Because we started dating out of liking each other, it was bound to be different from when we were just friends. I’m not sure how it would be different since I’ve never experienced it, but we could hold hands, and I might end up doing things with Hyun Gyujin in my dreams. Instead of just lying on the bed reading comic books… Hyun Gyujin might climb onto me, cover me with his body, touch my face, and even kiss…
Thinking of Hyun Gyujin’s face coming closer in my dreams, Yuwon buried his face in the cushion again. It seemed like I was truly losing my mind. Falling for a childhood friend, and even imagining such absurd things with a friend who I had no such feelings for.
…Let’s not think about it. Let’s really not think about it now…. I tried to forcibly stop thinking, but the more I tried, the more the thoughts grew. Eventually, Yuwon found himself once again immersed in thoughts of Hyun Gyujin, spending quite some time battling against those thoughts while facing the cold winter wind coming in through the window as if peeking into his thoughts.
***
Unable to sleep properly all night and having left the window open until dawn, Yuwon, shivering with a slight fever, left the house. Even though he thought he should eat something, even if it’s just cereal, he couldn’t bring himself to swallow anything, so he skipped breakfast altogether.
Wearing a vest and cardigan over the school shirt, and even a coat on top of the school jacket, it was evident that his body wasn’t feeling well despite being bundled up. Yuwon remembered the cold medicine he left at home. He had put cereal on the table intending to eat it even though he didn’t have an appetite, but he ended up forgetting about it and just left. Seeing the elevator panel already descending to the first floor, Yuwon leaned against the wall and sighed.
When he got off the elevator, he hesitated upon seeing Hyun Gyujin sitting on the apartment building’s staircase railing. Even though he couldn’t see his face, he could tell it was Hyun Gyujin from his long legs stretching forward. The moment he recognized Hyun Gyujin, his thoughts became a mess again. Ever since realizing he liked Hyun Gyujin, just thinking of his face made his heart feel messy. Yuwon took a deep breath, trying to calm his mind as much as possible.
“…”
Let’s stay calm. Just greet him normally without acting awkward… Just like before, normally… Yeah… Normally! Stay calm without giving anything away…
With a determined mind, Yuwon took one last deep breath and approached the entrance. At that gesture, Hyun Gyujin leaned forward to look inside.
“It’s nice to see you waiting here. It feels different.”
His smiling lips were refreshing. Whether it was because of the cold or because of his tangled emotions, he felt a fever rising all the way to his fingertips as he carelessly glanced away.
“I thought you went ahead first….”
“My dad asked me to carry some things to the car, so I came down with him.”
“Oh…”
As Yuwon descended one step on the entrance stairs, still keeping his gaze on my toes, he remained silent.
“Let’s go….”
“Lift your head.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Qts?”
“Aera vb la.”
Vevvfcis abiv ab iloa ws tfjv, tf gfiemajcais gjlrfv ws mtlc, wffalcu Lsec Xseplc’r ujhf obg j wbwfca yfobgf gbiilcu tlr fsfr jkjs. Lf vlvc’a vjgf ab tbiv tlr ujhf.
“Cgf sbe rlmx?”
Hyun Gyujin often spoke like this when he was sure about something. Then he just had to confirm it. Yeah, I’m sick. Even though he didn’t say it, Hyun Gyujin, who knew him so well, made him feel relieved.
“Pa’r cba abb yjv sfa, yea ws ybvs tegar j yla.”
“Vlcmf ktfc?”
“Since this morning….”
As Yuwon watched Hyun Gyujin’s approaching hand, he bit my lip inside, feeling the warmth of his hand completely covering his forehead.
“You have a fever. Can you go to school?”
“Yeah. I’m okay. It’s not so bad that I can’t go. I just need to go to the health center and take some medicine. I took out the medicine this morning, but I forgot and left it on the table.”
“Let’s go quickly then.”
Seeing Hyun Gyujin carrying his bag on his shoulder, Yuwon shifted his heavy feet. Although he had always managed to get through the transitional seasons when he was sick, this time, he inexplicably ended up feeling sick. There was honestly nothing to say since it was because of him, and nobody else’s fault.
“It seems colder than yesterday….”
“Colder?”
“A little.”
“Just a moment.”
Seeing Hyun Gyujin entering the convenience store across the street, Yuwon shivered again and rubbed his arms. Despite wearing thick clothes, his shoulders kept slumping, and his mind felt hazy.
“This.”
With the sound of the door opening, Hyun Gyujin appeared with a cup of honey citron tea and a bottle of water in his hand. Yuwon eagerly took the warm cup of honey citron tea handed over to him.
“Drink this while we walk, and take the medicine first.”
Among the two bags he carried on one shoulder, Hyun Gyujin brought the black backpack forward and unzipped it to take out some medicine from the inner pocket. Yuwon’s lips parted in surprise.
“…You still carry medicine with you?”
“Of course. Isn’t this basic? Just say it. I have cold medicine, digestive medicine, painkillers, everything.”
Two white pills were placed in Yuwon’s palm. Then, the opened bottle of water approached his lips. Yuwon swallowed all the pills with water. One went down smoothly, but the other didn’t, leaving a bitter taste. Yuwon quickly took another sip of water and swallowed the remaining pill.
“…The pill dissolved….”
“If you swallow them all at once, you wouldn’t be Jung Yuwon.”
Despite the lingering bitter taste, Yuwon hit Hyun Gyujin’s arm teasingly to alleviate the pain, then took a sip of the honey citron tea. It felt somewhat comforting to drink the fragrant and sweet tea.
“…Thank you.”
“If you’re thankful, let’s get through today without any more problems. Don’t be sick for ten days at a time.”
“Yeah….”
“If you’re tired, go to the nurse’s room and rest.”
“…Got it. But this tastes good.”
“I’ll buy you more when we go home.”
His heart ached at Hyun Gyujin’s worried gaze. Whether it was the sweet taste of the citron tea or the concern that seeped into his heart from Hyun Gyujin, he couldn’t tell. It seemed like he was really seriously ill. It was fortunate to have such an excuse.
***
Hyun Gyujin’s forehead creased as he saw Yuwon lying down during class. Although it might have been okay during break time, seeing someone lying down like that during class indicated that something was wrong. With only ten minutes left until the end of class, Hyun Gyujin stared at the clock above the teacher’s head throughout the lesson.
“That’s it for today’s class. We’ll have a quiz next time, so make sure to review.”
Sighs could be heard throughout the room at the mention of the quiz. Seeing the teacher leave with a smile, Hyun Gyujin immediately turned to Yuwon.
“Jung Yuwon, are you feeling very sick?”
“…My head hurts a bit….”
As Hyun Gyujin saw Yuwon’s face, he shook his head and reached out to help him up. It didn’t seem like just lying down like this would make things better.
Being led by Hyun Gyujin like that, Yuwon went to the health center after the third period ended, took another pill given by the school nurse, and lay down on the furthest bed in the sickroom. Covered with three more layers of blankets, he closed his eyes.
“Do you want to go home?”
“…Just wait for another hour and see….”
“Why are you sick and feeling sorry?”
“Why are you sorry?”
“I made you eat a lot of cold stuff for a few days. It shouldn’t have been like that.”
“It’s not because of that….”
The words kept getting longer in his hazy mind. He wanted to say more, but the words didn’t come out easily. With a fever and a foggy mind, Yuwon remembered the warm citron tea that Hyun Gyujin had bought in the morning. He wanted to drink it again…. It was delicious…. Thinking of the fragrant aroma of citron, he, whose body was already feeling weak, fell asleep.
***
As soon as the bell for the end of the fourth period rang, Hyun Gyujin stood up from his seat, left the classroom, and quickly descended the stairs step by step. While everyone rushed to the cafeteria, the end of the hallway on the first floor where the health center was located was very quiet.
After knocking and entering, Hyun Gyujin greeted the school nurse and walked into the sickroom. Passing by the empty bed near the entrance, he saw a bundle of thick blankets inside. Although it wasn’t a cute situation, the small head poking out of the bundle of blankets looked adorable. Hyun Gyujin pulled the chair near the wall and sat down next to Yuwon’s rolled-up cocoon of blankets.
Gyujin might actually be the dreenest flag after Hua Cheng, Lan Zhan and Luo Binghe 👀
Greenest*