Moreover, Yumyeong had always been weak to the opposite sex. Since childhood, his heart would endlessly soften in front of girls, and he would treat them as sweetly and kindly as possible.
Of course, if that had been the case, things would have progressed more quickly and decisively, but there was a high possibility that wouldn’t have happened either.
‘Be nice to me? I would have acted even more like a loser.’
If Hakyoung had been female and constantly showed him contemptuous expressions and told him ‘you’re ugly,’ he would have immediately lost all will to fight.
Then they would have been in the same class but distant.
There would be no lying in the same bed sleeping together like now…….
Suddenly, recalling Hakyoung’s profile from last night, goosebumps rose along his spine.
“Ugh.”
Yumyeong gripped the back of his neck with his hand as if catching a mosquito.
This wasn’t the first or second time he’d felt this way recently when thinking of Hakyoung. At first, he thought it was definitely because he disliked it so much he was disgusted, but gradually that sensation also became confused. It seemed similar to the most tense moment of a scary movie, the feeling of being so excited yet wanting to run away soon.
“Ah, this is weird. I’m not even ticklish…….”
Yumyeong scratched the back of his neck roughly with his hand for no reason. As the feeling of when Hakyoung’s hand had touched came back, the goosebumps didn’t easily go away. When he thought about whether he wanted to touch Sunmin or perhaps other guys with those big hands, even more so.
It was when he was scratching until red marks remained on his white neck. Suddenly, something as cold as ice touched the back of his neck.
“Ahhh!”
Yumyeong, who had been crouching, almost fell forward right there. When he clutched his neck and looked back, Hakyoung was standing there with a shameless face holding a drink can.
“Want to get hurt? I almost grated my face on the cement floor.”
“What are you doing?”
Hakyoung ignored Yumyeong’s crumpled face and looked at where his gaze had landed. Yumyeong sighed and opened the can he’d received. The sound of carbonated bubbles fizzing and popping could be heard.
“There are cats over there. Cute, right? They’re family so the patterns are all the same.”
In the direction Yumyeong pointed, several cats were staring this way. They were a cat family living gathered by the door connecting to the back of the school cafeteria. The cats that inherited their patterns through generations all had uniformly large, pointed ears. Some young cats didn’t even feel threatened and were playing, tangled together and rolling around on the ground carelessly.
“I see. Is there no one to feed them because it’s vacation?”
“No. The cafeteria staff take care of their meals. They’re acting like that because they want snacks. Kitty~ come here. Please……!”
Different from the scolding voice from just before, as Yumyeong desperately called the cats, a snickering sound was heard from beside him.
“Still the same.”
“Huh?”
“You still like cats…… Never mind.”
Again. Swallowing what he was going to say while saying “never mind.”
Yumyeong swept his hair back with his hand, puzzled.
Why does he keep stopping mid-sentence these days?
Yumyeong was full of suspicion.
Could this be…….
A lightning-like realization came.
Was this a technique to make him have doubts and draw his interest by constantly stopping mid-sentence?!
Thinking about it, it seemed plausible. Hakyoung had lived in America and seemed to have abundant dating experience. (Since he’d already kissed) It wouldn’t be strange if he had sophisticated flirting methods different from ordinary pathetic eighteen-year-olds.
As expected, isn’t he seducing me like this by gradually making me think about him?!
Yumyeong glanced at Hakyoung, who knew nothing, with narrowed eyes.
Well, well, it’s completely ingrained in his body, huh?
Even though he clearly has someone he likes.
But there’s no progress, and since they’ve grown distant during vacation, he thought maybe now he was targeting a nearby guy.
Hakyoung might be someone who can’t live without dating more than he thought.
Yumyeong opened his mouth, wanting to get revenge for no reason.
“Hey, Hakyoung.”
“……Yeah?”
“You, by any chance.”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t tell me…….”
As he paused with a serious face, Hakyoung’s pupils shook a bit.
Thinking it was funny how Hakyoung was getting strangely nervous even though he hadn’t said anything special, Yumyeong suddenly turned his gaze back to the cats.
“Never mind.”
Then he felt a piercing gaze on his profile. His heart strangely tickled. Yumyeong, who had been maintaining a deliberately calm face for a while, soon couldn’t hold back his laughter and burst into refreshing laughter into the air.
“Kuhahaha!”
When he looked to the side, Hakyoung asked with a flustered, anxious face.
“Why are you suddenly laughing?”
“Can’t I laugh?”
“What were you about to say just now?”
“Ah, I don’t want to say!”
“Tell me quickly. By any chance, don’t tell me what!”
Hakyoung urged with an urgent, anxious face.
In fact, just moments ago, Hakyoung was a bit flustered with himself for unconsciously letting slip that story about how Yumyeong liked cats even when he was young. He couldn’t know how big a shock Yumyeong would receive at the fact that ‘Yeong’ wasn’t a girl, so he still didn’t have the confidence to say it right now. In the midst of that, when Yumyeong paused with a meaningful tone, his heart dropped, wondering if he’d been caught.
There had even been a similar situation last night. Yumyeong had examined Hakyoung’s face this way and that, making him nervous by saying ‘you look like a celebrity.’ That was probably referring to Hakyoung’s mother who had been an actress.
He felt frustrated that Yumyeong still couldn’t match him with Yeong, but separate from that, he hated being caught at an unexpected moment even more. He needed a bit more time yet.
But what if he’d already noticed?
What if he’d noticed but was being playful like this…….
Knowingly or unknowingly, Hakyoung was treating the revelation of that fact like his hidden card, or his ultimate weapon. He wanted to say it at a better time, at just the right time. Even if he didn’t know exactly when that was.
There was also an expectation that their current friendship might change then.
However, if Yumyeong’s attitude remained unchanged even though he already knew everything, that would truly be a desperate thing.
“Tell me!”
Unable to overcome his anxiety, Hakyoung finally rushed at Yumyeong and grabbed his collar. However, Yumyeong laughed “kkeuk kkeuk” until the end and shook his head. Yumyeong, who had fallen on his bottom on the floor in a crouched state, complained dramatically that his legs were cramping. But no matter how much he tickled him or strangled his neck, he seemed to have absolutely no intention of telling him.
The cats ran away in all directions at the unexpected commotion created by the humans.
“No, ah…… it’s really nothing, kek…… just something I said. My neck tickles. Let go.”
“Is it really nothing?”
“Yeah. I just thought your reaction was funny…….”
As Yumyeong gagged, the strength finally left Hakyoung’s hand.
“Hey, strangling is a foul. My voice got weird.”
“Your voice is originally weird.”
“What? Anyway, don’t touch my neck.”
As he said that, Yumyeong fiddled with the back of his neck where Hakyoung’s hand had touched for no reason. This time he hadn’t even touched it with ‘that’ intention, but the feeling was tingling.
A little while later, Hakyoung grabbed both of Yumyeong’s hands and helped him up. Leaving the shade of the building and crossing under the scorching sunlight, the place they headed to was a convenience store outside the school. There, Hakyoung bought cat snacks and put them in Yumyeong’s hand.
“Don’t you want to eat anything?”
“Then I’ll have ice cream.”
“Okay. Pick one.”
“Can I eat an expensive one?”
“……Yeah.”
“Then this one.”
What Yumyeong took out was a cup ice cream from an expensive brand stored separately in the freezer. Hakyoung easily paid for it without saying anything special.
When they returned to the back of the cafeteria, the cats sitting here and there grooming their fur looked this way.
“Kitty~”
When he shook the snacks, several cats that were particularly friendly to people approached. Yumyeong was very happy and distributed snacks to the cats. As the cats were absorbed in eating, he soon also opened his own ice cream and started eating. Until then, Hakyoung was just standing quietly beside him.
During that time, a delivery motorcycle came in through the school’s back gate making a vroom sound.
“Oh, another delivery. Someone must have ordered chicken.”
“Do you want to eat some too?”
“Huh? I wasn’t suggesting we eat……. But if you buy it, I’ll eat it?”
Yumyeong grinned and looked up. Hakyoung’s face standing under the sunlight hot enough to cook the top of his head was backlit so he couldn’t see it well.
“Isn’t it hot? Come in.”
He reached out and pulled the hem of Hakyoung’s pants. Then the guy came into the shade as he was pulled.
The motorcycle left again making a loud noise. In that time, Hakyoung had been ordering chicken.
“What are you going to eat?”
That question felt strangely fresh. When he was with other guys, he didn’t have five thousand won to chip in for chicken so he had to secretly leave, but Hakyoung instead asked first if he didn’t want to eat. To say it was because his circumstances were that comfortable, the guy definitely took care of him meticulously. Like when he figured out like a mind reader that he wanted to buy snacks for the cats and led him to the convenience store.
Do guys normally act like this?
As expected, isn’t he seducing me?!
Yumyeong looked up at Hakyoung suspiciously.
When their eyes met,
“Why.”
Hakyoung asked bluntly.
“Why are you feeding me so well?”
“What?”
“Are you trying to curry favor with me?”
“No.”
“Then.”
“You’re originally poor anyway.”
“Ah, this bastard…….”
Yumyeong suddenly got pissed and jumped up. However, instead of showing his fist, he crumpled the finished ice cream container and threw it far away forcefully. Seeing the trash that easily scored a goal in the trash can, Yumyeong dusted off his hands and discovered his palms had gotten sticky.
“I need to wash my hands. Let’s go to the room.”
As he said that, he casually put his arm around Hakyoung’s shoulders. While going to the room, Yumyeong occasionally threatened to rub his sticky hand on Hakyoung’s cheek. It was very enjoyable to see Hakyoung’s disgusted face.
