Just A Friend

#34

As Nam Seonwoo waved his hand dismissively, Kang Jihan obediently stepped aside. Despite the changed relationship, the treatment and tone remained the same, and Kang Jihan didn’t seem to have any particular complaints. Thinking that it might be because his blushing face had been noticed, Nam Seonwoo grumbled as he stood up.

“You’re so cheeky, what are you doing on the first day… I’m going in.”

“First day? Don’t people usually start counting from the day they agree to date?”

“…Then logically, would you start counting from the next day?”

Kang Jihan nodded as if he had just learned something new. Nam Seonwoo knew that Jihan had no dating experience, but seeing him like this made him look really foolish. However, he found it hard to take his eyes off that foolish face, so Nam Seonwoo consciously took a step.

“Aren’t you going to take this?”

Turning around at the voice, he saw Kang Jihan holding up something he had been wearing on his wrist. It was an angular white paper bag. Though he wasn’t sure what it was, he thought it might be some notebooks or stationery he had lent him.

“Give it here. What is it?”

Kang Jihan approached Nam Seonwoo and hung the bag’s handle on his open palm. As he manually closed Nam Seonwoo’s fingers, Kang Jihan grinned.

“First day gift.”

It was an absurd statement. Even though he knew this, the fact that those words came from Kang Jihan’s mouth made Nam Seonwoo unaware that he was subtly holding his hand.

“You… What kind of academy are you attending?”

“Academy?”

“Stop saying such cringeworthy things. It’s totally lame.”

Despite saying this, Nam Seonwoo’s face was bright red, so Kang Jihan just smiled silently.

“Open it when you get home.”

A quick glance down revealed that the contents were all wrapped in envelopes. It felt a bit heavy, which was suspicious, but after much questioning, the answer came that it was side dishes packed by his mother. Since he had received side dishes a few times before, he didn’t have much doubt.

“See you tomorrow.”

As Nam Seonwoo passed by without answering the greeting, Kang Jihan asked from behind:

“Why don’t you answer?”

“Because you’re stating the obvious, why? Are we not going to see each other tomorrow or something?”

Nam Seonwoo, snapping back as if going through puberty, quickened his pace. Even without looking in a mirror, it was obvious what his face must look like right now.

Embarrassing. Embarrassing, embarrassing, embarrassing…

Even as he berated and cursed himself for acting like he was really nineteen years old, the sunset-like color on his face wouldn’t subside.

Nam Seonwoo rushed to the bathroom as soon as he arrived home. As if performing a purification ritual, he scrubbed his face with cold water until his teeth chattered from the chill before coming out to his room.

Outside, pitch-black night had already settled. His belated gaze fell on the paper bag he had carelessly tossed onto the desk. When he unwrapped the plastic inside twice, Nam Seonwoo realized that Kang Jihan had lied.

It wasn’t side dish containers. In the center of what looked like a new box was the logo of the same brand of phone as Kang Jihan’s. Even without reading the words written on the yellow post-it, he seemed to understand what this meant. A flustered Nam Seonwoo quickly searched for his phone.

First day gift my ass… This was clearly an expression of gratitude for helping with his mother’s situation. Kang Jihan was the type to believe in clear give-and-take. Even so, a phone bought with his pocket money was too much, way too much.

But as if anticipating Nam Seonwoo’s reaction, a message popped up on the shattered screen.

[Jihan Kang: The return period has passed]

And as if to prove it, a receipt fell out from between the boxes.

“Hah…”

This crazy bastard. Nam Seonwoo muttered, holding his forehead.

Packing lunches, buying phones as gifts. Kang Jihan’s actions were those of an immature child. The kind of foolish behavior often seen in those around him during childhood, but which Nam Seonwoo had never experienced himself – the behavior of someone blinded by love.

Opening the box revealed a phone of the same model and color as Kang Jihan’s. But Nam Seonwoo’s gaze lingered for a long time on the yellow post-it note on top of the box.

The neat handwriting seemed to whisper in his ear.

“You said feelings should be expressed.”

Thank you, it said.

* * *

On the morning of the first day back at school, as expected, Kang Jihan was waiting at the playground.

Although Nam Seonwoo had told him to go ahead because he had overslept, he knew Jihan wouldn’t listen at all. Looking at Kang Jihan, who was striding towards him as soon as he spotted him, Nam Seonwoo let out a small sigh.

-I’m glad to hear you’re eating well. Son, do you need anything? Should I buy something for you?

The check-in call that came in the morning was very energetic. Noticing that he was on the phone, Kang Jihan silently started walking alongside him. Averting his gaze from the legs that were shortening their stride to match his, Nam Seonwoo continued the conversation.

“It’s fine. When are you coming back?”

-Well, maybe I can come back for a bit next year? But it’s so nice here, Seonwoo. Want to come visit?

“You do know your son has the college entrance exam coming up soon, right?”

-Oh my! Has it been that long already?

A bright laugh leaked through the phone. Nam Seonwoo felt Kang Jihan move a little closer. Tilting his head, he mouthed ‘Your mother?’

-I’m thinking of settling down here for good. The people here are just so nice, you know? If you mess up your exam, why don’t you come live here too, Seonwoo? Should I ask your dad to look into schools here?

“What are you… No, it’s fine. I have to go to school now, so I’ll hang up. Make sure to take your vitamins.”

-Okay. I love you, son!

With a kissing sound, the call ended. Apparently having heard everything, Kang Jihan asked in an amused voice:

“Your mother doesn’t seem scary at all?”

Looking particularly happy, he asked various questions about Nam Seonwoo’s parents. The questions ranged from their jobs to their age, preferences, and even hobbies, to the point where Nam Seonwoo wondered why he was answering all this. Kang Jihan muttered:

“When should I greet them?”

“G-greet? What greeting? Are you really crazy?”

When Nam Seonwoo freaked out, saying his parents would be thrilled to have a male boyfriend brought home, Kang Jihan looked a bit dazed before biting his lower lip. Only then did Nam Seonwoo realize he had gotten too ahead of himself.

Seeing Kang Jihan trying to hold back his laughter to the point where his shoulders were shaking made Nam Seonwoo feel like he could die of embarrassment. He quickened his pace out of awkwardness, but for some reason, the distance between him and Kang Jihan didn’t increase at all. It was annoying to have him following along, muttering about “male boyfriend” beside him.

“I think my mom would like you.”

Kang Jihan added, casting a careful glance. It was as if he was asking how Nam Seonwoo’s parents might react.

In fact, Nam Seonwoo already knew his parents’ reaction. When their son, who had never brought home a girlfriend, had an extended period of living with a male friend, his parents had picked a day and barged into their home. And they asked directly. What kind of relationship the two had.

‘Thanks to that, I got beaten to death.’

He had been disowned for several months, but it didn’t matter. At that time, he had the determination to spend his entire life with Kang Jihan.

But at some point, his parents’ reaction changed. The parents who had screamed at him never to contact them again were the first to send greetings, and one day they even sent side dishes to the house where he lived with Kang Jihan.

He thought that indeed, no parents could win against their child. But his parents strangely often brought up Kang Jihan. His father, who was stingy with praise, calling Kang Jihan “quite an admirable fellow” was so absurd that it was still vivid in his memory.

At that moment, Kang Jihan abruptly asked:

“You’re not going, right?”

When Nam Seonwoo looked at him as if to ask what he was suddenly talking about, Kang Jihan said with certainty:

“You’re not going to mess up the exam, are you?”

It seemed he had listened to the phone conversation in great detail. Of course, the suggestion to come to Finland if he messed up the exam was just a light joke. But Nam Seonwoo didn’t want to give Kang Jihan the answer he wanted.

“Who knows. If someone keeps interfering with my studying, I might mess up, right?”

“I won’t interfere.”

The answer came immediately. But Kang Jihan seemed to feel guilty even as he said it.

“…I really won’t from now on.”

His voice sounded quite serious as he made this promise, causing Nam Seonwoo to internally snicker.

‘As if you could manage that.’

Obviously, he hadn’t achieved any of the study goals he had set for this summer vacation. It was all because of that guy. The upcoming mock exam results were already giving him a headache, knowing they would be terrible without even seeing them.

“You’re not going, right? To Finland.”

And because of Kang Jihan, who kept asking unnecessary things.

“I’m not going. If I mess up the college entrance exam, I should go to a retake prep academy, why would I go there? Hurry up and come.”

Despite the unreasonable scolding that they were about to be late because of him, Kang Jihan nodded, seemingly in a good mood. Just as Nam Seonwoo was about to say something, the sound of the bell ringing could be heard in the distance. Their eyes met in mid-air, and without a word, they both started running at the same time.

They were properly late on the first day back at school.

As a result, Nam Seonwoo entered the classroom with a haggard face after being held back by the homeroom teacher until just before the first period. There was the typical first-day-back chaos, but as usual for a senior class facing the September mock exam, an air of gloom hung over the room.

“Oh my, who do we have here? Could it be, could it possibly be Mr. Nam Seonwoo?”

The sarcastic voice belonged to Park Gyuhyeon. When Nam Seonwoo gave him a strange look at his face that had grown vicious in the time they hadn’t seen each other, Park Gyuhyeon exaggeratedly lowered his eyebrows.

“It’s sooo hard to see our Seonwoo’s face. I heard that if I went to the library, I might be able to catch a glimpse of that noble countenance, so I rushed there in a hurry, but would you believe it? He wasn’t there either!”

“Ah.”

Nam Seonwoo smiled awkwardly as he just now remembered calling Park Gyuhyeon to the library before going for a drive to the Han River. No wonder he had been spamming curse-filled texts during the vacation; he had good reason to.

“You little shit, Seonwoo. You have no excuse even with ten mouths, right? Huh? I was in agony for days wondering if our Seonwoo was trying to mess with me, you know? But our Seonwoo, huh? What did you eat to make your face bloom like this?”

The chattering mouth didn’t stop until Nam Seonwoo sat down. Park Gyuhyeon spotted Kang Jihan in the seat next to Nam Seonwoo and greeted him brightly. Then, with a vicious face again, he shouted:

“You traitor, be honest. Is it Daehan Girls’ High? Or don’t tell me it’s Korea Arts High?”

“Ah, what are you talking about now?”

“You think I wouldn’t know you’re dating someone?”