# Chapter 18
After a spring rain passed, colors began to return to winter’s bleak scenery. The forsythias that had been blooming in scattered yellow light poured down like a waterfall in the blink of an eye, and then magnolia buds began to grow as big as fists. White snow settled on the mountain peaks that seemed drawn in shades of black and white after the rain. It was probably the last crystallization of snow. The light green new buds coloring here and there from below the mountainside would soon conquer even the peaks.
Spring was coming, albeit slowly.
Water began to rise even in the small stream in front of the school that had been dried up all winter. Young cherry trees stood in a row around the stream, and Yumyeong had originally quite liked that path. However, after being rejected by Heeun there, he somehow felt reluctant even to walk that road.
Heeun was still ignoring Yumyeong. Becoming worse than strangers with just one confession, and feeling like even the memories of their original closeness had become completely futile, Yumyeong felt gloomy.
Also, he heard the news that Heeun had recently withdrawn from the broadcasting club. The broadcasting club, which carefully selected and maintained about seventeen or eighteen first-year students, was an elite group even among school clubs. There was a lot of work that sacrificed personal life, and discipline between seniors and juniors was strict. Heeun, who had said being a PD was her dream, had been truly happy after being accepted there and had been more enthusiastic in her activities than anyone.
But according to rumors, it didn’t seem like she’d withdrawn willingly. The broadcasting club was also a department with severe conflicts between seniors and juniors. Stories were heard that Heeun had been driven out as a scapegoat for this.
After encountering this rumor, Yumyeong wondered what was happening with that kid and was very concerned. However, his phone calls and text messages continued to be ignored.
Finally, after all classes ended, Yumyeong hesitated then approached Heeun.
“Heeun, about the broadcasting club……”
As soon as he spoke with difficulty, Heeun didn’t even reply and briskly put her books in her locker. Then without even making eye contact once, she left the classroom.
It was perfect invisible person treatment. Friends remained in the classroom, and several of them giggled seeing that spectacle. Yumyeong was so humiliated he almost shed tears.
“Hey, hey. Yumyeong. Let’s go. You idiot, this way, not that way.”
Hanju hurriedly approached. Yumyeong staggered out the back door.
“It was probably because there were lots of kids, right? You should have tried talking where no one was watching.”
“I think it’d be the same, tsk.”
“Ugh, shit……”
Yumyeong, who had been trembling, cursed “Fuck!” and kicked the door unable to contain his anger. And when the rattling door quieted down, Hakyoung smoothly revealed himself from behind it.
“……”
Hakyoung sharply glanced at Yumyeong with serene eyes tinged with contempt, then walked past the two.
Yumyeong fumed with feelings mixed with pity and humiliation, then took a deep breath and deliberately chattered to Hanju.
“I guess there’s no hope for me. I guess I won’t be able to date in this lifetime. I guess having a girlfriend is an unreachable dream.”
“Overreacting over getting rejected once.”
“Haa~ I wonder if my charm doesn’t work on girls. Do I lack heterosexual appeal?”
“You deceiver, shut up.”
“If heterosexual appeal doesn’t work, I should cultivate homosexual appeal or something…… Right, Hakyoung?”
At those words, Hakyoung walking ahead showed agitation. Yumyeong’s eyes shone with an unusual glint.
“Hanju. From a guy’s perspective, how am I?”
“Are you crazy? I think I’m going to throw up. Get away!”
Hanju treated Yumyeong like an infectious disease and distanced himself far away. Meanwhile, Hakyoung had stopped walking and was watching Yumyeong. As if he had something to say. Smoothly passing by Hakyoung who had caught up before he knew it, Yumyeong grinned.
“What to do. I still really want to try dating though.”
***
Yumyeong made a fuss for no reason from the morning roll call time.
“What’s gotten into Shin Yumyeong to be in uniform already?”
The supervisor was very surprised to see Yumyeong, who usually crawled out in pajamas, with a clean face and eyes clearly open. Even during roll call, Yumyeong kept checking his face looking at the mirror attached next to the shoe cabinet.
“Today’s the day. Teacher, how do I look? Please boost my confidence.”
At Yumyeong’s solemn voice, the supervisor looked at Hanju as if asking what this was about, and Hanju closed his eyes tightly and shook his head.
“This bastard’s been like this since yesterday. He even did a face pack before sleeping. I tried to stop him, but I guess he’s going to confess again.”
The news that Shin Yumyeong had been rejected was already news that had spread throughout the school, so even the supervisor knew. The supervisor opened his eyes tightly and clicked his tongue saying ‘youth, it’s youth’ and left for the next room.
When the supervisor left, rooms 310 and 303 faced each other directly.
Sure enough, from across the way, Hakyoung was looking at Yumyeong with suspicious eyes. Yumyeong shamelessly thrust his face in front of Hakyoung and smiled.
“How is it? Hakyoung, my skin’s good, right? Want to touch it? I was surprised too, it’s so smooth.”
Then Hakyoung pulled his body back with a displeased expression. His handsome brow bone crumpled, creating deep-set eyes. Since that was exactly what he’d expected, Yumyeong immediately thrust his head toward Sunmin who was behind him.
“Sunmin, do you want to touch it too? I’m thinking of doing face packs every day from now on.”
“Huh? Uh-huh……”
When Sunmin hesitated, Yumyeong deliberately grabbed his wrist and placed it on his prominent front cheekbones. Sunmin blushed and muttered that it was ‘really soft.’ He could see even with a sideways glance that Hakyoung’s fist was twitching.
“Morning roll call over! Third floor dismissed!”
At the supervisor’s voice, the sounds of doors closing busily in this room and that could be heard. And faster than anyone, Hakyoung’s body squeezed between the two.
Bang!
Looking at the door that closed heartlessly, Yumyeong laughed refreshingly thanks to Hakyoung reacting as expected.
***
“Okay, let’s eat.”
Yumyeong placed ice cream on a small table and handed a teaspoon to the person across from him.
The one who received the spoon was Sunmin. He was frozen holding the spoon in both hands with a slightly bewildered face.
Meanwhile, Yumyeong stretched out his long legs and sat backward on a chair so the backrest faced forward. Then, whether knowing or not that Sunmin was staring at him, he opened the lid of the pint-sized ice cream with an expectant face.
“What are you doing? Eat.”
The ice cream with nuts and chocolate drawn on it had a brand logo attached. Expensive ice cream, it was a luxury that couldn’t be easily enjoyed in a dormitory crawling with hungry high school students. That’s because while the refrigerator was a place to store food, paradoxically, to preserve food you absolutely must not put it in the dorm refrigerator. Because it would be cleaned out before even one night passed.
Sunmin was curious how Yumyeong had brought the cold ice cream intact in an unopened new condition.
“Ah…… I’ll enjoy it. But this is expensive. Did you buy it at the mart?”
“No? It was in the faculty duty room so I snatched it from the English teacher. I got the teaspoon from there too. Just eat that and put it back.”
“I, I see.”
Sunmin nodded flustered.
“These days, aren’t those bastards picking fights?”
After classes ended, the campus was very quiet with most students having moved to the study hall or dormitory. The tilting crimson sunset was slanting across the desks.
“I’m minimizing chances to run into them as much as possible. And since you helped me last time, they haven’t been doing it much.”
“That’s a relief.”
“I was really grateful then.”
“Uh-huh.”
Half-listening to the sincere words, Yumyeong was absorbed in the ice cream. When Sunmin slowly scraped up a tiny spoonful to eat, Yumyeong ate almost a ladle-sized amount at a time. Sunmin, whose ears had turned red, just hoped Yumyeong would eat a lot. Just knowing the fact that ‘he likes sweets’ made his heart feel proud. Glancing at the knuckle parts of the white, smooth fingers holding the teaspoon that were prominently red was a bonus.
“No problems in the room?”
“Huh?”
“I mean…… you share a room with Ryu Hakyoung. Nothing wrong? You have to shower together and sleep in the same room……”
At Yumyeong’s words, Sunmin shook his head with a stiff face.
“Even though Hakyoung is handsome, I don’t do that with just anyone.”
“Huh?”
“Just because I like guys doesn’t mean I’m attracted to just anyone.”
“Ah, that’s not what I meant.”
Yumyeong was quite flustered. In the silence, Sunmin just fiddled with his spoon.
In fact, what he wanted to ask was this: That bastard Ryu Hakyoung let you into his room with ulterior motives, so did he by any chance try anything inappropriate?
But Sunmin seemed to have misunderstood.
While inwardly flustered, Yumyeong realized that Hakyoung hadn’t done anything to Sunmin. That was unexpected.
His hands are quick but his heart can’t keep up, it seems.
“Sorry, I talked nonsense.”
“No, it’s okay……”
“Then you don’t know why Ryu Hakyoung suggested sharing a room?”
“He said he knew I was being ostracized and wanted to help.”
“He said it like that?”
“Yeah. That’s what he said? He told the supervisor teacher that too. Honestly, I thought they wouldn’t allow it, but when Hakyoung spoke sincerely, it seemed to get through. The teacher asked me if it was true too, and I answered that it was…… I honestly told them that I had trouble going into my room and slept in your room for a few days.”
Yumyeong’s eyebrows twitched subtly while listening to the story. So it wasn’t special treatment or a trick, but something achieved through a sincere request. In reality, Ryu Hakyoung was a black-hearted guy, but that dark heart appeared beautified in others’ eyes, which was disagreeable. Moreover, he himself had been the trigger. He felt sour, as if he alone was the villain and had lit the fire for someone else’s couple play.
Yumyeong changed the topic and asked.
“Then you know. Seriously, without prejudice or anything, if you could definitely date someone, what about Ryu Hakyoung?”
