Ch.343IF Side Story. From the Beginning (111)

“One year…..”

Hayun suddenly muttered.

“Hm? One year?”

I was drinking hot chocolate after taking a break from skating when I responded, and Hayun shook her head.

“No, just thinking. It’s been over a year since we first met.”

When exactly I met Hayun is something we both have different opinions about. As I remember it, it was around autumn, but Hayun remembers it being winter.

Perhaps I noticed Hayun first, and we properly talked to each other around winter.

Even with my memories from my past life, memories from “very early childhood” in this world weren’t as clear as memories from adulthood.

But that’s not really important. What matters is that we met when we were very young and have known each other all this time.

One year.

Another year added to that time.

I can’t guarantee how we’ll get along in the future, but I just vaguely thought that I wanted to keep knowing Hayun.

No, maybe that’s too selfish.

Because just knowing each other isn’t enough to satisfy me anymore.

We were in the heart of Seoul. Ironically, the place where Noir Corporation headquarters—the organization we once opposed—is located. Well, strictly speaking, Seoul City Hall is more famous than the Noir Corporation building, and the plaza in front that turns into a skating rink every winter is even more famous, but anyway, that’s where we were.

At first, we just came out because Hayun suggested visiting a bookstore after a long time.

But for the past year, since I became an adult, like other kids, Hayun didn’t just want to go to the bookstore, buy what we needed, and head straight home.

She naturally wrapped her arm around mine and put her hand in my coat pocket to hold my hand. She no longer blushed much from such actions.

Even if she did blush, it was either from the cold or pure happiness. She no longer looked embarrassed just from holding my hand.

“Whew.”

“Want some?”

When I offered my hot chocolate to Hayun, who was leaning against the railing near the table where I sat, she thanked me and gently wrapped both hands around the cup. I thought it might be too hot, but she was wearing gloves.

I quietly watched as she took a sip.

“Sorry. I got too excited by myself.”

“No, it’s just that I’m not good at skating.”

I don’t know how to skate. Even though I exercised quite a bit after becoming a magical girl, skating seemed to be something you couldn’t easily do without proper training.

I followed Hayun without thinking, and only after putting on the skates did I belatedly realize I had never skated before.

By then, I had already entered the rink holding Hayun’s hand.

For quite a while, I either staggered around like a wounded deer, slipping here and there, or was dragged along at high speed while holding onto Hayun’s hand. Except for falling about five times, it was quite fun. And with the year-end atmosphere, those five falls could just be laughed off.

Hayun looked at me like I was some adorable hamster no matter what I did. It made me feel embarrassed for no reason.

Sigh.

Hayun took another sip of her drink and exhaled. Her white breath lingered in the air. There was a slightly sweet smell, probably from the chocolate.

“I think I’ll go back in now.”

When I stood up, Hayun looked a bit surprised.

“Oh, are you sure?”

“Yeah. I feel kind of frustrated.”

Half joking, half serious. Honestly, I wouldn’t care if I never learned to skate in my life, but I was frustrated about not being able to play with Hayun.

And I didn’t want to be left outside alone when playing with others later.

“Wait there. I’ll come to you.”

I told Hayun as I headed toward the entrance.

…Despite saying that so coolly, I ended up falling one more time on my way to Hayun.

*

Still, failure is the mother of success, as they say.

Learning through continuous falls, my skills improved bit by bit. How to stagger without falling. And how to move my legs little by little to move forward. Even though Hayun was much better at skating than me, she stayed by my side and taught me everything step by step.

Suddenly, I remembered the past.

Hayun wasn’t particularly less physically fit than me, but when walking with me, her pace would strangely slow down.

Perhaps even at that young age, she was somewhat tired. Going to various academies and being expected to perform well at all of them. Maybe she was under pressure from her parents. Despite being good at so many things, Hayun always seemed somewhat intimidated.

At those times, instead of rushing her, I would match my pace to walk beside her. Or just sit down next to her to rest.

I would pat her head, buy her something delicious. In my own clumsy way, I didn’t just leave Hayun alone.

Just like Hayun now.

“The roles have reversed.”

“Hm?”

When I spoke while holding Hayun’s hand and standing up, she blinked.

Cheeks flushed red from the cold. Round eyes. That expression and face suited Hayun so well, it was lovely.

“I think I’m starting to get it. Shall we try once more?”

“Yes.”

Hayun held out her hand.

That’s right.

It was like this when Hayun first asked me to become a magical girl.

I felt so inferior to Hayun. Even though I knew what kind of life Hayun had led as a child. Even though I was the one comforting her, I was jealous of her just because I couldn’t be the protagonist of the story.

Probably since the aliens made contact with Earth.

If Hayun had become a magical girl and I couldn’t do anything… that would have just been a fact. It would only mean I didn’t have the talent to be a magical girl, not a reason to feel emptiness in life.

Nevertheless, I was jealous because I finally understood why I had come to this world.

Yet, Hayun reached out her hand to me then too. Just like now.

Our held hands connected warmly.

Hayun moved her feet, and I moved mine to match. Slowly at first. But smoothly.

The sliding speed gradually increased, and the scenery around us flowed by quickly. As the short day completely set and the sky darkened, the lights running toward the edge of our vision looked beautiful, like flowing water. The various lights installed for the year-end festivities certainly contributed to that atmosphere.

But even in that flowing scenery, Hayun’s figure remained clear.

Holding hands tightly, moving forward at the same speed together, Hayun’s figure never disappeared from my sight, always there.

After circling the skating rink a few more times, we slowly came to a stop.

“…That was amazing, Jieun.”

Hayun said with an enchanted expression.

Did Hayun see the same sight I did? I hope so. Because Hayun being by my side meant I was by Hayun’s side too.

We knew exactly when it was time to stop. Anything excessive becomes too tiring. Especially since I had just learned to skate, my body was honestly aching in various places.

After putting away the skates, we went outside again.

Somehow, I didn’t want to just go home. The sky had turned dark, but it wasn’t really late night yet.

The two of us, sticking close together, slowly walked toward the bookstore. There were quite a few couples like us around. Well, most couples were male-female pairs. Not all girls sticking together were dating.

But still, that was the atmosphere.

Even though we hadn’t transformed or connected our mana, somehow we knew what each other wanted just by looking at each other’s expressions.

While walking, our eyes suddenly met, and after giggling playfully, we slipped into a nearby alley.

The alley wasn’t exactly empty, but somehow kissing openly on the main street felt a bit much.

Hayun nestled into my arms and tightly hugged my waist.

I embraced her too. Her waist was slender. Even through the thick coat, Hayun’s body fit perfectly in my arms.

Hayun lifted her head toward me, and I leaned my face slightly toward her.

Our lips gently overlapped.

Because of the cold weather, those soft, warm lips felt distinctly clear.

Hayun’s breath carried a faint scent of chocolate.

Our lips parted, and we looked at each other again.

Without any words, endlessly.

Because we would be there anyway. Because we would always be together in a place where we could see each other whenever we wanted.

So there was no need to exchange words so earnestly.

We still had plenty of time for that.

For now, it was enough to press our foreheads together and feel each other’s presence.