***
Chirp—chirp—
The sound of cicadas announcing summer had noticeably diminished compared to past years, yet in perfect step with what remained of that noise, the heat crept in without fail. With the joint academic assessment approaching, the warmth began to seep in little by little.
Normally, Yi-hyeon kept every button of his uniform neatly fastened, but today he had no choice but to undo them all. Every time the T-shirt he wore underneath fluttered, waves of hot air poured out from the neckline.
It’s way too hot. I’m gonna get heat rash at this rate.
Yi-hyeon wasn’t someone who handled heat particularly poorly. But maybe because a puppy’s body had been mixed into his, his average body temperature had risen after returning to being human. Because of that, even though summer hadn’t fully begun yet, he felt nearly twice as hot as usual.
A student burst into the classroom and delivered some welcome news.
“They’re turning on the air conditioning starting tomorrow!”
“Seriously?”
“I just asked the teacher on my way back.”
“Holy shit, I thought I was gonna roast to death. But why tomorrow? Why not just start today?”
“Why can’t they give us individual AC like other schools, fuck. How much money is that bastard of a chairman trying to save?”
Listening to the grumbling students, Yi-hyeon decided it was unbearable to stay put and stood up from his seat. He figured he should at least grab a cold ice cream. If nothing else, it’d cool him down from the inside, so he headed toward the convenience store.
“Ugh, seriously—where did it even fall?”
Just as the convenience store came into view, a troubled mutter reached Yi-hyeon’s ears. Unable to ignore the trembling voice on the verge of tears, he turned his steps in that direction.
“My dad said it was expensive…”
A student with a flushed, red face sat crouched on the sun-drenched grass, desperately searching for something.
Yi-hyeon approached carefully.
“Did you lose something?”
At his question, the student lifted her head. The nape of her neck, her hair tied tightly into a single ponytail, was soaked with sweat.
“A bracelet.”
She made an awkward face, saying it was a birthday present from her dad and that she’d lost it. She was sure she’d been wearing it that morning, but at some point the entire strand had disappeared.
“Did you check everywhere you’ve been?”
“I checked the classroom, my bag, the field, even the hallway where I had my moving class—I searched everywhere, but it’s not there.”
“Really?”
Standing behind her, Yi-hyeon quietly traced the scent. With his heightened sense of smell, he could usually find nearby objects just by scent alone. But that only worked if the scent reached his nose. If the smell was trapped nearby or carried by the wind, it was fine—but on a windless day like today, it was a bit much.
As he pondered, Yi-hyeon felt the student’s face looked strangely familiar. Then he remembered seeing her with members of the basketball team, and the trail of that thought led him to the team room.
“You’re on the basketball team, right? Did you check the team room by any chance?”
At Yi-hyeon’s words, the student’s head snapped up, her eyes widening.
“Oh, right! I didn’t check there!”
“Let’s go look together.”
If it was the team room, the air would likely be trapped inside. If he followed the faint rose scent coming from her, he should be able to tell where it had fallen. Yi-hyeon and the student headed toward the basketball team room attached to the school gym.
The moment they opened the door, a faint rose scent drifted through the air. Just as Yi-hyeon had guessed, the bracelet was there.
“Isn’t that it?”
Yi-hyeon pointed beneath the table in the team room, where a silver strand shimmered brightly. The student hurried over and picked it up.
“Jackpot! So this is where it was! Thank you so much—I almost didn’t find it.”
She said she’d quit as the basketball team manager today since the college entrance exam was coming up and she’d already chosen her successor, so she really might never have found it. As she spoke, she began fastening the bracelet back onto her wrist with one hand.
“Ah, it won’t clasp easily today.”
Watching her struggle, Yi-hyeon hesitated but then offered to help if she didn’t mind. The student readily nodded and held out her wrist.
“Thanks. You’re Yoon Yi-hyeon from Class 3, right?”
“Huh? How did you know?”
“I’ve seen you come out of Class 3 a lot.”
She said it with a bright smile.
At that moment—bang!—a loud noise shook the team room. Startled, Yi-hyeon turned around to see someone standing in the distance beyond the open door, staring in their direction. Stepping outside, he saw a basketball that had been thrown into the team room bounce off the wall and roll far away across the floor.
The person looking toward the team room was none other than Han Jun. Staring intently at Yi-hyeon’s face as he walked out with the student, Han Jun spoke.
“You were on the basketball team?”
For some reason, irritation seeped into his voice. When Yi-hyeon shook his head to say no, Han Jun openly furrowed his brows, the corner of his mouth twitching.
“Then why were you coming out of there?”
Even though there was no real reason to explain, Yi-hyeon carefully recounted what had just happened.
“Oh, really?”
Speaking in a strangely twisted tone, Han Jun flicked a glance at the student standing beside Yi-hyeon, then strode over. Naturally, he draped an arm over Yi-hyeon’s shoulders. As the cool yet soft sensation touched the back of his neck, Yi-hyeon’s shoulders instinctively hunched.
“You found it, so you’re heading back to class now, right?”
“Huh? Uh… yeah.”
With Han Jun’s arm pressed firmly against the back of his neck, his heart fluttering wildly, Yi-hyeon could only blink his wide eyes and answer like a machine.
“Let’s go.”
“Okay.”
After responding to Han Jun, Yi-hyeon hurriedly turned back to the student.
“I’m gonna head back to class now.”
“Oh? Yeah. Thanks again today. See you next time.”
Still bewildered by the suddenly awkward atmosphere, the student waved as she replied.
“Sure.”
Han Jun’s grip on Yi-hyeon’s shoulder tightened noticeably. While Yi-hyeon felt both the thrill of their bodies pressed close and a creeping worry over Han Jun’s sour mood, a thought crossed his mind.
Why is he prickly again? Don’t tell me some kids messed with Han Jun again?
Seriously—those persistent, nasty bastards.
As they walked back to the classroom, Yi-hyeon wanted to ask what had happened during break, but he held it in. What if bringing it up reminded him of something unpleasant and made his mood worse? Besides, judging by Han Jun’s expression, he didn’t look like he wanted to talk anyway. Then, just as they reached the classroom, Han Jun loosened the arm around Yi-hyeon’s shoulders and spoke first.
“You close?”
“Huh?”
“That kid from earlier.”
“No? I met her for the first time today.”
“Then why’d she say ‘see you next time’?”
“That’s just polite talk. She’s in the class next door.”
Seeing Han Jun’s face stiffen even more, Yi-hyeon wondered if he’d done something wrong. But he couldn’t think of anything that would’ve caused friction between them today—this was the first real conversation they’d had all day.
As soon as they entered the classroom, Han Jun went to his seat and slumped forward, resting his head on the desk. He stayed there with a hardened expression through the rest of the day’s classes. Yi-hyeon had no idea why Han Jun was upset, and the not knowing frustrated him.
A few days later. As Yi-hyeon was gathering his textbooks for a move to the science lab, a student suddenly held out a neatly wrapped package of cookies in front of him, smiling brightly. It was the student who’d searched for the bracelet with him before. When Yi-hyeon blinked in surprise, she spoke, her ears turning bright red.
“I wanted to thank you for helping me find my bracelet. Ah—right, you don’t know my name, do you? I’m Yeon-seo. Kim Yeon-seo.”
Inside the pale pink patterned bag was a palm-sized teddy bear–shaped cookie. A pretty light-yellow ribbon was tied around it as a bonus. Since he hadn’t really done much, Yi-hyeon hesitated to accept something that looked so expensive.
“I didn’t really do anything.”
“What do you mean you didn’t? If you hadn’t mentioned the team room, I wouldn’t have even thought of it.”
“Really… is it okay for me to take this?”
“Of course. I made it for you.”
“You made it?”
