Chapter 88: Sports Day (2)

Storage sheds for sports equipment were typically kept locked except in special circumstances.

Even if left wide open, it was unlikely that any student would be bold enough to steal something and flee. Still, there was no reason to allow free access, so keeping it locked made sense.

But why was it open today? Well, it was obviously because of the ongoing sports festival. They’d probably decided to leave it open rather than go through the trouble of locking and unlocking it every time equipment was needed.

Whatever the reason, it was now the perfect place for a secret date.

As So-yul had pointed out, opportunities to spend time alone with my pretty girlfriend were rare. Before anyone could spot us, I quickly slipped inside the storage shed.

“How did you know this place was open?” I asked, gently closing the door behind me.

So-yul, with a beaming expression, clasped her hands behind her back and leaned forward as she answered.

“Hehe. A good hunter always watches for opportunities.”

“What exactly are you hunting in your daily life?”

“Who knows?”

So-yul let out a playful “hehe” and then said:

“Places where I can date my boyfriend, of course?”

“Ah… I suppose so.”

When I acknowledged this with a brief nod, So-yul smiled as if she found it amusing.

I too often thought of So-yul whenever I discovered secluded places.

Could we avoid being seen by other students here? If a teacher suddenly barged in, where could we hide? Most of the time, I ran through simulations in my head only to end up dismissing the idea.

Normal couples would think of their loved ones when finding a nice restaurant or fun place to hang out. The world really was unfair.

“I also think about calling you whenever I find places without people,” I admitted.

“W-what?”

Though I’d only meant to share that I had similar thoughts, So-yul responded with apparent confusion.

“What’s wrong?”

When I asked, puzzled, So-yul covered her chest with both arms, despite there being nothing to hide.

“…What exactly are you planning to do to your girlfriend by taking her to an empty, closed room?”

“…Then what were you planning to do to me by bringing me here?”

“How could I possibly say such things out loud?”

“What nonsense.”

My girlfriend was as playful as ever.

With a slight smile, I poked her cheek. When my finger touched her soft cheek, So-yul squinted as if ticklish.

Her slightly flushed cheeks were probably from cheering enthusiastically until just a while ago.

I finally took a moment to look around the storage shed.

A dark place with few people around. The kind of place we were always searching for.

Vaulting horses, hurdles, mattresses, long poles, and carts filled with balls for various sports—all sorts of equipment were piled up.

Sunlight streamed in through a small window on one wall. Thanks to that, even though it was somewhat dim, we could still see well enough.

As I turned away from the window, I saw So-yul smiling brightly.

Her hair was tied up just like it had been in the morning. The hairstyle commonly known as a ponytail.

Her snow-white nape, untouched by sunlight, stood out distinctly. A few loose strands of hair falling over it added an alluring touch.

Perhaps because of her thin gym clothes, my eyes were naturally drawn to various parts of her body.

Long limbs that seemed mismatched with her small frame. A body so small and slender that it would fit comfortably in my arms with room to spare. The subtle curves of her chest and waist that seemed to highlight our differences.

Her appearance, which simultaneously aroused both desire as a man and protective instinct as a boyfriend, created a sensation that was difficult to describe.

“…It’s embarrassing when you stare so intensely.”

So-yul whispered softly, a wry smile on her face.

I was equally embarrassed. I quickly averted my gaze and scratched the back of my head.

“S-sorry. …I just noticed you tied your hair up today?”

When I asked this while looking elsewhere, So-yul made a “hmm” sound, then:

“What? Don’t tell me you just noticed?”

“Of course not.”

I’d been unable to take my eyes off her since morning.

“It’s not that. You normally participate in PE without tying your hair, even during gym class. I was just wondering what made you decide to tie it all up today.”

“Hmm~”

So-yul let out a drawn-out sound, as if she didn’t quite believe my explanation, then:

“I just wanted to show a different side of myself today.”

“A different side?”

“Yes.”

So-yul nodded slightly, then:

“…So, does your girlfriend look any different today?”

She asked this teasing question with smiling eyes.

So-yul always possessed a cute and lovable charm. That’s why when she showed even a slightly more feminine side like today, it struck my heart in a special way.

She probably knew this herself. She had even admitted that she changed her style to show a different side of herself. She must have been determined to captivate her boyfriend today.

“What do you think?”

So-yul tilted her head playfully, seemingly unaware of my thoughts.

Since she so clearly wanted an answer, I had no choice but to give her one.

I reached out and gently caressed her small ear. So-yul flinched in surprise, her shoulders jumping slightly as she whispered, “Ah, that tickles…” Her gaze as she looked up at me began to grow hazier.

As I looked at her, I whispered quietly:

“Really, if we weren’t at school…”

I deliberately left the rest unsaid.

Judging by how So-yul’s face turned bright red, there was no need to spell it out.

After calming down from the heated moment, we settled side by side on the mattress.

I sat cross-legged while So-yul sat with her knees up and pressed together.

In that position, she turned her head to look at me and softly mentioned:

“I’ve been practicing for the performance lately.”

A performance preparation. She must be talking about the charity concert in November.

“You’ve already started practicing? You didn’t mention anything in your messages or calls.”

“Whether I’m preparing for a performance or not, I’m always just playing the piano anyway. Only the pieces I practice change, so there wasn’t much to talk about.”

“Ah, I guess that makes sense.”

Even if she had told me, there wouldn’t have been much for us to discuss. I couldn’t read keys or sheet music. It was ridiculous that the boyfriend of Korea’s most promising pianist prodigy was musically illiterate.

As I smiled awkwardly, So-yul returned a gentle smile, then:

“…But you know. I think it’s about time I made a decision.”

“A decision?”

“Yes.”

After my brief question, So-yul immediately answered:

“Whether I should sit still and play as my mother demands, or continue playing the way I’ve been doing all along.”

She had unexpectedly brought up an important question.

“Didn’t you say before that it was just a habit?”

When I asked, puzzled, So-yul gave a faint smile and said:

“Ahaha, it did become a habit, but actually, I’ve been stubbornly insisting on being accepted for who I am. Enduring even when my mother scolded me. Believing that someday she would recognize me.”

After saying that much, So-yul exhaled slightly, then:

“But with a big event coming up in a month, if I continue to act on my own terms in front of my mother, she might get really angry.”

Then, ending with a bitter smile:

“So… I think it might be time to give up.”

She uttered these words as if she had resigned herself to everything.

Should she comply with her mother’s demands? Or should she maintain her performance style, which was like acting, as she had done until now?

She wasn’t making this decision just for the upcoming charity concert. Having suffered under her mother for so long, this was surely a concern she had been agonizing over for a long time.

It was something I had been contemplating deeply as well.

So-yul’s mother didn’t dislike the fact that “So-yul plays the piano” itself. Both Juho and I agreed on this point. This much could be considered an established fact.

Then why was So-yul’s mother so irritated that she tormented So-yul?

The hints were abundant. There was no use denying it. As I eliminated other possibilities, the answer pointed in just one direction.

So-yul’s mother wanted to stop So-yul from resembling her ex-husband.

And that resemblance was most evident when… So-yul pounded the piano as if possessed.

This meant that if So-yul just gave up her “performance style that was like acting” which she had shown until now.

She might be able to live comfortably with her mother’s recognition.

This was my conclusion after researching So-yul’s biological father, but perhaps So-yul had vaguely sensed it as well.

Given her exceptional basic skills, her evaluations wouldn’t suffer.

Even if it seemed somewhat disappointing compared to before, her title as a “genius pianist with a promising future” would remain.

With her goal achieved, So-yul’s mother would likely stop harassing her.

If we were lucky, she might even stop coming to school every day to sit in on So-yul’s lessons.

Then we too could meet frequently again, similar to how we did last semester.

Therefore, I should have encouraged So-yul.

Telling her that even if she followed her mother’s demands, she would still be an excellent pianist.

That she had no choice but to endure this to gain recognition from her strict mother.

But.

Would that really make So-yul happy?

“Hey.”

“…Yes?”

When I started to speak, So-yul nodded in response.

Her tense face and tightly bitten lips suggested she was anticipating my answer.

To such a So-yul, I smiled gently and said:

“I don’t want you to change.”

So-yul’s eyes widened.

As I expected, she had anticipated the opposite answer.

“B-but, if I don’t…”

“If you’re worried about your mother, it’s okay. I’ll figure something out. If it becomes too hard to bear, you can give up. I’ll respect that choice too.”

So-yul’s life belongs entirely to her. I can point her in one direction when she’s uncertain which way to go, but the final decision must be hers.

But no matter which direction she chooses, I will walk beside her. I’ll support her when she stumbles and lend her my shoulder when times are tough. That’s all I can do as her boyfriend.

Which path would So-yul choose?

I silently waited for her answer, my lips sealed. So-yul lowered her eyes, seemingly deep in thought. She appeared to be considering so carefully that she might not hear even if I spoke to her.

After a while.

A small whisper came from where So-yul sat.

“…Okay. I’ll play the way I’ve been playing until now.”

I turned my gaze toward that crystal-clear voice to look at So-yul.

Her eyes had formed lovely crescents as she looked at me.

“Really?”

When I asked with a smile, So-yul gently closed her eyes and said:

“Yes. Actually, I didn’t want to change because of my mother either.”

“Well, the girlfriend I know is more stubborn than she looks. I figured as much.”

“And…”

So-yul began softly, then with a broad smile blooming on her lips:

“…I want to always be the person my boyfriend loves.”

She spoke these words in a faint voice, as if she had struggled to express them.

I want to always be the person my boyfriend loves.

I felt like I had never heard words so endearing in my life.

No, perhaps they were words I might never hear again until the day I died.

Not knowing how to respond, I simply caressed So-yul’s cheek gently.

Her heated cheek seemed to convey So-yul’s shyness directly to me.

The warmth flowing between us was gradually turning into heat.

Just then.

Through the window in the wall of the storage shed, we saw the head of student affairs looking around outside.

“…”

“…”

Both So-yul and I closed our mouths tightly at the same moment.

Was he searching for us, suspecting we might be hiding here?

He really was unnecessarily perceptive, no matter when we encountered him.

It felt like a long time since we had last faced the head of student affairs. Of course, I hadn’t missed him at all. I had even hoped he would forget about our existence. But such a miracle was unlikely to happen.

This was a cramped, enclosed space. There was nowhere to hide except perhaps behind the vaulting horse. We couldn’t flee from his sight like we had in the library. The moment the head of student affairs flung open the door to the storage shed, it would be game over.

So we had to hold our breath and wait for him to pass by. That was all we could do right now.

But contrary to our hopes.

The head of student affairs’ gaze flew into the storage shed.

“…!”

So-yul trembled beside me, startled in an instant.

I could hear her inhaling deeply in shock.

Is this how it ends?

As this worry crossed my mind, I also clenched my molars tightly. There was no way to control my quivering lips.

But somehow.

The head of student affairs passed by the storage shed and walked somewhere else.

“Huh…?”

This time it was my voice that slipped out.

I had thought we were caught red-handed when he looked inside.

Perhaps he hadn’t expected anyone to be in the sports storage shed? Or maybe the sunlight was too bright for him to see the interior properly?

Either way, it was fortunate. I released a deep sigh of relief from the bottom of my heart.

Beside me, So-yul was already grumbling in a half-tearful voice.

“…Seriously, I thought we were caught.”

“…Me too.”

“…Pft.”

“Why are you laughing? …Pfft.”

Even as I questioned why she was laughing, I found myself laughing too.

Relief filling the space where anxiety had faded. The absurdity of what we were doing was also funny. And there was satisfaction in seeing the head of student affairs miss his golden opportunity.

For various reasons, our laughter couldn’t be contained.

As we faced each other laughing.

Suddenly, from outside the door, the PE teacher’s booming voice was heard.

“What’s this? The storage shed isn’t locked during lunch break?”

And then.

—Click.

An ominous sound filled the sports storage shed.