Vol. 2 Chapter 35，Part 1  

In January at the age of 17, when the inner storms and waves were more severe than ever, the days were particularly cold and bitter.

Lim Dae-han considered the transition from middle school to high school to be the most hectic period in his life. He got a piercing as if he were no longer a student in his middle school, where he interfered only minimally, and he had no idea what would happen to the high school, which had yet to be decided.

Everything was precarious and boring. Unlike other students, Lim Dae-han did not have a specific school to attend. Even though he was considering attending an industrial high school, on the advice of his older brother, he wanted to attend several education high schools, but this was due to the fact that the announcement had not yet been made.

He had no intention of attending university, but looking back, he regretted it for nothing. It was simply a matter of spending time wisely and playing as usual. If he had nothing to do after graduation, he could join the military early and learn to work under his parents’ supervision. His father asked him what was so good about putting a knife on an animal’s skin and told him to go do his own thing. But that was his father’s butcher shop, and several meat restaurants were operating as a chain.

Thanks to that, Lim Dae-han has been able to live his life without lacking or missing anything. Of course, there was no greed. At best, it was just a bunch of guys getting together to drink, smoke, or hang out with girls, which wasn’t appropriate. It wasn’t difficult enough to flirt with the opposite sex while turning his eyes like the other guys, and making a fuss in a group didn’t fit his personality.

Tired of killing time in a motel where his friends stayed in groups, Lim Dae-han sat alone in a chair he pulled out in front of a convenience store. His breath spread every time he took a deep breath. There were a total of three parasols. He was sitting in the center and next to him were middle-aged men in sloppy clothes who had been drinking alcohol since daylight. He has also been drinking since daylight. Lim Dae-han inspected them up and down, he then pulled out a cigarette from his pocket, and lit it.

Tak- When the lighter caught fire, the flame spread to the wick. The cigarette smoke naturally permeated his throat as he inhaled slowly.

He was wasting his time because he had nothing to do. With a jingle sound, a boy emerged from the convenience store. He was small and slender. His skin was flawless, with no blemishes. His bangs were quite long, and the corners of his eyelashes were softly falling. His red lips were swollen from ripping off dead skin cells. The boy in the navy blue padded jumper held cup noodles in his hands. The wooden chopsticks were cut in half and inserted like tongs into the lid.

Maybe the boy was around his age. Lim Dae-han, who was more mature than his peers, did not have his ID card checked even when purchasing cigarettes. There was also a reason why he was so big. He was already 190 centimeters tall before he started high school.

The boy glanced around and made eye contact with Lim Dae-han. His eyes widened with surprise, but he quickly averted his gaze. There was nothing to see, but he just stared at the ramen lid. He looked like a rabbit with its ears raised in surprise. He tried hard not to show it, but he couldn’t help himself.

The boy soon sat down on an empty seat and put the ramen on the table.

“It’s cold.”

The boy put his hand to his lips and exhaled while muttering to himself. Then he shifted his bag from behind him to the front and pulled out a wad of paper. Despite the fact that the street was lined with motels and bars masquerading as restaurants, there was a fairly large apartment right across the street, and he appeared to be attending an academy nearby. Lim Dae-han looked at the boy while smoking a cigarette in his mouth.

Despite the fact that the boy was wearing a padded jumper, Lim Dae-han still thought he was small. The well-established black hair was unquestionably longer than his. The boy muttered to himself as he took out the paper, which was most likely an English word. He then took the wooden chopsticks from the cup noodle container and began rummaging through the noodles.

“Delicious.”

The boy talked a lot to himself.

Lim Dae-han looked at him with his head tilted at an angle. The boy, who was still reading with his face buried in the paper, gently turned his gaze to Lim Dae-han. Their gazes locked once more.

Lim Dae-han bit his lower lip and avoided looking at him right away because he felt awkward. He rubbed his lips with the hand that had just discarded the cigarette. He fiddled with his lips for no apparent reason before returning his attention to the boy.

Lim Dae-han couldn’t take his gaze away from his side profile while the boy ate his noodles and couldn’t take his eyes off the paper. His body was stuffy and one of his eyes was wrinkled. His body was unusually itchy. He needs to go back. Lim Dae-han eventually stood up. He walked to the motel with his friends without looking back. The boy was just looked pretty. Just pretty. As he thought about it, Lim Dae-han suddenly turned around. The boy looked at him briefly before looking down again. Lim Dae-han stood back and glanced at the boy before turning around. And the next day, and the next day, he sat in the same spot and did the same thing. But the boy never showed up, and the two never met again.

Therefore, meeting the boy in the hallway, which is mostly used by first graders, was a pleasant surprise. Lim Dae-han only met him once, but the boy kept bothering him. He’s been staring at him over and over again As a freshman, he wore a plastic name tag written “Ki Young-hyun.” They made eye contact at times, but Ki Young-hyun didn’t recognize him, and Lim Dae-han didn’t pretend to know him either. Thus, the two spent their school life suitable for their own lives until just before the collision on a midsummer day.

***

The summer vacation, which had been quite relaxing, was coming to an end. It was a vacation that was similar to previous years, but subtly different. The only thing that made me happy was that I didn’t have to go to school. Because my grades did not drop and actually improved compared to the midterm exam, I agreed with my parents to take supplementary classes by 6 p.m., including self-study.

Even if Lim Dae-han did not attend supplementary classes, I could frequently visit him at his home, but my expectation was ruined. Lim Dae-han took supplementary classes this summer. It’s also completely booked until 6 p.m.

As soon as he realized that my deskmate wasn’t taking supplementary classes, he moved to the seat next to me. Every day, I spent my time trying to solve a problem while he was sleeping, on his phone, staring at me, or playing pranks on me. To be honest, I didn’t think I’d be taking this supplementary class with him, but we did.

The three-week supplementary class has also ended, and I’ve decided to study at Dae-han’s house. My parents agreed when I told them I was going to the library in the morning. Anyway, I didn’t have any reason to feel guilty about studying at Dae-han’s house, but I was uncomfortable because my brother asked about it for no apparent reason.

Anyway, I was still at Lim Dae-han’s house. After lunch, I was filled with anticipation of what to do now, but he was getting ready to leave.

“…Where are you going?”

I asked while holding a Ra Xion pillow in my arms and basking in the cool air from the air conditioner. Lim Dae-han put on his shirt and responded simply.

“I’m going to see the guys for a moment.”

“Why?”

“Because they’re in front of the house.”

“…Then why don’t you bring them home?”

I thought I made a mistake after talking. It became natural for me to stay at Lim Dae-han’s house because I had adapted to my life with him. That’s right. His friends had no idea that I was close enough to visit Dae-han’s house. Lim Dae-han approached me after dressing up.

I shrank, but Lim Dae-han, who was sitting on the bed, lowered his head to look at me. Our lips naturally made contact. After a while of sucking my lips and rubbing my cheeks like kneading dough, Lim Dae-han slowly raised his head. There wasn’t a day that went by when we didn’t kiss.

“Can I really bring them?”

“Yeah… Unless you’re uncomfortable.”

“They used to come often, so I don’t really care.”

Lim Dae-han tapped my cheek with his hand. He didn’t slap me in the face, but he was so rough that he frowned and avoided gestures. Lim Dae-han immediately got up from his seat and tapped his cell phone. It was less than a minute later when someone pressed the password repeatedly. However, when a warning sound indicated that the password was incorrect, Lim Dae-han went outside and opened the door.

“Did you change your password?”

“Yeah.”

“Ah, traitor. This is how you threw us away.”

It was a familiar voice. The two men who removed their shoes and entered the room abruptly poked their heads into the room.

“It’s Ki Young-hyun.”

“It’s Ki Young-hyun.”

It was Lee Deok and Park Yeo-sun. They were also Lim Dae-han’s friends. We were in the same class, but we hardly ever talked to each other. Dae-han had recently been with me only, so there was no connection between us. Lim Dae-han sat on the bed with his back to me. Park Yeo-sun naturally sat down on a chair, and Lee Deok reached into his pocket and tapped a cigarette pack with his palm. Lim Dae-han, who saw it, said solemnly.

“Hey, if you’re going to smoke, smoke outside.”

“What?”

“Smoke outside. Because I quit smoking.”

“Dae-han-ah.”

Lee Deok waved his hand in front of Lim Dae-han. It was a serious face.

“Are you feeling sick? What’s wrong with you?”

“Have you seen me smoking lately? I’m not going to smoke, so you can either smoke outside or don’t smoke at all.”

Lim Dae-han acted like a general. Lee Deok, who was holding a pack of cigarettes in his hand, pursed his lips and pushed the cigarettes into his pocket.

“Say what you want to say.”

Lim Dae-han leaned his arms back. I looked at Dae-han’s bumpy fingers and raised my head. I made eye contact with Park Yeo-sun. Park Yeo-sun was a little overbearing. It didn’t feel the same as Lim Dae-han, but Park Yeo-sun looked the most attractive of the three, even if he was in a bad mood. Lee Deok’s face was round, and his voice tone was high, giving the impression that he was suffocating. When he actually calls Lim Dae-han, “Dae-han! Dae-han!” he screamed.

“Hey, Lim Dae-han. I’m disappointed. Don’t you remember? My uncle said he would lend me a pension before the summer vacation was over. So let’s go and play.”

“Oh.”

What does this mean?

“But I can’t even contact you because you’re taking supplementary classes.”

“Ah. I turned off the notification.”

“Didn’t I tell you to turn on the notifications?”

I sat quietly and listened to their conversation. Lim Dae-han would communicate with me for at least 5 minutes at a time. Even if it was a short response or an emoticon, he would respond. If I didn’t have anything to say, he’d ask what I was doing again, or he’d make a phone call or come out in front of my house.

I felt strange every time I noticed a difference between what he did to his friends and what he did to me. My palm was itchy, and I wanted to scrape it away. I held my breath and tightened my grip on Ra Xion.

“So when are you going? Honestly, the date doesn’t matter.”

“Uh, maybe.”

“Can’t you go with Hyo-in noona? She really likes you. I think she is going to try to flirt with you before the end of this summer break.”

“Oh, don’t say gross things like that.”

Lim Dae-han’s reaction was stark. I stiffened on the spot. I honestly didn’t care when they said they were going on a trip, even if there were three of them going, but I was embarrassed by the names of the person who suddenly came up with it. However, how did all three of them go to such a place with the opposite sex? He even appeared to be used to it.

In Korea, where Confucian ideas of the Joseon Dynasty were spread throughout, it was a trip between opposite sexes who do not seem to be married or even lovers. Also, wasn’t Dae-han dating me?

“Me…too.”

My voice came out unintentionally. Lee Deok and Park Yeo Sun. And the three people’s gazes were drawn to me in the order that began with Lim Dae-han. I paused, crumpling Ra Xion, which I was holding in my arms.

.