#47
“Would you like me to change clothes underwater within 10 seconds?”
Where’s the rule that says you should answer a question with another question? Noah rolled his big eyes around and finally, unable to find a proper response, lowered his gaze. Simultaneously, he nodded his head ever so slightly. It was something nobody could do anyway.
In normal circumstances, changing clothes within 10 seconds might be possible, but underwater, it would be difficult even to maintain balance. How would one remove clothes that cling to the body in water, and then put on new ones? All in 10 seconds. Clearly an impossible mission.
“I haven’t tried that…”
“Ah! Ah! No using magic!”
As Derik pondered deeply while touching his chin, Noah removed the hand covering his mouth, shouted once more, and quickly covered it again.
“But Noah.”
As Derik approached, Noah stepped backward until he was stopped by the wardrobe behind him.
“Waaang…”
A small, muffled sound escaped from Noah’s mouth.
“Can you do it? Usually, when people mention things like this, they’re suggesting something they can do but think the other person can’t.”
Ah, this unnecessarily logical bastard.
I momentarily forgot that even though you’re in the knight department, you receive abundant love from professors with all your grades being A or above.
“O-of course I can!”
“Really?”
The room had completely darkened now, softly illuminated by moonlight coming from outside. However, Noah, standing in front of the open wardrobe rather than by the window where light entered, couldn’t read Derik’s expression as he came closer.
Why does he look even bigger in the dark?
Did you bulk up again in the meantime?
We eat the same food, so why do you grow like a bean sprout while I’m stuck looking like this?
Noah, who had been looking up at Derik with his head tilted back, tilted his head in confusion as Derik bent his waist and lowered his upper body. But as their faces grew closer due to Derik’s bending, Noah ran out of proper places to rest his eyes.
“Noah.”
“…”
Too close. He could feel Derik’s warm breath on the back of his hand covering his mouth. Noah, who flinched every time Derik’s steady breathing tickled the back of his hand, was unconsciously holding his breath.
“Seeing how well our Noah can hold his breath, you’ll really do well. So, shall we try it at the swimming pool tomorrow?”
“Huk—”
At Derik’s startlingly unexpected suggestion, all the breath Noah had been holding rushed out at once.
“Alright, I understand. Let’s try it together at the swimming pool tomorrow. If I can’t do it, you can teach me.”
Noah held both his arms firmly as he met Derik’s gaze, who was smiling brightly, and held his breath again. He couldn’t understand why he kept holding his breath, but it just happened automatically.
Ah, so this is what happens when a handsome guy is close.
Though they’d been close friends until now, they had never faced each other this closely before. They had consistently maintained at least 30-50cm of personal space.
Oh my. It touched, it touched. It touched!
The moment Derik’s high nose tip touched Noah’s round nose tip, Noah experienced the strange phenomenon of all the fine hairs on his body standing on end.
Whoa, whoa. You bastard, step back right now. My heart and breathing can’t handle this.
With his forearms gripped and his hands still covering his mouth, finding himself in the awkward situation where their nose tips were touching, Noah’s body instantly flushed red. And rather than thinking of ways to escape this situation, Noah’s body, instinctively hoping to break free from Derik’s embrace, moved on its own more quickly.
Noah slightly pulled his head back to create a little distance from Derik, then promptly headbutted him in the forehead.
“Ow…”
In an instant, Noah’s eyes welled up with tears, and his hands were now touching his forehead instead of his mouth.
“You…”
Surprised by the sudden headbutt and releasing Noah, Derik also touched his forehead, feeling the pain. What kind of situation was this, suddenly headbutting someone and then acting like the victim by whimpering?
“Young master, dinner is ready—”
“Food. Food. Chicken. Chicken!!”
After blurting out a few words, Noah quickly opened the door and disappeared, leaving Derik standing alone in the room with a small laugh escaping his lips.
It truly exceeded his imagination and expectations.
Being with Noah meant there was never a dull moment.
How did he manage to behave in such original and surprising ways every day? Derik wanted to peer into the depths of Noah’s mind.
While Noah kept many things hidden from Derik, he hid nothing from Aeongi. There was no real reason to fluster Noah by appearing as Derik.
But the expressions that emerged when Noah was surprised and flustered were just too entertaining. His already large eyes would grow even larger, blinking faster than usual, with his pupils shaking unstably.
Sometimes he would pout or bite his lips, and like just now, cover his mouth.
Anyway, if he pushed Noah any further, Noah would get upset and stop talking to him, so Derik reopened the window Noah had closed and leaped outside.
If he visited in Aeongi’s form, Noah would surely chatter about everything that happened today without being asked.
With that certainty, Derik had quietly withdrawn, but that night, even in Aeongi’s form, he couldn’t hear anything from Noah.
Noah, who had entered his now larger embrace, didn’t say anything and just kept plucking at his fur for no reason.
Well, he did say something.
‘Hey! Are you shedding? Why is so much fur coming out?’
What shedding? He was the one grabbing and pulling it out.
Only Aeongi knew Noah’s hidden quirky personality, which contrasted with his kind, gentle, and polite demeanor toward people. With his lips protruding, Noah would stroke his fur and pluck any strands that were different in length or stood out, while inexplicable sighs escaped his lips.
* * *
Even while eating the fried chicken Elisa had made, Noah kept glancing anxiously at his room. When he finally returned to his room after hesitating, only the open window and swaying curtains greeted him.
After briefly marveling at Derik’s athletic ability to casually come and go from the third floor, Noah complained to Aeongi, who came strolling in from wherever he had been playing.
As some fur came off when stroking him, suggesting he might be shedding, Noah groomed Aeongi’s fur while thinking deeply. He wondered how to explain the “chicken” outburst and was looking for a solution to the challenge of changing clothes underwater in 10 seconds.
Unable to find a suitable solution by daybreak, Noah considered skipping class with the excuse of being sick, but seeing Elisa’s silent gaze and slight smile, he couldn’t bring himself to say it and hastily gathered his books and left.
Deep in thought, he couldn’t even say thank you or offer a simple morning greeting to Derik, who immediately handed him the bag and jacket he had left in the library.
“Noah’s here! Noah, is what Derik said true?”
Noah, who had been moving his lips while thinking about what excuse to give Derik, stared blankly at Ray, who suddenly appeared, clasped both his hands together, and spoke with sparkling eyes. What, what is true?
“I heard you two are going to change clothes underwater in 10 seconds today. They say you’re good at it.”
At Ray’s words, Noah’s head snapped toward Derik.
Wow, look at this guy. Were your lips always this loose?
You weren’t like that. I’ve known you for almost 7 years. You already told this story?
And not to just anyone, but to Ray, who gets involved in everything that happens at the academy?
Derik quickly shook his head upon receiving Noah’s gaze, but Noah’s eyes narrowed this time. If not you, who else would know? The idea that someone had eavesdropped on the conversation in his dormitory room was absurd. It was truly something only he and Derik knew.
“Why are you looking at Derik like that? There are ways to know everything. There are no secrets in this academy. The walls have ears, I tell you. What’s our schedule today? Wow, this is great. The three of us only have this class today. Let’s all go to the swimming pool after class.”
Noah glared at Ray, who was speaking cheerfully while lightly holding Noah’s chin to make him look at him. His expression hadn’t changed at all from when he was looking at Derik moments ago.
“Why such a face when you’re happy about it? I understand. Do you want to play quietly with just the two of you, and I’m intruding? But you still need someone to judge, right? I’ll be fair. My other nickname is ‘fairness,’ after all.”
“Ray, stop talking nonsense and get lost.”
With both his hands captured by Ray’s one large hand and his chin held, forcing him to look at Ray, Noah didn’t even blink when he saw Ray being pushed back by Derik’s hand on his shoulder.
He didn’t even feel sorry seeing Ray being lightly pushed away because Derik hadn’t controlled his strength.
You brought this on yourself.
And Derik, don’t think I’ve forgiven you just because you helped me.
“Ray! I’ve finished booking the swimming pool.”
At the words of a student who had just entered the classroom, Noah let out a long sigh. It was clear that something big was about to happen.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
