The next morning.
After finishing the morning run with Choi Ahyeon before school, we were quietly heading back to our respective homes.
“Ugh!“
Ahyeon suddenly wiped her sweat onto my clothes with her hand.
Along with that playful voice.
Honestly… this isn’t the first time she’s done something like this. Though it’s not like she does it often either.
Why is she suddenly acting like this?
I didn’t show much of a reaction. I just glanced at it and then tuned it out.
“Oh… so you’ve built up an immunity now?! Then I guess my crown attack is fair game too?!”
But unlike my bored reaction, Ahyeon pushed it one step further.
Like someone trying to draw any kind of attention from me.
And there was a bit of desperation in her movements.
Like she was forcing it… trying to pull out a specific reaction from me.
To be fair, in the past… I probably would’ve freaked out and thrown a fit about how disgusting it was.
“What’s with you all of a sudden…”
But right now, my reaction wasn’t that extreme.
More than anything, I was just curious about why she was acting like this all of a sudden.
“Yeah… okay.”
Anyway, since I kept up my dull reaction to the end, Ahyeon eventually let her momentum fizzle out and deflated.
Then we walked for a while longer without any conversation.
Slowly… the point where we’d have to split paths was coming up.
“Oh, the Platycodon tea! I brought it to school yesterday and drank it, remember? Thanks to that, my throat definitely feels cleaner.”
Ahyeon spoke up like she’d been thinking about what to say the whole time we were walking.
Or maybe like she felt pressured to keep the conversation going before we parted ways.
And the topic she brought up was the Platycodon tea…
I’d already heard about that from Sohee yesterday. That she brought it to school and drank it.
“Yeah, I heard from Sohee. Glad it worked out.”
To be honest, Ahyeon’s voice still sounded a bit raspy. But since she said it helped, I just let it go.
“Right!! I even bragged about it to Sohee… yeah…”
When I responded, Ahyeon quickly latched onto the conversation like she was happy about it.
And that follow-up definitely started with an excited tone.
But by the end, for some reason, she lost that energy and it came crashing down.
Like she suddenly remembered something unpleasant mid-sentence and her voice trailed off.
I didn’t think much of it.
“So, um, when did you get so close with Sohee?!”
She was bouncing between emotions I couldn’t quite read, then after a moment came back with that question.
Hmm…
I don’t think I’m close enough with Sohee to warrant that kind of question.
Honestly… we just happened to run into each other yesterday. If we hadn’t, we’d still just be acquaintances at best.
“Not really that close.”
“Really? Right?!”
When I said that, it was like she’d been waiting for that answer.
Like she’d heard exactly what she wanted to hear.
Ahyeon perked right back up with renewed energy.
“So what did you two talk about when you walked together yesterday?”
“Nothing much.”
Right, we were actually headed in completely opposite directions.
We only walked down together for a bit before splitting up again.
Anyway, I was wondering why she was asking all these questions all of a sudden.
After that, Ahyeon seemed satisfied and we parted ways.
***
At school.
I sat in my seat, staring blankly at the chalkboard.
My gaze naturally drifted toward the front door of the classroom.
And that’s where my eyes stopped.
They didn’t move any further, like they were captivated.
……
Why is Lee Sohee at the front door of our classroom…?
With that thought, my attention was momentarily stolen.
“Excuse me… is this Gu Jinho’s class?”
I could see Sohee asking the student sitting closest to the front door.
Is she… looking for me?
Then she pointed at my seat with her finger, and her gaze landed on me.
She greeted me with a sunshine-like smile, then walked over with a slightly brisk pace.
As her bangs fluttered in the breeze because of the quick movement, she pressed them down with one hand.
“Jinho, hi!”
When she arrived, Sohee greeted me with a refreshing voice.
Thanks to that, it seemed like I got swept up in the energy she was radiating.
“Hi!”
My answer came out in a brighter voice than usual.
But anyway, why is she here?
We’re not really at the level where we just drop by to see each other… it seems like she came here for something.
Ah, maybe she’s here to set up that acting practice she asked me to help with again.
“What’s up?”
I asked first.
Then Sohee held out the Chocomong she’d been holding in her hand.
“Want this?! I just bought it from the store.”
“Huh? Why Chocomong?”
“Because it’s my favorite chocolate milk.”
Ah… what I was actually curious about wasn’t why she chose Chocomong, but why she was giving it to me.
And she just straight-up revealed her personal preference.
“Ah, well, thanks. I’ll enjoy it. But why are you giving this to me?”
I accepted the Chocomong first, then asked Sohee again.
Isn’t it the first rule to always be wary of pretty girls who are nice to you for no reason?
“Because you helped me a lot yesterday! I just wanted to thank you!”
Sohee revealed the reason.
I got a thank you. Along with a Chocomong.
And only now did I re-examine what she said earlier and understand the meaning behind it.
Out of gratitude… she bought her favorite Chocomong and gave it to me.
So in her own way, she was giving me the biggest gift she could think of.
Heh… what a childishly pure way of thinking. It’s kind of cute too.
“I just helped while I was at it…”
“Nope. Still, a favor is a favor.”
She raised her index finger and wagged it side to side.
“Yeah, got it. Thanks. I’ll drink it well.”
“Mm, let’s do it again sometime! I’ll contact…”
Sohee started saying, then abruptly stopped.
She quickly rummaged through her pocket, pulled out her phone, and held it out to me.
“Let’s exchange Insta! I’ll follow you!”
I figured it was heading toward exchanging contacts.
Unfortunately, Insta… is currently deactivated on my end.
“Let’s exchange numbers instead. Or… KakaoTalk or something.”
“Mm. But why? You don’t use Insta?”
“Ah… I used to, but I shut it down for a while.”
When I said it with a slightly awkward tone, Sohee rolled her eyes like she was thinking about something.
“Is it… because of that thing?”
She glanced at me cautiously and asked in a careful voice.
Well, honestly, given the circumstances, anyone would assume that’s why I closed it.
“Yeah, something like that.”
“Oh no…”
Sohee’s voice dropped, unusually deflated.
But… I was fine with it now. Once I closed it, I realized it didn’t really affect my life at all… so I just kept it that way.
Maybe it’s actually a good thing.
These days, you know, there’s that whole dopamine detox thing.
“Eh, it’s fine.”
I said in a flat voice, taking the phone Sohee was holding out.
Then I tapped in my phone number.
“Can I save you as… Jino?”
When I handed back the phone with my number displayed, Sohee asked if she could save me as Jino instead of Jinho.
“Oh, yeah.”
I didn’t really care. It’s also the most common nickname you can make from my name anyway.
“Then I’m going to call you Jino from now on!”
Sohee, apparently done saving the contact, put her phone back in her pocket.
She smiled brightly and said that.
Well, I didn’t really care about that either. If I had to nitpick, though, even Choi Ahyeon doesn’t call me Jino at school. So hearing that Sohee would be calling me that felt a little awkward.
“Jino, Jino, so what are you going to save me as?”
She immediately tested out the new nickname.
She emphasized the new name slightly as she called me.
But me… if I were to save her, obviously I’d save her as…
“Entertainment Department Lee Sohee.”
That’s what I’d save her as, right? It’s the most normal way. Safe and standard.
“……”
But for some reason… Sohee didn’t say anything and just stared down at me coldly for a moment.
What’s going on?!
The atmosphere suddenly turned ice-cold.
“T-That’s way too impersonal. I’ll save it myself. Give me your phone!”
“Ah… okay.”
Thanks to the sudden chill, I handed over my phone with a reluctant look.
“Can you not change this wallpaper?! It’s so plain. Does the touchscreen even work…?!”
Sohee grumbled while aggressively tapping on the screen, saving her own contact.
Afterward, I got my phone back, and when I checked what she’d saved herself as…
[Sohee]
That’s what she’d saved it as.
Not Lee Sohee, not even Sohee without the surname.
Sohee.
But is she always this quick to get close to people?
Honestly, as someone with a more introverted personality, I was a little surprised at how fast we were becoming friends.
Especially since she’s the opposite gender. Is this just how she is… or is she just especially good at being social?
“Well then, bye! I’ll text you!”
With a satisfied look on her face, Sohee waved and exited the classroom.
.
.
.
“Hey, who was that? Where’d you even meet a girl like that?!”
Junyong, who had been quietly watching from the seat behind me, spoke up the moment Sohee left.
“I just know her.”
“Dude… watch yourself. I can tell she’s not ordinary. Keep your head straight, seriously.”
“What are you…”
“You never know about that Chocomong either. I’m telling you, the second you drink that, your organs are gonna melt. I’m serious. I’ve seen it.”
“You idiot, Sohee’s not that kind of person.”
What… is this guy even talking about?
What kind of nonsense concern is that?
If anything, I’m wondering how he can say those things after seeing Sohee with his own eyes.
It’s obvious at a glance that she’s super gentle, kind, and a good person.