Chapter 56 ..
It was a cringey line, but I wasn’t surprised at all.
Well, judging by that guy’s reaction, it seemed different from his perspective.
“Uh, th-that… yeah….”
Just a moment ago he’d been confidently hitting on me. Now he was running off like he was escaping.
Ma Haewon pulled his arm away and commented proudly,
“I’ve always really wanted to try something like that.”
“I figured.”
If not from a pure romance comic, where else would he have picked up a line like that?
“Where are your friends?”
“They went to buy ice cream. I was wondering what to do by myself, and then—bam!—I spotted you, junior.”
“So you just reenacted the last scene of Secret Partner, volume 4?”
“Perfect timing, right?”
“What if I was actually going to give him my number?”
“You weren’t going to. He wasn’t even that handsome.”
“…That’s true.”
Compared to this face, the conclusion would be similar no matter who you put next to him.
He really stands out all by himself today.
He already drew attention because of his yellow hair.
With the back of it loosely tied over his nape, Ma Haewon looked like an idol on vacation.
His natural looks helped, sure—but what stood out even more was the careful attention to details you wouldn’t normally notice.
“Are you wearing perfume?”
“Yeah. Smells good, right?”
“It suits you.”
A fresh, lively citrus scent.
Whenever the wind fluttered his clothes, the fragrance drifted over more strongly.
“I’ve never seen you with a piercing before.”
“Really? I’ve done it pretty often.”
“Doesn’t it hurt?”
“Not really. Want to touch it?”
I hadn’t even answered when he suddenly bent his knees and thrust his face toward me.
His soft earlobe quickly brushed against my fingertips.
“Did you get that because of a comic too?”
“Yeah. If I take this piercing out, my sealed power gets released.”
“You really love The Rose That Blooms Even in Winter at Noon, don’t you?”
Of course, the accessory embedded in his ear didn’t have any such function.
“How old were you?”
“Fourteen? Or five?”
Since he’d set the stage, I was about to take a closer look—when Haewon suddenly straightened up.
“…Your hair is super ticklish.”
“Is it?”
“Here.”
He naturally pulled off his hair tie and held it out to me.
“For me?”
“Yeah. …Wait, no. I’ll tie it for you.”
“You? Have you ever even done someone’s hair?”
“My sister’s sometimes. Though hers is shorter than mine now.”
In one smooth motion, Haewon stepped behind me and began fiddling with my hair.
His long fingers slipped in and out between the strands tangled by the wind.
For something as simple as tying it up, his hands moved suspiciously slowly.
“Haewon, what are you doing?”
“I’m concentrating really hard right now.”
“It’s just tying hair—”
“I’m going to braid it really prettily. I saw it in a book.”
“Kissing That Germaphobic Student Council President?”
“How did you know?”
Because the “model student heroine’s transformation scene” in that one lasts thirty pages.
True to his word, he went quiet again, apparently focused. Then suddenly, a short exclamation slipped out.
“Oh.”
“What?”
“No, it’s just—on your shoulder blade, there’s really….”
His words trailed off awkwardly.
What? What is it?
I tilted my head slightly, urging him to continue.
“What? Is something weird?”
“No! It’s not that, it’s just—um—there are moles clustered together. It’s kind of… interesting.”
“Oh, that.”
For a second I thought it was something serious.
“They’re lined up vertically, like little dots. Three of them?”
“Four. …Um.”
“Hyung! Haewon hyung! Why are you over there? Hurry up! The ice cream’s melting!”
“Ah—yeah! I’m coming!”
The loosely braided hair fell down along my shoulder blade.
Guess he was itching to go.
Without even looking back, Ma Haewon ran off toward his friends.
At the same time, my seatmate who’d gone to the convenience store returned.
“Here.”
“Thanks. Was it hot in there too? Your face is bright red.”
“I just ran….”
“There was no rush. You could’ve walked.”
Breathing heavily, Ye-hyeon narrowed his eyes and turned his head. At the end of his gaze was a yellow head.
“Why was that guy here?”
“Oh, I almost had to give him my number earlier.”
“…What?”
His furrowed eyes clearly showed his displeasure.
He really hates it.
It seemed like neither his own dating life nor anyone else’s interested him much.
Well, people did say romance and academics were hard to balance.
“So?”
“I wasn’t going to give it. And I didn’t.”
“And then?”
“Haewon came over and smoothed things out.”
Maybe because I’d proven my innocence, his affection points didn’t drop.
Ye-hyeon and I sipped our sports drinks and walked along the beach.
“They even brought swimsuits?”
“Looks like it.”
“Oh, Haewon just got thrown in.”
“…Yeah.”
Everyone had at least dipped their ankles in the water. The only ones still completely dry were me and Do Ye-hyeon—
Oh. There’s one more.
He looked like someone who’d normally excel at anything physical.
I approached the boy sitting alone on the bench.
“Where are your friends?”
“They’re playing over there.”
“And you?”
“I’m on bag-duty.”
His gentle expression didn’t show any annoyance or regret.
Kwon Cha-hyeok gathered the bags together and made room for two more people to sit.
“It’s hot. You could’ve gone into a café.”
“This way I get to enjoy the ocean view too.”
His firm eyes curved softly. He patted the seat beside him as if inviting me to sit.
“That dress looks good on you.”
“Right? I just bought it. The sandals too.”
“It’s pretty.”
There was no exaggeration or awkwardness in his tone.
After quietly looking at me for a moment, Kwon Cha-hyeok suddenly stood up.
“Can you watch the spot for a second? I’ll run to the convenience store.”
“I’m fine with that… Ye-hyeon, is it okay if I stay here a bit?”
“Do whatever you want.”
“I’ll be right back.”
The basketball player left lightly—and really did return quickly.
Considering how packed the store had been, it was an astonishing speed.
“Here.”
Even more surprising was that he handed me what he’d just bought.
And more surprising than that—it was bandages and ointment.
“I’m not hurt though…?”
“Take off your shoe.”
“Huh…?”
“You’re going to say you’re fine, right?”
I really was fine.
But there was no reason to argue in a situation like this, so I obediently slipped off my sandal.
When I loosened the tightly fastened strap—
What the hell?
The skin on my heel wasn’t just rubbed raw—it was smeared dark with blood.
Even I was speechless at the sight. Kwon Cha-hyeok looked at me like a shepherd staring at a lying boy.
“No, I really didn’t know this time….”
“This time?”
“……That’s just how I said it. Um, how did you know?”
“Your posture was unstable when you walked.”
“Thanks. I’ll use the oint—hey!”
Why is an athlete kneeling down?!
It’s my ankle that’s hurt, not your knee!
Without being asked, Kwon Cha-hyeok knelt on one knee and gently pulled my ankle toward him.
“I’ll apply it for you.”
“I can do it—”
“It’s inconvenient in a dress.”
That was true, but still…
His affection points didn’t change, so I guess it’s fine.
He opened the box and unscrewed the ointment cap.
As I blankly watched the process, a sharp voice cut in from beside us.
“If you use your bare hands, it could get infected.”
“I washed them before coming.”
As he said that, the touch against my ankle felt cool.
Kwon Cha-hyeok carefully moved his large hands as he applied the ointment. I had a clear view of the top of his dark head—something you rarely get to see.
The sun was blazing.
Maybe because of the intense sunlight, the back of my neck prickled.
* * *
“You changed, Sanha? The dress was pretty.”
“It felt uncomfortable here.”
In the early evening, the auditorium buzzed with teachers shouting as they tried to line each class up.
The class president looped her arm through mine and whispered conspiratorially.
“Did you hear? That oppa is performing in the talent show.”
“Ma Haewon?”
“Yeah. That’s why Minji ditched me and ran to the very front. Look at them.”
The stage was still empty, but the space in front of it was already packed.
Right. It was time for the recreation period and talent show.
