bad boy
W. Ramen
I will never forget that day when I first met my aunt, who had been hiding behind me the whole time, finally peeked out and extended her hand to say hello.
“It’s Kim Taehyung. He’s one year older than you. He’s 11 years old.”
“I’m 10 years old, Kim Yeo-ju!”
Aunt Seon-Hyeong was my mom's best friend since high school, and we've maintained a close relationship ever since. She lived in another part of the country, but by chance, she came to Seoul for work, and the house she found happened to be right next door to ours. This is precisely why I've been so obsessed with Kim Tae-Hyung every single day since third grade.
“Here, eat this.”
“Oh my, how come Taehyung has such good manners?”
Kim Taehyung had good manners. And he was very mature for his age. At 11, an age when he was busy doing whatever he wanted and eating whatever he wanted, he always took care of me first. Whenever we ate together, he'd put the meat on my plate first, and whenever we went out, he'd hold my hand tightly and never let go. The adults praised Kim Taehyung for this every day. Of course, I liked him too. From then on, I had a crush. It was endless, and it lasted a long time.
“I like Taehyung oppa.”
Kim Taehyung wasn't just polite to me. Just looking at the girls in his class, there were tons of them who liked him. He was so popular even among us, who were a year younger than him, so I couldn't even imagine how popular he would be with girls his own age.
“Hey. Who are you to always walk home from school with Taehyung?”
After about a year of hanging out with Kim Taehyung, I started getting jealous of a lot of girls in my fourth year. Girls who were the same age as him, who were considered older sisters to me, would often come and be jealous of me. I didn't mind that either. It made me feel like I was special to him.
“I heard Harin confessed to you?
“Isn’t that older sister really pretty? She’s also very popular.”
“Yeah, that’s what the kids say.”
“Tch, what do girls like about you, oppa?
“I don’t know anything.”
“Huh? Haha, didn’t you like me too?”
I absolutely didn't want Kim Taehyung to find out. I'm special to you, and if he knew I liked you too, I'd be just like any other girl. That's why I absolutely didn't want to be caught. That's why I deliberately overdid it.
"uh…?"
“You like me, don’t you?”
Maybe it was stranger not to know. I was the one who acted like anything was fine in front of Kim Taehyung, but I was even more foolish for expecting him not to know. Kim Taehyung knew everything from the beginning. To him, I was just another girl. The fact that it suddenly dawned on me, 11 years old, was incredibly frustrating. Back then, my dream was to be someone truly special to Kim Taehyung.
“What are you saying? I don’t like you.
You always act like you're an adult.“You are all hypocritical.”
After that, Kim Taehyung never came to my house alone, and I never went to his house alone. Kim Taehyung looked shocked when he heard what I said, and I hated that too. "What the heck, you thought all women would like you? I didn't want to be that obvious to you, at least not to you. That's how our relationship became awkward."
“Congratulations on your graduation.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Time flew by, and I had already graduated from elementary school. Kim Taehyung, dressed in his middle school uniform at the graduation ceremony, looked quite handsome. I was assigned to a middle school quite far away, and our family decided to move. After the ceremony, we had a meal together and said our final goodbyes. Even though our homes were so close, we hadn't been particularly close, and I figured we'd never see each other again after he moved.
“Have a good life when you go. Don’t forget me.”
“Yeah… you too.”
“You still won’t call me oppa until the end.
“I don’t think I’ve heard from you since then.”
“Yeah, I’m ogling.”
“….”
The silence continued. I really thought I might never see it again, but I couldn't help but open my mouth.
“You didn’t really hate me, did you?”
It was a question Kim Taehyung posed to me as I pretended to turn around and walk away. My heart sank. Could it be that he was still holding onto what I'd said back then?
I turned my head and answered.
“Yeah, I never once disliked you.”
Kim Taehyung smiled bitterly. I still don't know what that smile meant.
Anyway, we broke up like that,
Other than hearing news from each other's parents occasionally,
We never contacted each other or met.
Five years passed like that.
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“Oh my god! I’m so late!”
“I told you to come by 8 o’clock today because there’s a Teacher’s Day party!”
“So who wants to sleep in? I have to hurry up and run.”
On May 15th, the night before, I set five alarms at the class president's order to be there by 8:00 a.m. for a Teacher's Day event. But surprisingly, I overslept, missing all five. I hurriedly threw on my gym clothes and hurried out the front door.
“…??????”
I saw a man's face that was clearly familiar, yet unfamiliar.
Where have I seen you before? You look so familiar… .
“Hello, our heroine. It’s been a long time.”
The moment I remembered, Kim Taehyung approached me, smiled, and greeted me. Was this the Kim Taehyung I knew? Was he always this big? I was darting my eyes around, wondering if it was really Kim Taehyung, when he spoke again.
“I missed you.”
It wasn't until I heard his voice one more time that I was sure. It really was Kim Taehyung, the same Kim Taehyung from back then.
Kim Taehyung, my first and last love whom I thought I would never see again.I had a rather embarrassing reunion in front of my house after five years.
/ ✍🏻 /
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