Han-gyeom adjusted his glasses, which were being pressed down by the cap, while repeatedly smoothing the hat Won-hyeok had put on him with his hands. Through his palms, he could feel the soft, high-quality texture of the fabric.
Han-gyeom took off the cap Won-hyeok had given him as a gift and began properly examining it. The hat had a fairly cute design, with a white crown and a black brim in contrasting colors.
“I just put it on you, so why are you taking it off?”
“Su-sunbae, is today some kind of special day?”
Han-gyeom asked, his face flushed with excitement.
“No.”
“Then why a gift…?”
“I told you. I bought it because I thought it’d suit you. Why, do you not like it?”
“No!”
At the suggestion that he might not like it, Han-gyeom practically shouted. Hugging the cap tightly to his chest, he bowed his head deeply toward Won-hyeok.
“I’m really happy. Th-thank you. A gift from sunbae… I love it so much.”
Han-gyeom was in a daze right now. And understandably so—he was holding a gift that Won-hyeok had personally given him. A gift from someone he liked. A cap personally bought by his favorite. His heart pounded wildly on its own.
“You like it that much? It’s just a hat.”
Won-hyeok added that it wasn’t even that expensive, but Han-gyeom shook his head vigorously.
“If it’s from sunbae, I like anything.”
As Han-gyeom unconsciously leaned his upper body forward, Won-hyeok paused for a moment. It had been the same when he gave him assignment materials before, and when he gave him exam files too. The way Han-gyeom accepted anything he gave him as if it were something precious felt a bit unfamiliar—yet fascinating.
“Why?”
“Because it’s from sunbae.”
It wasn’t just polite enthusiasm, either. Han-gyeom’s dark eyes sparkled beautifully, as if tiny stars had been embedded in them. The corners of his lips stretched upward as if they might pierce the sky, and there wasn’t even the slightest trace of insincerity on his face.
It was, quite literally, a pure, untainted smile. Adults sometimes looked deeply pleased when children smiled brightly like that—now he felt like he understood why, at least a little.
“Han-gyeom.”
“Yes?”
Won-hyeok took the cap Han-gyeom was holding so carefully against his chest and placed it back on his head.
“Don’t smile like that in front of other people.”
“Wh-why? Does my smile look weird?”
Han-gyeom flailed his arms a bit, but Won-hyeok ignored him and firmly pressed the cap down into place again.
“No. It’s just…”
“But sunbae, if I wear it like this, my bangs fall forward so I can’t see well… can’t I push my hair back first and then wear it?”
As the cap naturally pressed his hair down, his fairly large glasses rattled slightly. The strands sticking out awkwardly over them made things even more uncomfortable. Han-gyeom instinctively tried to push his hair back, but Won-hyeok stopped him.
“No, you can’t. You’ve been walking around just fine with this length anyway.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
Won-hyeok did tidy up his flattened bangs to some extent, but he absolutely did not allow him to sweep them back. Only after Han-gyeom’s face was partially covered by his bangs did he pull his hand away, looking satisfied.
“Shall we go now?”
“Yes! But what are we eating today?”
As they stepped away from the bench, Won-hyeok let out a small hum.
“Let’s go somewhere nearby. Anything you want to eat?”
If they went out through the back gate of Hankuk University, there was an alley nearby lined with restaurants frequently used by college students. It seemed Won-hyeok intended to head there as he turned in that direction.
“I’m fine with anything. But sunbae, is it okay to go nearby? You said you were sick of it before.”
Han-gyeom remembered that day exactly—when Won-hyeok had said he was tired of the restaurants around here because he used them too often. Not just that day; he remembered every single word Won-hyeok said without missing a single syllable.
“Did I? It’s fine today. You’re wearing the hat.”
Han-gyeom tilted his head. He couldn’t figure out what connection there was between him wearing a hat and not getting tired of the food, but if Won-hyeok was fine with it, then it didn’t really matter.
***
“Han-gyeom oppa!”
As he entered the general lecture classroom, Da-eun waved her hand energetically in greeting. Startled as always by her high energy, Han-gyeom still dutifully greeted her with a “Hi” and looked for a suitable seat before sitting down.
With about five minutes left before the lecture began, students started pouring into the room. Han-gyeom was pulling out his printed materials to get ready when someone dropped a bag onto the seat next to him.
“Whoa, I’m not late, right?”
Han-ul, apparently having run, was out of breath as he collapsed into the chair.
“Yeah, luckily there are still four minutes left.”
Han-gyeom turned on his phone to check the time and told him, but he felt an obvious stare from beside him.
“Wh-why are you looking at me like that?”
Han-ul had paused mid-motion while taking off his outerwear and was staring intently at Han-gyeom’s face.
“Isn’t it uncomfortable to wear your hat like that?”
“Huh?”
Han-ul spread his hand wide and waved it in front of Han-gyeom’s face. It was a gesture people used to make often back when Han-gyeom had his hair much longer.
“You finally cut your hair. Wearing a hat depends on how you style it. Try taking it off.”
Han-gyeom hesitated a little. After all, this was a hat Won-hyeok had personally put on him. But it was true that his flattened bangs were uncomfortable. On top of that, his glasses kept getting pushed down, making the hair falling forward feel even more stifling.
After some thought, Han-gyeom slowly took off the cap. Han-ul adjusted his bangs, pushed his hair fully back, and then placed the cap on him again. Even after that, with a touch that felt almost professional, he fixed the stray strands sticking out.
“There. How is it?”
Han-ul held out his phone. Using the black screen like a mirror, Han-gyeom checked his reflection and let out an impressed sound.
“Wow…”
As expected, a student from the Fashion Design Department really was on a different level. For the first time, Han-gyeom thought it had been a good decision to register for this brutal class—one that replaced the midterm exam with a group project—just to fill his credits.
He’d always thought he didn’t have much luck with people, but just meeting Han-ul in this class already felt like a huge stroke of luck.
“Han-ul, can I ask you something?”
Han-gyeom checked the time. There were still two minutes left before the professor came in.
“What is it?”
“I’m thinking of trying contact lenses, but I don’t really know anything about them.”
“Contacts? Clear ones?”
Han-gyeom nodded.
“There are a ton of different brands. They’re also divided by duration, but these days people mostly wear daily ones.”
After that, a more detailed explanation followed. From the sound of it, Han-ul also wore contacts since his eyesight wasn’t very good.
“You could also go to an optical shop and get a consultation. These days, you have to go in person to buy lenses anyway. Want me to go with you?”
“Huh? R-really?”
It was a completely unexpected offer. Han-ul added that maybe because he was in the Fashion Design Department, whenever he saw people trying to improve their appearance, he naturally got motivated, so Han-gyeom didn’t need to feel burdened.
“I’ll go with you on a day you’re free.”
“Thank you. I think I did a really good job becoming friends with you.”
As Han-ul smiled softly, the professor entered. Watching Han-gyeom shyly speak while clenching his fists on top of the desk, Han-ul moved his lips as if about to ask something. But as attendance was called right away, the conversation ended there.
After class ended, Han-gyeom left the lecture room with Han-ul and Da-eun. They had agreed to meet at a café after class to work on their group project.
They entered a common franchise café right in front of the main gate, found seats, and placed their orders. Just then, Han-gyeom’s phone on the table buzzed right on cue.
[Group project? Where?]
[Uh, at the café right in front of the main gate!]
[Got it. Work hard.]
After sending Won-hyeok one of the emoticons he used often, Han-gyeom focused fully on the meeting. Although it was a group project replacing the midterm exam, fortunately the topic itself wasn’t particularly difficult or vague.
Since they had already roughly chosen a topic last time, today they needed to decide how to approach it, as well as the PPT outline and what content to include in each section.
“Do we really need to include this in the overview? If we put too much in from the start, it might make the presentation harder.”
Han-gyeom carefully shared the thought that came to mind as he looked over the organized content.
“Hmm, it’s definitely not that important.”
“Then how about we leave it out for now, and if it looks like we’ll have extra time during the presentation, we add it back in?”
At Da-eun’s reasonable suggestion, both of them nodded in agreement. This was the first time Han-gyeom had ever felt this comfortable doing a group project. Back in his first-year general courses, he’d struggled quite a bit because of so-called “group project villains.”
There was someone who, when asked to gather materials, copied everything straight from a wiki site, and someone who never attended a single meeting due to things like their grandmother’s memorial or family events—and in the end didn’t even complete their assigned portion or participate in the presentation.
Of course, Han-gyeom had removed that person’s name entirely from the presentation materials, ensuring they didn’t receive a grade.
“Then next…”
But now, both Han-ul and Da-eun were actively engaged in the project. Just as Han-gyeom felt his mood lifting at the thought that he’d been pretty lucky with people this year, Da-eun, who was sitting across from him, suddenly gasped and leaned forward.
“What?”
“Wow… I just saw someone insanely handsome.”
Following her gaze, Han-ul also turned his head naturally, then tapped on Han-gyeom’s open notebook.
“Han-gyeom, isn’t that the sunbae from your department?”
“Huh?”
“Over there.”
When Han-gyeom turned in the direction Han-ul pointed, he saw a familiar face.
“Huh? Sunbae?”
Won-hyeok was there—and Sun-woo was with him. His expression had been stiff as he looked around, as if searching persistently for something, but the moment his eyes met Han-gyeom’s, his expression instantly changed.
“Oh? Han-gyeom.”
With a relaxed expression, Won-hyeok slowly approached with Sun-woo.
“Sunbae, what brings you here?”
Han-gyeom greeted Sun-woo while wagging an invisible tail at Won-hyeok.
“I came to study with Sun-woo. Thought we’d try doing it at a café for a change. But we run into each other here?”
As Won-hyeok spoke about the coincidence, his words trailed off. His eyes swept over Han-gyeom’s face, then sank coldly.
Without warning, Won-hyeok’s expression hardened as he stared at him.
“You—who told you to wear your hat like that?”
His face instantly turned sharp. His tone was unmistakably scolding, and the atmosphere around them became awkward in an instant.
