Chapter 94 : Intimacy (3) Part-2

Hayoon nodded as if to confirm, her face still impossibly red.

How am I supposed to take this?

I slowly leaned back, carefully placing my hands on my knees in a seated posture.

Only then did I feel my own face heat up.

In both this life and the previous one, this was the first time I’d heard something like that from a girl.

At the same time, given my experiences, it wasn’t hard to figure out what it meant.

When someone lives defensively, they learn to avoid misunderstandings with the opposite sex.

So, naturally, I thought her words didn’t mean she liked me romantically.

It’s not like I’m heartless.

But honestly, in the webtoon, there was never any mention of Hayoon liking the same gender.

Sure, I’d imagined pairings in my head as a fantasy, but…

“…So, that’s… as a friend?”

A friend of the same age, and the same gender.

Moreover, we’ve been childhood friends, knowing each other since we were little.

We’ve shared a lot of memories, gone to many places together.

Not anywhere far, but those weekends spent hanging out and eating different things were happy times.

If I’m one of Hayoon’s closest childhood friends, it’s not strange for us to share a feeling of “affection.”

She doesn’t explicitly say she “loves” me or anything, but if we’re talking about liking versus disliking, she’d probably have to say she likes me.

Thinking back to Rose bursting into laughter earlier, it might just be that it was an “amusing conversation,” right?

But strangely enough, Hayoon just stared at me with her face flushed red, saying nothing.

The longer the silence stretched, the more anxious I felt.

Maybe I shouldn’t have come into the tent.

Now that I think about it, it’s not even that cold anymore; perhaps it’s time to pack up the tent.

We could have had this conversation outside.

The cool—or rather chilly—night air might have balanced out the heat rising to our faces.

And in the dark, we wouldn’t have to see each other’s flushed faces so clearly.

As I sat there, shaking one knee slightly, Hayoon’s gaze finally dropped downward.

“It was about friends,” Hayoon said quietly.

“Jo-ah said something similar. That as friends, it’s nice.”

“Jo-ah did?”

Hearing that made me feel a bit calmer.

Hayoon seemed to feel the same.

I think I understand now why she had been so hesitant to speak.

Despite her usual confident and bold demeanor as a magical girl,

Hayoon sometimes seemed clumsy when it came to personal relationships.

That’s part of why I tried to keep people from getting too close to Hayoon—because I worried she might be taken advantage of.

But maybe, while talking earlier, Jo-ah said she liked me, and Hayoon felt she couldn’t lose to that…

That thought made my face heat up again.

Why?

Am I reacting this way because Hayoon, even as a friend, feels some kind of jealousy for me?

Is it because I care that much about her?

“…Should we get some sleep?”

The atmosphere had grown awkward, and sitting here any longer would only lead to more odd conversations.

So, I suggested the next best thing.

We’d eaten, and skipping a wash for one day wouldn’t kill us.

The tent was clean and organized.

“Okay.”

Hayoon finally nodded.

As I got up to prepare for bed, Hayoon hesitated before lying down on the floor.

Tonight, Hayoon also lay facing the door.

Lying back-to-back, we stayed quiet for a long time.

Although everyone else was outside…

Where were Cherry and James, anyway?

Even though Jo-ah’s earlier words about liking me were said in a straightforward, dictionary sense, listening to Hayoon and Jieun’s conversation made me think about the weight of those words.

It wasn’t that I had intended to eavesdrop.

It was just that Jo-ah happened to be close enough to the tent to overhear.

When Jieun took Hayoon into the tent, they didn’t lock the door.

Even if they had, tents aren’t soundproof.

Unless they whispered, everything inside could be heard outside.

Rose, standing beside Jo-ah, quietly listened in as well.

They didn’t dare get closer, lest their shadows give them away.

Dahlia and Delphinium had also crept up and were listening by now.

It was just a conversation between friends, yet everyone’s faces were oddly flushed.

Even Rose, who had been openly laughing earlier, now looked just like the others—more like a “girl” around Jo-ah’s age than the slightly older girl she was.

Not that she was someone they particularly relied on as a senior anyway.

“…You.”

When Hayoon said that, even Jo-ah was caught off guard.

It felt ticklish inside, as though her ears were burning red.

Surely, the conversation was the same as before.

They had been talking about friends, about how, as friends, they leaned more toward liking than disliking each other.

And yet, why did it feel so strange now?

Her heart was pounding.

Thinking like this felt odd, given the situation between the two of them, but Jo-ah couldn’t help wondering if Hayoon’s words held a meaning beyond simple friendship.

And at the same time, another thought crossed her mind: what if they truly liked each other?

In a world where the boundaries of existence had expanded to a galactic scale, things like aliens marrying one another were common.

Occasionally, there were even stories of Earthlings marrying aliens.

Although Earth was still under protection, and its inhabitants were within a limited range of permitted actions, gender was no longer a major concern in relationships.

If two people liked each other, they could be together.

While there were still some who showed resistance, the prevailing sentiment was that such ideas were outdated.

Even Jo-ah, who held strong values, couldn’t oppose the concept.

However, it wasn’t the kind of love she had seen among others in her life.

If the two of them became a couple, could Jo-ah maintain her “friend” relationship with Jieun?

It had been an unusually candid connection, different from others, and had only just begun.

Various “norms” came to mind.

For example, the idea that purely platonic friendships between men and women were rare, and when one of them found a partner, it became difficult to maintain that friendship without consideration.

Would the same apply to friendships between people of the same gender?

“Quite something…”

Rose’s comment broke Jo-ah’s train of thought.

“Are they really just friends?”

“…Who knows,” Delphinium replied, tilting her head.

“We can’t say for sure yet.”

“It’s best not to jump to conclusions…” Dahlia added.

Her comment brought a neutral conclusion to their musings.

Jo-ah decided to follow suit.

For now, nothing was certain.

The closeness Hayoon showed to Jieun seemed to go beyond typical friendship, but there was no clear indication that they wanted more.

Misunderstandings often lead to greater, more dangerous misunderstandings, which eventually create conflict.

That was something Jo-ah had learned the hard way as a magical girl.

So, for now, she chose not to draw any conclusions.

Whether it was a truly objective decision or a subconscious hesitation to accept the possibility, even Jo-ah wasn’t entirely sure.

That night, Jo-ah woke up feeling warm.

Although Hayoon had turned her back to her earlier, now she had somehow shifted to face Jo-ah, her arm tightly wrapped around Jo-ah’s waist.

Naturally, realizing this snapped Jo-ah wide awake.

After all, she’d spent so much time overthinking before finally falling asleep.

And so, she felt a little frustrated.

It wasn’t fair that Hayoon could act so casually after saying she liked her.

Jo-ah could never do that.

Of course, she couldn’t—because Jo-ah liked Hayoon.

…Probably for a long time now.

It couldn’t be helped.

No matter how much jealousy or rivalry there was, Hayoon was beautiful, kind, strong, and someone who repeatedly smiled at her.

Feeling something more than friendship toward such a person was inevitable.

That’s why it was frustrating.

Frustrated, Jo-ah turned over in bed.

It wasn’t easy with Hayoon holding her waist so tightly, but she managed.

With their height difference, it ended up with Hayoon’s face buried in Jo-ah’s chest.

“Ugh…”

Hayoon groaned softly, possibly struggling to breathe.

It was incredibly embarrassing.

Even though Hayoon was asleep, being in such close proximity was overwhelming.

Stiff and awkward, Jo-ah couldn’t bring herself to return the embrace.

It took her much longer than before to fall asleep again.

The next morning, no alarm was needed to wake Jo-ah up.

Hayoon woke with a scream, jumping up from her spot, which caused Jo-ah’s waist—still pinned under Hayoon’s arm—to be tugged sideways.

Jo-ah felt a little hurt by Hayoon’s startled scream but kept it to herself.

And, admittedly, she also found it a little satisfying.