Chapter 15: The Strange Boy, Lee Hwi-jun(15)

Late at night, under the dimly lit streetlights, the sound of footsteps echoed softly, one set of steps passing by.

However, despite there being only one set of footsteps, the shadow cast by the streetlight belonged to two people.

One person was walking, while the other was being carried on the back of the person walking.

That person was Yoo Da-hyun, whose legs had lost strength due to nervousness, and was being carried on the back of Lee Hwi-jun on their way home from school.

Yoo Da-hyun, as she was carried, thought to herself, “I’m such a fool..! I should’ve just called Dad or Mom to bring the car and pick me up instead of getting on his back like this…!”

She was mentally scolding herself for not thinking of such an obvious solution.

How thoughtless must she have been to immediately get on his back when he told her to?

Had she not even considered what might happen if she were carried this way?

The reason Yoo Da-hyun was scolding herself was simple.

While she felt embarrassed every time someone glanced at her with a satisfied expression, as if witnessing a scene from a youth drama, the real issue was:

“Why didn’t I realize that carrying me all the way home would be hard for him? This fool…”

More than anything, she was feeling selfish for not even considering how difficult it must be for Lee Hwi-jun to carry her.

“Ugh… What if he’s thinking that I must be really heavy to make him struggle like this? What if he’s wondering what I’ve been eating to get so heavy?”

She was usually careful about her weight, so she never made self-deprecating remarks about being heavy.

However, she thought that it might be better for Lee Hwi-jun to set her down instead of enduring any strain.

So she spoke up hesitantly.

“Hey, I must be heavy, right…? It must be tough for you. Just let me walk from here.”

Usually, she wouldn’t have made a comment like that, mixing in self-deprecation.

But, she figured it might be better than him struggling and then hesitantly offering to let her down.

She didn’t want to upset him.

“Hmm? Heavy? Not at all. You’re not heavy at all.”

“Ah, really?”

Whether he was being considerate or genuinely believed that, Lee Hwi-jun responded with a nonchalant tone, as though it wasn’t true at all.

Even if it was just a lie, it wasn’t unpleasant to hear, and her lips curled into a smile.

Still, hearing those pleasant words made Yoo Da-hyun want even less to cause him any trouble, so she insisted, “But carrying me like this must still be hard, right? I can walk from here, so please let me down.”

“It’s fine. Didn’t you sprain your ankle a little when you tripped while running away earlier?”

“…Huh? How did you know?”

Yoo Da-hyun was surprised by Lee Hwi-jun’s comment.

She had felt a slight ache in her ankle after tripping, but she hadn’t shown any signs of discomfort.

She was curious as to how he had noticed, and when she asked, Lee Hwi-jun answered with a tone as if it were no big deal.

“I noticed you were adjusting your step, paying attention to your ankle. And when you tried to stand up to get on my back, I saw you flinch a little. I just figured it was hurting a bit.”

Yoo Da-hyun hadn’t realized that Lee Hwi-jun was so attentive.

If she had known earlier, she might have thought he was being stalker-like, which would’ve made her uncomfortable.

But now, realizing he wasn’t that kind of person, she felt completely at ease, even a little happy.

The boy who had seemed indifferent at first was actually paying such close attention to her.

At that moment, Lee Hwi-jun said, “Even if it doesn’t hurt much now, you shouldn’t push yourself. It might get worse. Just stay on my back for now. You’re not heavy at all, and it’s really not hard for me, so don’t worry about it.”

“…Okay.”

It felt wrong to insist on walking after he had said that, so Yoo Da-hyun quietly let herself be carried.

It was a relief that Lee Hwi-jun didn’t seem to be pretending to be fine.

If he had looked exhausted, she would’ve felt terrible, but he seemed perfectly fine.

As they walked, Yoo Da-hyun couldn’t help but notice that Lee Hwi-jun didn’t seem tired, despite carrying her.

He wasn’t sweating or showing any signs of fatigue.

She wondered, “He must be really strong… He doesn’t look like it, but maybe he’s pretty strong?”

He was tall, but not muscular or built like an athlete.

He had more of a quiet, bookish vibe, so she was a little surprised.

But now, she could tell he had a solid build from the way he carried her and the firmness of his arms and back.

“Maybe it’s what they call functional strength?”

At that moment, a car with its headlights on passed them by with a whoosh.

“Ugh…!”

Seeing the headlights reminded Yoo Da-hyun of the close call earlier when she almost got hit by a car, and without realizing it, she shrank back and buried her face into Lee Hwi-jun’s back.

Seeing her reaction, Lee Hwi-jun adjusted his posture slightly to make her more comfortable, as if to reassure her.

“…Ah.”

As she rested her head on his back, Yoo Da-hyun thought, “His back is so wide.”

It wasn’t just because of his broad shoulders; it was more than that.

It was because this was the back that had protected her when she almost got hit by the car earlier.

This was the back she saw when he rushed to protect her after she tripped while running from the ghost.

And now, this was the back that seemed to reassure her, telling her that she didn’t need to be afraid anymore.

It was a back she could rely on, a back she could lean on when needed.

That’s why it felt so broad to her.

As she thought about that, Yoo Da-hyun realized how much help Lee Hwi-jun had given her today, and how she hadn’t yet expressed her gratitude.

So, she lifted her head from his back and said, “Hey… Thank you. I wouldn’t have made it without your help.”

If Lee Hwi-jun hadn’t helped her, she probably would’ve been caught by the ghost, and today would’ve been her last day.

Or maybe, she would have been the ghost’s victim a day or two earlier, near that bus stop.

If he hadn’t stepped in to protect her, she wouldn’t be alive right now.

She hadn’t even realized how much she had taken him for granted.

“And… I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were protecting me, and I misunderstood you as a stalker…”

Yoo Da-hyun said all of this with a bitter expression, feeling grateful for his help and apologetic for misjudging him.

If she were in his shoes, she wouldn’t have had a good impression of someone who misunderstood her and was ungrateful for their help.

“The apology is fine. Honestly, even I think that I did something that could have led to that misunderstanding, and I’m reflecting on it.”

However, Lee Hwajun shook his head, said that, and then, in an apologetic tone, spoke to her.

“Actually, I want to apologize instead. If I had thought about you, I should have been honest from the beginning and told you that I was targeting you, but I couldn’t say it because I thought you wouldn’t believe me. I’m sorry.”

“No, no! Don’t apologize! If I hadn’t seen it, I probably would’ve thought you were just saying some crazy stuff. Um…?”

“That’s why, no need to apologize!”

Naturally, Yoo Dahyeon shouted that out in a fit of rage.

It was too unreasonable to think that she should have considered such things when she was the one who had received help unilaterally.

“Then, since we both did something to apologize for, let’s call it even. Is that okay?”

“Is it really okay like that? I think I said some pretty harsh things, like calling you a crazy stalker or something…”

“It’s fine. I was ready to be misunderstood from the start.”

Then, Lee Hwajun, who had suggested letting things go as if nothing had happened, muttered with a slight smile on his face.

“More than anything, I’m just glad you’re safe. That’s what matters.”

Yoo Dahyeon, who was seeing this smile for the first time, was momentarily taken aback.

‘…Huh?’

Seeing it, Yoo Dahyeon was confused.

‘…Huh? Wait, no. It must be just my imagination. No way, that can’t be right.’

It was because, at that moment, she had felt an emotion that she thought should not be present.

‘Right… It’s just admiration. He’s more open-hearted than I thought. That’s all, right? Yeah, that’s it.’

So, trying to snap out of it, Yoo Dahyeon mumbled to herself, and to steer the conversation away from this unexpected feeling, she hastily asked Lee Hwajun a different question.

“By the way, that guy… No, that dark guy! Why did he target me, of all people, leaving everyone else alone? Is there any reason for that?”

In response, Lee Hwajun answered her question.

“Hmm, maybe it’s just because you’re pretty, Yoo Dahyeon.”

“…Huh?”

“You know it yourself. You’re pretty. You look pretty to me, so maybe that guy targeted you because of that.”

“Ah…? Eh…?”

“Thinking about it, like you said before, being pretty does seem to be the problem.”

After that conversation, Yoo Dahyeon went quiet for a moment.

She remained dazed until Lee Hwajun stopped in front of her house.

“Here. Your house, right? Go in. I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

“Uh…? Oh…”

With that goodbye and after dropping her off at home, Lee Hwajun left.

Yoo Dahyeon stood still, watching until he disappeared from her sight. She then lowered her head and murmured.

“Why… why is this happening, Yoo Dahyeon? You don’t even like that kind of style…”

She was definitely the type to care a lot about appearances, so a gloomy style with long bangs wasn’t her type at all…

Even when she started dating, she had always thought she would date someone who looked like a handsome male idol…

But then, why… why was she so affected by him saying she was pretty?

“Th-this is… is this the ‘swaying bridge syndrome’ or ‘Stockholm syndrome’ or something…?”

She murmured, thinking that this feeling was just confusion arising from experiencing a shocking event.

“I can’t believe I ended up dealing with such a weird guy…”

The truth of her feelings could only be known by herself.