.”

Clutching his chest with a startled look, Sunbae met my eyes and finally let out a hearty laugh.

“It’s really you, Senior?”

“Huh? Who else would it be but me?”

“No, I mean… the person who saved me… that was you, Senior?”

Sunbae was the one who carried me to the infirmary?

My voice came out in a daze before I even realized it. Sunbae looked at my dumbfounded face and slowly nodded.

“…Yeah.”

It was really Sunbae. In a school this big, what are the odds that an upperclassman from a different year would happen to find me?

It was the kind of thing that would make my friend burst out laughing and say they saw it coming, but… it really felt like fate.

“…Wow… It was you, Senior.”

I quietly murmured to myself as I ran a hand through my hair. My heart was beating in a pleasant rhythm.

“You don’t still have a fever, do you?”

Maybe because I was acting a little different from usual, Sunbae placed a hand on my forehead and asked.

“No, I’m fine. Just surprised, that’s all.”

They say when coincidences keep piling up, it becomes a connection, and when that connection builds even further, it turns into fate.

And I felt like that kind of moment had finally come to me.

“I asked the dorm supervisor to change your room. They’re on the phone right now.”

So that’s why it was so quiet. I hadn’t realized the nurse had been on a call.

“Ah…”

Come to think of it, Sunbae probably already knew I was an Omega. If I’d known things would turn out like this, I should’ve just told him myself from the start.

Feeling like my flaws had been exposed, I dropped my head low.

And I guess Owen knows too.

Since the room change happened so suddenly, there’s no way they could ask him to move without giving any kind of explanation.

“…Thanks.”

I thought I’d be indifferent, but realizing that people now knew I was an Omega got to me more than I expected, and my thanks came out later than it should have.

“Why do you look so down?”

“…You must’ve been really taken aback when you found out I hid my designation.”

Better to get hit now than later. My direct question seemed to catch Sunbae off guard, and he didn’t answer right away. Just as I clenched the bedsheets, unable to bring myself to look at his face—

“You’d think I had time to worry about that when you were unconscious and collapsed in front of me?”

“…Huh?”

“Hearing you say that actually makes me a little mad now.”

He said he was angry, but his voice was laced with amusement. That was when I realized he was trying to ease my mind.

If he’d truly been upset, there’s no way he would’ve said it like that.

“…Thanks.”

Hugging my knees, I sat there, moved by how maturely Sunbae had handled everything.

“For what.”

Sunbae pulled the curtain around my bed to give me some privacy.

“Are you leaving early too, Senior?”

“From what I heard, the school nurse said they’re going to drive you back.”

“Really?”

Since he wasn’t sure, Sunbae said it would be better to ask the nurse again, and opened the door to look outside, then came back in. 

“Looks like the school nurse’s still on the phone.”

“Do you want to drag that chair over and sit?”

I pointed at the chair the nurse had pulled over and sat on earlier.

Sunbae looked at the chair and said, “Should I?” and reached for it.

My eyes landed on Sunbae’s hand resting on the chair. One side of the bandage had come loose and was dangling off. Through the gap, I could clearly see a fresh-looking wound that didn’t seem very old.

“Huh? Senior, you’re hurt?”

“Huh?”

“Your hand… The bandage is coming off.”

Worried, I reached out to the back of his hand. Did he scrape it on something? But the line looked more like a long, dragged scratch than a simple scrape…

Smack.

Sunbae sharply knocked my hand away, then quickly covered the injured spot with his other hand.

“I’ll take care of it.”

His firm rejection left my hand awkwardly hanging in the air.

“…Oh… Okay.”

Why did he react like that? Just a moment ago, everything had felt so warm and lighthearted. But now, it was like a bucket of cold water had been dumped over my head.

I felt a bit embarrassed, but more than that, I couldn’t stop thinking about why he’d slapped my hand away so forcefully.

Biting my lower lip, I slowly withdrew the hand I’d left suspended in the air.

I knew it probably wasn’t the case, but one thought instinctively crossed my mind before anything else.

Could it be because I’m an Omega…?

If not that, then what reason would he have to suddenly react so harshly?

“You’re not thinking something weird, are you?”

“…Huh?”

“Your face looks like you’re thinking something weird.”

“No… It’s just, you pushed my hand away so suddenly…”

Sunbae asked as if he could see right through my thoughts. He spoke so calmly that, for a moment, I felt strange for even having those thoughts.

“I—I just scratched it, but it hurts way more than I expected.”

“Oh, really?”

I didn’t realize it was such a painful wound that he’d swat my hand away before I even touched it.

“I should reapply the bandage.”

As if to say I’d misunderstood everything, Sunbae ruffled my hair with his uninjured hand. There wasn’t even a hint of reluctance in his touch.

Then, saying he might as well do it now, he walked over to the trash bin. With his back to me, he peeled off the old bandage and took out a fresh one from his pocket, sticking it on right away.

Wouldn’t it be easier if I helped him?

Using one hand must make it harder… But contrary to my worries, the new bandage sat neatly on his hand. It was a lot bigger than I’d expected, and as I stared at it, Sunbae let out a faint sigh and scolded me.

“And are you really in any position to be worrying about me right now?”

“Huh?”

“You should be worrying about yourself first.”

“Oh, I’m fine.”

Compared to earlier, I actually felt like I could breathe now. Wanting to show him I was really okay, I tried to get up.

“Heave-ho… Huh?”

But my legs didn’t move the way I thought they would. They felt weak and wobbly, and I ended up collapsing right back down.

“…Was that supposed to be a physical comedy?”

“No, I was really trying to stand up.”

“Pfft.”

Sunbae quickly covered his mouth, but I’d already seen the laugh escape.

“My legs are weaker than I thought.”

“Just lie down.”

“Okay.”

Sunbae gently pushed my shoulder down onto the bed and pulled the blanket up to my chin.

Even though he knows I’m an Omega now, nothing’s changed at all.

When I stayed put obediently, Sunbae looked satisfied and finally sat down in the chair he’d pulled over earlier.

“Oh, and Senior… Um, about my secondary gender…”

Even if he became closer with the potato squad, I didn’t think he’d ever say anything carelessly. Still, I figured it’d ease my mind if I made it clear that I wanted him to keep it to himself.

Just thinking about that damn potato group snickering in the classroom and releasing their pheromones while calling me a Beta, made my mood plummet instantly.

“Yeah?”

“It’s just… If possible, I’d like to keep it a secret…”

Even though I trailed off at the end, Sunbae picked up on exactly what I meant and answered without a moment of hesitation, so I wouldn’t worry.

“If someone reveals that without permission, they’re breaking the law.”

It’s usually Omegas, the socially disadvantaged, who hid their secondary genders, and it’s almost always Alphas or Betas who outed them.

So in reality, there were almost no actual legal precedents for punishment.

There’s no way Sunbae didn’t already know that.

He’s just saying that on purpose.

Because he wants me to feel at ease.

I liked that about him. He would say it like that just to take the weight off my shoulders.

Some decisions come slowly, after sorting through your thoughts. But others strike you like lightning, clear and sudden.

This was definitely the latter.

I’m going to confess.

I was flustered that my being an Omega had been unintentionally exposed, but looking on the bright side, it meant I no longer had anything to hide.

Sunbae would only get busier from here on out, and if things stayed as they were, we’d probably start drifting apart naturally. I didn’t want that.

Before, I was unsure. But now, I was certain.

Sunbae definitely had feelings for me too.