Ch.144Chapter 144. Blanket Kick

“Huh?”

During break time.

Alice flinched as a cool breeze brushed against her nape.

Looking toward the window, she noticed one was slightly open.

Had someone opened it for ventilation?

Still, afraid bugs might get in, Alice approached the window to close it when—

“Wah!”

“Eek?!”

She fell back in surprise at the face that suddenly popped up from beyond the window.

After calming her startled heart, she saw Cuss grinning with leaves and flower petals all over her hair.

Coming all the way into the garden just to surprise her…

As Alice laughed in disbelief, Cuss opened the window wide and tried to squeeze herself inside.

“No, Cuss! You’ll get in trouble with the teacher!”

“Not if I don’t get caught… Ugh! Huh?”

Cuss managed to get her face and upper body through, but suddenly got stuck.

Her waist was wedged in the window frame.

With her hip bones firmly caught, she could neither move forward nor backward.

“Nnngh…”

After struggling for quite some time, Cuss finally gave up.

“Hey! It’s Cuss!”

“Cuss! Long time no see!”

The small commotion drew the attention of everyone in the classroom.

For the children, this was their first time seeing Cuss since vacation.

Excited to see her, they all rushed to the window.

“How’s 7th grade? Are the classes hard?”

“We haven’t really had proper classes yet.”

“What about the older kids there? Are they scary?”

“Hmm… They might be a little scary. But some aren’t scary at all.”

Cuss answered each question slowly, one by one.

She wasn’t intimidated or threatened at all.

She knew all these little ones’ questions came from pure curiosity.

“Cuss, you seem really grown-up now.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. It’s strange… It’s only been a month, but you suddenly seem so much more mature.”

“Hmm…”

While brushing leaves from Cuss’s hair, Alice felt a strange sensation.

When they were in the same classroom, she had thought Cuss was just bigger in size, but never considered her mature.

After all, she had always been such a klutz.

But now, having skipped to 7th grade, even though only a month had passed, Cuss was radiating a more mature aura.

It was strange.

Cuss was acting the same as a month ago, or perhaps even more clumsy than before.

“Tom! Cuss came to visit!”

“…”

Looking around and noticing Tom’s absence, Alice turned and called out.

There he was, sitting alone at his desk, staring at his tablet.

Although he clearly heard her voice, he pretended not to and refused to look their way.

“Tom! I’m in the same class as your brother now. Yesterday…”

“Tch.”

While Cuss was excitedly calling out to Tom, he clicked his tongue, stood up, and left the classroom.

Everyone watching was dumbfounded.

“That damn brat…”

“T-Tom must be in a bad mood today…”

Both brothers ignoring her greetings?

As Cuss trembled with anger, clenching her fists, Alice quickly came to Tom’s defense.

What was going on?

He used to openly dislike and bully Cuss, but by the time vacation started, they had gotten along quite well…

Alice tilted her head, unable to understand Tom’s reaction.

“Anyway, it’s really good to see you.”

“Yeah… But could you help me get out, Alice?”

“You really can’t get out?”

“I can’t budge at all on my own.”

“Give me your hand. Hnnngh…!”

“Gaaaah! That hurts!”

Watching Cuss make strange noises, Alice had to correct her earlier thought.

Cuss was indeed just a child with a big body.

A child with high intelligence…

.

.

.

“You and your brother are exactly the same. Do you have some disease that kills you if you return a greeting? I’m not hurt, but I am a bit annoyed.”

“Um… Cuss. About that…”

“What is it?”

“Nothing…”

Jake’s cheeks flushed red as he turned his head away.

Cuss had pulled her desk right next to his and was sitting very close.

He could occasionally feel the girls glancing in their direction.

This was exactly what he had wanted, but now that it was happening, he felt incredibly embarrassed.

“Um… Cuss. I’d appreciate it if you could move a bit further away.”

“Your right hand is injured, so you probably couldn’t take notes at all. Tell me what parts of today’s lesson you want noted down. I’ll write them for you.”

“…”

Cuss leaned over onto Jake’s desk, pencil in hand, looking up at him.

He couldn’t bring himself to say he’d already finished taking notes using his eye display.

Jake recited the content he had already noted down, watching as Cuss scribbled in her notebook.

Was Cuss doing this purely out of guilt?

Could there be even a tiny bit of affection involved?

If there was absolutely no affection, she wouldn’t go this far, would she?

This was progress compared to before…

‘This injured hand… might not be so bad.’

Today, he couldn’t be more grateful for his uncomfortable hand.

Being able to spend time this close to Cuss was more than enough.

“Done!”

“Let me see.”

Jake’s eyes widened as he looked at the completed notes.

The handwriting was beyond crooked—it had reached a level where one couldn’t even tell if they were alphabets.

Jake thought he could probably write better with his left hand.

He couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.

Still, seeing the occasional spots where pressure had been applied, it was clear Cuss hadn’t just scribbled carelessly.

“You really have terrible handwriting.”

“But it’s still legible.”

“I can’t read it at all…”

“No, I meant I can read it.”

“What good is that if I can’t read it?”

“Then I’ll read it to you.”

“…”

Did Cuss know?

That her casual words made his heart flutter?

Jake felt his face heating up again and turned away.

“Who is she to act so friendly with Jake?”

“I don’t know. Maybe they knew each other before.”

“Is she pretending to be stupid to get close to him, or what?”

Meanwhile, a group of girls were muttering among themselves from a distance.

Sitting nearby with a book, Yujin’s eyebrows twisted in annoyance.

Finally unable to bear it, he pushed his chair back with a scrape and stood up.

“Hey, ladies. Instead of muttering behind their backs, why not say it to their faces?”

“What’s with him?”

“I think this is the first time I’ve heard his voice.”

“Is he really in our class?”

“Let’s just go. He’s creepy…”

The effect was dramatic.

The girls all dispersed with disgusted expressions.

Yujin sat back down, savoring his victory and trying to suppress a smile.

But there was one problem now that the girls had moved away.

With the barrier blocking his view gone, he could clearly see Cuss pressed against Jake’s side.

He found his gaze constantly drawn in that direction, making it impossible to focus on his book.

This wouldn’t do.

In all of Yujin’s 13 years of life, he had never let a girl distract him from his studies.

‘Should I pretend to be crazy?’

Should he gather courage and approach her?

Like when he chased after Cuss that time.

But this time was different—Jake was beside her, and other kids were around.

Pretending to read his book while glancing back repeatedly, Yujin looked for the right moment to join in.

‘Ah. They’re talking about that TV show. That’s a good one.’

I watch that program too.

Should I jump in and say something now?

No, this topic was too brief to be worthwhile.

‘So Cuss likes documentaries too? I watch all the National Geographic ones.’

Cuss was talking excitedly, but Jake wasn’t saying a word, suggesting he probably didn’t watch documentaries.

Perhaps this was Yujin’s chance to step in.

But as he fidgeted, ready to stand up, the topic quickly changed.

‘Cuss uses an old-model phone… Your father doesn’t like implanting things in the body? Is he into conspiracy theories? Most conspiracy theories are false. After the wiretapping issue broke twenty years ago, everything was overhauled. It’s all nonsense now. I should explain everything to Cuss until she understands…’

If there was incorrect information, it needed to be corrected.

But he might stumble over his words, so he needed to organize his thoughts to speak coherently from start to finish.

Yujin mentally reviewed the origins of the phone chip wiretapping conspiracy theory, how the issue broke, and the process by which the conspiracy was completely debunked. Satisfied with his preparation, he stood up.

“Ah…”

But Cuss and Jake had already left.

He had completely missed his opportunity.

Yujin clenched his fist tightly and left the classroom.

Walking dejectedly toward the rooftop, he carefully checked two, three times that no one was around.

Then he made a call.

-Son?

“Moooom! I think I’m an idiot!”

-Hmm. Son. Calm down, don’t cry, and tell me what happened.

“I can’t calm down! That girl I told you was pretty before! Waaah! She’s not interested in me at all!”

-Hmm… Why don’t you try talking to her first?

“But I’m scared! Boo-hoo! I’m afraid she’ll ignore me!”

As soon as the call connected, Yujin sobbed and poured out his complaints.

It was an embarrassing side he would never show his classmates.

-Hmm… I don’t think she’ll ignore you. Be brave. You can do it, son.

“How would you know! What do you know about Cuss!”

-I just have a feeling. Try doing as I say. If it doesn’t work, I’ll take responsibility.

Something about her confidently assured voice made Yujin feel calmer.

There was no way his mother had met or knew Cuss, but somehow her words sounded convincing.

-Hohoho. Is that the senior’s son?

“Mom? Is someone there with you?”

-Ah, yes. A colleague. I need to get back now. Hanging up.

“Mom! Before you hang up!”

-Oh fine. Okay. Kissy-kiss.

“Mwah!”

With his lips puckered, Yujin ended the call.

He had gained confidence.

Adjusting his thick glasses, Yujin returned to his usual expressionless face.

And as he turned around…

“Yujin, you…”

“Ah.”

He came face to face with Jake standing at the rooftop door.