Conviction

,Alright. Everyone worked hard. I’m thinking of having a get-together dinner the day before the triathlon, so don’t forget to participate.”

Everyone nodded at Edward’s words. The last group practice was over. Now, all that’s left is to anxiously wait for the triathlon on Wednesday.

,Good job.”

A seductive voice suddenly whispered in my ear. Along with it, a sweet strawberry scent grew closer. Even though I’ve had time to adjust, I still felt a churning in my stomach.

I turned my head towards Ellie, who approached me with a light sigh. Her obsidian-like eyes were staring at me intently.

,You worked hard too.”

I said, trying to leave the training grounds like everyone else, but Ellie looked like she had something to say to me. I glanced at her, and she smiled as if she had been waiting for it, so I had no choice but to ask.

,Do you have something to say?”

,Yeah. Wanna grab a meal with Roel oppa? I think it would be nice to call Luna and eat together too.”

It was the kind of invitation I had rejected several times, but Ellie invited me as if she had never been rejected before.

I don’t know why she’s trying to create an uncomfortable situation herself, but as always, my answer was already decided. It’s a no.

,I’m busy.”

An efficient way of saying that I don’t want to spend time with you. She clearly understood my intention, but unlike usual, Ellie didn’t back down today.

,Still… you’ve been rejecting me all the time. Is there any reason why you don’t want to have a meal with us? If there is, can you tell me?”

If there’s a reason, there’s a clear one. It wasn’t what I wanted, but we kissed even though we each have a lover.

In that situation, eating with our lovers next to us as if nothing happened? I had no desire to get indigestion.

Perhaps she thought I would ignore her and pass by. Ellie stood in front of me, looking dejected, and I felt like sighing deeply.

,No. I just have a date with Luna today.”

As I gave a plausible reason, Ellie immediately replied with a smile.

,Then I can get permission from Luna, right?”

I was speechless at Ellie’s words.

I couldn’t imagine Ellie and Luna together.

Without realizing it, I took a step closer to Ellie.

,Don’t talk to Luna. Not you, not hyung.”

As I spoke in a low voice as if warning her, Ellie read my expression and asked with a rather pleased look.

,Why? Can’t I get close to Luna? She’s cuter than I thought. And I think we’d have a lot to talk about.”

I don’t have a lot of experience with women, but I thought I had some sense.

But when it came to analyzing Ellie’s actions, my past experiences were of no help at all.

Ellie’s actions always leave me with unresolved questions.

,I don’t like it.”

,You don’t like it for no reason?”

Looking up at me with a hurt expression, Ellie made me clench my jaw. Did she really want me to tell her the reason?

,We’re going to be stuck together during the triathlon. I just wanted to create a good atmosphere in case Luna misunderstands. Of course, I also want to be as comfortable with you as we used to be.”

I scoffed without realizing it. That’s bullshit. I saw Ellie’s brow furrow slightly and then return to normal. That was a little satisfying.

,Luna wouldn’t misunderstand.”

As I said with emphasis, Ellie twisted one corner of her mouth.

,You’re pretty sure of that, huh?”

,I gave Luna conviction.”

Ellie said sarcastically in response to my answer.

,But you’re afraid of Luna being with Roel oppa, aren’t you?”

Her black eyes, staring intently at me, contained a look that pointed out the contradiction in my words. Ellie smiled seductively and whispered.

,Looks like Luna didn’t give you conviction like you gave her?”

That smile made my stomach churn. I trust and believe in Luna, but this is a different matter.

Just the fact that Roel, a munchkin in relationships with the opposite sex, is with my girlfriend is naturally unpleasant. Because Roel is someone who easily receives affection from anyone.

But I know very well that this is a pathetic excuse. It’s a problem that can be easily stated, just like Ellie said.

Deep down, I wasn’t convinced that Luna wouldn’t fall for Roel, who was determined to seduce her.

I’m sure Roel wouldn’t do that to his dongsaeng, but the thought of “what if” torments me.

It’s probably my chronic problem caused by unresolved inferiority.

,…It’s because I’m petty.”

It’s not that Luna didn’t give me conviction. Every time I hug her, every time I kiss her, I confirm that we love each other.

But the inferiority that has been in my heart for a long time creates endless doubts. This is really a problem caused by my pettiness.

Ellie leaned forward slightly. A pure smile was on her face.

Her obsidian eyes shone with a strange emotion.

Ellie slowly licked her thin lips.

,Coward.”

I didn’t say anything in response to her words and passed by Ellie, leaving the training grounds. I heard a small laugh through the closing door.

***

The moment I opened the door to the club room and stepped inside, I couldn’t help but stop, wondering if I had come to the wrong place.

,Ross!”

Luna, sitting on the sofa, waved at me.

I reflexively raised my hand, but I still couldn’t take my eyes off the silver-haired guest sitting next to Luna and eating snacks.

I moved my stopped feet and approached Luna.

I glanced around to gauge the atmosphere, but thankfully it didn’t seem too bad.

,What’s going on…?”

As I carefully asked Luna, Navier let out a hollow laugh while eating snacks.

,I knew you’d forget.”

,…?”

Did we promise something?

As I stared blankly, Luna whispered urgently to me.

,You promised to have dinner with Navier today, right?”

At those words, I quickly racked my brain. That’s right. I had made a promise last month and completely forgotten about it.

I sighed and scratched my head. It was a very rude situation. I sincerely apologized.

,I’m sorry, I’ve been busy lately and forgot.”

Navier shrugged as if not caring about my apology.

,I know. You must be busy preparing for the triathlon. That’s why I came here like this.”

With those words, Navier dusted off the snack crumbs on her hands and stood up.

,You won’t have time to date Luna. I can’t just butt in without noticing. I’ll talk to them about eating snacks in the club room today. Thanks for the snacks. They were good.”

I couldn’t hide my apologetic feelings at Navier’s refreshing smile.

Navier told me to get good results in the triathlon and had a short conversation with Luna before saying goodbye.

,See you later. I’ll cheer for you too, Ross.”

,Yes. See you next time.”

,Take care.”

Luna, who had seen Navier off, closed the door and turned to me. It was a very strange situation. The woman I love is seeing off the girlfriend of the boyfriend she has to date every month.

I didn’t know what to say to start the conversation in this situation, so I moistened my dry lips.

I don’t know what my expression was like, but Luna hugged me with a smile, as if it was strange.

,Navier seems like a better person than I heard from Ross.”

,…That’s a relief.”

I said that, but it was still a strange feeling. I sighed and looked down at Luna and asked.

,Luna, should we just reject the proposal now?”

Silence flowed. I felt nervous and my heart beat faster. Luna pondered for a moment, then smiled and shook her head.

,I think Navier could be a good friend to Ross.”

,Hmm….”

Certainly, Navier had a cool personality and wasn’t the type to put pressure on people, so they got along well.

You could say she’s like a female version of Lacar. She has enough attractive qualities as a woman, but the feeling I get is more like comfort than excitement.

,Navier also said that she has no intention of interfering with the relationship between me and Ross. She said that if we learn all the intangible breathing techniques while attending the academy, we won’t have anything to do with each other after that. She promised that she would never cross the line of friendship.”

Looking into Luna’s bright blue eyes, I asked without thinking.

,…She could be lying.”

,Yeah. She might be, but I still want to believe her. And I believe that Ross won’t deceive me either.”

Seeing Luna showing that she completely trusts me, I felt a pain like a needle pricking my heart.

I hadn’t told Luna about what happened with Ellie yet. No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t figure out how to bring it up.

Especially telling her at this timing felt like it would be the worst thing to do.

In the end, I brought up a different story.

,My parents are coming to visit before the triathlon.”

,Ross’s parents? I want to meet them soon.”

Seeing Luna’s eyes shining, I said with a sighing voice.

,To be honest, I don’t have a good relationship with my parents. I might show you an embarrassing side of me. They might say things that hurt Luna. That’s the kind of people they are.”

To be honest, I don’t want to meet Ross’s parents. Our relationship was wrong from the first meeting.

I don’t think they want to meet me either, but just in case Luna might meet my parents without me, I’m warning her in advance.

Luna nodded slightly with a slightly embarrassed expression.

She looked like she wanted to ask about my relationship with my parents, but I didn’t know Ross’s past, so I couldn’t say anything and had no choice but to pretend I didn’t know.