#006
Lee Jiwoon: Today’s lunch sucks Yechan ㅠㅠ
Me: The meat has gone missing ㅠㅠ
Lee Jiwoon: Let’s go out to eat lunch I’ll buy
Me: What do you want to eat, hyung?
Lee Jiwoon: Pasta
Me: Good
Lee Jiwoon: ㅇㅇ I’ll come to your classroom later
Yechan, who had made up an excuse to send Minho and Taehyun away, stood by the window in the empty hallway. As he was looking up reviews of the movie they had watched last time, he soon heard Jiwoon’s footsteps approaching from the end of the corridor.
“I’m hungry.”
Jiwoon said while resting his head on Yechan’s shoulder as they walked side by side.
“Didn’t you eat breakfast?”
“I don’t really eat it.”
“How can a high school senior not eat meals?”
“I asked you to feed me, didn’t I?”
The face that looked up at Yechan wore a playful smile. Jiwoon’s face was full of mischief and laughter. Yechan raised his arm to put his hand on Jiwoon’s shoulder and quickened his pace.
“Let’s go quickly first. Do you like pasta?”
“Yeah, I like it.”
Jiwoon said while scrunching his eyes with a grin. Yechan blinked and put slight pressure on the hand holding Jiwoon’s shoulder.
The two, who had passed the cafeteria, soon exited through the back gate. The cherry blossoms, now in full bloom, scattered petals in the air.
“Try to catch one. They say it makes your wish come true.”
“You know this is harder than it looks, right?”
“What, would making wishes be easy?”
“You try catching one too, hyung.”
Yechan and Jiwoon walked with their palms raised up and spread wide. As the cherry blossom petals proved difficult to catch, Jiwoon kept repeating the motion of closing and opening his hand.
“Oh, hyung!”
Just before entering the building where the pasta restaurant was located, a petal gently landed on Jiwoon’s palm. Seeing this, Yechan shouted in surprise.
Jiwoon, who seemed equally surprised as he opened his eyes and mouth wide, soon clenched his fist tightly and closed his eyes to make a wish. When he opened his hand again, the cherry blossom petal fluttered away in the wind.
“What did you wish for?”
“Guess.”
“Success on the Suneung?”
“No, I asked to be happy.”
With you. Jiwoon raised the corners of his mouth, hiding the words that followed.
Happiness is important. Yechan, who had no way of knowing, nodded and got on the building’s elevator.
“Vongole.”
“I’ll have carbonara.”
“Do you like cream?”
“Yes. What about you, hyung?”
“I like oil pasta. I’m not really into cream or tomato.”
Cream is delicious though, you don’t know what you’re missing. Yechan retorted as if complaining and pressed the bell to finish ordering.
“What did you do on the weekend?”
“I studied and rested. What about you, hyung?”
“Thought about Yechan?”
“What thoughts about me?”
“Thought about Yechan doing pumps.”
“Ah… I figured as much.”
When Yechan glared at him slightly, Jiwoon chuckled.
The food came out quickly. Eat a lot. You too, hyung. The two quickly emptied the prepared food.
This time too, Jiwoon pushed away Yechan’s card that was offered first and finished paying with his own card.
“Hyung, if I keep just getting treated, I’ll develop bad habits. Let’s stop by the school store briefly later. I’ll treat you to dessert.”
“I’m buying it to make you develop bad habits. I’ll have to eat something expensive.”
“You can clean out the whole store.”
I really should clean it out. Jiwoon answered lightly, raising the corners of his mouth and putting both hands in his pockets. His face was languidly relaxed, perhaps satisfied with the meal.
“I’m full. I don’t want to walk.”
Jiwoon, who had been walking slowly, suddenly leaned his body against Yechan.
“Try to hang in there a bit. We’re almost there.”
Yechan, who put his arm around Jiwoon’s back as he clung to him, chuckled. Then he led the tall body toward the school store.
The two who arrived at the school store headed toward the entrance, looking at the bustling kids. However, at that moment, a small boy came running from somewhere and blocked their path.
“Jiwoon hyung!”
“Oh, Yeon.”
It was Choi Yeon. Yechan witnessed Choi Yeon’s smiling face for the first time. Choi Yeon, who seemed genuinely happy to meet Jiwoon and smiled brightly, grabbed the sleeve of Jiwoon’s jacket as he leaned against Yechan.
“Hyung, what did you come to buy?”
“Well. I just came.”
“Really? Let’s go, I’ll buy it for you.”
Choi Yeon treated Yechan as if he didn’t exist at all. Jiwoon replied dryly.
“It’s fine.”
At Jiwoon’s answer, Choi Yeon pouted his lips.
So he can make that kind of expression too. Yechan had thought the only expressions Choi Yeon could make were blank or glaring. He stood quietly, supporting Jiwoon’s back as he leaned even more weight on him.
He could feel the firm, lean back under the school uniform. At that sensation, Yechan unconsciously imagined Jiwoon in martial arts attire once again.
And then, Han Seungwoo came running from behind Choi Yeon.
“Ah, I wondered where you went… Hyung, hello!”
“Yeah.”
Jiwoon, who roughly nodded his head, wrapped his arm around Yechan’s waist and pulled him while turning his head. At the face that came close to his own, Yechan drew in a small breath.
“I want chocolate milk.”
Jiwoon, who slightly raised his eyes and stated what he wanted, led Yechan along.
“Hyung, I’ll buy it for you!”
Choi Yeon blocked Jiwoon’s path once again.
“I said it’s fine.”
Jiwoon furrowed his brow. A startled Seungwoo said “Hey, hey” and pulled Choi Yeon away.
At Seungwoo’s touch, the small-bodied Choi Yeon was easily dragged away. Yechan, who immediately entered the school store, picked out chocolate milk and several types of candy and paid for them.
“Oh, this is one I like.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. This watermelon flavor is delicious. Try it.”
Jiwoon, who opened the round container of candy, poured out several pieces and brought his hand to Yechan’s lips.
Yechan opened his mouth to receive the candy. Tasty, right? Yes, it’s delicious. Jiwoon, who chewed and swallowed the candy, stuck a straw in the chocolate milk and sucked on it.
On the other side of the school store, Seungwoo and Choi Yeon were still there. Yechan ignored Choi Yeon, who was glaring at him again.
Without hesitation, he turned his head and entered the building with Jiwoon, who was holding chocolate milk.
“Hey, Seo Yechan. You ate with Lee Jiwoon hyung, didn’t you?”
Yechan, who had brushed his teeth and sat down, nodded at Taehyun’s question. Taehyun, sitting behind him, tapped the chair with his foot.
“How did you know?”
“I saw everything from the cafeteria. You two going out the back gate together. What did you eat?”
“Something delicious.”
“Wow, that’s mean. Today’s lunch difficulty was extreme. All the kids looked like they were eating pig slop.”
Minho, who nodded at Taehyun’s words, subtly asked Yechan.
“Yechan, you’re not being bullied, are you?”
“It’s not like that.”
“Who paid?”
“That hyung did.”
“Then it doesn’t seem like bullying? What the heck is it then?”
“Maybe Yechan caught his fancy? You know how it is. Taking someone as a younger brother.”
“True. He studies well, he’s polite, he’s good-looking… But he’s also a bit crazy, this kid.”
“What are you saying?”
Leaving behind Minho and Taehyun who were chuckling, Yechan took out his book. Suddenly, he remembered Jiwoon’s face when he caught the cherry blossom petal and closed his eyes.
He was kind of cute. Yechan, who was thinking that Jiwoon seemed to have surprisingly many childlike aspects, adjusted his grip on his mechanical pencil.
His stomach was full and he felt like he might fall asleep.
* * *
Today’s lunch was job’s tears rice.
When Yechan arrived at school in the morning, a message notification from Jiwoon appeared on his phone. Yechan recalled Jiwoon saying he hated job’s tears rice on the way home last night.
Lee Jiwoon: Yechan
Lee Jiwoon: I don’t want to eat job’s tears rice ㅠㅠ
Me: ㅋㅋㅋ What do you want to eat again
Lee Jiwoon: You
Lee Jiwoon: What you want to eat
Me: Want to eat tteokbokki?
Lee Jiwoon: Yeah I’ll come at lunch ㅇㅇ
Me: Okay
Yechan did eat job’s tears rice fine, but it was obvious that tteokbokki was more delicious than job’s tears rice. Yechan thought he definitely had to pay this time and opened his book.
“Oh Taehyun. Lend me your Korean textbook.”
After finishing morning self-study and waiting for first period to start, someone who entered through the back door asked Taehyun to lend them a book. It was Choi Yeon.
“Huh? Me?”
“Yeah. Is there another Oh Taehyun besides you?”
“Ah… Here. Don’t write in it.”
Taehyun and Minho looked at Choi Yeon with puzzled expressions. Although they had somehow become lunch companions, Yechan and his friends had barely ever talked to Choi Yeon. Their relationship was truly ambiguous.
In such a situation, to suddenly talk like this and borrow a textbook? They couldn’t understand why Choi Yeon was doing this.
Choi Yeon, who had taken Taehyun’s Korean book, turned his head and called out to Yechan.
“Hey. Seo Yechan.”
Yechan, who was solving problems, glanced up to look at Choi Yeon. Standing Choi Yeon stared down at sitting Yechan.
“How do you know Jiwoon hyung?”
At the out-of-the-blue question, Yechan couldn’t find a reason to answer. Yechan closed his mouth and quietly stared at Choi Yeon.
His face looked extremely twisted with displeasure.
What the heck is wrong with this kid? As Yechan just stared, Choi Yeon’s face became even more crumpled.
“How did you become close?”
Yechan thought for a moment.
Was he close with that hyung? They went home together, watched a movie, and ate together several times… but didn’t other kids do that kind of thing too?
Still, if they weren’t close at all, those things wouldn’t happen, so maybe they could be considered somewhat close. But then is this kid asking about the reason they suddenly became close? I don’t know.
Yechan, who continued his thoughts, stared at Choi Yeon again. As expected, whatever it was, he didn’t want to answer.
“Fuck, you’re not going to answer?”
Perhaps his mood twisted at Yechan’s appearance, Choi Yeon suddenly spat out profanity. Yechan’s brow furrowed at the sudden cursing.
“Hey, hey. Choi Yeon. Why are you cursing?”
Flustered Taehyun lightly grabbed Choi Yeon’s arm as if telling him to calm down.
Immediately, with a smacking sound, Taehyun’s hand was knocked away. Taehyun’s mouth fell open in bewilderment after getting hit by Choi Yeon when he had tried to mediate for no good reason.
Surrounding gazes gathered. What’s that, why is he acting like that.
“What kind of bullshit did you pull for Jiwoon hyung to treat you like that?”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
