Episode 60: First Love Always in My Heart
From the first day of high school entrance ceremony until the end of the first semester, nothing special happened.
It was an ordinary story of a typical high school boy.
All I did was study and play games.
Thus, I entered summer vacation lethargically.
The summer vacation ended in vain.
Due to the summer vacation’s influence, my day and night were reversed, and I struggled to adapt to the mornings, resting my head on the desk trying to sleep.
However, I was over 180 cm tall, and lying on the school desk was uncomfortable.
Unless I was really tired, I couldn’t fall asleep just lying on that desk.
Fortunately, I had gotten to bed at least an hour earlier the day before school started, so I wasn’t overly exhausted.
So, I kept my eyes closed.
After about 10 minutes of keeping my eyes shut, I felt like I would fall asleep.
But I had to wake up soon.
Because I could hear the bell signaling the morning roll call.
I sat up and glanced around lightly.
Everyone seemed to have had a fulfilling summer vacation; there were even some friends with slightly tanned skin.
The noisy classroom quieted in an instant.
My friends and other classmates were already seated early, having heard the bell for morning roll call.
Why does everyone get so tense just hearing that bell?
That’s because our homeroom teacher’s nickname is “Tiger Teacher.”
It seems like nobody wants to start the second semester on a tough note right from the opening ceremony.
High School Year 1, Semester 2.
After summer vacation ended, the noisy kids from other classes hurried back to their own classrooms.
It felt regretful that the precious vacation time vanished in an instant.
“How am I going to endure until the next winter vacation?”
I welcomed the homeroom teacher as she entered the classroom.
In her left hand, she held the attendance sheet, and in her right hand, there was a stick.
While it’s formally forbidden for teachers to hit students, that stick is a good tool for drawing attention by slamming it against the blackboard or hitting the podium hard.
– Bang!
The homeroom teacher struck the podium hard as I expected.
The friend sitting in front of me was using a mechanical pencil to clean his nails.
The teacher’s loud bang caused him to drop the pencil.
At the same time, he cried out in pain as if he had jabbed his fingernail with the pencil.
“Ah, crap…”
Then, his desk mate, Minseong, picked up the pencil and said,
“You’re so out of it, that’s why you’re still at ‘Bronze’ level.”
“What? It’s just that I’m short on time; if I work hard, I can catch up to your tier quickly!”
Junseok retorted in response to Minseong’s comment.
“Hey! Be quiet!”
“Yes, sir!”
Perhaps our voices were too loud; it seems the teacher heard us.
Minseong, Junseok, and I were seated at the back of the classroom by the left window.
Our class had 29 students, leaving one seat empty.
Since we paired up two by two, one seat was left vacant.
So my next seat was empty.
“Ahem, ahem. Today we have a transfer student.”
The teacher’s shocking announcement suddenly made the room noisy.
Is it a boy or a girl?
Whoever it is, there was a high probability they would sit next to me.
“Come in.”
As the transfer student opened the door and entered, a luxurious and heart-pounding scent filled the classroom.
Had she put on some nice perfume? Without realizing it, I couldn’t take my eyes off the transfer student.
The refreshing summer breeze blowing through the classroom window made her long hair flutter.
Her bangs became an attractive point.
With each step she took into the classroom, her chic summer blouse drew my gaze.
The transfer student’s skirt suited her better than any girl I had ever seen.
I had never had a girlfriend in my 17 years of life.
Honestly, I wasn’t really interested in dating.
Above all, it felt like too much of a financial burden.
I just watched my friends’ love lives but never felt the desire to engage myself.
So, after school, I either studied during exam periods or played games at the PC room otherwise.
“Please introduce yourself. It’s not that important, so you can keep it short.”
The homeroom teacher requested the transfer student to introduce herself.
“… Hi, nice to meet you. My name is Yena. I look forward to getting along.”
It was a short introduction, but her voice clearly reached my ears.
A beautiful voice and a beautiful appearance.
Although I had never had a girlfriend, I felt the sensation of falling in love at first sight for the first time in 17 years.
The moment I first fell in love was indescribably bright, bringing feelings I had only imagined.
The emotions I had felt while watching my friends date suddenly approached me in reality.
“Um… okay, please take a seat over there.”
Yena approached me.
I was sitting next to the window.
But since my textbooks and bag were on the other desk, I hurriedly moved aside.
Watching me do this, Yena sighed.
Then she sat down by the window.
The clear blue sky reflected in the window with no clouds, and Yena’s eyes mirrored that sky blue, making them appear even clearer.
“Um… do you not like the window seat?”
I muster up my courage to speak, observing her as she sighed.
“Huh? Why do you think that?”
“No, it’s just that…”
I’m not normally this kind of person.
But why is it that I can’t make eye contact with Yena, and every word I attempt to say makes me tremble?
“Is it because you sighed…? Is that why you think so?”
In the morning, we usually keep all the classroom windows open.
Our homeroom teacher always told us to do so for ventilation.
Maybe that’s why, every time she looked at me, I felt my heart flutter as if a light breeze was blowing.
“Ha, you… are interesting. But don’t worry. It was just a sigh of relief.”
“A sigh of relief?”
“Yeah, do you know how hard it is to introduce yourself in front of others?”
In this moment of talking with her, it felt like we were the only two people in the world; I couldn’t hear any background noise.
Today, the teacher’s voice was telling us not to cause trouble without any special stories, and the voices of other girls talking about the new transfer student faded as they soon lost interest and began discussing their makeup products.
The boys continued the conversation about part-time jobs.
But I felt like I kept glancing at Yena.
However, everything else seemed to be blocked by the refreshing breeze blowing through the window.
Junseok and Minseong had started writing something down on a piece of A4 paper.
Perhaps they had gotten scolded by the teacher for being noisy; each picked up a pencil and wrote down letters while conversing.
Silently, communicating only through writing.
A good way to communicate, as if we were in a library.
I blinked once, and it was already time for roll call.
I wanted to know more about Yena, so I attempted the method Junseok and Minseong used to converse with her.
At first, I took the initiative.
Avoiding the teachers’ eyes during the first period, I wrote her a note.
It was the most basic conversation starter: “What do you like?”
The start was good.
I passed her the note and waited a little while until she returned a note under the desk.
When Yena’s fingers touched mine for a moment, I flinched slightly.
‘This feeling… It’s my first time.’
Yena’s smile, voice, and every action felt exceptionally special.
I was curious about her thoughts as she handed the note under the desk.
Why did she choose to pass it under the desk instead of through the top like I did?
I felt like the world had been reborn anew.
I was always curious about what it felt like to be excited.
I might have said I wasn’t interested in dating outwardly.
But it’s hard to deny curiosity, isn’t it?
What kind of emotion is it that truly excites a person?
What does it truly mean to feel thrilled?
I pushed my random thoughts aside and opened the note she had passed me.
Yena’s returned note was written in pretty letters.
How can a person become so foolish?
Just seeing her handwriting made my heart flutter.
It was just that.
I read what she had written.
– I like spicy food. Eating it relieves stress, you know? But what’s your name?
Didn’t I forget to mention the most basic thing?
Seeing Yena show some interest in me made me feel excited once again.
I wrote my full name on the note.
So that it would always be remembered in her heart.
The name I focused the most on writing in my life.
When Yena received my note, she smiled gently before handing me another note.
– Ah, Han Shiwoo. That’s a good name.
During class, except for breaks and lunchtime, we communicated like this.
It felt like Yena and I were getting a little closer.
This was our first encounter.
As if it were fate, or as if the gods had arranged it, two people of different genders succeeded in talking without barriers.
One might think that Yena was just friendly and not shy at all.
But the smile she had when she communicated with me through writing, and the breeze that blew in that moment didn’t seem to dislike it.
Captivated by Yena’s innocent and delicate appearance, I fell head over heels.
