Ch.24024. …I bought this for nothing.

Benchwarmer. Grunt. Totem.

There were many words to describe this role, but Suhyeok was a master of this class.

Whether it was soccer or basketball, for someone who had gone through the long journey of all-boys middle and high schools, being placed on the disadvantaged team was an all too familiar procedure.

A lowly defensive soldier, easily brushed aside by the attackers!

During his school days, kids were just grateful that he filled the numbers, so there was hardly any criticism directed at Suhyeok.

“Hmm~ Since Kang is skilled, let’s pair him with Suhyeok and take them together, shall we?”

The Spirit members somehow managed to finish shopping and arrive at the pension.

The guys were cheering from the entrance at the sight of the foot volleyball net.

The number of people was just right.

The first-year boys were vocalist Geonwoo, guitarist Taeho, and bassist Jiho—three people in total.

The second-years were Suhyeok and Choegang. Two people.

They decided to play 3-on-3 and were going to recruit one girl, but the one who volunteered was none other than Hana.

“Let’s make it a clean first-years versus second-years match!”

Choegang bounced the ball, showing off his fancy footwork.

His well-honed muscles and nimble movements were certainly intimidating enough for the first-years.

“Hey! Let’s bet on ice cream bread!”

Hana, standing next to Choegang, also taunted the first-years with a triumphant expression.

“Noona! I’ll choose Baskin Robbins right away if we lose!”

“Then if I win, you’ll get me Häagen-Dazs?”

The stakes were getting higher.

“Um… I’m not confident…”

Suhyeok didn’t mind joining in, but he hated being the reason his team lost.

“Don’t worry.”

Choegang grabbed Suhyeok’s shoulder firmly.

Suhyeok felt like his shoulder might crumble under the grip even before the match began.

“I’ll teach these first-years some manners myself!”

“Ha. Hana, are you good at foot volleyball too?”

She needs to be good to take some burden off Kang.

“Me? Well… I’m not amazing, but I do enjoy kicking balls.”

Watching Hana skillfully juggle the ball she had taken from Choegang, Suhyeok realized his worry was unnecessary.

Just from that alone, she seemed at least ten times better than him.

“Shall we start then?”

The game began with the first-years serving first.

The first-years clearly had experience kicking balls, as they coordinated smoothly with each other.

The second-years, on the other hand, had a somewhat unusual flow.

“Huh…?”

It was clearly a spot where Suhyeok should have received the ball, but a shadow fell in front of him.

Choegang successfully saved the ball with his enormous build and speed.

As promised beforehand, Choegang was greatly alleviating Suhyeok’s concerns.

The following attack was Hana’s responsibility.

Her long limbs drew elegant curves through the air.

It was definitely not the kind of attack that could be taken lightly just because she was a woman.

Sometimes she showed powerful, straightforward shots, and other times she displayed precarious attacks that seemed to barely graze the net. She was contributing several times more than Suhyeok.

“Hey! Only send the ball to Suhyeok!”

Realizing they might lose at this rate, the first-years adjusted their strategy.

It was a cheap tactic, but premium ice cream was at stake.

They were sending the ball as far away from Choegang as possible, targeting only positions where Suhyeok had to receive.

“Ugh…”

The volleyball bounced off Suhyeok’s foot and flew out.

That was already their third lost point.

“It’s okay! Lee Suhyeok! We’re still ahead.”

“That’s right. Focus! Focus!”

Both Hana and Choegang were encouraging him.

Holding the ball, Suhyeok continued the game resolutely despite his dejected expression.

Despite Choegang and Hana’s valiant efforts, the first-years were steadily narrowing the score gap.

‘I… I need to do something.’

His heart was anxious, but skills couldn’t improve instantly.

A floating ball came flying toward Suhyeok.

Determined to contribute at least this time, Suhyeok twisted his ankle excessively and…

“Ack!”

He managed to save the ball but lost his balance and fell sideways.

As his knee scraped against the dirt, the area where his pants touched stung terribly.

“Are you okay?”

The members rushed over, temporarily stopping the game.

“Ah. Yeah.”

Hana extended her hand to help him up, but…

His ankle throbbed with each step.

Suhyeok could hardly hide his apology, feeling he couldn’t continue playing.

“I think I sprained my ankle, so we might need to find someone else…”

“What? Really?”

“Yeah. It hurts every time I move.”

“Guys, let’s put the bet on hold! I’ll take Suhyeok inside and come back.”

After Hana stopped the game, Suhyeok was carried back to the pension by Choegang.

“You did well! I’ll crush those first-years when I get back!”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

Suhyeok successfully made it into the room, avoiding Seo-eun and the junior girls who were gathered to make hotteok.

He let out a deep sigh, feeling somewhat dejected.

“Haah…”

As expected, this kind of atmosphere and activity didn’t seem to suit him.

Even as a benchwarmer, it was too obvious in sports with few players.

If only it were like PE class soccer with 13 players per team.

When he rolled up his pants, droplets of blood had formed on his scraped knee.

“…Why are you hurt?”

Startled by the sudden voice, Suhyeok quickly turned around.

He hadn’t heard anyone enter—where had they come from?

The voice belonged to Juyeon.

She looked quite surprised seeing Suhyeok’s wound.

“W-wait a moment.”

She scurried over to the closet and pulled out the large bag she had brought that morning.

The contents of the bag piled up one by one on the bed.

Pajamas, flashlight, playing cards, insect repellent.

After rummaging for a while, Juyeon produced ointment and bandages.

“Use this…”

Juyeon placed the ointment, still in its unopened packaging, into Suhyeok’s hand.

“Thanks.”

As he gently applied it to the wound with his index finger, he winced at the stinging sensation.

Kneeling right beside him, Juyeon removed the paper from the bandage.

Once he finished applying the ointment, Juyeon placed the bandage directly over the center of the wound.

“…Done.”

Suhyeok couldn’t help but smile at her response, which seemed like she had just completed a quest.

“Juyeon.”

“Yes?”

“Do you always carry all that stuff in your bag?”

It was an overwhelming amount of miscellaneous items compared to others’ simple luggage.

“W-when going to unfamiliar places… you never know when an emergency might happen.”

Anyone would think she was preparing for a deserted island.

But her preparedness had definitely helped Suhyeok.

“Do you happen to have pain relief patches too?”

He asked without really expecting her to have them, but Juyeon told him to wait again and rummaged through her bag diligently.

“Here.”

It seemed like there was nothing Juyeon’s bag didn’t contain.

Feeling somewhat better, Suhyeok got up and sat on the edge of the bed.

“I guess outdoor activities are just not for me after all.”

Suhyeok explained how he got hurt, mixing in some complaints.

Listening to his story, Juyeon seemed to be overflowing with empathy.

Loners shouldn’t try to do things.

It’s actually more helpful if they don’t do anything at all.

Juyeon nodded vigorously as if she understood completely.

Her light brown bob hair swayed rhythmically with each nod.

“But what were you doing here, Juyeon?”

The other girls all seemed to be playing in the kitchen, so what was Juyeon doing here?

“Ni… Nintendo.”

Taking advantage of the confusion, Juyeon had successfully snuck into the room and was deeply immersed in her game until Suhyeok arrived.

She had curled up in a blind spot under the bed, achieving perfect concealment.

Being able to enjoy her newly purchased game was a happy thing.

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. It’s super fun.”

“I’d like to watch you play.”

There was only one console anyway, so they couldn’t play together.

Though she thought the chances of getting caught would be higher with two people, Juyeon accepted Suhyeok’s proposal.

She took out the gaming device she had hidden under the bed again.

Her dainty fingers clicked the buttons.

Even from just watching, it was clear that Juyeon was quite skilled at controlling the game.

“So close…!”

Juyeon narrowly failed to defeat the boss.

Unable to contain her frustration, she hit her own thigh with the console.

“Ugh… so annoying…”

Suhyeok seemed to have become comfortable.

Seeing her honest reactions popping out, it definitely seemed that way.

Just as she was contemplating whether to retry, the moment came.

“Hey, Lee Suhyeok.”

Hana opened the door and entered, discovering the two sitting closely together.

Suhyeok and Juyeon were so close they almost looked like they were leaning on each other.

The two turned toward Hana when they noticed her.

“Is your ankle okay?”

The two jumped in surprise like elementary school kids caught playing hooky.

“Ah. Yeah.”

“What about the wound?”

“Juyeon put a bandage on it, so I think it’s fine now.”

Though he was the one who got hurt, Suhyeok felt oddly apologetic and gave an awkward smile.

“…I see.”

For some reason, Hana nodded with a somewhat disgruntled expression.

“Alright. Rest well then!”

Hana closed the door swiftly as she left.

Her left hand tapped the paper box inside her pocket.

“…Bought it for nothing.”

The fact that she had walked 25 minutes round trip to the convenience store remained a secret to everyone.