7MoH 1.7

Chase pointed to himself, and Jeong-in nodded vigorously. After gazing at Jeong-in for a moment, the tall young man slowly stood up. Jeong-in led him to a secluded spot around the corner of the building, where people didn’t pass by.

“What’s up?”

“…I heard you have m-my bag.”

“What?”

Chase frowned as if he’d heard something incomprehensible.

“Th-that day, at the charity party…”

“What? Wait. You were at the party?”

Jeong-in felt a strange sense of dissonance at Chase’s reaction. He was treating Jeong-in like someone he was meeting for the first time, just as he had at the party three days ago.

Was this a new strategy to crush his self-esteem? Jeong-in suddenly felt a wave of fatigue.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know. Your father even introduced us, saying we go to the same school.”

“What? You’re that guy?”

Chase asked with a surprised expression, and Jeong-in was momentarily confused. Not understanding the situation, he just blinked his eyes when Chase’s hand reached out.

Gasp, is he going to hit me?

Instinctively, Jeong-in tightly shut his eyes and raised his arms to guard his face.

“Oh, sorry if I startled you. That’s not what I…”

Only then did Jeong-in cautiously open his eyes. Chase was withdrawing his hand, looking perplexed.

“Can you take off your glasses for a moment?”

After hesitating briefly, Jeong-in removed his glasses. Chase’s expression subtly shifted as he saw the revealed face.

Chase silently stared at Jeong-in’s face without glasses for a long time. His blue eyes slowly traced each of Jeong-in’s features one by one. Feeling as if he was being touched by those eyes, Jeong-in babbled nervously.

“D-deliberately pretending not to know me doesn’t really affect me. It’s not like I have any pride to hurt…”

“Ha.”

In response to Jeong-in’s brave statement, Chase twisted one corner of his mouth and let out a scoff, as if finding it ridiculous.

Jeong-in felt somewhat mocked and put his glasses back on.

“Wait, come over here for a second.”

Chase abruptly urged Jeong-in, taking him to where his friends were. Placing Jeong-in in front of him, he addressed his group with a playful smile.

“Guys, I’m going to show you a magic trick.”

Chase put one hand on Jeong-in’s shoulder, leaned forward, and said “Excuse me” as he removed Jeong-in’s glasses. The eyes of the audience widened.

“Holy crap.”

“Wow, his eyes are twice as big now.”

Brian Cole remarked with amazement.

“Who is this? He’s cute.”

When Darius Thompson, who up close seemed to be over 6’6″, admired him, Brian Cole rebuked him.

“Stop staring, Thompson. Want to adopt him?”

Listening to their conversation, Chase put the glasses back on Jeong-in. Seeing the eyes become smaller again, this time Max Schneider reacted intensely.

“Damn! Why do you wear those? Do you want to look ugly on purpose?”

Having confirmed his friends’ reactions, Chase led Jeong-in away from the spot.

“See? How could I have recognized you?”

“…”

“That’s my excuse?”

“…Whatever.”

With this, it seemed at least plausibly proven that he hadn’t deliberately pretended not to know Jeong-in. Jeong-in blinked in disbelief. His glasses were a bit thick and large, but were they that transformative?

“Is the misunderstanding cleared up now?”

“…Yeah.”

Jeong-in nodded, then belatedly realized he hadn’t even brought up what he actually needed to talk about.

“Um… what I wanted to say is, about that party.”

“Yeah.”

Chase nodded casually, waiting for Jeong-in’s next words.

“I left my bag… at your house.”

As soon as Jeong-in spoke, he immediately regretted it. He could see Chase’s expression gradually changing so clearly that he wished he’d kept his glasses off.

Chase’s face shifted from puzzlement and confusion to gradual realization.

“I, I went to your house looking for it… I heard you had it. A black bag…”

“I know which one. So it was yours?”

Chase casually smiled. Seeing his composed demeanor, the small hope in Jeong-in’s heart began to swell. He really seemed like he hadn’t looked inside the bag.

“I’ll bring it to you tomorrow.”

“N-no need! I can come get it today, right away!”

“Hmm… you want to do that?”

Jeong-in’s face instantly brightened. Things seemed to be resolving more smoothly than expected.

His relieved smile lasted only briefly before he fell into momentary contemplation. He wondered if he should ask Chase not to look inside the bag. But that might only provoke his curiosity.

Though he wanted to grab Chase and go retrieve the bag immediately, he had to attend class now.

“Then I’ll come to your house to get it after school.”

“Sure.”

As Jeong-in turned away with a sigh of relief, thinking the crisis was being resolved, Chase’s hand reached out from behind and grabbed his shoulder.

“Phone number.”

“…Huh?”

“Can you give me your phone number? In case we miss each other.”

Chase’s face, wearing a smooth smile, somehow looked particularly cheerful today.

“My number is 984-555…”

“Just give it to me.”

“What?”

“Your phone.”

As his hand approached, Jeong-in reluctantly took out his phone and handed it over. Chase called himself from Jeong-in’s phone, confirmed his own phone ringing in his pocket, and returned it. He seemed to prefer certainty.

Chase took out his own phone and tapped the screen as if to save Jeong-in’s name.

“Sorry, what did you say your name was again?”

It was still hurtful that he didn’t even know his name after nearly the entire semester. Jeong-in’s expression momentarily darkened, and Chase observed this change closely.

“…Jay Lim.”

“I can’t hear well. What? Jayleen?”

Chase looked at Jeong-in, raising his blue eyes playfully. Jayleen was mostly a name used for girls.

“Jay Lim.”

Chase laughed as if amused by Jeong-in’s hardened, serious face. Had he always been someone who laughed this much?

“Okay. I’ll enter it as Jayleen.”

“Jay, Lim!”

“Alright, alright. Don’t get angry.”

Chase smoothly replied, gently massaged Jeong-in’s shoulder, and returned to his group. Some of them glanced over, perhaps discussing Jeong-in.

Having received in a single day all the attention he should have received over years from the popular kids, Jeong-in felt completely drained.

Just as he was about to move with a short sigh, he spotted Justin.

Having just gotten out of his mother’s car, Justin stood in the drop-off zone, mouth agape, staring in this direction with surprise.

“Justin.”

As soon as Jeong-in called his name, Justin approached with quick, alarming steps and bombarded him with whispered questions.

“What did I just see? Chase Prescott? What were you talking about? What were you doing with the phone? Did you exchange numbers? Why?”

Jeong-in organized his thoughts while listening to Justin’s relentless questions.

If Justin learned that he had lost the shame book, and furthermore that Chase Prescott had the bag containing it, the fragile Justin would probably faint. He might even fall ill and refuse to eat or drink.

The fortunate thing was that Chase hadn’t read the book yet. If he had, he wouldn’t have acted so casually earlier. Besides, Chase wouldn’t get a chance to read the book anyway. Jeong-in would go to his house as soon as school ended and retrieve it.

Nothing would happen.

Sometimes ignorance is a blessing. So there was no need to drag Justin into the hell he was experiencing.

“Jay! Say something!”

“Well… Justin, you know Steven, right?”

“Steven? Your ex-stepfather?”

“Yeah. Steven took me to some party, saying he was trying to get an investment.”

“Party?”

To nerds like them, “party” was as distant a word as “outer space.”

“It was like a charity event, anyway. That party was held at the Prescott house.”

“Prescott? So Jay! You’ve even been to Chase Prescott’s house?”

“Yes.”

“Tell me everything, don’t leave anything out!”

Jeong-in recounted everything from how he ended up at the party to how Chase Prescott didn’t remember him at all when they met there, carefully omitting the story about losing his bag.

“Chase Prescott, you know. His blonde hair and eye color resemble his father’s, but if I had to say, his looks take more after his mother. I thought she was an actress in her 30s. She has that vibe that reminds you of Gene Tierney in her prime.”

“Wow, unbelievable!”

Justin looked at Jeong-in with sparkling eyes.

“Weren’t there any people you knew at the party? Like celebrities or something?”

“Well… There was one person I knew.”

“Who!”

When asked about familiar faces, Jeong-in suddenly remembered Vivian Sinclair from the balcony. Recalling her leading a blonde man onto the balcony, his mood sank again.

“Vivian Sinclair was there.”

“Well, it’s not like Sinclair would miss such an event.”

“I was on the balcony getting some air when she came out with Chase Prescott. But they started getting intimate without even checking if anyone was there.”

“They’re like animals! Let’s write it all in the shame book.”

Jeong-in’s tongue felt bitter as he responded “Yeah” to Justin’s indignant suggestion.

“I was trying to hide from them when I fell backward and ended up in the bushes.”

Justin chuckled, imagining the scene, then nodded toward the bag Jeong-in was carrying.

“You changed your bag?”

At that moment, Jeong-in’s heart sank. He laughed awkwardly and made up an excuse.

“Well, just… I needed a change.”

“Happens sometimes.”

Guilt rose as Justin patted his back with a warm, friendly smile.

It felt like a heavy weight pressing down on his chest. For the first time, a secret had formed between him and Justin.

* * *

After attending their separate classes, they met again in front of the cafeteria. Justin could tell the day’s menu just from the smell floating in the air.

“Taco Day!”

Most days, the school cafeteria served withered sandwiches, dry hamburgers, or pasta with noodles that kept breaking. But occasionally, they served tacos and burritos, which were student favorites.

On those days, even the popular kids would somehow show up at the cafeteria. They usually had food delivered to eat at outdoor tables or went off campus for lunch.

Eating lunch outdoors or off campus was a privilege reserved for juniors and above. Most schools didn’t allow sophomores or younger students to eat lunch off campus.

However, Justin and Jeong-in had never used that privilege. As usual, they took their seats in the most secluded corner, near the trash cans. Just as they were about to sit down with their trays, the popular crowd appeared.

Chase, entering with his group, glanced around and spotted them, giving a slight chin-up nod in greeting. Excited, Justin nudged Jeong-in repeatedly with his elbow, making a fuss.

“Oh, he greeted you!”

“Stop it, Justin.”

Jeong-in pretended to be nonchalant, but felt his heart beating a little faster.

Chase and his group went around the serving area with their trays and headed toward the central tables. A place everyone felt too intimidated to sit. They took those usually empty seats as if it was natural.

Brian Cole put his tray down at a seat visible from Jeong-in’s position. Chase appeared behind him, said something to Brian Cole, who nodded and moved to the opposite side. This left Chase Prescott sitting directly across from Jeong-in.

“By the way, Jay, why haven’t you uploaded to WhatsApp? We agreed to post the solved problems,” Justin asked while generously topping his taco with guacamole. But Jeong-in was lost in thought, not even hearing Justin. He wondered if Chase had deliberately chosen to sit where he could face him. The thought seemed so absurd that he had to laugh at himself.

“Jay. Jay?”

“Huh, what?”

“What are you thinking about so intently?”

“Nothing.”

Jeong-in shook his head, trying to escape his pointless fantasy. At that moment, his eyes met Chase’s across the room. At first, he thought he was imagining it, but he wasn’t. Chase was looking directly at Jeong-in while holding up his phone and slightly waving it.

With a feeling of disbelief, Jeong-in picked up his phone. The screen showed a notification for a new message.

Chase Prescott: [Hi]

Jeong-in replied with the same word to the contact he had saved with first and last name.

Jeong-in: [Hi]

Three dots appeared in Chase’s message window, indicating he was typing. Looking up toward his table, Jeong-in saw Chase with his head down, touching his phone screen. Soon, Jeong-in’s phone gave a short ring.

Chase Prescott: [There’s one thing I want to tell you in advance]

The incomplete-sounding message made Jeong-in look up, and his eyes met Chase’s who was watching him. When Jeong-in raised his eyebrows as if asking “What?” Chase picked up his phone again and typed something. Soon, Jeong-in’s phone lit up with a notification.

Chase Prescott: [I don’t have any STDs or anything like that😢]

Jeong-in’s hand went limp, and his phone clattered to the floor. He hurriedly bent down to retrieve the phone that had slid across the smooth floor to the middle of the table. He crawled on his hands and knees to pick it up. Thankfully, it didn’t seem to be broken.

Swallowing a sigh of relief, Jeong-in remained under the table, lost in thought. He wondered if he could just stay there. If only that were possible.

After a while, Jeong-in cautiously peeked above the table, only to meet Chase’s eyes again. Chase was covering his mouth with his hand, trying to suppress his laughter.

Feeling his face burn, Jeong-in quickly returned to his seat and, despite his trembling hands, hurriedly typed on his phone.

Jeong-in: [Sorry blease give it back]

Only after pressing send did he realize he had made a typo.

Jeong-in immediately looked up at Chase. Chase checked his screen, smiled with the corner of his mouth slightly curled up, then slipped his phone into his jacket pocket.

Jeong-in’s mind went blank.

Chase had read the shame book. Chase Prescott really had read it.

“Delicious. Jay, why aren’t you eating?” Justin’s voice reached him, but Jeong-in had already lost both his hunger and appetite. “I’m not hungry,” he said as he put down his fork, while Justin eyed his full plate.

“Um… Jay, can I have some of your guacamole…?”

“…Sure.”

“It needs a bit more salt, so if I could have some chips too…”

Jeong-in silently pushed his tray toward Justin.