“Take some snacks with you.”
“Are you opening the snack warehouse, Jung Yuwon?”
“You can take anything you like.”
Yuwon opened the bottom drawer of the desk and showed it to Hyun Gyujin. Inside the drawer, which Hyun Gyujin referred to as the grain warehouse, were Yuwon’s favorite snacks such as jelly, cookies, and caramel. It was Yuwon’s treasure trove, created for the purpose of indulging in a snack occasionally for a change of mood, although he didn’t eat them daily or frequently due to health reasons.
“Recommend me something tasty from the warehouse.”
In response to Hyun Gyujin’s request, Yuwon earnestly rummaged through the drawer. He then put two of his favorite peach-flavored jellies, chocolate cookies, and two long cheese sausages with red strings into Hyun Gyujin’s school uniform pocket.
“Oh, this too.”
Seeing Yuwon adding even more snacks, including a few packs of round potato chips, Hyun Gyujin laughed out loud. It looked too adorable to see Yuwon choosing snacks so seriously. Even though we were the same age, Yuwon sometimes seemed so childish. Of course, when scolding or advising me, he could be as mature as an adult compared to me. Hyun Gyujin found Yuwon’s contrast endearing.
“This one’s tasty too… It’s grape-flavored jelly coated with chocolate…”
“The warehouse is almost empty. This should do. My pockets are bursting.”
Finally, Yuwon’s eyes turned towards Hyun Gyujin’s bulging pockets. He had filled them so much with snacks that they seemed about to burst. Yuwon chuckled softly, closed the drawer, and patted Hyun Gyujin’s bulging pockets.
“Make sure to eat these. And after fifth period, make sure to visit the school store… Got it?”
“Yeah, got it. I’m starving. I’ll go now. Bye!”
Even though he was just going to drop me off at home and had been through so much trouble, Yuwon couldn’t just let me go and followed Hyun Gyujin as he walked out of the room.
“Why are you coming out?”
“I should see you off, though.”
“I’m done here. Go in, eat quickly, and rest.”
“….”
“Listen to me.”
“Okay… Take care on your way back.”
“Sure thing. Bye.”
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.
“Yeah, bye.”
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Even without doing this, my heart would still flutter, and my mind would be chaotic. Doing this much is really unfair… Even someone who didn’t like him before might start liking him…
Yuwon smiled softly as he looked at the warm porridge. Despite the pain in his head and body, his heart felt warm and unaffected by Hyun Gyujin’s kindness.
***
As soon as the final bell rang, Hyun Gyujin stood up with his bag already packed. Seeing no response to his texts, he wondered if Yuwon was still sleeping after taking medicine or if he was too unwell to even respond. While the former would be a relief, the latter was not completely improbable, making him anxious.
“Hey! Going to the PC room?”
“The students from Yeongil High are coming today.”
Hyun Gyujin shook his head at Kim Junjae and Choi Haeyoung, who were approaching him to go to the PC bang. Right now, thoughts of PC gaming didn’t exist in Hyun Gyujin’s mind.
“I’m not going.”
“Oh, why? Today’s the day we really need to win.”
Upon hearing the unexpected news of Hyun Gyujin’s absence, a shadow fell over Choi Haeyoung’s face. Kim Junjae was now trying to grab Hyun Gyujin’s bag.
“Just let go, seriously.”
“Is he sick or something? He’ll probably take medicine and rest. Going won’t do any good. Just let him rest.”
“Stop worrying. If he’s sick, he should rest alone.”
Hyun Gyujin shrugged off the bag again and headed out of the classroom. As Kim Junjae tried to catch up with Hyun Gyujin, who couldn’t give up, Choi Haeyoung grabbed his arm and shook his head.
“Let him go. If his partner is sick, he should be sent off. How can we compete with his mind occupied by his partner?”
“What’s wrong with you, seriously? Isn’t that hypnosis or something? If that’s the case, are you hypnotized? You’ll obey anything Jung Yuwon says from now on, is that it?”
Choi Haeyoung, who kicked back at Kim Junjae’s words, approached the window and shouted at Hyun Gyujin, who was heading towards the central entrance.
“Take care of your partner, you crazy idiot!”
As if looking up at the sky, he soon dropped his gaze, his middle finger flicked up and down once, and then went down. And then, as Hyun Gyujin rushed faster than usual, even crossing the schoolyard and running out, Kim Junjae and Choi Haeyoung shook their heads.
Anyway, it was an exceptional and extraordinary friendship.
***
Entering the apartment entrance by swiping the card, Hyun Gyujin rushed without a moment’s hesitation to the first floor of the apartment. Unaware of the urgency, he turned back at the sight of the elevator at the top and jumped up the stairs two or three steps at a time. Having been going up and down since he was a child, he could easily climb up to the sixth floor without much effort.
As he pressed the numbers as vividly as the password to his house, the stale air circulated as he opened the door. Surely, since he should be at home, seeing it excessively quiet meant that he was indeed sleeping. In a hurry, Hyun Gyujin quietly opened the door to Yuwon’s room and peeked in. Although the room was dark, it wasn’t too difficult to find Jung Yuwon as the lamp on the desk was dimly lit.
Feeling relieved only after seeing the tightly rolled white blanket, he stepped further into the room and approached Yuwon, who had become a thicker gimbap than from the infirmary.
“……”
Although he was sound asleep, his breathing was louder than usual. Hyun Gyujin, who slightly furrowed his brows at the sound of labored breathing, looked at the water bottle, medicine packets, and empty citron tea cup on the desk. Anyway, he likes sweet things. Thinking of Yuwon, who would take a sip and say it was tasty, Hyun Gyujin’s stiff lips softened slightly.
Finally, he hesitated to touch his forehead to see if he had a fever, but then he abruptly went to the bathroom and washed his hands with scented hand soap. Only then did he return to the room and put his hand on Yuwon’s forehead. His forehead felt extremely hot, perhaps because his hand was cold from washing with cold water.
“Hmm…”
“Does it hurt a lot?”
Yuwon, who had been looking at the wall, turned his body to look at Hyun Gyujin and lay down. Then, he grabbed Hyun Gyujin’s hand falling from his forehead and placed it on his cheek. Feeling the refreshing touch on his face was so pleasant.
“It feels cool…”
“There’s no separate handkerchief, huh?”
Hyun Gyujin smiled as he looked down at Yuwon, who held his hand and wiped his cheek with it, and raised his other hand to touch various parts of his face. As much as Yuwon felt coolness, Hyun Gyujin felt warmth. It was as hot and soft as freshly steamed rice cake after being pinched, making him think.
“It wasn’t this high earlier. When did it start?”
“I don’t knooow…. I think it’s the same as before….”
“Maybe it’s because my hand is cold. Does your head hurt or anything?”
“Yeah…. I’m fine. Did you have lunch?”
“Yeah. I raided the snack warehouse and the school store.”
“Good job…. When I’m better, let’s go eat pizza. I’ll pay….”
“I’m recording it?”
Even though his eyes couldn’t open properly because of the pain, Yuwon nodded his head. Hyun Gyujin, who brushed Yuwon’s head gently, laughed softly. And as his hand mixed with the fever, Hyun Gyujin rubbed Yuwon’s cheeks gently enough not to hurt.
“It’s not cool anymore….”
“What? You grabbed me when it was cold, and now that it’s not cold anymore, you’re throwing it away? Wow, Jung Yuwon, your personality.”
Yuwon, who lightly smiled, leaned his face against Hyun Gyujin’s lukewarm hand. Watching Yuwon, who seemed somewhat pitiful, Hyun Gyujin, who had been sitting on the edge of the bed watching quietly, took out his phone as if he couldn’t take it anymore.
“Did you tell your aunt you’re sick?”
“Nope…. Mom’s having a busy day today. She has a drama shoot and two interviews….”
“Even if she’s busy, she should know that you’re sick too.”
“I don’t like my mom worrying about me….”
As much as he wanted to contact Yuwon’s parents right away to let them know how sick Yuwon was, he couldn’t just do it against Yuwon’s wishes. Hyun Gyujin sighed and glanced at his phone for a moment before sending a text to his own mother.
[Mom, Yuwon is sick]
Not long after, he received a phone call. Hyun Gyujin quietly answered the phone while looking at Yuwon, who was sleeping again with his hand on his face.
“Yeah, Mom.”
– Where does Yuwon hurt? Did he catch a cold?
“Yeah, it’s a bad cold. He left early during lunchtime.”
– Oh dear, was he in so much pain that he had to leave early? Then you should have said something earlier.
“I thought he’d feel better after going to the hospital and sleeping. But now it seems like his fever’s gone up more than before. It looks like Aunt and Uncle are having a busy day today.”
Worry filled his mother’s voice. Hyun Gyujin listened silently, waiting for her to finish speaking.
– I’ll make some beef soup that Yuwon likes, so make sure he eats well. If he has a high fever, wipe his arms, legs, and body with a lukewarm towel.
“Got it.”
– If it seems really serious, call me. Go to the emergency room if necessary.
“Yes.”
After hanging up the phone and gently removing his hand from Yuwon’s grasp, Hyun Gyujin checked his temperature again by covering his forehead. Although it didn’t seem like a dangerously high fever based on his experience so far, it seemed necessary to try to bring down the fever even a little, as his mother suggested. Hyun Gyujin pulled back the blanket and tentatively slid his hand into the thick sleeve of his sweatshirt. Despite wearing thick clothes and being covered by a blanket, his arms felt moist with sweat, probably because of the fever.
