Although he had collected many things, none of them were satisfactory! Eventually, he bundled them all together again.
“This won’t do. I’ll get you a proper jacket, so wear that until then.”
“…What? But what about you?!”
“I don’t really feel the cold.”
Soccer was played outdoors even in the middle of winter wearing just a uniform. Besides, they would keep moving until they found food, clothes, and a safe place, so there wouldn’t be time to feel cold. Taewoong assured the greatly surprised and stuttering Yeoul that it was fine, then suddenly burst out laughing.
“I was worried it wouldn’t fit, but…”
Taewoong usually wore more than just his school uniform. Hoodies, jerseys, zip-ups, and so on. He wore all sorts of things together, so he deliberately got his school jacket one size larger.
Even without that, he had a large build, and the jacket was even larger. The small Yeoul was wearing that big jacket. Looking like a squirrel wearing dog clothes, Taewoong couldn’t help but laugh.
“Pfft…”
He couldn’t stop laughing at the fatally cute sight. Worried that Yeoul might feel bad, Taewoong covered his mouth with his hand and eventually had to turn his head away.
Suddenly Taewoong was laughing. Yeoul, watching Taewoong’s shoulders shake slightly with laughter, was puzzled until he belatedly noticed his own state.
The shoulder line of the jacket was far below his own shoulders, the sleeves were stretched long, and the hem came down to half his thighs. Somehow looking like he was secretly wearing his father’s clothes, his face flushed red with embarrassment.
“This…”
It’s hard enough to look good normally, and now I look like this! Embarrassed, he hurriedly pulled up his sleeves to free his hands and grabbed the hem to pull it up, but it was too late. Rather, the sight of Yeoul frantically adjusting made Taewoong unable to hold back, and he laughed out loud, “Hahaha!”
“Ah… you’re so cute! Don’t be embarrassed because you’re cute!”
“C-cute…”
Yeoul may be smaller than Taewoong, but he’s still a man. Yet being called cute. It seemed like everything was ruined even before he could confess. Yeoul visibly deflated. Seeing him droop, Taewoong pressed his mouth firmly shut, trying hard to suppress his laughter.
“Why, there’s a saying that cuteness rules the world! It’s okay!”
“…What?”
“Okay, okay! Let’s gather medicine!”
Yeoul looked like he might cry. Pretending not to know anything, Taewoong roughly patted Yeoul’s head and turned around. He gathered boxes that caught his eye.
He rummaged through the desk drawers to find tape and wrapped it around the bottom of the box to prevent it from breaking. Yeoul, watching Taewoong prepare the box with familiarity, sighed deeply and then quietly raised his hand. He lifted the edge of Taewoong’s jacket he was wearing closer to his nose.
From inside the jacket, he could faintly smell the fluffy fabric softener and a refreshing, cool scent. As he was sniffing the familiar scent that could be smelled on Taewoong, he suddenly exclaimed “Ah!” and startled. Urgently, he grabbed Taewoong’s arm and led him to the sink.
“Wash your face, just in case!”
“Huh? Oh, right.”
While dealing with zombies, many unidentifiable things had gotten on his face. Taewoong obediently went to the sink as Yeoul directed and washed his face clean. Then he took the towel Yeoul handed him, roughly dried off the moisture, and went to the cabinet.
“It should be stored here… Here it is!”
From playing soccer, he had frequently visited the infirmary and had helped the school nurse organize medicines a few times. Taewoong pulled out various medicines from all over the cabinet.
Cold medicine, fever reducers, antiseptics, bandages, pain relief patches, gauze, disposable masks, and more. Yeoul checked the expiration dates and instructions on everything Taewoong randomly brought out before putting them in the box.
“Oh, Yeoul!”
Taewoong, who had been searching every corner of the infirmary for anything else to collect, suddenly called Yeoul loudly. Yeoul got up from his seat and went to his side, and Taewoong’s face brightened considerably.
“Yeoul, couldn’t we stay here?”
When their eyes met, Taewoong patted the blood-stained blanket as if to say “look at this.” Watching him, Yeoul looked in turn at the two beds separated by a curtain, the electric heater, water purifier, sink, refrigerator, and the window showing the outside.
“Um… yeah, we really could stay here!”
Come to think of it, the infirmary had everything they needed, with a bathroom not far away! Yeoul’s mind cleared at the thought of this safe and comfortable place he hadn’t considered before. Yeoul and Taewoong looked at each other and smiled.
“How could we have forgotten about the infirmary?”
Although there were only two beds, there were blankets, so there seemed to be no major problem staying there. As they were thinking about gathering food from the cafeteria and then meeting back here, Taewoong suddenly took big steps to close the distance and grabbed Yeoul’s hand.
“The dorm. Yeoul, what about staying at the dorm?!”
“The dorm?”
“Yeah. I think there won’t be any zombies at the dorm, so what about staying there?”
Near the cafeteria, there was a small dormitory building called Woojung Dorm for students coming from distant places.
Normally, there would have been many students in the dorm, but now they were all out for classes and the graduation ceremony. Then the chances of zombies being there were high! Plus, they didn’t have that many people in their group! It seemed there would be no major problem staying there. Looking at Taewoong’s eyes sparkling with expectation, Yeoul cleared his throat and put on a serious face.
“The dorm…”
Since it’s a dormitory, each room will have beds and locks, and there will be washrooms, shower rooms, and even a laundry room! Recalling the dorm he had visited once before, Yeoul swallowed and clasped his hands together.
“Y-you’re right! We could stay at the dorm!”
They finally found a safe place! Yeoul and Taewoong hugged each other and jumped around, making loud excited noises.
They had found a safe place to stay! Unable to contain their joy, they spun around in circles, jumping in place until dizziness made them realize their current situation. Yeoul screamed “Aaack!” and quickly backed away.
“S-so…”
I, I hugged Nam Taewoong! Me!! Yeoul grabbed his head, thinking he was crazy and not knowing how to cover this up.
Suddenly, he was gently pushed away by Taewoong. Blinking his eyes in confusion, Taewoong discovered Yeoul’s face, which had turned bright red. His own face also gradually reddened.
So I just… Taewoong opened his mouth wide and then urgently shouted, “Uh!”
“Uh… Oh! Yeah! Should we get going?!”
They had gathered enough medicine. Plus, they had decided where to go after the cafeteria! So instead of awkwardly staying here, they should hurry and move!
Taewoong shouted loudly even though no one had said anything, forgetting even about the zombie beyond the door, and as he hurried around, his foot got caught on a wheeled chair. He sat down with a loud crash. At the sound, Yeoul raised his lowered head in surprise.
“T-Taewoong!”
Our Taewoong can’t get hurt! Alarmed, he grabbed his arm. Taewoong looked at Yeoul with blank eyes.
“Ah… huh?”
“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
Did he hit his head while falling? Taewoong seemed unlike himself, in a daze. As Yeoul worriedly examined him, Taewoong finally nodded and stood up abruptly.
“Y-yeah! I’m fine, I’m fine.”
“Really, are you okay?… Ah! Treatment, we need to treat you!”
Taewoong dusted off his hands that had touched the floor. Looking at those hands, Yeoul belatedly remembered the reason they had come to the infirmary! Yeoul gathered medicine and sat Taewoong down in the chair in front of him.
“I… I’m going to hold your hand.”
“Huh? Oh… Oh! Go ahead, hold it however you want! Hold it all you want!”
Taewoong stretched out his hands, saying Yeoul should take everything, but his palms accidentally touched Yeoul’s chest. He froze.
Neither Taewoong nor Yeoul said anything, but suddenly Yeoul’s face turned bright red. Seeing his face about to burst, Taewoong let out a delayed “Ack!” and raised both hands high.
“Sorry!”
“Uh, yeah!”
It was just a palm touching over clothes, but Yeoul was so startled that he also raised both hands. Seeing this, Taewoong burst into laughter.
“Why are you raising your hands too?”
“Huh? Oh, right, why am I?”
With an awkward laugh, the strange atmosphere faded. Yeoul gently took Taewoong’s hand and began treating it.
“Um… does anything hurt or feel uncomfortable?”
“Hmm… no. Nothing hurts.”
Yeoul carefully cut the bandage wrapped around Taewoong’s fingers with scissors. Then he disinfected every visible wound, applied ointment, and stuck band-aids on them.
“…There, finished. Can you check if anything feels uncomfortable?”
Fortunately, there were no serious injuries. Yeoul looked at Taewoong with relief. Taewoong flexed his hands covered in band-aids a few times, then smiled at Yeoul.
“Nothing feels uncomfortable. Thanks.”
Taewoong took out self-adhesive bandages and wrapped them carefully around his entire hand, like boxing tape. After checking his movement, he stood up from the chair. He immediately patted Yeoul’s head, then stuffed all the coats Yeoul had gathered into a large garbage bag he had found earlier. Yeoul, who had been watching, organized the medicine.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
