ABM CH10

Chapter 10: The Day Was So Hot

‘You think I was watching you closely?’

Of course I was. I even ran to the gym as fast as I could, leaving my meal behind, just to catch every moment of Woo Yeonho playing basketball. 

Woo Yeonho made five 2-point shots and, impressively, three 3-pointers. Even though his teammates were physically strong and performed well, half of the points on the board came solely from Woo Yeonho. 

“Did you watch anyone else?”

“N-no…”

“Then you saw how hard I worked, right?”

“Uh… yeah, you worked really hard…”

“And scored a lot of goals.”

“Mm, I saw… seven or eight times…”

“You counted all of them?”

“…”

I could only manage to smile sheepishly, unable to speak due to embarrassment.

‘Stupid Park Seungwoo, why did you say that?’

It was clear he would tease me about how much I liked him, but Woo Yeonho simply remained silent. Instead, he placed his hand on my desk, tapping it lightly with his fingertips. His nails looked remarkably well-kept.

‘Does he get special care or something? How can his hands be so smooth and perfectly rounded?’

As I stared at his hand in silence, Woo Yeonho spoke in his usual calm manner, his face as serene as ever.

“I worked really hard, thinking Seungwoo would be watching, but I’m still tired.”

It must be a lie. He must be making excuses for his hard work, pretending it was all for me.

“Why don’t you give me any compliments, though?”

‘Compliments? What kind of compliments?’

“I really ran hard to get that apple juice you like.”

Woo Yeonho even let out a deep sigh, exaggerating his fatigue.

‘Since when did I like apple juice? Why did you go through all that trouble to get it for me?’

Woo Yeonho, who seemed to be filling the air with confusing statements, eventually said what he really wanted.

“You should compliment me for doing well, Seungwoo yah.”

“Uh……? Um… good job……?”

“Is that all?”

Woo Yeonho’s words were still confusing. They were harder to grasp than the first-period subject. Woo Yeonho, who played a tough basketball game on a hot day, won, and gave me the apple juice which I didn’t even liked, said this while smiling so prettily.

“What are you going to do after school?”

If I were to interpret Woo Yeonho’s style of speaking based on our conversation so far, it would be that questions often end with a desired answer from him. I hadn’t realized this until earlier, when I absentmindedly said I was going home, and he kept at it until the school bell rang…

“Well, it means you’ve got time to spend with me, right?”

“Since it’s a reward for working hard, you can at least give me that much, right?”

He kept repeating the same kind of question until I agreed to go with him. 

And so, I ended up going home with Woo Yeonho. We took the same bus, got off at a similar stop by chance, and bought ice cream from a shop along the way.

Woo Yeonho kept mentioning words like “compliment” and “reward,” so I tried to pay for it, but he insisted on paying, claiming it was part of the shop’s special deal. 

I was fine with just having one scoop of ice cream, but Woo Yeonho chose two flavors, probably because he wanted more. 

“Didn’t you say you didn’t like sweet things?” 

“It’s delicious. Try it, Seungwoo.”

“……Huh?”

“This is sweet.”

“Y-yeah, it’s sweet…… It’s ice cream, after all…”

“Yeah. You like sweet things, don’t you?”

I couldn’t quite understand what was going on in Woo Yeonho’s mind, but he scooped up about a third of his ice cream and brought it to my mouth. I had no choice but to open up and accept it. It was so big that I had to wait a while for it to melt in my mouth. It was so cold that my head started to ache.

By the time I finished the last bit, Woo Yeonho was already waiting with another flavor on his spoon.

‘Is this some kind of torture?’

It seemed like it might be. Woo Yeonho’s face looked impossibly bright and cheerful.

In the end, more than half of the ice cream he chose was eaten by me. It wasn’t that the taste was bad, but eating so much at once left me feeling like my stomach was freezing. Woo Yeonho, who looked happier than ever, tried to feed me ice cream again, but this time I genuinely refused. I had to take care of my share, so I had no choice.

“I’m getting a stomach ache……. I don’t want to eat anymore……”

“……Pfft……”

Was it something I said that made him laugh?

Woo Yeonho turned his head, trying to hide his laughter, but it was so obvious that his attempt was pointless.

‘What was so funny? All I said was that I was getting a stomach ache and that I didn’t want to eat anymore. Was it my face that was funny?’

I stirred my nearly melted, gooey ice cream and quickly ate it before it dripped off the spoon. As it melted, the vanilla flavor seemed even richer.

“Was mine good?”

“Yeah.”

Woo Yeonho asked, his voice as smooth as the vanilla ice cream in his mouth. It sounded particularly so, making me glance down at the ground as I walked. With every step I took, Woo Yeonho’s shoes followed closely beside me.

‘I wonder what brand those shoes are. I know they’re really expensive.’

Woo Yeonho seemed particular about choosing brands for his clothes and accessories, unlike me, who just wears whatever my parents or older sister buy.

“Wait a moment, let me check my messages.”

Woo Yeonho, who had been persistently asking if it was good, stopped and said this. Since we were walking together, I also stopped and scraped the remaining ice cream from my cup, quickly finishing it.

Seeing that, Woo Yeonho took away my empty cup and handed me his remaining ice cream. Even though it was technically his, since I had eaten more than half, it felt almost like mine.

Anyway, after doing that, Woo Yeonho’s face went blank in an instant as he turned away. It was fascinating how he could so easily change his expression.

‘Did he have that kind of face when we exchanged messages? Was it the same when he called? Did he say ‘Happy Birthday’ with that face?’

No, my whole body felt cold because of the ice cream. It’s not that I’m disappointed. Not at all. I shouldn’t have eaten the ice cream. At least, I shouldn’t have eaten what Woo Yeonho gave me.

Woo Yeonho’s kindness scares me because I don’t understand the reason behind it. I’m afraid of getting addicted to it. I don’t know what to do because it seems inevitable. This is the weapon of the popular and kind Woo Yeonho.

Everyone loves Woo Yeonho.

‘I wonder what those guys would think if they saw that face? I want to show them. I hope they all fall away.’

Being with Woo Yeonho made my emotions bounce up and down uncontrollably. Sometimes, I was so lost that I did foolish things.

“Not eating?”

Woo Yeonho spoke gently again, having presumably finished checking his messages and putting his phone back into his pocket. His face had changed almost 180 degrees from when he was looking at his phone earlier. He was still pretty, kind, and gentle, but there was an odd feeling about it, just like when I observed Woo Yeonho from afar.

‘Should I ask?’

I couldn’t keep up with my own emotions right now, so I didn’t think any further. My mouth opened impulsively.

“I-is there someone you don’t like?”

And immediately regretted it.

‘So what if there is someone he doesn’t like? It’s not like Woo Yeonho would like me.’

Although not liking someone isn’t quite the same as disliking them, it’s still close enough.

‘But does Woo Yeonho even like someone?’

It would have been less foolish to ask him to take back the ice cream.

‘He probably thinks it’s not worth answering and will just ignore me or keep quiet.’

Contrary to my thoughts, Woo Yeonho seemed to understand my poorly framed question and immediately responded.

“Why do you think that?”

Do I need to continue answering? The cup in my hand felt damp and uncomfortable. I should have eaten it earlier, but now the ice cream had melted and mixed into a strange and unpleasant color. I stirred it with my spoon out of frustration and mumbled.

“Because you looked upset…”

Woo Yeonho was silent for a moment. He might even be thinking about going home now.

As I thought about it, I realized this route was leading to my home, but where was Woo Yeonho’s house?

We were still standing in the middle of the street. It was May, so it was still light out, and I could see Woo Yeonho’s expression clearly. His face was hard to read, making it difficult to tell whether he was smiling or not.

“Do I look upset?”

“Yeah…”

“………Seongwoo, how do you know so well?”

“…..I, um, just thought you looked that way…”

Woo Yeonho began adjusting his face.

“It’s not just because of your face.”

I could tell because I always watch you. I can sense whether you’re happy or upset, angry or annoyed. It’s something only I would know, Woo Yeonho.

“I’ve been a bit irritated.”

This was the first time Woo Yeonho spoke with emotion, and his voice carried a genuine irritation. Hearing that, I was relieved it wasn’t directed at me.

Woo Yeonho continued to touch his cheek and mouth, then said playfully.

“Punish me, Seungwoo.”

“Me…..?”

“Yeah. Hit me or something.”

Woo Yeonho’s playful behavior made him look so cute that I couldn’t help but laugh softly. I nodded in response, noticing that his mood seemed to lift a bit. 

As Woo Yeonho’s mood improved, mine did too. It was that simple. He fell silent for a moment, then draped his arm over my shoulder and said,

“Really? As expected, Seungwoo is the best.”

I felt a little proud. Woo Yeonho had called me the best. I liked the feeling of his solid arm pulling me closer, and even the swirled color of the melted ice cream seemed pretty.

‘But what if the one I need to hit is someone like Kim Jungwoo? I’d be thrown away with a single push if I tried to hit him. Maybe I need to start working out?’

I seriously considered it. Maybe reading my thoughts, Woo Yeonho lowered his head and asked,

“Are you thinking about how to hit?”

“Yeah.”

“To the point you’re even clenching your fists?”

“…Ah…no…”

I realized I had been unconsciously clenching the spoon into a fist. Embarrassed, I tried to act like that was what I intended, furiously eating the melted ice cream with the spoon. I didn’t notice Woo Yeonho getting closer until he pressed his lips against mine, leaving a sweet trace of ice cream.

He licked my lips with his warm tongue and then kissed me again. His hand gently brushed my ear, and I found myself completely frozen, unable to move.