CH 25

“What?”

“No, you’re so nice…”

“What? Hahaha! Really? Am I nice? I’d be honored if you thought so.”

Seriousness lasts less than a minute. A smiling face like a boy of his age, his voice that automatically draws a person’s. Nathan suddenly wondered, in what way is his head so sweet to think things like that? 

He is also good at saying strange things.

“But I didn’t lie.”

“All right.”

I don’t know if this boy will ever know that each of his actions attracts and at the same time lowers people’s guard when he frowns with that playful voice.

When the two of them walked a long distance to the academy talking about this and that, the dark sky was quite bright. Nathan didn’t know whether it was because the sun rose faster or that he was sleeping when he first walked over here but the walk back was longer than he thought. However, when the academy appeared, Nathan felt a sense of fatigue that he had not noticed. His steps slowed down, and his slow blinking eyelids, as if he had managed to endure, and now his body was terribly heavy as hell. Even the act of rubbing his eyes with his hands was full of drowsiness. Hazard, who Nathan thought would break up at the entrance to the dormitory, followed him back to his room. He thought it was unnecessary, but Nathan didn’t bother to stop him.

“Hazard.”

“What?”

Before opening the door, Nathan spoke carefully to Hazard, who was waiting for him to enter the room.

“I’m sorry I’ve been bothering you.”

“It didn’t bother me much. I don’t sleep until early in the morning.”

“I was sorry, though. See you later.”

Having finished his speech, Nathan entered the room as if running away in embarrassment. Just before closing the door in a hurry, Hazard’s voice came through the door.

“Nobert.”

“Huh?”

“Can I call you by name?”

“…I don’t care.”

“Good night, Nathan.”

The door slammed shut. Nathan looked at the closed door for a moment and headed to bed. A dim light is leaking from outside the window, so I thought I wouldn’t be able to sleep much. Nathan crawled under the covers. In my head, even though I was sleepy, the branches of my thoughts were stretching endlessly. The branch of thought began with Hazard and ended with Hazard.

Nathan had never seen anyone like Hazard before. Maybe that’s why this strange commotion is so…

“He’s a weird kid.”

As he said so, he suddenly thought that he wanted to be friends with him. Because he’s so sweet. I’ve never seen such kindness before. Maybe that’s why I thought I’d feel a little less lonely…and Nathan’s eyes closed slowly.

…

“Oh, I slept well. What about you Nathan?” 

‘But I didn’t mean that I wanted to see him as soon as I woke up.’ The sun gleamed his blond hair. A boy who is drinking tea from a teacup to see where he got it from and Nathan looked at him with one sleepy eye. After looking around the boy once, he lay down on the bed again. The room was right. However, the person who should not be in his room was sitting in my usual chair and staring at me.

“Is it a dream?”

“It’s not a dream.”

‘I wish it was a dream.’

“How did you get in?”

“The door was open”

“Housebreaking…. oh, not home….. So a break-in.”

A sleepy voice poured out of my mouth without going through an accident. Hazard chuckled and laughed at Nathan. But Nathan was still sleepy and tired, so he couldn’t open his eyes.

Hit, hit, hit!

However, Nathan, who was about to fall asleep again, was forced to raise his heavy eyelids due to the sound of finger tickling at his feet. He curled up in a blanket as if hiding his naturally distorted face, but suddenly the blanket slipped out of his hand.

“Get up, Nathan. It’s been a long time since the sun came up.”

Yes, Hazard stole Nathan’s blanket. A series of interruptions forced Nathan to sit up in the end. Nathan sighed and swept his messy hair away.

“Why are you here?”

“I came in because the door was open. I had to lock the door.”

“Don’t say that to a random person.”

“It’s fine. I have credit.”

“Oh my!”

Nathan lamented at the moment, dumbfounded. Let’s not talk. I shook my head roughly and got out of bed. While heading to the bathroom to wash up, Nathan stared at Hazard, who shamelessly settled down as if he were an embankment, with a tired face.

“I’ll go wash up, so wait.”

“I will.”

Even if I talked in such a half-asleep state, I didn’t think I would understand half of it. If you wash with cold water, you’ll come to your senses. Nathan came out a little late washing up in a daze.

As soon as he left the bathroom, Nathan immediately found his bedside glasses and put them on. In fact, his eyesight wasn’t that bad. It looked blurry without glasses, but it wasn’t hard to tell things apart. It’s just an old habit now to have them on.

“So what brings you here?”

Nathan opened the closet, talking to Hazard. I found comfortable plain clothes among the few clothes I have. Since it was a vacation, there was no need to wear a school uniform inside the academy. Now that I see it, Hazard was also dressed in plain clothes that looked comfortable. Although he still had a sword on his waist.

“Oh, I’m going to have lunch with you.”

“..What?”

Nathan paused and asked back, buttoning up his sleeve. Without realizing it, his eyes turned to his back, and Hazard was looking at Nathan with his chin lazily on his hand.

“I’ve brought my own food, too. Do you like meat?”

“I don’t hate it.”

“That’s great.”

Now I saw a large paper bag on the table, beside a teacup. Nathan dressed himself up and sat opposite Hazard. 

‘You forced a tired person to wake him up to eat?’

“Just because of that?”

“Well, there’s that, and there’s that boredom.”

Nathan sat in front of the boy. Hazard rummaged through a paper bag and took out the contents. What Hazard brought was a sandwich with thick grilled meat.

“Ta-da! Lupenri’s specialty, thick meat sandwiches! It’s pretty good. There are no swordsmen, so I can eat all I want.”

“Meat in the morning…”

“What are you talking about? Meat is the best in the morning!”

Then he stuck his chin out to Nathan. Nathan glanced at it with a sour look.

This thick meat, which was always put out just before him, did not stimulate his appetite, but rather dropped his appetite. And Nathan had just woken up. However, I accepted it for now because it was the strange way Hazard was giving it out as if he was telling me to hurry up and receive it.

“Hey, hey, you got a sandwich and a grudge? Why do you have a staring contest when you have something to eat?”

‘Really.’

“I’m going to eat. Let’s get ready.”

I didn’t even think of holding in my habitual sighs. As if it hadn’t been long since Hazard brought it, the sandwich still had a feeble warmth. Nathan prepared himself, because he didn’t want to have an upset stomach this morning.

“..Nathan. You don’t have to force yourself to eat if you don’t want to. What if you get indigestion?”

“What?”

“Gosh, I’m sorry. I guess I should’ve asked what you wanted and bought it. There are no people around me who don’t like meat, so I didn’t think there was anyone who would hate it.”

The handsome face, which sweeps his hand down the neck awkwardly, is discouraged. It has taken quite a bit of subtlety. Nathan hurriedly opened his mouth because he felt like he had done something wrong even though it was clear that it was not his fault.

“I don’t hate it. I rather like meat. It’s just that I’m not used to eating meat in the morning. I usually don’t eat breakfast or just eat a piece of bread with soup. That’s why.”

“I can see why you’re so skinny.”

“Hey.”

What was so funny was that Hazard briefly burst into laughter, shaking his shoulders. Nathan’s expression became sharp, so he hurriedly smiled, but it was too late. Nathan chewed the bread in his hand with a sullen face.

‘It’s like a bulgogi burger.’

T/N: These Korean BBQ Burgers are the hamburger version of Korea’s famously delicious bulgogi beef. The ground beef is mixed with ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, scallions and brown sugar, formed into patties and grilled. They are juicy and flavorful beyond belief. Picture: Link

Nathan’s first impression of the sandwich was reminiscent. The soft bread had sweet and salty sauce on it and some vegetables, which tasted similar to a bulgogi burger while the appearance was more like a sandwich.

“It’s okay, right?”

Nathan nodded instead of answering. It was a nostalgic taste that I haven’t had in a long time.

“It’s a taste that kids will like at this time of year.”

Thinking so, Nathan moved his mouth slowly. Hazard saw Nathan eat, pushed the cup in in front of him, and then took his own sandwich. ‘He told me to eat it, but Hazard himself did not even open the package.’ Nathan was under the illusion that the sandwich in Hazard’s hand looked infinitely smaller than his own. It must be the same size, but couldn’t it look so small because it was in Hazard’s thick and big hand?