# Chapter 109
A large banner hung at the front gate had “Imperial High School” as the title with “13th Sports Festival” inscribed beneath it.
Today, the student prefect who always stood at the school gate was nowhere to be seen, and there weren’t many students wearing proper uniforms either. Of course, there were some scattered students dressed neatly. However, many students were proudly passing through the main gate showing off flashy fashion that made others furrow their brows.
Given the special occasion, the students’ expressions were all flushed with excitement in the free atmosphere. The unceasing laughter and light footsteps gave off a highly elated appearance.
Even Moon Seoheon had unbuttoned all his shirt buttons today and was wearing the class t-shirt underneath. With its plain black background, it looked like he was wearing something from home.
If Moon Seoheon hadn’t told me, I probably wouldn’t have known it was the class t-shirt.
As soon as we entered the school gate, students were spread out everywhere, creating the illusion of being in a marketplace. Boisterous chattering filled the school grounds.
It was a noisier morning commute than usual.
I entered the classroom and took out the class t-shirt from my bag to change into it immediately.
“How inconvenient… You should have worn it before coming.”
“I didn’t think they wouldn’t check just because it’s the sports festival.”
Honestly, there weren’t many students caught for improper attire, to the point where I wondered if the student prefect really needed to wait at the school gate every morning.
At most, they only checked if students had their name tags and star-shaped badges proving their class properly attached. Even if Moon Seoheon had passed through the gate in his current state, he would have only received a warning to dress neatly.
That’s how lenient the school’s regulations on attire were. I figured they probably just let it go as long as students didn’t cross the line, perhaps because managing the widely varying attire according to different classes would be difficult.
“Are you going to change into PE pants?”
“That’s the plan.”
Since only the top was designated, we had no choice but to change into PE clothes for the bottom. That would be the same for other classes too, and after examining the students on the way to school, I finally understood what that meant.
I rolled my eyes to check the dress of the students in our class. Most of them seemed to have brought their own pants, as they were wearing athletic wear from various makers. At the front gate, I hadn’t noticed because of the flashy tops.
Even Moon Seoheon wasn’t wearing his usual athletic pants but had on a new design. The brand name engraved at the bottom hem was one I recognized.
Strangely enough, it was a brand that existed where I used to live. I knew it was quite expensive for a high school student to wear – perhaps one of The Four had bought it for him?
Due to these various thoughts, my hand movements to take out the PE clothes were slow. Wondering at my actions, Moon Seoheon glanced at his watch and asked in a low voice.
“There’s not much time left, you know?”
“Ah. You can go ahead.”
As I quickly took off my shirt and answered casually, silence fell. I glanced back, wondering if he was really going to leave, only to find an indifferent yet absurd gaze staring at me.
“…I said go ahead since we’ll be late.”
Feeling a bit awkward, I blurted out a comment, to which Moon Seoheon snickered softly and perched on his desk. He meant to wait and not go ahead.
I gave him a nod of understanding and hunched my upper body to remove the t-shirt I was wearing under my shirt. Then, crossing my arms, I pulled at the hem of the shirt and took it off in one motion.
Unlike the bright sunlight outside, the inside of the building maintained a moderate temperature. It wasn’t particularly hot or cold, but when the cold air suddenly touched my bare skin, my body hair stood on end.
I immediately grabbed the class t-shirt and inserted my head. Quickly putting my arms through both sides, the cool air that had enveloped my body gradually subsided.
Besides me and Moon Seoheon, there were other people remaining in the classroom. Yet the atmosphere was too quiet, so I glanced to the side and met eyes directly with Moon Seoheon who was staring at me intently.
At a glance, he seemed to be sitting blankly, but the softly creased smile in his eyes somehow felt bothersome. Of course, unlike me who had to change completely, he only had to take off his uniform shirt, so all he could do was sit there blankly since he had stayed to go together.
But with him waiting silently, I felt self-conscious and avoided his gaze. In response, as if telling me to hurry up and change, Moon Seoheon picked up my PE pants and handed them to me.
“You remember we’re hanging out together after it’s over today, right?”
“Yeah.”
As I casually responded while taking the pants, Moon Seoheon smiled with satisfaction. The refreshing smile made me pause momentarily, then I racked my brain as if pondering. But no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t picture the scene of ‘hanging out with Moon Seoheon.’
I even wondered what high school students these days do for fun, but having not heard the suggestion to hang out together for so long, it felt unfamiliar.
Hiding my uneasiness, I undid my belt. While changing into the pants, I asked in a low voice.
“What are we going to do?”
“Hmm… is there anything you want to do?”
“Well, not really… You’re the one who suggested hanging out. Don’t you have anything you want to do?”
“I was thinking of going somewhere to eat something delicious. There’s a newly opened restaurant, so I thought we could go together.”
Moon Seoheon, after confirming that I had finished changing, lifted himself off the desk. Then, he took off his uniform shirt and draped it over the back of his chair. I neatly folded my uniform, which I had tossed aside carelessly, and placed it on top of my bag.
“Which restaurant?”
“A snack bar. It’s a franchise, but it hasn’t been out for long.”
While I had gotten takeout from snack bars before, it had been quite a while since I’d gone inside to eat, so it felt nice, and I nodded.
“Sounds good. I was actually planning to eat tteokbokki yesterday but didn’t get to.”
“Then we should order tteokbokki when we go.”
Moon Seoheon answered with a laugh. Well, that works too. I shrugged and waved my hand to indicate let’s go, and Moon Seoheon made way for me.
Inadvertently taking the lead out of the classroom, a thought suddenly occurred to me, and I turned around.
“Oh, but we might be eating pizza after it’s over. Will that be okay?”
The mention that the winning soccer team would have a pizza party came to mind, and I found myself worrying about trivial things. Wouldn’t it be overdoing it to eat pizza and then go to a snack bar? Of course, we could eat plenty if we wanted, but I knew Moon Seoheon didn’t eat much.
He wasn’t picky, but for someone who exercises, his portions were definitely small. When eating school lunches together during lunch time, and from all the meals I’d seen him eat so far, he ate a normal amount.
He didn’t eat many snacks, and seeing that he didn’t indulge in junk food at all, I thought he was managing his body, but it turned out he just didn’t eat much.
I had a slight concern whether such a person would eat properly when we go. Moon Seoheon stared at me with a curious gaze, noting my expression. Then, he soon chuckled and creased his eyes.
“You’re already thinking about eating pizza?”
“Huh?”
“It hasn’t even started yet, and you’re already acting as if we’ve won.”
Moon Seoheon, who had been following behind, stepped up and stood beside me. As I tried to look at his face, my gaze shifted slightly upward due to how close he was.
Seeing his amused expression, I pondered the meaning of his words. He was saying that I was acting as if our class had already won the soccer game that hadn’t even been played yet.
I had spoken without much thought, but thinking about it, he was right. Feeling a bit embarrassed about my behavior, assuming we would definitely win, I soon smiled casually, raising the corners of my lips.
“We’re going to win anyway. With you there, what’s there to worry about?”
“…”
“Let’s see the skills of our school’s top ace.”
As I deliberately spoke in a nonchalant manner, Moon Seoheon’s seemingly emotionless expression crumbled. And with a flash of light in his eyes, a hint of confidence was visible.
“Sure.”
At his crisp answer, my raised lips twisted into a strange smile. While his face was always relaxed, seeing such a confident gaze was a different feeling.
Just as we were about to go down the stairs after passing through the corridor, someone from behind stretched out their arm and grabbed me around the nape of the neck. When I struggled in surprise, they held me firmly in their arms to prevent me from falling.
Moon Seoheon, who had been walking alongside me, quickly grabbed my forearm to stabilize me. His glance back was gruff.
Maeng Moa, who had embraced me, burst into laughter. His bright, almost cheerful laughter brushed my ears, and I could feel the vibration through my back from his trembling body.
“Haha, are you okay? Looks like you were really surprised.”
“Hey, you… who wouldn’t be startled when someone pounces from behind?”
You’ve even heard about me rolling down here before, and you pull this kind of prank? I hurriedly turned my head and glared, at which he removed his hands and raised them, palms open, as if telling me to calm down.
“Where did you go yesterday? I left right after tidying up, but you were nowhere to be seen, so I was looking for you.”
As if declaring the joke over, he soon lowered his eyebrows and spoke in a regretful tone. Recalling how I had greeted him yesterday as he was catching his breath after running the relay, I pouted my lips.
“What did you come looking for me for?”
“Just wanted to see your face. I saw you watching, so I thought you’d stay till the end, but when you disappeared, I wondered if something had happened.”
“I was planning to just watch briefly and leave.”
Seeing his genuinely disappointed reaction, my sharp tone calmed. He even went looking for me, which would clearly have been bothersome, making me feel weary, but I didn’t show it.
“Did you see him yesterday?”
“Yeah.”
“…Why? Who did you stay to see?”
Moon Seoheon asked in a low tone, with eyes that were different from before, more subdued. My body flinched momentarily, and my foot slipped as I was about to step onto the stairs. Thanks to the strength in my leg, I didn’t end up looking ungraceful.
Under Moon Seoheon’s gaze, which continued to watch me, I moved my lips and finally blurted out.
“Well… I was watching you do well. I was worried that Senior Yoo Wono might interfere!”
Moon Seoheon’s narrowed eyes widened as he made a strange expression, prompting me to quickly add another sentence. It was meant to be a simple expression of concern, but seeing his grinning smile, my chest felt tight and ticklish. I slightly regretted having said anything.
