This person is currently being irritated by me.
The moment I realized that, I found it somewhat amusing.
‘It’s not like getting slapped in the Han River and then venting it out in Jongno…’
Or was it the opposite?
Anyway, from Han River’s perspective, suddenly turning into the target of frustration while just sitting still must have felt absurd.
She was just minding her own business and ended up getting insulted.
Well, aside from that thought, I somewhat understood Yoonseo’s irritation.
Of course, it’s natural to feel annoyed.
It must be embarrassing to lose without doing anything, especially when showing such an awkward struggle after it…
Her mentality, which had been soaring since the awakening, must have taken a hefty hit.
‘But…’
Getting annoyed at someone completely unrelated just because you’re frustrated seems a bit unreasonable, doesn’t it?
Putting everything else aside, that’s not very human-like behavior.
Taking out her frustrations on others after messing up is something a childish brat would do.
‘…Ah.’
That’s right.
She’s still just a kid.
It’s great to have a second chance, but this is the issue.
Though it’s not always like that, sometimes when I space out, I accidentally start to see the people around me as the same as me.
Well, anyway, the moment I realized that she’s just a ‘kid’ who hasn’t even entered high school yet, the explosive feeling I had just melted away as if it had never existed.
What came next was a slight embarrassment.
Honestly, considering the time I lived through in my first life, I felt a bit awkward about almost having a serious argument with Yoonseo, who hasn’t even lived half of that yet.
“Why? Can’t I go to the bathroom?”
I don’t know what made her so angry, but I couldn’t help but act even more nonchalant in front of Yoonseo, who looked like she was about to say, ‘I’m angry.’
She was clearly pouting, and did she really think I would just let it slide like that?
It’s not like this is her home; we’re at a public venue, so it seems like she didn’t have much to say.
Before I knew it, Yoonseo let out a soft grunt through her tightly pressed lips.
Then she suddenly said—
“…Then just go ahead!”
Wasn’t she the one who wanted to complain about going to the bathroom?
So I asked, “Huh? Weren’t you going to the bathroom?”
I thought she was going to the bathroom just now.
So she clammed up again.
“…Whether I’m going to the bathroom or somewhere else, what’s that to you?”
Then she said,
“Me? Of course, it matters.”
“What?”
“You have to go to the bathroom for me to be able to go.”
I meant that since I didn’t know the way, I needed her to guide me to the bathroom…
Why was her face turning so red?
“Are you crazy?”
Am I really being called crazy here?
What in the world did she imagine…?
The problem is that when she turns so red and embarrassed like that, it makes me feel awkward too.
“No, I just… I just don’t know this area well, so I didn’t know where the bathroom is…”
So, I fumbled through my response, and only then did Yoonseo realize her huge misunderstanding, causing her already red face to flush even more.
The moment that sight hit my eyes, I instinctively sensed it.
This was the perfect opportunity to lighten up the mood for the highly frustrated kid.
“Hmm…? Now that I think about it, that’s a bit strange. Did you really think I meant let’s go into the bathroom together?”
“…”
Of course, she didn’t even reply or object.
Since I expected that, I continued speaking.
“You call me a pervert and whatnot, but it seems like you’re in no position to say that either?”
“…”
“What on earth were you watching at night…? Huh? Oh Yoonseo? Care to share?”
“…Shut up.”
“Excuse me, but can you manage daily life?”
In conclusion, my little goofy antics in front of Yoonseo skillfully diverted her attention elsewhere.
Once I got her on one topic and kept poking at it, Yoonseo, who had been annoyed, suddenly ran at me yelling to be quiet.
That marked the end of my last regular martial arts session as a middle school student, and I thought I had managed to resolve the awkwardness caused by losing…
Little did anyone know that day’s duel would impact future events.
.
.
.
This world starts its semesters earlier and ends them earlier compared to the original world, so typically, the vacation ceremony happens around mid-November.
Because of that, once early November rolls around and the final exams are over, the school atmosphere tends to turn into a playground…
Maybe it’s because I’m on the verge of graduating middle school.
This time, it was even more intense than usual.
Anyone who’s been through it would vaguely understand.
Middle school students about to graduate are just as aimless and reckless as high school seniors after the college entrance exam.
‘Not true. Some high school seniors are already worrying about re-taking exams…’
Middle school third years, with their high school shield still intact, have no need to think about retaking exams, which may make them even more wild.
Typically, the high school I’m about to attend will be decided by destiny, and by early November, grade calculations should be long finished, so it’s common for students to skip classes and go to karaoke or PC rooms.
Of course, even though grades aren’t impacted, teachers won’t just let students slack off.
Every time they see those kids, they give them a piece of their minds…
To be honest, even I felt no reason to stay in school.
There’s no way around it, sitting in class faithfully ends up just with them repeatedly showing the same movies I’ve seen several times before.
Being middle schoolers as we are, bursting with energy, we’re not going to stay quiet about the frustration and boredom that comes from that.
‘If that’s the case, they might as well send us out for experiential learning…’
Knowing that kids were on the verge of boredom from dying of inactivity, why do they force us to come back to the classroom?
Budget issues?
Well, it’s not just the students bored out of their minds—some classes actually ended up going on a field trip to the movie theater under the teacher’s guidance.
Those classes often became the envy of others.
Maybe because the students reacted so well.
Once one teacher took the lead, the other homeroom teachers naturally followed suit.
However, since this isn’t a regular event but more of a surprise one, the school couldn’t plan it all at once, so they decided to stagger the classes to go one by one…
Unfortunately, our homeroom teacher ended up last in the Rock-Paper-Scissors deciding the order, putting our class at the end of the line.
That led to the long wait, and today was finally the day.
Surely, going to a movie that the school endorses should be a romantic experience.
I guess that’s why Yoonseo was also eagerly waiting for today.
“Hey.”
“What?”
“Do you know what movie we’re watching today?”
“Not really?”
As soon as we met in front of my house, she shot that question at me, so it must be something important.
“Hmm… What did the other classes watch?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t ask in case I’d get spoiled.”
If I asked, for sure she’d get all excited and spill the details about the film, but how could I ask her?
Well, the world is vast, and people are diverse; I’ve heard that there are people who actually enjoy getting spoiled, but I, at least, am not one of them.
If I watch a movie already knowing everything about it, even if there are twists, I wouldn’t feel anything, and then what’s the point of watching it at all?
Yeah, that’s right.
“Hmm… what will it be…”
“If you’re that curious, why not look up what movies are out these days?”
“I forgot to charge my phone before sleeping last night, so it’s dead. I quickly charged it a bit before coming out, but maybe it’s at 10%?”
How ironic; I forgot to bring my power bank, so I decided to search for it myself.
“Let’s see… what’s today’s date…”
As I glanced down at the mobile phone in Dogun’s hand, narrowing my eyes, Yoonseo was nervously glancing at him from the side.
For good reason; today was quite a significant day.
That’s why I didn’t just casually visit the convenience store last night.
While he was searching for which movie was playing near school today, I remembered and asked in a seemingly casual manner.
“Oh, by the way, what’s the date today?”
After asking, I thought.
‘What if…’
What if she wonders why I’m suddenly asking about today’s date?
I felt a bit tense for that fleeting moment, but probably, it wouldn’t be that way.
Asking someone who’s holding a mobile phone for the date isn’t such a strange request.
If I wanted to know, I could just ask, right?
“…Today? Uh… Wait a minute…”
Fortunately, it seemed like Dogun felt the same way as he asked me to hold on while swiping his finger across the phone screen.
And soon returned with the answer—
“It’s November 11th.”
The response came rather unexpectedly.
Could it be… that he has realized today is an important day?
…Sadly, it seemed not.
If he had picked up on it, I would have expected a more pronounced reaction.
‘Seriously…’
He’s usually perceptive, but he completely becomes dense at times like this.
Thanks to that, a sigh of despair escaped me, but what could I do?
It’s said that the thirsty dig the well.
What can I say?
After losing terribly in the previous duel, realizing something I had believed to be true all along was merely a solo misconception, I was fully aware now.
That Dogun might not feel the same way about me.
‘No…’
He probably does like me.
If he hadn’t liked me, he wouldn’t have been friends with me since kindergarten.
Yet the degree of that liking is likely just the level of a close friend.
At first, it was hard to admit and accept because of pride.
It was difficult but I realized, in this embarrassing situation, I couldn’t keep holding on to pride anymore.
Denying and denying wouldn’t change the reality.
So I accepted it.
Accepted, and decided to be different from now on.
What if Dogun doesn’t see me as a romantic interest?
What if he doesn’t feel even a little flutter in his heart?
Wouldn’t it just mean I should make him see me as a romantic interest, make him feel those butterflies?
Of course, considering how eager I am to get his attention now feels a bit bruising to my pride…
But now I realize.
In front of genuine desires, pride is utterly meaningless.
So—
‘Today, for sure…!’
Muttering fervently in my mind, I carefully adjusted the bag containing the item in question.
