# Chapter 85
Moon Seoheon squeezed the hand he was holding. It didn’t hurt, but as my body tensed up, my steps slowed down.
I naturally glanced at him, but his expression remained unchanged. However, seeing his gaze scanning the main characters, a hypothesis crossed my mind.
“Did something happen between you and the main… The Four?”
“…No.”
He raised his eyebrows as if my question came out of nowhere, looking puzzled. But judging by how strangely hesitant he was acting and his seemingly evasive attitude, I felt uneasy, suspecting he was hiding something.
What happened after I collapsed during lunch break? Suddenly, Kim Junwoo’s words came to mind, making me even more suspicious.
“Hey, let’s hurry up.”
I deliberately blurted this out, causing Moon Seoheon to furrow his brow. Anyone could tell he was displeased. As my hypothesis seemed more likely, I exhaled softly.
“What’s going on?”
“What do you mean?”
I mentally clicked my tongue at his innocent expression. Whether he was deliberately pretending not to know or just didn’t want to talk about it, I couldn’t let it slide, especially with my own complicated feelings.
I was already surprised enough to learn that I had an uncle, but since it involved Moon Seoheon and The Four, I kept worrying about it. If I remained in the dark about everything, who knows what might happen later.
“Did you get into a fight or something?”
Moon Seoheon shook his head. Judging by his calm expression, he didn’t seem to be lying. I turned my head to observe The Four.
How much time had passed? The sun was already setting. The clear blue landscape was gradually turning crimson, with The Four gathered there like background characters.
It felt strange, reminiscent of watching the animation through a screen.
The Four were dispersing in different directions. Though we all came out together after the club activities, they were naturally heading home separately.
They were too far away to see their faces clearly, but Kwak Junhee was waving goodbye, Maeng Moa was running off quickly, Byeon Seungha had a phone to his ear as if making a call, and Jung Hyoin was walking while looking up at the sky.
From what I could see, they didn’t appear to be looking for Moon Seoheon or contacting him. His phone had been silent.
Seeing them like this felt really strange. It was just ordinary students’ daily scene, yet it somehow felt unfamiliar.
Besides, it wasn’t my first time seeing them gathered together, but somehow I felt less reluctant than before. Maybe because I’d seen them so much?
Well, many things had happened. I couldn’t say it was a lot, but it was surprising how many moments I’d shared with these animation characters in such a short time.
I swallowed a sigh and ran my hand through my hair. I felt uneasy, like I was spying on them. Maybe it was because I was pressed tightly against the building’s outer wall, as if hiding. What was I doing? I wasn’t a police officer staking out to catch a thief.
Smoothing out my furrowed expression, I turned to Moon Seoheon.
“If you didn’t fight, why are you avoiding them?”
When I asked straightforwardly, Moon Seoheon blinked. He appeared calm but also slightly troubled. As I stared at him expectantly, his parted lips slowly opened.
“I said I wanted to be alone with you.”
“Huh?”
Hearing the same words again, I looked dumbfounded. I understood the meaning but couldn’t process it, his words spinning around in my head.
“What… does that have to do with anything?”
My last word came out awkwardly. As if something was stuck in my throat, my breath flowed out clumsily.
“I didn’t want to be interrupted. I wanted to walk quietly with just you.”
For a moment, I was speechless. Moon Seoheon erased his troubled expression and let out a small sigh as if frustrated. Then his lips curled up slightly in a refreshing smile, even though he wasn’t really laughing.
“What does that mean… never mind.”
No. I shook my head with closed eyes and added. For some reason, I felt that once I heard the answer, there would be no turning back. I rubbed my chest a few times as something heavy seemed to weigh on it.
Suddenly, I felt a gentle pressure on the back of my hand. When I opened my eyes, I noticed Moon Seoheon massaging my skin with his thumb. I was startled by the cool sensation brushing against my chest and hastily pulled my hand away, stepping back.
Moon Seoheon stared at his palm after I abruptly let go. Unlike my surprised reaction, his face remained expressionless. When our eyes met, I bit my lip.
“Ahem, my hand was sweaty…”
Feeling like I might have overreacted, I awkwardly cleared my throat and clenched and unclenched the hand he had held. Sensing actual cold sweat, I wiped my hand on my pants.
Moon Seoheon glanced at me, slowly inhaling and exhaling. Then he stepped back, shrugged his shoulders, and jerked his chin as if to say ‘let’s go.’
I swallowed dryly and walked slowly to follow him as he turned the corner. Seeing him glance back at me trailing behind him, he suddenly stopped.
I didn’t stop walking, afraid the awkward atmosphere would get worse. I walked past Moon Seoheon, careful not to bump into him, but our shoulders brushed. The moment I stood beside him, he started walking again. Walking side by side, despite having done so before, I couldn’t stay still due to a strange feeling.
Even though he wasn’t holding my hand, a tingling sensation spread throughout my body. What’s wrong with me? Part of me seemed to understand, which made it even more excruciating.
Unlike me, who was anxiously nibbling my lips, Moon Seoheon’s lips were gently curved upward. His slow pace bothered me. I inevitably walked faster.
I thought Moon Seoheon would tell me to slow down or stop me, but he said nothing and matched my pace. He seemed unfazed, despite having just told me to go slowly.
I looked around. The main characters who had all left were nowhere to be seen. I wasn’t sure if I should be glad. Those guys I had so desperately wanted to avoid—now I wished they would appear.
* * *
“Damn it.”
I squinted as I checked the time on my phone. I had woken up way too late. Even if I got ready and left right now, I might still be late.
I threw off the blanket and jumped out of bed. My eyelids kept drooping as if I hadn’t fully woken up yet, so I slapped my cheeks.
“Yoon Taean, this guy didn’t even wake me up.”
He’s been leaving earlier than usual lately, probably busy with student council work. He came home late yesterday too, making it difficult to even see his face.
Sighing, I quickly went to the bathroom to wash my face. Despite deliberately using cold water, I still couldn’t focus, and my eyes kept trying to close as if someone were pulling them shut.
This is all Moon Seoheon’s fault.
Yesterday, after coming home, I just sat blankly without eating. Only when Yoon Taean returned home at night and asked if I was feeling better did I barely remember that I had collapsed because I was sick. Recalling my body drenched in sweat, I managed to shower before lying in bed, but I couldn’t fall asleep right away.
In the end, I finally dozed off in the early morning, only to oversleep and miss the alarm.
My head was throbbing, making me wonder if I had a fever again, but it wasn’t hot when I touched it. I guess thinking too much had overloaded my brain.
“What’s going on?”
As I hurriedly put on my uniform, I couldn’t help but laugh self-deprecatingly. While inserting my legs into my pants, I checked the message I hadn’t seen yet. It was a message from Moon Seoheon.
[I called but you didn’t answer, so I’m leaving this. I’m waiting downstairs, so come out when you see this.]
Still not properly dressed, I stood there, staring intently at the screen. I knew I’d received a message when his name appeared at the top, but I thought he’d left a message saying he was going ahead. I never expected him to say he was waiting. It hadn’t been sent too long ago.
“Why is he waiting? He should’ve just gone without me.”
What if we both end up being late? Did he not even run into Yoon Taean? Since Taean would have left earlier than usual, maybe they didn’t meet.
But how could he wait until this hour? With confusion, I held my head. Just the thought of facing him right now was awkward enough, and seeing his message made it even more burdensome.
I took a deep breath, as if meditating, and exhaled deeply. This made me feel somewhat better.
Just as the minutes on the screen changed, I pulled up my pants. After zipping them up and grabbing my bag, I hurriedly left the room.
When I went outside, Moon Seoheon, whom I’d wondered if he’d really be waiting, was standing by the building entrance. He was positioned so prominently in the middle that he caught my eye even though I didn’t want to look at him. It seemed like he had deliberately chosen a spot to be noticed.
Upon spotting me, he waved and smiled. We exchanged greetings through the glass doors. The doors opened, and I awkwardly stepped outside.
“Overslept?”
“Mmm.”
Having rushed out, I hadn’t even combed my hair, and I noticed Moon Seoheon’s gaze falling on it. As I tried to comb it roughly with my fingers, he was quicker.
His extended fingers brushed back my bangs and smoothed all the way to the back of my head, sending shivers down my spine.
“Hey!”
I stopped myself from blurting out a curse and bit the inside of my lip instead. As I looked at him with wide, surprised eyes, Moon Seoheon stared back as if he didn’t understand what he’d done wrong. His lips moved slightly, but then he swallowed a sigh and shook his head.
“Forget it. Let’s go quickly.”
“Okay.”
As I started walking first, he followed and stood beside me. I had so much I wanted to say. But as soon as I saw his face, the thoughts of asking why he hadn’t left disappeared.
I remained quiet, worried that he might say something meaningful again and unsettle my heart.
