Chapter 35: Mean

Chapter 35: Mean

“Haha...! That’s not like you, Eun-ha, to make a joke like that!”

It had been merely a month since we met.

Until becoming seniors, we’d never even spoken to each other.

But now, my heart kept racing because of Han-gyeol who stood before me.

Even though I heard his voice every day, I always found myself yearning to hear it again. When he was not in sight, I missed him terribly.

When did my feelings for him grow this strong?

I thought I was managing my emotions well; I believed I could control them.

But apparently, it was too much to keep those ever-growing feelings inside.

I even felt jealous watching him talk to other girls, pretending not to know the answers to questions I knew, just to have him explain them to me. On rainy days, I lied about not having an umbrella, just to share one with him, and walked shoulder-to-shoulder.

I went so far as to lie because I wanted to be with Han-gyeol, even if it was just for a little while longer.

I liked him that much.

So I decided not to hold back anymore.

“It’s not a joke...”

“Huh? What did you say, Eun-ha?”

“I can’t stop thinking about you, Han-gyeol.”

I looked him straight in the eye as I said it.

And little by little, I started to unveil my true feelings.

“To be honest, I’ve been feeling this way for a while now. I keep missing you, from the moment I wake up in the morning until I go to sleep at night. I can’t wait to go to school to see you, and at night, I want to call you just to hear your voice... but I’ve been too shy to dial your number. Instead, I lie in bed, telling myself that I should just go to sleep so I can see you at school the next day. But then my heart starts racing again, and I can’t fall asleep. So I toss and turn until I finally manage to get some sleep...”

I thought I couldn’t hold back any longer.

“I was so happy when I received chocolate from Han-gyeol! In fact, I was hoping all day that you would give it to me. I overheard you talking with Jang Yujin and found out you made the chocolate yourself! I was disappointed when you gave me a store-bought one at school, but so thrilled when you gave me the homemade chocolate as I got home.”

Only a sliver of my feelings slipped out, but I couldn’t stop myself. My emotions poured out uncontrollably.

“The reason I avoided you, Han-gyeol, was because my heart would pound like crazy every time I saw you! My face would get hot, and I couldn’t even speak properly. I was scared you’d figure out how I felt. That’s why I avoided you. It was the same on the night we took that walk. I knew it wasn’t right to call you late at night, but I really wanted to hear your voice. Even last week, when I accidentally hugged you, all I could think of was wanting to keep hugging you. That’s how I’ve been these days. I can’t stop thinking about you. You’re all over my daily life.”

I blurted out a lot of things, but saying what I really wanted to say was still difficult.

“So what I’m trying to say is...”

Up to this point, I had been making eye contact with Han-gyeol. But I couldn’t keep it up as I got to the final sentence.

Without realizing it, my gaze dropped, and I held onto the hem of my dress as I softly spoke.

“What I’m trying to say is... I like you, Han-gyeol.”

I clenched my eyes shut as I said it.

I was dying to know what expression Han-gyeol was making, but I couldn’t bring myself to look up.

Then, Han-gyeol’s gentle voice filled my ears.

“Eun-ha, you have to look up if you want to hear my response.”

“Can’t you just say it? I’m too embarrassed...”

“No.”

“Ugh...”

I cautiously lifted my head to look at Han-gyeol.

He met my eyes with a bright smile.

But the embarrassment was too much—I swiftly turned my head away.

Mustering the courage to confess was a monumental endeavor of its own.

“Uh—? You haven’t answered yet.”

“You expect an answer without making eye contact?”

“Nope.”

Han-gyeol could be really mean sometimes.

Finally, with my face flushed, I met his eyes.

Only then did he take my hand and speak.

“I like you too, Eun-ha.”

Upon hearing those words, my face heated up even more.

I tried to cover it with my hand, but Han-gyeol firmly held it and wouldn’t let go.

Han-gyeol responded instantly.

I burst into soft laughter.

“You didn’t spend the whole day just thinking about me, did you?”

“I did, actually. Thought about Eun-ha all day.”

“You’re bluffing.”

“It’s unfair when you say it like that.”

“So, what did you think about?”

“I wondered what kind of porridge Eun-ha might like.”

I chuckled again at Han-gyeol’s words.

“So, what did you decide?”

“I thought you’d probably like tuna vegetable porridge.”

“Why? Is there a special reason?”

“No, I just settled on something generic after pondering a bit.”

“So you didn’t think it through that much after all!”

“You can’t keep wrestling with an unsolvable problem forever.”

“Ugh— you’ve got me there.”

My boyfriend could be quite rational at times.

Boyfriend...

“So, what kind of porridge do you like, Eun-ha?”

“Guess.”

“Tuna vegetable porridge.”

“Hey!”

I sat up abruptly.

“Ah, why does the patient keep getting up?”

“You keep teasing me, Han-gyeol!”

“How can you be so cute?”

Hearing the word ‘cute’ over and over made me blush.

Seeing that I didn’t say anything, Han-gyeol gently laid me back down on the bed.

He then took my hand, which had slipped out of the blanket, and looked at me intently.

I also gripped Han-gyeol’s hand firmly in return.

“You don’t have to hold on so tightly; I’m not going anywhere.”

“I, I didn’t hold on that tight.”

“Ah, you’re stronger than you look.”

“Ah—! Stop teasing me!”

“Alright, I’m sorry.”

Now I finally understood what Harim meant when she said Han-gyeol looked at me with so much love.

He might play cheeky pranks on me, but I could feel the way he cherished me in every glance and gesture.

Those feelings filled my heart to overflowing.

“Eun-ha.”

“Hmm?”

“Thanks for confessing. I really like you too, Eun-ha.”

It was the phrase I had been dying to hear, but when I heard it like this it made me even more embarrassed.

Unable to say anything, I just stared back at Han-gyeol.

He is so mean.

--- The End OF The Chapter ---

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