ICYM Ch 39

Episode 39

Clutching the white sheet of paper fluttering in the wind, I murmured with a face full of emotion.

“This is unbelievable.”

I stared at the test paper over and over again. The quiz had only covered a small range, and it wasn’t even a real exam, but I couldn’t contain my joy.

Fully aware that I had lacked concentration these past few days, I studied by Kendrick’s side every single day. Even on weekdays, after dinner, Kendrick would come to my room and tutor me for at least three hours.

Studying itself felt humiliating. I didn’t know so many things, and it was embarrassing to show this side of me to a classmate. With Sunbae, it wasn’t as bad, but showing it to someone the same age as me was mortifying.

But enduring that embarrassment was worth it.

52 points.

Anyone watching might have thought I’d scored a hundred all on my own, but for me, it was impossible not to be overwhelmed.

I got more than half right!

To me, it was an enormous achievement. I had never seen my grades rise this quickly in such a short time. Just in case, I even stayed after class to confirm my score with the teacher.

“It’s not a good score yet, but since you’re catching up so quickly, I don’t think I need to give you extra homework anymore.”

“I’ll keep taking it until this week.”

“Alright.”

It wasn’t a pitying look but a proud one from the teacher, and it made my mouth curl into a goofy grin. I even secretly hugged the test paper and carefully pressed a kiss to it.

“Hehe…”

Just then, I felt a gaze. Lifting my head, I saw Kendrick looking at me, though I had no idea when he had arrived.

“…I just got here.”

As our eyes met, Kendrick spoke in a calm voice. His tone sounded convincing, but he couldn’t hide the flicker in his eyes.

“I’m not a weirdo.”

“…Yeah.”

I had skipped over any explanation and gone straight to the point, only to realize that saying it like that made me sound even stranger.

So I hurriedly added an excuse.

“No…! It’s just, I got a decent score on my test.”

“How many points did you get?”

“52 points!”

I blurted it out excitedly, then froze. To someone who had never scored below 90, would I look strange for being so thrilled over getting 52 points that I even kissed the paper?

“That’s great. Your hard work paid off.”

But Kendrick, uncharacteristically, raised his voice in excitement at my news. There was no sarcasm, no sign that he thought it was laughable. Seeing his pure and genuine congratulations, the doubt I’d briefly held in my heart melted away.

“Right? I hope my score keeps going up like this.”

“I think it’ll rise quickly.”

At Kendrick’s words, my shoulders lifted with pride. Just then, Coco poked its head out from the bushes.

“You’re late today.”

At my words, it curled its mouth as if smiling and panted. Then, as if it had understood our conversation, it barked and dashed out of the bushes, circling around me excitedly.

“Why is he suddenly so hyper….”

I sighed with pleasant amusement as I patted his head, still not knowing the reason.

Pant, pant, pant, pant.

As if it had been waiting for this, Coco flopped onto its back, its pink tongue lolling out between its panting jaws.

Maybe because I had been with Kendrick since the weekend and had its snacks and meals cut back, it was clear that Coco had shed some weight right away.

Kendrick, too, squatted down next to me, naturally watching Coco’s silly but cute behavior.

“What about Nabi?”

“It already ate and left. I couldn’t find Coco, so I was about to look when it showed up.”

“Woof!”

“Looks like it knows its name is Coco now.”

“Looks like it.”

“Nabi still doesn’t, though.”

But unlike me, Kendrick didn’t recklessly reach out his hand. Hadn’t he once said small animals were afraid of him?

Pant, pant, pant.

But Coco didn’t seem like that at all. Hadn’t it once pushed Kendrick with its front paws just to ask for a snack?

Since it was lying on its back with its belly exposed, maybe Kendrick found it harder to pet, so he only rested his chin on his hand and watched.

“Unlike Nabi, Coco’s not very timid, so it should be fine.”

“Really?”

Even after I said that much, Kendrick didn’t reach out. No, but if I’m telling him it’ll be fine, why is he being so cautious?

I grabbed Kendrick’s arm and pulled it toward Coco. For just a moment, impatience outweighed fear.

“Uh?”

“It’s fine, see?”

Kendrick could have easily pulled his arm away, but he didn’t. When I grabbed him, his arm tensed, firm with strength, but he quickly let the tension go.

Coco’s fur brushed against Kendrick’s fingertips.

“…It’s warm.”

Murmuring in a dazed voice, Kendrick touched Coco’s belly for the first time. Gaining a bit of courage, he began to move the hand he had been resting still.

And maybe, since he had wanted to touch elsewhere too, his fingers slowly moved upward from Coco’s stomach.

Tap.

His fingertips touched the little black, moist nose.

“Woof!”

Coco must have taken it as an invitation to play, because it suddenly sprang up, unable to contain its excitement.

“Why is Coco suddenly all worked up again?”

Then, raising its front paws, Coco shoved Kendrick. Normally, it might not have been a problem, but at that moment, Kendrick had been crouching. Despite his size, he toppled backward with a thud.

“Ah! No!”

It all happened so fast that I tried to grab Coco in surprise, but missed. And Coco, completely unaware that my raised voice meant I was angry, darted around the garden like crazy, as if it had no idea what it had done wrong.

“…Ah.”

Why did I tell him to try touching?

He must be furious, right? The sound of him falling had been so loud. My head snapped into clarity for a moment.

Suddenly, I recalled an article I had read not long ago about the psychology of animal abusers.

[They want to exert power and control over those weaker than themselves, or since it’s difficult to release stress on people, they take it out on animals who cannot speak or retaliate.]

If that were true, and if he really had abused small animals before, then in this moment after being shoved, there’s no way he wouldn’t be angry. That thought flashed across my mind.

I forced my stiff neck to turn, like a door without oil on its hinges.

What if he lashes out?

But when I turned my head, Kendrick, still sitting where he had fallen, spoke with a calm expression.

“Don’t be angry.”

“Huh?”

“I guess Coco didn’t like me touching it. Then it’s only natural it would express that.”

“No, it just thought you wanted to play, so it got excited… You’re bleeding.”

“Ah.”

When my gaze shifted to his hand, I saw blood streaming from the inside of his palm.

“It’s fine.”

“…There’s something stuck in there, isn’t there?”

Kendrick insisted he was fine, but this wasn’t just a scratch. Since blood was flowing, there was no way I could just take his word for it.

“Of all places, why was there such a sharp stone there?”

As soon as I opened the back door, I grabbed the first-aid kit from the hallway and immediately tore open an alcohol swab to clean the wound on Kendrick’s hand.

“I really am fine.”

“I’m not that good at treating wounds either. So just stay still for me.”

“…Alright.”

At my words, Kendrick obediently let me tend to him. The treatment was nothing complicated—just wiping the wound, disinfecting it, and putting on a bandage.

Once the bandage was in place, I looked up at Kendrick as we both stared down at the injury.

The length of time you know someone matters, but what’s more important is how much quality time you actually spend together. Sometimes you end up knowing someone you’ve spent just a few days with, constantly side by side, better than classmates you’ve shared classes with for over a year.

It’s definitely not him.

Before, I had convinced myself with logic that Kendrick wasn’t the one who hurt cats. But now, I understood it with my heart. Even after Coco ran into him like that, he hadn’t gotten the least bit upset. Instead, he told me not to raise my voice when I had shouted in surprise. Someone like that couldn’t possibly be the culprit.

Which only left me more confused.

Then what about that time on the road, when he looked ready to hit someone? There are people like that—those who treasure animals but can’t stand humans.

But that doesn’t fit either. He’s too soft with me.

The more time I spent with Kendrick, the more confusing he became.

It was like…

Cold hot chocolate.

Like a thug who demands money but still offers you a receipt for it.

I couldn’t figure Kendrick out, and it left me bewildered. People might have many sides, but with Kendrick, the differences felt extreme.

I thought back to when Kendrick had suddenly dropped a bombshell while we were studying.

“Can I see that quiz paper you got back before?”

“Uh?”

“I need to figure out where to start teaching you. Teaching everything from 1 to 10 would be inefficient.”

“…Ah. That.”

“Why? Did you leave it at school?”

It was the kind of cruel yet innocent question only a model student could ask, assuming I must have some sort of base knowledge from all this studying. In the end, I confessed like I was making a guilty admission.

“My test scores are actually really low.”

“I’m not asking to make fun of you. I just think it’ll be easier to teach if I know why you got things wrong and what you don’t understand.”

He could have thought that this score was what I deserved after making it seem like I was the only one doing all the studying. Before I possessed this body, I’d endured plenty of mocking like that, so I figured I’d just laugh it off this time.

“Good.”

“Huh?”

“It’ll be rewarding to teach you.”

Because of that reasonable response, I finally showed him the crumpled test paper I had never been able to reveal even to Sunbae. Even after seeing my score, Kendrick didn’t laugh.

Through the nearly bare branches, stripped of leaves, the sunset shone down on Kendrick. For some reason, I had a strong feeling that this ordinary moment of daily life would stay etched in my memory for a long time.