“…….”
“…….”
It wasn’t exactly a fight, but the conversation hadn’t been pleasant, so neither of them broke the awkward silence. Hyun Gyujin, staring at the problem set he couldn’t focus on, picked up a randomly placed mechanical pencil and pressed down on the lead repeatedly, squishing it out of frustration.
After managing to muster enough concentration to solve a few more problems, Yuwon stood up. Startled, Hyun Gyujin grabbed Yuwon’s hand as he was about to leave.
“Where are you going? Home?”
“…I just want to get some water.”
“Oh….”
Relieved, the grip in his hand relaxed. Watching Hyun Gyujin sit back down, Yuwon left the room. In the kitchen, his aunt and uncle, who were already preparing dinner, smiled at him. Yuwon poured himself a glass of water from the water dispenser and chatted with them for a moment. Amidst the warm and affectionate conversation, Yuwon thought of Hyun Gyujin.
They hadn’t fought, but as friends, he had never had to worry about such things, which made it a bit awkward. It wasn’t something you’d get caught doing with a friend—like physical affection—so there had been little chance of issues arising. However, after they started dating, new worries and anxieties he had never considered before began to surface. Because of this, he wasn’t completely comfortable with being in a relationship with Hyun Gyujin yet.
Looking at Hyun Gyujin, it seemed like he had already adapted completely, making Yuwon feel like he was the only one overly concerned about their surroundings. On the other hand, it also seemed like Hyun Gyujin wasn’t worried about anything at all. Of course, that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
“We’ll have dinner around six, is that okay?”
“Yes, I’ll come out then.”
“Alright. Don’t push yourself too hard; it’s okay to take it easy sometimes before you become a senior.”
“Yes, I will, Auntie.”
Smiling, Yuwon answered and walked down the hallway back to Hyun Gyujin’s room, carrying the water cup. He felt a bit nervous about facing Hyun Gyujin again. Since there was no real need for either of them to apologize, it made it even more awkward.
“…….”
Steeling himself, Yuwon went back into the room and quietly sat down, looking at the problem set again. Below the problems he had been working on earlier, at the end of a solution process filled with numbers, there was a message written.
[I’ll be careful.]
[I’m sorry.]
[Don’t be mad.]
[I’m scared wuwu]
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.
Seeing these four short sentences, a smile spread across Yuwon’s face. He wasn’t even angry, and there was nothing to apologize for, but hearing these words made him feel a bit sorry and also grateful to Hyun Gyujin for being the first to break the awkwardness.
“…P’w cba wjv.”
“Efjiis?”
“Tfjt. Pa’r pera atja P kbggs j iba, sbe xcbk atja. P’w j rmjgfvs-mja.”
“P atbeuta sbe kfgf bcis jogjlv bo utbrar.”
Kegclcu ab ojmf Lsec Xseplc, ktb kjr ibbxlcu ja tlw, Tekbc rwlifv yjmx, wlggbglcu atf ojlca rwlif bc Lsec Xseplc’r ojmf.
“Ktf rmjglfra atlcu obg wf lr ktfc sbe rffw jcugs.”
Yuwon realized just how much he liked Hyun Gyujin. Seeing him act scared made him look cute and lovable.
“I know what you’re saying. If our parents find out—no, if we get caught—it won’t be good.”
“It’s not that I never want to tell anyone we’re dating… You know that, right? I just want to tell them later, after we graduate… when some time has passed.”
“I know.”
Reaching across the desk, Hyun Gyujin lightly touched Yuwon’s fingertips, then moved closer and intertwined their fingers.
“I’ll be careful, so let’s just be ourselves when we’re alone.”
“…….”
“How can we only do that when no one else is home, right?”
“…….”
“And don’t worry too much. We’ve seen a lot as friends, so it’s okay. Trust me.”
Hyun Gyujin’s words did make sense. They were still students, so even if they had money, they couldn’t go to a place where they could be alone every day. Besides, going to a specific place just to kiss or make out seemed a bit strange. Most importantly, Yuwon also enjoyed being close to Hyun Gyujin, so he couldn’t resist when Hyun Gyujin gently touched his fingers and asked for permission.
“…Alright.”
Yuwon laughed out loud as he watched Hyun Gyujin clench his fist in triumph as if he had achieved something significant. He then moved his chair a bit closer to Hyun Gyujin.
“Right now?”
As soon as they got closer, Hyun Gyujin leaned in as if to kiss him, but Yuwon blocked his mouth with his palm and shook his head.
“No, we have to finish the problems first.”
“Then just one kiss. Just a peck.”
There was no way Yuwon could refuse Hyun Gyujin, who smiled and made a kissing sound as their lips touched briefly. Yuwon lowered his hand from his tingling lips and leaned in.
Peck….
Just as Hyun Gyujin had made a sound, a soft, ticklish sound echoed. It was very faint, just enough for the two of them to hear.
But the thrill that small sound brought was immense, filling not just their hearts but also the space around them with the joy of being together. Yuwon pushed his anxiety to the back of his mind, out of sight, and smiled at Hyun Gyujin, who filled his vision.
***
Yuwon’s gym clothes had gone missing again. The next period was PE, and he had left them on his desk for just a moment—barely two minutes—but in that short time, the clothes had vanished. Yuwon was flustered, and Hyun Gyujin was furious, swearing loudly. It wasn’t just that the gym clothes were gone; he was worried about what the person who took them might do with them.
“Whoever the fuck took them, if I catch them, I’ll shove those gym clothes down their throat and kill them.”
“…Do you think someone without gym clothes took them?”
“That’s still a problem. Whether it’s a thief or a pervert, both are fucked up, but perverts piss me off more. Damn it.”
He was so angry that his head was throbbing. Hyun Gyujin gently took Yuwon’s arm, who was staring blankly at the empty desk in dismay.
“Wear mine.”
“You need to wear yours too.”
“I’ll just take the punishment, so you wear it. It’s just a few laps around the field; it’s not even hard.”
“No, I’ll just tell the teacher. I mostly just sit around anyway.”
“The teacher will probably throw a fit about you not participating. Don’t get yourself in trouble, just wear mine. Besides, it’s too late to borrow one now. Let’s go.”
Hyun Gyujin hurried Yuwon out of the classroom and into the bathroom. As class was about to start, they went to the very back of the quiet bathroom. Hyun Gyujin handed his gym clothes to Yuwon.
Yuwon, about to say it was okay again, looked at Hyun Gyujin’s face and just went into the stall. He didn’t want to reject Hyun Gyujin’s kind gesture of giving him his gym clothes out of concern.
After changing into the gym clothes, Yuwon laughed at the sight of himself in the mirror. The clothes were so big they hung loosely, completely covering his body. The top was too wide, the sleeves were too long, and the pants were so long he had to be careful they didn’t drag on the floor.
“Are you done?”
“I think it’d be better to just take the punishment. These are too big… it’s more awkward to go out like this….”
“…Oh, fuck.”
Hyun Gyujin was shocked to the point where he barely noticed the start-of-class bell ringing. He had expected the clothes to be big on Yuwon, but seeing him actually wear them was more impactful than he had imagined.
“…So cute, really.”
Yuwon, wearing his gym clothes, looked absolutely adorable. Just the fact that Yuwon was wearing his clothes made Hyun Gyujin’s fingertips tingle.
“…What’s wrong?”
“…….”
“…Hyun Gyujin.”
“Let’s just skip class.”
“What?”
“I’ll take full responsibility and handle everything.”
“What?”
“I’m really sorry, but I don’t have time to explain right now. I’ll tell you later. I’m really sorry.”
Yuwon was pushed back by Hyun Gyujin, who entered the stall without explaining what he was apologizing for. The bell had rung, signaling the start of class, and they needed to hurry, but instead, Hyun Gyujin was coming in.
“We need to go. The bell rang.”
“I know, but I can’t go out.”
“Why?”
Just looking at Yuwon’s innocent face, genuinely clueless, made Hyun Gyujin’s head spin. He closed his eyes tightly and opened them again, trying to shake off the dizziness. Then, he gently held Yuwon’s face in his hands.
“Why? Because….”
Because I feel like I’ll die if I don’t touch you right now. With that, Hyun Gyujin bent down and kissed Yuwon’s lips.
As Hyun Gyujin pressed against him, Yuwon felt conflicted. He had never skipped class like this, except when he was sick, and he firmly believed it was wrong to do so.
But… it was PE class, and the gym clothes were too big. If everything was handled well, maybe just this once, it wouldn’t be so bad to follow Hyun Gyujin’s lead… A strange rationalization started to creep in. Yuwon was very confused. He couldn’t believe he was seriously considering something he knew he shouldn’t do.
However, he really enjoyed being close to Hyun Gyujin, making him want to ignore reality. He wanted to just go along with it. The warmth of Hyun Gyujin’s hands on his face, the pressure of their bodies pressed together, the way their legs intertwined, and the feel of the sleeves falling over his hands with every small movement—honestly, there wasn’t anything he didn’t like.
