episode_0081

*****

“Ah, I want to make a girlfriend… .”

“Whenever he opens his mouth, that’s what he says.”

“I’m tired of that story. Let’s talk about something more productive.”

Lunch time has just finished eating. Oh Jeong’s mumbling elicited only a cold response. This was a natural result, as it was a topic that had already been talked about over and over again.

However, Oh Jeong has a track record of putting that tired topic on the chopping block several times. There is now a languid time waiting for training to start. If there is nothing in particular to say, the person who opens his or her mouth will dominate the topic.

“Then what is that productive talk?”

“… Talk about experiential learning tomorrow?”

“Out of all of us, you are the only one who goes there. How about this for productivity? Who among the kids in my class is worth dating?”

Upright. I felt like I heard that kind of onomatopoeia. As it had been almost a year since we were in the same class, it was rare for me to have zero interest in the female students in my class.

Jang-sam, who was sprawled out on the desk next to him, turned and continued speaking.

“Are you saying you want me to be your girlfriend? Or is it possible to use it?”

“It doesn’t matter either way. Why are you thinking so deeply?”

“Hmm. I think Hyeran would be pretty good.”

Oh oh. A small exclamation rises. In this situation, saying you want someone to be your girlfriend can easily be misunderstood as a confession. Jang Sam successfully cleared the first hurdle.

“A real man, a real man.”

“No, but the words are a bit strange? If it’s Hye-ran, it’s not quite good.”

“Hye-ran took second place in the last practical exam and Jang Sam-in… , what rank are you?”

“Ban threshing.”

“There’s no way around it!”

“Anyway, it’s about whether you want to date or not.”

With that one word from Jang Sam, the direction of the story was decided. The male students talked about various things with their mouths as light as the languor of lunchtime.

“Wouldn’t it be better to have your younger sister, Hyeji?”

“It’s a bit weird to be so hesitant. How about Mare? It’s good.”

“Good… .”

“It’s huge… .”

“Actually, it doesn’t matter who you are, right?”

“I want to choose Eonryeongsa Temple. This is only when we have the right to choose.”

Someone’s words were half in exclamation and half in a subtle expression. It was a very salty decision for a beautiful girl with silver hair, so the two factions continued to clash for a while.

“What about Eonryeongsa Temple? She’s pretty, and she’s talented. How many times would a person dating a guy like that have saved the country in his past life?”

“The family is so amazing that I don’t even dare to approach them.”

“Hey, I’m not thinking about that right now.”

“What can I say about Eonryeongsa? Sometimes, it feels like he looks at people like he’s looking at some kind of bug, so… .”

“Rather, it is a reward.”

In addition, the names of various other girls appeared. The male student who mentioned Cyclops heard the sound of a pedo, and the prevailing opinion was that Raon was more like a mascot than someone he wanted to date. The conversation, which started as trivial chatter, started to get quite heated.

There was a boy who subtly praised the girl he liked, and there was also a boy who spread a smokescreen to hide the girl he liked. Of course, there were male students who praised me purely out of favor.

Still, not all male students participated in the conversation. Chinese was also one of them.

“Isn’t it a bit weird to say something like that so openly?”

“It’s okay. Because I put up a sound blocking barrier.”

“Then it stands out more.”

Talking behind bars in a corner of the classroom was like advertising that you were talking about something completely suspicious. In fact, some girls were looking at the male students inside the barrier with suspicious eyes.

Even if they don’t actively try to stop it, painters tend to think such talk is rude. It was my wish to be caught in a barrier and be misunderstood.

However, the laughter of the other male students deepened as they thought about the painter’s attitude.

“Okay, we’re sorry. There was a lack of consideration.”

“I must have been worried because I couldn’t be honest.”

“… What nonsense are you talking about again?”

“What is it? It’s about ARMY.”

Fine knew well that if he was embarrassed here, he would be ridiculed. So I kept my mouth shut, but the conversation gradually went in directions that had nothing to do with the painter.

“It’s possible with ARMY.”

“No, he said he was a man. Isn’t it a bit like that?”

“I originally thought so too. But if you look at what I’m doing these days, it’s not like that.”

This week. Ami’s action of taking off her gym pants left an impression on the memories of quite a few male students.

Even after Kang Seo-yoon made ARMY wear a female school uniform as a bet, ARMY’s tone did not change much. However, there was a significant change in Ami’s behavior.

“He was very shy for the first few days.”

“At that time, it moved like some kind of robot.”

During the first morning, I didn’t even want to get up from my seat. Of course, the sight of ARMY, who normally sits with her legs crossed, sitting in a straight posture with her legs neatly folded, was counterproductive in some sense.

It was thanks to Kang Seo-yoon’s coaching that that attitude changed little by little. Kang Seo-yoon has been gradually correcting Ami’s behavior over the past few days, including her gait, behavior on stairs, and standing posture.

Kang Seo-yoon, who wanted to erase any personality that would attract her trainer, and Ami, who wanted to avoid unnecessary exposure, had the same goal to some extent. Also, because ARMY was an expert among experts when it came to moving the body, the speed at which she put into practice what she learned was very fast.

Therefore, on the last day of the betting, Ami’s movements in the skirt almost lost the feeling of a fight like they did when she was wearing the gym uniform.

“Isn’t it almost at the level of other people?”

“I don’t think it’s to that extent… .”

Painter secretly denies it. Seeing that, the other boys looked at each other and grinned.

“But really, isn’t it pretty good if it’s about Army level? Anyway, none of us have seen him as a man.”

If you ask Ami to show you what he looks like as a man, he will give you a vague answer. There were quite a few people in this class who claimed the ‘Army woman theory’ for that reason. I can’t say it publicly because if I’m caught, I’ll get a body blow.

“He doesn’t have the kind of potential to turn back into a man. Then she has a pretty face and not a bad personality. You understand men’s feelings and hobbies well.”

“Because you are strong, you will make good money.”

” Surprisingly, if you force yourself to confess and push, won’t you date me? ”

“Wake up from your dream because that will never happen. If the guy right next to you confesses that he likes you, would you listen?”

Everyone looked at each other’s faces at the painter’s words. The black faces of the men had rotten expressions.

“Wow… .”

“This is definitely impossible… .”

“I know you’re trying to make fun of me, but let’s not do that to ARMY. Even so, he really cares about that.”

This time, everyone agreed without saying anything. I started this topic because I was bored anyway. My friend said he didn’t like it, so it wasn’t worth holding on to.

Seeing the direction of the topic changing, the artist sighed in relief. When I glanced at Ami, I saw that Ami had become a textbook for Kang Seo-yoon’s special hair braiding lecture.

When Ami was in her early days, she would turn bright red and look like a sack of barley when she was surrounded by girls. When he saw the Ami girls chatting leisurely even as they touched their hair, Hwa-in felt strangely impressed.

Well, I guess I would get used to it after doing that for almost three months. This must have been especially true since I’ve been constantly harassed by Kang Seo-yoon for the past week.

We have been close friends ever since we transferred schools. For Hwain, there were many things that stood out about the recent changes in ARMY.

‘That doesn’t change anything.’

Hwa-in tried to ask what thoughts came to mind and joined in on the boys’ topic, which had turned into a game.

***

‘It’s been a while since I saw the sunset.’

As he looked up at the sky blankly, a thought suddenly occurred to him. It’s been quite a while since I left school at this time. I barely had time to look at the sky because I was busy talking with my friends.

The friends left first, saying they had work to do. Nevertheless, the reason why Painter was waiting alone like this was because there was still one person left.

How many times did I alternate between looking at the sunset and my cell phone? Tuk. A small hand patted the painter’s back.

“Sorry, I’m a little late.”

“Uh, well, it doesn’t matter.”

“The conversation with Seol-ah got a bit long. Sorry~.”

I glanced behind me and saw Ami looking up at Hwa-in, smiling shyly. Feeling embarrassed for no reason, Hwain turned his head forward again and walked away.

I was reluctant to meet face to face because of the topic we discussed during the day. During special training, I moved my body so hard that I had no time to think about anything else, but there was no way I could do that while leaving school.

“What, are you angry? Hey, the guy was a little upset that it was a bit late.”

“It’s not like that, really.”

Immediately after a brief scuffle, the two walked side by side and passed the school gate. The painter’s attitude, which had been stiff at first, had softened somewhat by then.

‘Well, it’s funny to be nervous now.’

Army’s special training is quite long and difficult. There are many cases where Raon or Jeongyoung wait for you, but it is not uncommon for the two of them to leave school together like this.

There is no need to give meaning to insignificant things. It is natural to leave school alone with friends. That was when Hwain finished rationalizing himself and relaxed.

“But what were we talking about during lunch earlier?”

“!?”

Should we really say that he is a master of martial arts? Hwa-in was unable to come to his senses as the strike was aimed precisely at the moment when the opponent’s guard was relaxed.

“Byeo, we weren’t talking about anything?”

“You’re lying. Even though we set a noise barrier. Okay, so just be honest with your brother, okay?”

It’s a dirty story, right? It was a dirty story, right? Ami’s elbow poked Hwain’s side.

Fine regretted the fact that he didn’t have a recorder in his hands right now. I should have recorded what I just said and told it to ARMY. Only then will ARMY realize that talking about ‘dirty stories’ in a girl’s voice is completely different from what a man does.

Maybe he knows it? The painter tried hard to erase the thought that came to mind. Not only was it not the first time that Ami did this without realizing it, but there was no hint of mockery in her smiling face.

‘This is why I told you not to set up the barrier!’

The painter, completely forgetting that he was one of the causes of the barrier, raised a rebuttal.

“It’s not a dirty story. So──”

“So?”

The painter realized his mistake. It might be okay if you just denied it, but if you say it that far and then gloss over it, it’s the same as confessing to having said something like that. Even though I didn’t actually do it.

The painter’s head turned desperately. I had to say something. However, I did not have the ability to make up stories that did not exist at all.

“──What would I do if my friend suddenly confessed to me? It’s not something worth saying openly, right?”

So, the painter presented the topic with an appropriate twist. Isn’t there a saying that a lie mixed with the truth is more effective than a complete lie?

“What, did someone say they received a confession? Is it about you?”

“That can’t be possible. It’s just something that came up by chance.”

“Then it’s just kimchi soup.”

Ami’s expression frowned as if she was tired. Hwain wanted to argue back for the sake of her friends’ honor, but isn’t it true that it’s actually just drinking kimchi soup? In the end, I decided to just ignore it.

However, the topic that was thought to change continued as ARMY showed surprising interest.

“Still, it’s not a useless story. If you too get a confession, think carefully.”

“How can I do that?”

“Well? Isn’t that something you don’t know?”

A tone that seemed strangely confident. The painter’s mind was in confusion. What on earth does that mean?

Ami seemed to think that Hwa-in would receive a confession. There is no way he could have seen the future, so there must be some basis for thinking that way. Amini, who often talks to girls recently, may have heard such a thing.

However, Hwain had no memory of feeling such a romantic atmosphere around her. To begin with, the women I am closest with are Raon, who is like family, and ARMY in front of me… .

“… … .”

“Why are you suddenly looking so straight?”

“Oh, no. I have something to think about for a moment.”

The only girls close to Hwain who are close to him are Raon and Ami. Among them, if you remove Raon, who is close to family, the only thing left is Army.

If Ami’s confession is what she thinks, then there’s nothing strange about being confident!

The answer, which I thought was logical in its own way and had been thought through, seemed very plausible to the painter. Hwain’s heart rate rose as he felt like a detective who had found the culprit.

Fortunately, Hwain’s reason was still alive. At least to the point where I think you shouldn’t ask that out loud.

“Ami, how about you?”

“Huh?”

“What will you do if your friend suddenly confesses to you?”

Therefore, Chinese attempted indirect confirmation. If I hadn’t said this from the beginning, I wouldn’t have had the option of not coming here and asking.

I was wondering, ‘Did I go too far?’, but it seemed like ARMY simply accepted it as a continuation of the previous topic.

“Well~, is it a confession? I’ve never really thought about it. hmm… .”

In a conversation with her friends, Hwain was confident that Ami would reject her outright. However, Ami was thinking longer than expected as she placed her finger on her lips.

Maybe what Ami said just now wasn’t her mistake. Such anxiety or anticipation spread through the painter’s heart.

“I don’t know.”

Despite the high expectations, the answer was disappointing. But the painter waited a little more patiently. Ami’s words aren’t over yet.

“Because there are many people even if they are friends. I don’t think there’s much point in thinking about it in advance. huh. After all, you have to receive a confession in person to find out.”

You can only find out by receiving a confession in person. It felt to Hwain as if it was a million light years away from the knife-like rejection he had originally expected. Isn’t it true that depending on the person, a confession may be acceptable?

‘Let’s stay calm.’

Even if I repeated it to myself, it was of no use. A war was already going on in Hwain’s mind, divided over whether he was the ‘person who could accept the confession’ or not.

The man closest to ARMY is me. It can’t be me. no. I am close to Raon, but Raon is excluded. I may also be excluded from ARMY. So, who else is there besides me?

There, Fine thought about someone else. If I can accept a confession depending on the person, it means that I can also accept a confession from someone other than myself.

I don’t want to just watch it get passed over to someone whose name I don’t know… . It was when Hwain tried to shake off that nervousness by shaking his head.

“Still, if it’s tolerable──”

Whispering, hair blowing in the wind interrupted Ami’s words. The painter’s turning of his head was a reflexive action in response to the interruption.

However, the timing was very bad. In the past, the hair would have been roughly shaken off. However, ARMY, who had learned ‘a more comfortable way’, behaved differently than before.

The boy ended up witnessing the girl tucking her blonde hair, colored by the setting sun, behind her ears.

“──Accepted… , huh?”

Ami’s puzzled voice. It was a moderate reaction to having my wrist suddenly grabbed.

“What, suddenly.”

The touch of the thin, cold wrist awakened Hwa-in’s reason. The painter was at a loss as he looked down at his hand, as if he had just realized that he had grabbed his wrist.

“That… .”

I was aware of the fact that I was excited. I had no intention of acting now. However, his hand was already holding Ami’s wrist.

I had to say something. Now that things have come to this, should I really confess? However, Ami’s eyes only contained curiosity, and there was no hint of tension or excitement about the current situation.

‘I was really the only one who got excited.’

I felt like cold water had been poured onto my head.

Swish, swish. I saw Ami’s eyes moving back and forth between her wrist and her face. If it was unpleasant, she could have shaken it off, but Ami was just held still.

Fine thought that was enough for now.

“About the confession you just made.”

“Uh, huh?”

“Who did you think you were confessing to?”

“Of course it’s the girls in the class… ?”

It was all just a misunderstanding. Hwain burst out laughing for no reason and let go of Ami’s hand and giggled. The two people who had stopped started walking again without anyone taking the lead.

“That’s it? Are you surprised that I thought about being confessed to by a man?”

“Uh. I was really chilled at that moment.”

“Anyway, no matter how many times I tell you it’s a man, they don’t understand.”

I may never be able to understand it for the rest of my life. Hwain suppressed the urge to say that. It wasn’t something I could say now that my senses had fully returned.

So what answer should I give? The answer was simpler than I expected.

“The station has arrived. Then I’ll go first. Don’t be late tomorrow!”

“… uh. See you tomorrow.”

Before Hwa-in could reply, Ami spoke quickly and ran to the station. He looks as lively as usual. Hwa-in recalled that what happened just now was no different from ordinary chatter to Ami.

That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for the Chinese. If his reckless behavior had been discovered just now, their relationship would have had no choice but to change. The odds of winning were very slim now.

Sighing with gratitude and relief at Ami’s indifference, Hwa-in walked towards the bus stop in front of the station.

***

“… ? Senior, why are you banging your head on the table?”

“Did I choose the wrong option? .”

“??”

*****