At last, the college festival had begun.
From morning, the campus was packed with people.
Booths, performance stages set up everywhere, and even loud music.
From morning on, Myeong Jaehyeon ran around in a frenzy, going back and forth between the department booth and elsewhere.
"Jaehyun! Bring me this, will you!"
"Okay!"
"And take some photos too!"
"Wait a sec!"
After class, Taesan slowly walked through the festival grounds.
Truth was, he hadn’t meant to come.
But from that morning on, Myeong Jaehyeon kept saying it.
'You have to come today.'
In the end, he came.
And finding Myeong Jaehyeon among the crowd wasn’t hard.
"Taesan!"
Myeong Jaehyeon spotted him first.
"You came?"
"Yeah."
"I really didn’t think you would."
"I told you to come."
"Still."
Myeong Jaehyeon smiled brightly.
Seeing that, the corners of Taesan’s mouth rose without him noticing.
"Wait here a sec."
"Why."
"I just have to finish this, then let’s go around together."
Taesan nodded.
"Okay."
An hour later.
"Done!"
Myeong Jaehyeon packed up his bag.
"Let’s go."
The two of them strolled side by side around the festival booths.
Myeong Jaehyeon thought everything was fascinating.
"Let’s try that."
"No."
"Just once."
"No."
"Taesan."
"...what."
"Please."
In the end, Taesan was dragged by Myeong Jaehyeon and stood in front of the game booth.
"Are you two a couple?"
the booth staff asked with a smile.
"No!"
Myeong Jaehyeon answered too quickly.
Taesan said nothing.
The staff smiled and said,
"So you’re friends."
"Yeah."
Myeong Jaehyeon glanced at Taesan for no reason.
Taesan, as always, had no expression.
But strangely, one corner of Myeong Jaehyeon’s heart felt ticklish.
As evening came, the performance began.
People surged in, and the area slowly started to get crowded.
"So many people."
Myeong Jaehyeon said.
"Yeah."
"Let’s not get separated."
"Yeah."
At that moment, someone shoved hard into Myeong Jaehyeon’s shoulder.
"Ah!"
Taesan immediately grabbed his wrist.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
"Stay next to me."
Taesan didn’t let go of Myeong Jaehyeon’s wrist for a while.
Myeong Jaehyeon looked down at his own wrist.
Weirdly, his heart was beating faster.
"Taesan."
"Why."
"Your hand..."
Only then did Taesan let go.
"...Sorry."
"No."
Myeong Jaehyeon turned his head away for no reason.
The performance began.
Cheers from the crowd burst out.
Myeong Jaehyeon focused on the stage, but he kept worrying about Taesan beside him too.
Then Sewoon appeared.
"Jaehyun!"
"Huh?"
"You were here."
Sewoon naturally came up beside Myeong Jaehyeon.
"Our classmates are over there. Want to come with us?"
Myeong Jaehyeon looked at Taesan.
"Taesan, you should come too"
"Go on."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
After a moment of hesitation, Myeong Jaehyeon followed Sewoon.
Taesan watched him go.
Again.
Myeong Jaehyeon with Sewoon.
Taesan tried to watch the performance, but nothing registered.
Then a friend beside him spoke up.
"Hey, you’ve been staring over there the whole time."
"...what."
"Got someone on your mind?"
Taesan didn’t answer.
His friend laughed.
"You do, huh?"
"No."
"Then why do you keep looking?"
Taesan turned his gaze back to the stage.
"...my roommate."
"Your roomie?"
"Yeah."
"A guy?"
"Yeah."
His friend snorted.
"Then whatever."
Taesan said nothing.
For some reason, those words stuck with him.
'If he’s a guy, then what.'
But why.
Why was it bothering him so much.
Near the end of the performance.
Myeong Jaehyeon came back again.
"Taesan!"
"You’re back?"
"Yeah."
Myeong Jaehyeon stood beside Taesan and said,
"Did you have fun?"
"Yeah."
"Liar."
"Why."
"Your face doesn’t look like you had fun at all."
Taesan didn’t answer.
Myeong Jaehyeon stared at Taesan.
"Did you get sulky again, by any chance?"
"I’m not sulky."
"Because I was with Sewoon?"
"..."
Myeong Jaehyeon’s eyes widened.
"Really?"
"No."
"It is."
Taesan sighed.
"It’s just..."
"Just what."
"We made a promise, didn’t we."
"What promise?"
"To text each other if we’re coming back late."
"Yeah."
"But then you disappeared."
Myeong Jaehyeon looked at Taesan for a moment.
Then he smiled softly.
"I was looking for you too."
"What?"
"There were so many people."
Myeong Jaehyeon lightly grabbed Taesan’s sleeve.
"Let’s go together."
Taesan looked down at the sleeve being held.
"Yeah."
The night the festival ended.
The walk back to the dorm was quiet.
Myeong Jaehyeon seemed tired, so he talked less than usual.
Then he suddenly asked,
"Taesan."
"Yeah."
"Do you like being with me?"
Taesan stopped walking.
Myeong Jaehyeon stopped too.
"Why all of a sudden."
"Just because."
Taesan couldn’t answer easily.
He did like it.
So much that it was a problem.
But he still couldn’t say that yet.
So Taesan said instead,
"Yeah."
Myeong Jaehyeon’s eyes widened.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Me too."
Myeong Jaehyeon smiled.
"I like being with you too."
The two of them walked on again.
Neither said anything.
But from tonight on, a slightly different air flowed between them than before.
No one had said it yet.
But both of them were beginning to understand.
That they were becoming special to each other.
