HWAMB — Chapter 61

In short, I had just given them bait.

The guy who snapped at popular Do Jin-gyeong, the same one who had once been in that loud fight with Jang Jae-ho.

“It’s really a misunderstanding… I was so out of it that day I didn’t even realize Jin-gyeong said that to me.”

As I sighed and rubbed my forehead, Sang-su patted my back comfortingly.

“Well, if you didn’t actually fight, that’s good enough. Just ignore whatever people say.”

If even sharp-witted Sang-su had gotten that impression, then Jin-gyeong himself must have too…

I followed Sang-su onto the bus. Like he said, ignoring the others’ gazes was fine, but I still felt uneasy about Jin-gyeong.

From the back seats, Young-ho’s noisy chatter became unbearable, and Sang-su came to sit beside me instead.

I made up for my lack of sleep on the bus.

I didn’t know how much time had passed.

The bus stopped, and Sang-su shook me awake.

“Ugh…”

“We’re at the rest stop. We’re only halfway there, so let’s hit the bathroom and grab some snacks.”

Rubbing my eyes, I followed my friends.

In the short time I went to the bathroom, my friends had already returned with their arms full of food.

I bought some custard cakes and roasted potatoes. Nearby, a debate was raging over salt versus sugar.

‘Hyun-woo likes potatoes too.’

Out of habit, I set some aside for him, then startled myself and hurriedly ate the rest.

“Think the other classes stopped here too?”

“Probably.”

“What, are you thinking about Shim Hyun-woo again?”

“Seriously, you two not dating is the real mystery. You’re completely devoted.”

Someone said it, and the rest agreed with laughter.

I laughed awkwardly along with them.

“When’s regroup time?”

“Fifteen minutes?”

“That’s plenty. Want to stroll around for ten?”

“Sure.”

Everyone agreed with Young-ho, and we started walking. I leaned close to Sang-su at the back and whispered.

“Sang-su, I’m thirsty. I’ll buy a drink real quick and head back to the bus on my own. You go ahead with the others.”

“Why? I’ll go with you.”

“It’s just… I need to call my brother too.”

Sang-su stared hard at me, then nodded as if he understood, even smiling strangely.

…What exactly did he think I meant?

Sang-su tapped my back and went off with the others.

I let out a sigh of relief.

He was too sharp—so I always had to be careful. I walked to the vending machines and called Hyun-woo.

–This is your darling speaking.

“Yah, are you going to keep joking like that?”

I failed to hold back my laughter. Lately, he had gotten addicted to teasing me, clearly enjoying my reactions. I could hear the noisy crowd behind him.

“You’re at the rest stop too?”

–Yeah. I bought churros and went back to the bus, but then your call came, so I came back out.

“I’m at the vending machine getting a Coke… ah.”

–What is it?

“It’s sold out. Damn.”

I sighed in disappointment, and Hyun-woo’s quiet laugh followed.

–Guess you’ll have to drink Sprite.

“Yeah. Well, at least there’s that.”

With a resigned heart, I tapped my card and pressed the button under the Sprite slot.

Clatter, clatter—the can dropped. Without thinking, I reached for it and froze.

“Ah…”

Unluckily, the can had burst open when it fell, and soda sprayed out like a fountain.

My jacket was splattered, and my hand turned sticky with syrupy liquid.

My Sprite…

Looking at the fallen soldier of a drink, my heart sank. Hyun-woo’s worried voice came through.

–What happened? Something wrong?

“My Sprite exploded…”

–Your Sprite exploded? Out of nowhere?

“Yeah. Just my luck. I need to wash my hands. I’ll text you later, Hyun-woo.”

I barely stopped him from insisting he would come find me. Smiling bitterly, I ended the call.

With little time left until regrouping, I abandoned the idea of a drink and focused on cleaning my sticky hands.

I tossed the sad, leaking can into the trash.

“Ugh… what a lousy start to the day.”

Maybe I should have gone to the convenience store instead of the vending machine.

After washing my hands clean in the restroom, I glanced toward the nearby convenience store and thought for a moment.

Shaking the water off my hands, I went inside and pulled a Coke from the cool refrigerator display.

On the opposite side, someone else picked up two cans of Sprite. Without much thought, I turned my head, and a familiar figure came into view.

It was Do Jin-gyeong.

He too looked startled as his eyes met mine. For some reason, he was alone today.

“Ah…”

With a small exclamation, Jin-gyeong hesitated. It was only for an instant, but in that short moment, I caught the look of fluster on his face.

Then he quickly put on a natural smile.

Sang-su’s words from earlier lingered in my head, but I pretended nothing was wrong and greeted him.

“Hey.”

“…Yeah. Hey.”

“You must really like soda, buying two cans like that.”

“They’re for someone else.”

Jin-gyeong laughed brightly as he answered. I replied with a casual “Ah, I see,” and paid for my Coke.

As we stepped out of the store, the air between us grew more awkward.

He seemed to be watching me carefully… almost like he found me difficult to deal with.

So what Sang-su said this morning was true.

Walking back toward the bus together, I decided to clear the air.

“About last week…”

At my words, the smile that always lingered on his face slowly stiffened. The way he looked downcast made him seem like a puppy with its tail and ears drooping.

I quickly began explaining myself.

“Let me just say it straight—it wasn’t that I was angry! I had something really urgent that day, so I wasn’t thinking straight. I didn’t even realize you were talking to me.”

Hearing that, Jin-gyeong seemed to regain his energy. A gleam of light returned to his eyes.

“Really? So you weren’t mad at me?”

“What would I ever be mad at you for?”

At that, he sighed in relief and smiled warmly.

“Good. Honestly… do you remember the day you found my younger brother?”

“Mm… yeah, I remember.”

There was no way I could forget—I’d had a huge fight with Hyun-woo over it.

“On that day, I… acted too sensitive and made you uncomfortable. Showed a side of me that wasn’t like me…”

Yeah, he’d been harsh.

I’d felt on edge the whole meal, like I might choke. That day, Do Jin-gyeong had been strangely different.

Of course, the fight with Hyun-woo had also happened because Jin-gyeong suddenly told him about our dinner promise, but it wasn’t completely his fault.

It hadn’t been a secret, nor was I intentionally trying to hide it from Hyun-woo.

Besides, Hyun-woo hadn’t been entirely blameless that day—he had been the one to pick a fight first.

“No, it’s fine. Hyun-woo said some things first too… He’s not a bad guy, but… yeah, his words can be harsh.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

I just hadn’t realized how bad the two of them got along.

“Are they always like that when they run into each other?”

“Um… probably…?”

Jin-gyeong answered slowly, watching me carefully. Which meant yes.

I’d have to make sure they never crossed paths again.

Being stuck between them would kill me.

“Anyway, I thought you turned me down like that because you were fed up with me. I’m glad that wasn’t it.”

“Sorry for making you misunderstand.”

“It’s fine. But you said something urgent came up—was everything okay at home?”

At his worried question, I opened my Coke.

“No, it wasn’t that. I had to go to the hospital.”

“Hospital? You weren’t sick, were you?”

“No, not me. Hyun-woo…”

“Ah… you must have been really worried.”

With an unreadable face, Jin-gyeong nodded slowly. Only now did I realize—whenever Hyun-woo’s name came up, the smile that seemed so pure would change into something else.

“Sorry for postponing again. After the school trip, what about next Friday? We’ll have a shortened day. If you’re free, I’ll treat you then…”

“Yeah, Friday’s fine. I only have academy in the evening.”

Relieved, I nodded. Luckily, I had remembered correctly that he didn’t have academy on Fridays.

As we neared the bus, he suddenly handed me a can of Sprite.

I took it, puzzled.

“…Didn’t you say that was for a friend? Why give me this?”

“I bought it for you.”

I turned my head and looked at him. Seeming a little embarrassed, he rubbed the back of his neck as if burdened by my gaze.

Recalling what had just happened earlier, I asked,

“Did you see that just now?”

“Yeah. I was walking by with the others and happened to…”

Trailing off, he cautiously continued. Then our eyes met, and he flinched, hastily explaining himself.

“I—! Sorry if it bothered you! I wasn’t spying or anything! It’s just… I thought you were mad at me, so I couldn’t bring myself to talk to you…”