WYK 23

Jeong-yoon was sitting on the tour bus seat with earphones on. He’d been starving since morning, but he wasn’t hungry at all. He had randomly played the popular music charts on his phone, and he was so dazed that he couldn’t tell if the songs were pop or folk.

Suddenly, something came into his view. When he looked up with a puzzled expression, Chae-heon was holding out a paper bag.

Jeong-yoon’s gaze wavered again.

“Eat this.”

Chae-heon immediately turned his back on Jeong-yoon after handing him a paper bag. Startled, Jeong-yoon quickly took off his earphones and asked,

“What is this?”

Chae-heon stopped walking and turned around again.

“Sandwich.”

“…I’m okay.”

He really was okay. Eating a sandwich in his current state would be like swallowing a rock instead of a bread crumb.

Chae-heon looked at Jeong-yoon, who responded it was fine and raised the corner of his mouth slightly. It didn’t feel like his usual friendly smile. For some reason, that face seemed so cold that it felt very unfamiliar.

“Seo Jeong-yoon. I understand so…”

Jeong-yoon didn’t know what he was referring to.

Chae-heon let out what he couldn’t tell was a laugh or a sigh as he faced Jeong-yoon. Soon, the smile disappeared from his face.

“For now, eat. The teacher asked me to take care of you because you didn’t have breakfast.”

Chae-heon left before Jeong-yoon could answer.

Jeong-yoon stared blankly at his retreating figure, tightly clutching the paper bag. Soon, the kids started boarding the bus with lively chatter.

Jeong-yoon opened the bag he was holding, took out the sandwich, and took a bite. The sandwich with tomatoes and cheese was better than he thought and went down easier. He expected it to be difficult to swallow, but he guessed it was different because Chae-heon gave it to him.

After finishing the sandwich, Jeong-yoon bowed his head respectfully toward the teacher as soon as they arrived at the first tourist destination.

“I ate well.”

“What?”

“The sandwich. You gave it to me earlier. Thank you, Teacher.”

Jeong-yoon smiled and sent an adorable heart with his hand. However, instead of nodding, the teacher playfully hit Jeong-yoon on the back.

“Our Jeong-yoon, even if you can’t do morning exercises, you still have the energy to eat a sandwich, huh?”

“Yes?”

Jeong-yoon tilted his head and gently massaged his sore back.

After that, it was just a normal school trip.

Meeting Chae-heon still made his heart flutter, but the emotional storm that raged inside him whenever he recalled the dream had calmed down to some extent. As his ordinary daily life repeated, the dream remained only a dream.

And so the remnants of the passionate dream quietly sank beneath the surface.

***

After the school trip, Jeong-yoon and Chae-heon’s relationship became peculiar. Although they weren’t particularly close before, it felt like an odd wall had suddenly appeared between them.

The always kind Chae-heon would freeze his expression when looking at Jeong-yoon. Thanks to that, Jeong-yoon couldn’t even deliver the photo he had taken secretly in Jeju Island. He became afraid, wondering if Chae-heon would find it weird that he had taken a photo like a pervert. So, the photo of Chae-heon was carefully stored in a drawer.

Could it be that Kang Chae-heon sensed his feelings? He was drunk and listening to music with Kang Chae-heon at the time. Could it be that he confessed to him? His feelings for him were so strong that it wouldn’t be surprising if he did such a crazy thing without realizing it.

‘If Kang Chae-heon notices my feelings. If Kang Chae-heon is uncomfortable and gets mad at me.’

Jeong-yoon’s heart sank just thinking about it. Even as he tried to hide and control his emotions, the oblivious gazes kept turning to Chae-heon, and their gazes met every time.

Jeong-yoon’s face would harden at those times. He was afraid that even if he tried to hide his feelings, his face might unintentionally reveal the inner turmoil. The back of his neck felt hot and tense, and he worried that it might show.

He was conscious of everything he did in front of Chae-heon. He only had to act naturally, but as he felt nervous, his attitude stiffened. Even while requesting newsletters or telling him the homeroom teacher called, Jeong-yoon’s voice remained unnaturally tense.

In addition, Chae-heon’s attitude also changed. It wasn’t like that in the beginning, but at some point, Jeong-yoon realized Chae-heon was treating him coldly. He felt anxious, wondering if Chae-heon had somehow figured out his feelings.

However, Jeong-yoon himself thinks that he has hidden his feelings well. Despite his heart pounding, he managed to maintain an indifferent expression. There was no way he could have been found out.

‘Why is he being cold only to me? We’ve never fought.’

No matter how much he thought about it, there was no answer. Jeong-yoon silently endured the inner turmoil while outwardly pretending everything was fine.

Time quickly passed, and before he knew it, they were in their senior year of high school. The love that started in the first year continued. The immature love has not cooled down and continues to burn strongly on its own.

At some point, Jeong-yoon found himself secretly drinking the soju kept in the cabinet by his family. He hoped to dream of kissing Chae-heon again. However, instead of having such dreams, he suffered from hangovers, and after a few repetitions, he only increased his alcohol tolerance. It was a regrettable outcome.

***

Back to the present.

The sports festival had ended. The Business Department got second place, losing by a very narrow margin.

“If Seo Jeong-yoon hadn’t been so poor at foot volleyball, we could have gotten first place.”

When someone made a joke, Jeong-yoon’s enthusiasm died down and became depressed. Minsu comforted him.

“Jeong-yoon-ah. Even though we lost, let’s not be the guys who bow their heads.”

His spirit lifted a bit at those words. Jeong-yoon headed to the after-party with a slightly brighter face.

The after-party bar was in a secluded place. An old pub nestled at the end of a narrow alley behind Daehak-ro. The walls were covered with graffiti, some with dates from over a decade ago.

Noisy laughter filled the dark bar. Hyang-gi, who was eating french fries next to Jeong-yoon, smiled brightly and asked about the ‘reason for the peculiar kicks.’

“Sunbae. But why are you kicking the ball like that? I was surprised.”

Jeong-yoon didn’t know what to say.

“I don’t know. I don’t know why I did that.”

In the end, he replied with a resigned voice. Minsu, who was in front of him, shook his head pityingly.

“Hey. I can’t bear to say anything to you. You can get angry at someone who doesn’t study, but you can’t be angry at someone who can’t study.”

“…”

“My mom doesn’t get mad at the youngest for not studying. Can’t get mad because it won’t work. She cautiously suggested trying to learn a skill.”

What’s with this guy saying that to me? Jeong-yoon struggled to suppress the urge to grab Minsu by the collar. Anyway, today’s sinner was himself.

“Alright, let’s just forget it.”

Soon, four glasses clinked in the air. Somehow, he had become the entertaining topic of this drinking session. Even Mihee, at another table, was giggling while watching the ‘Seo Jeong-yoon’s cosmic volleyball shoot video’. Probably the most elegant fumbling in the world.

Underclassmen gathered around Mihee, chattering together. While Chae-heon, usually with a kind smile, seemed awkward and wondered why he was making fun of others so well. As a senior, why was he treated differently? It made Jeong-yoon curious.

Putting down his beer glass, he glanced around. Chae-heon was sitting diagonally at the next table. He thought Chae-heon had gone home after leaving the sports festival earlier, but it seemed not. Chae-heon rarely attended drinking sessions, and even if he did, he didn’t drink. He often refused, citing the need to drive. Others didn’t force him to drink.

Although such behavior might create a somewhat cold atmosphere in a drinking session, it didn’t matter because looking at Chae-heon listening to everything the kids said with a smile on his face and nodding his head made Jeong-yoon feel like he was the main character at the drinking party.

However, today was different. Perhaps due to drinking a few glasses and the usual relaxed smile disappearing from his face, Chae-heon’s mood seemed bad. Or maybe Jeong-yoon was the reason. He discreetly glanced at Chae-heon’s expression again. Anyway, the usual Chae-heon wasn’t there.

Chae-heon, who was looking down at his drink with his chin resting, soon got up. Jeong-yoon quickly looked away for fear of making eye contact with him.

A few of the juniors stood up and followed Chae-heon.

“Senior, where are you going…?”

The juniors who spoke to Jeong-yoon in a light and cheerful manner became a little shy in front of Chae-heon. Look at them now. They wiggled their fingers and made a cute, bright face when they spoke to Chae-heon. Jeong-yoon suddenly became afraid that he too might be making that kind of expression in front of Kang Chae-heon.

Chae-heon silently showed the pack of cigarettes in his hand. In response, the two juniors discreetly whispered something to him.

“We were also planning to go out to buy ice cream. Let’s go together, Sunbae…”

But Chae-heon flatly refused.

“I’ll go alone.”

He even managed to put on a faint smile. Despite his amiable face, saying it like that made him appear colder than when he was expressionless.

Chae-heon quickly erased his smile and left the bar. The two juniors who were left behind looked at each other and then sat back down. Jeong-yoon, who was watching, fiddled with his glass. Even he felt a bit uncomfortable now.