“Oh, there’s no room.”
He doesn't seem to care that I said he's my boyfriend, and he just laments the situation where there's no room.
“Can I stay next to you?”
“Since when have you been this kind to me?
“Please stay by my side as much as you want~”
Her narrow, smiling eyes are beautiful. To a boy in love, what aspect of a girl wouldn't be beautiful?
“Mingu was pretty cool”
"…are you okay?"
“What? Being mistaken for an adult?”
"No. I said I was your boyfriend."
When I asked if he was okay, he answered with "what", which means he wasn't hurt at all. It's fortunate, but also not fortunate.
"Well, what's that... but can you say that? You're an idol after all."
I stroke her hair, which is much smaller than mine. It's been dyed black again, but it's still unruly.
“Things don’t happen to this extent.”
She nods with her head bowed deeply.
“Thank you so much for helping me.”
He's known for his sly remarks, but he seems quite embarrassed today. Judging by the way he even lowers his head as he speaks.
"huh"
Only then did she raise her head in response to my answer. And she smiled at me. I smiled back.
“Did you shorten your skirt?”
Unlike me, Ma-eum is wearing a school uniform right now. It must be because she has a special attachment to uniforms. Anyway, the skirt was a bit… no, much shorter than the first day she wore it. The black skirt, almost navy, was an A-shaped skirt. It was higher than I expected. It was easily 15 centimeters above the knees.
“Yeah… Is it weird?”
It's not weird. Actually, it's pretty. I don't know if it's okay to say she's pretty in this situation, but the stares from the guys next to me are annoying. I think I understand why boyfriends tell their girlfriends not to wear short skirts. But I'm not your real boyfriend, so I'm just pretending to be cheerful.
“Yeah~ I’m not your boyfriend so why are you talking about the length of your skirt?
I'll worry about you. But I'll be a little nervous when I take the test.
“I think it might be uncomfortable?”
“I brought gym clothes too.”
“I guess you just wanted to wear a school uniform.”
“Because school uniforms have a special meaning to me.
“I really wanted to wear a school uniform to the CSAT.”
The special meaning would probably mean "ordinary." That's what Ma-eum-i currently desires. In any case, now that he's intertwined with us, he can no longer live an ordinary life. Is that okay?
"Ah... I'm so nervous. I don't have any grades because of the GED, so I have to do well on the regular exam."
It wasn't that I wasn't listening to her. My attention was simply drawn to her short skirt. I took a quick look around and stood behind her. Only then did I feel reassured.
“Ugh, I can do it next year too anyway.”
I stroked her hair from behind. She seemed to know I'd switched seats, but she didn't seem to understand why. After going through this exciting process, I arrived at Jungang High School. Right in front of the school building, I spoke.
“I… am playing in class 2.”
“I’m in class 4.”
I was about to ask if I wanted to have lunch together, but Ma-eum-i spoke first.
“You could just tell him to come over for lunch.”
“Ugh, I got caught. Do you want to come, or should I go?”
“I guess it would be better for me to go since I’m a pretty good test taker?”
Ma-eum lifts her heel as high as she can and strokes my head. Perhaps because her arms are relatively long, she doesn't seem to have any difficulty with it.
"Yeah, I hope so. Thanks for your consideration."
He gently takes her hand and lowers it to his eye level.
“Yeah, I’ll keep doing that.”
Why on earth do I get excited when I say this? Fortunately, her face is also quite red.
After taking a few classes, it was finally lunchtime. I had thought I wouldn't be able to move around during lunch because of the CSAT, but they said it was perfectly possible. Without even trying to hide my excitement and joy, I headed to Class 4, where the CSAT would be administered.
“Hey, Min-gyu oppa!”
The seat closest to the window, and the one at the very back. She sits in the corner and raises her hand toward me. She pulls an unoccupied chair next to hers and invites me to sit. She explains that the owner of this chair has gone to another class for lunch, just like me.
“Did you do well on the CSAT?”
"For now. But the problem is what's left…"
Even for someone who prides herself on having high self-esteem, studying seems to be a source of anxiety. She's never satisfied with any of her results. That's probably why her grades are so high.
“Is English the only thing left?”
“Yeah. English and a second foreign language.”
“He speaks English almost at a native level.
“When I saw it, it was really good.”
Ma-eum answers while chewing the food in her mouth.
“That’s because I’m using words I don’t normally use.
When I usually speak Korean, I think
I'm translating it into English... but it's hard.
“Maybe even Shua oppa can’t solve it?”
“Is it that… difficult?”
“What will our Mingu oppa do?”
“Ha… I wish it was Japanese.”
My heart giggles at my words.
"Oh, you're good at Japanese, aren't you? I was a bit immersed in Japan, though."
“Yeah. Of course, I worked hard before that too,
“As expected, direct deployment is the key.”
She nods. At her signal for a water jug, he places one in her hand. Perhaps because of her makeup, her lips barely touch the jug.
“Still, try hard. Ah, Seventeen,
Even though I have a schedule today, I'll try my best to finish on time.
If the members are late, you can stay with me and your brother.”
“Yeah, we can stay together. There’s a cafe in front too.
There's also a book cafe you like.
If you're going to be late, let's go there."
“Really? Is there really a book cafe?
Wow, I wish the members were late…
A snicker escaped my lips. Reading was her pastime. Of course, I had no intention of discouraging her. In fact, I found such hobbies desirable. But I wish she'd paid a little more attention to me.
"Okay. You'll be hungry when it's over. Fighting, you too!"
Mae-mi is wearing a school uniform without a name tag. Name tags are usually distributed uniformly at school, so it was natural that she didn't have one. But for someone who wants a normal life, wouldn't a name tag mean something? I should contact her homeroom teacher at high school. Just in case.
“Yeah, thanks!”
Her bright, smiling face was beautiful. I wanted to protect her smile a little longer. Her smile, as bright as spring, made me feel like the snow outside was melting.
