7MoH 1.21

It was only after a few more seconds that Jeong-in could afford to look around. The lively locker room was filled with junior varsity team players and some cheerleaders. Everyone was still in their uniforms.

“W-what is this… why am I here…”

Jeong-in’s voice trembled faintly. He instinctively showed a defensive attitude, hunching his shoulders. This was because situations where he was surrounded by many people had never gone well.

In this affluent neighborhood’s public school, students of his ethnicity were conspicuous. They were often targets of bullying, and the survival instinct created by those experiences made them adopt an attitude of protecting themselves even if the situation was slightly off.

Chase seemed to sense Jeong-in’s tension and lowered his head to look into Jeong-in’s face. His voice resonated softly right next to his ear.

“Jay, are you okay?”

Jeong-in hesitated for a moment, then nodded. Only then did Chase carefully release her arms. The spot where his touch had been still seemed to retain a peculiar warmth.

At that moment, Darius Thompson, who had been rummaging through his bag in one corner of the locker room, approached Jeong-in with something in hand. The tall and athletic man smiled like a child and said,

“Thank you, teacher.”

What he held out was a test paper full of crease marks. Jeong-in looked down at the paper. Next to Darius’s name written in childish handwriting, a score written in red pen was clearly visible.

[B-]

Jeong-in’s eyes sparkled.

“Oh? Is this real?”

Thompson had received a B- on his math quiz. He said it was the first such score in his life. If he could keep this up, a final grade of C might be entirely possible.

Thompson remaining on the team was good not only for him but for everyone who wanted to play in college. When scouts came to see a star player, the chances of others being noticed increased as well.

And that was good news for Jeong-in too. It meant securing a recommendation letter written by the principal himself.

Jeong-in smiled proudly as he returned the test paper. The tense moments had already disappeared, and the awkward atmosphere was gradually softening.

Among the cheerleaders who were laughing and chatting with the players, Jeong-in’s eyes first searched for Vivian. Perhaps she didn’t participate in such trivial gatherings—there was no sign of her. But for some reason, Madison, who always hovered around Vivian like a keychain, was here.

Madison, noticing Jeong-in, waved with a slightly embarrassed face, perhaps recalling their previous meeting.

“Hi, Jay.”

“Madison.”

The two exchanged a silent conversation with their eyes: “Are you okay now?” “Yes.” Chase, standing nearby, narrowed his eyes slightly and asked,

“You two know each other?”

“Something like that.”

Madison just shrugged with a small smile, adding no further explanation. Chase’s eyebrows furrowed at her words, which suggested it was their own secret. His displeasure was not hidden.

“But why are you all here?”

“Today was our first training session, so we just did some warm-ups and finished. So we’re having a party to celebrate Thompson too.”

Jeong-in looked around the locker room once more, raising an eyebrow slightly.

“Here?”

“We’d get in trouble with the coach if we were caught.”

As if this kind of thing happened frequently and was familiar to them, they all seemed extremely natural. One person kept watch while another received the food they had ordered for delivery.

The locker room crowded with cheerleaders and football players was filled with tension between the genders. Of course, Brian Cole was already cuddled up with his girlfriend Ava, giggling together.

Jeong-in felt like he might suffocate from the overflowing hormones. Weren’t teenagers just walking hormones themselves? Though he probably wasn’t much different.

It was just as the food was running out that Max Schneider began to make an unidentifiable drink. He poured various beverages into a large bucket, even adding the cola he had been drinking.

Jeong-in’s face scrunched up in disgust. Watching Max Schneider use a red plastic cup as a ladle to serve the mixture from the bucket, he vowed he would rather drink bleach than put that in his mouth.

“Let’s play a game!”

The only games Jeong-in knew were computer or board games, but these kids surely wouldn’t be playing those. Sure enough, young men thinking only about being close to girls in the same space had predictable ideas about ‘games.’

They decided to play “7 Minutes in Heaven.”

7 Minutes in Heaven is a simple game where participants sit in a circle, spin a bottle twice, and the two people indicated by the bottle’s mouth must spend seven minutes in a secluded space like a closet. If someone doesn’t want to go in, they can drink a penalty drink and spin the bottle again.

The “heaven” space was designated as an empty locker. The football team’s lockers were about twice the size of regular ones due to the equipment they needed to store.

The beverage meticulously prepared by Max Schneider decreased by one cup at a time. When cheerleaders were paired with the same gender, they casually entered the locker, but when players were paired with the same gender, they grimaced and drank the penalty drink instead.

When Chase Prescott was paired with Alex Martinez, they both immediately grabbed cups and downed them in one go as soon as they saw each other. Laughter erupted among the group.

Madison, who had just emerged from the closet with a fellow cheerleader, spun the bottle to choose the next participant. The rapidly spinning bottle mouth stopped, pointing directly at Jeong-in.

“Ugh…”

The players and cheerleaders around all looked at him with mischievous faces.

“Spin it quick! You have to choose your partner!”

“Yeah, Jay! It’s your turn!”

Jeong-in reluctantly picked up the bottle. He laid it on the floor and gave it a strong spin using his wrist.

The spinning bottle tip passed Madison, brushed by Brian Cole, hovered over Darius Thompson, and finally even passed Max Schneider.

As the bottle gradually slowed down, the tip pointed at…

“Prescott! You’re picked again!”

It was Chase Prescott.

Max Schneider first shook the cup containing the drink he had made towards Jeong-in.

“Heaven or hell?”

Jeong-in, who wanted to decline the hell of drinking Max Schneider’s mixture, frowned with perplexity.

“I don’t want to drink that…”

As Jeong-in mumbled, showing his discomfort, Schneider shouted as if he’d been waiting for this moment.

“Heaven wins! Alright, Prescott. Now it’s your turn!”

All eyes turned to Chase.

“Prescott, what are you going to do?”

Max pressed for an answer. Everyone was certain he would drink the penalty drink like before.

However, contrary to everyone’s expectations, Chase slowly got up. As the surroundings held their breath and watched, he shrugged and answered lightly.

“Well, rules are rules.”

He calmly gestured for Jeong-in to stand up. Jeong-in remained frozen, trying to understand what his proposal meant. But with the cheers pouring in from around, there was no time to think of anything else.

Jeong-in asked dumbfoundedly, “You’re not drinking?”

“I don’t want to drink anymore. It tastes awful.”

Jeong-in’s mouth fell open, having expected Chase to definitely refuse the “heaven” option. He wasn’t the only one surprised by the unexpected situation. Several onlookers quietly murmured among themselves.

“R-really?”

Jeong-in looked at Chase as if seeking salvation. His eyes were asking if he could drink the penalty instead. But Chase calmly replied as if there was no choice.

“It’s fine. Seven minutes will go by quickly.”

That wasn’t comforting at all.

The eyes of the players and cheerleaders were still on them, and a mischievous smile and anticipation hung in the air.

Deciding that further resistance was pointless, Jeong-in sighed softly and stood up. Then he slowly entered the open locker.

Chase followed, squeezing his large body in. There was a slight sound as his shoulders caught on the doorframe, and Jeong-in instinctively moved to the side to make room.

“Closing the door!”

Max Schneider warned kindly as he closed the door.

The space was so narrow that their knees tangled. Jeong-in felt his fingertips stiffen with tension.

He now fully realized just how big Chase’s build was. Their lower bodies were almost touching in the narrow space, and Jeong-in twisted his upper body sideways, trying to maintain as much distance as possible.

“M-move over a bit.”

“What?”

“It’s uncomfortable.”

“Stop struggling and just hold onto my waist.”

Inevitably, Jeong-in had to grasp Chase’s waist as if embracing him. Chase propped one hand above Jeong-in’s head and looked down at him with a relaxed expression as he fumbled awkwardly.

Just then, someone outside playfully pounded on the locker.

“Starting the 7-minute countdown. Begin!”

The voices of those chatting cheerfully outside could be heard, unconcerned with the people trapped inside. But inside the locker, no one spoke.

Jeong-in’s glasses fogged up each time Chase’s breath touched them, obscuring his vision.

“Stop that. You’re making my glasses fog up.”

“Stop what? Stop breathing?”

Chase whispered with a hint of laughter in his voice.

“Just take your glasses off instead.”

Thinking that would be better, Jeong-in removed his glasses and tucked them into his shirt pocket. Soon he felt Chase’s gaze intently studying his bare face.

“Those glasses… they’re really something every time I see them.”

“My mom bought them for me when I started high school.”

“…No wonder they’re so pretty.”

“Pfft…”

Jeong-in burst out laughing, and Chase stared at his face. Feeling the atmosphere grow somehow awkward, Jeong-in felt he should say something.

“Have you played this game a lot?”

“Well, a fair amount.”

“What do people usually do when locked in like this?”

“They kiss.”

Jeong-in’s eyes blinked rapidly three or four times, startled by Chase’s simple and direct answer. His large, dark eyes were moist with a slight glimmer.

Jeong-in’s dramatic reaction to the mere mention of kissing sparked mischief in Chase’s blue eyes.

He tilted his head slightly and whispered in Jeong-in’s ear in a low voice.

“Like this.”

Chase slowly lowered his face. His movements were deliberately slow, and Jeong-in, as if hypnotized, could only watch him approach without moving.

Like a butterfly landing on a flower, something warm, soft, and tender settled on Jeong-in’s lips.

It felt like his breath had stopped. No, it had stopped. His heart seemed to be beating right next to his ear.

Jeong-in’s eyelashes fluttered convulsively. In Jeong-in’s wide-eyed gaze, unable to even blink, he saw Chase’s eyes, gently closed. His golden-brown eyelashes were long and dark.

The sensation of his lips pressing against his without any friction disappeared. A very small “chu” sound was heard. It was light and brief, but an undeniable kiss.

Chase pulled his face away and slowly opened his eyes, and their eyes met.

It was then that Chase’s relaxed, smiling expression began to change gradually. Instead of the playful intent to tease him, his face held a strange expression, as if he had realized something completely unexpected.

In that moment, Jeong-in knew immediately.

That his hidden feelings had finally been discovered.

<To be continued in the next volume>