By Zephyria 
Lee So-yul’s gaze, standing on the opposite side, swept past the two of them.
It seemed he had unconsciously looked their way while in the middle of explaining.
Haon hurriedly averted his gaze. But it already felt too late.
“Alright, that’s the main explanation for now.”
Lee So-yul raised his voice slightly again.
“Now, the rest of you, please let me know your schedules and available time slots. I’ll form teams based on that. Feel free to ask if you have any questions.”
Even as he continued speaking, he glanced their way once more with a look mixed with curiosity somewhere.
Cha Jeong-won’s relaxed profile and the flushed face of the junior standing behind him.
Haon’s mind grew complicated again, mere minutes after he had resolved not to be so self-conscious.
‘What am I even doing here right now?’
He couldn’t understand it himself.
After everyone stated their available days and times and wrote down their contact information, Lee So-yul turned off his tablet and brushed off his hands.
“Good work. I’ll buy lunch.”
The atmosphere heated up again at Lee So-yul’s suggestion.
“Great!”
“What should we eat?”
Similar voices erupted here and there.
They were guys crushed by assignments and classes, so the mood was such that if anyone said a word, they’d all rush out together.
“If there are too many people, we can split up. It’s a place I used to go to often when I was in school, so I can vouch for the taste.”
As Lee So-yul continued with a smile, he glanced briefly at someone. It was, of course, towards Cha Jeong-won.
In situations like this, you naturally look to the central figure.
“Jeong-won, you’re coming too, right?”
At Lee So-yul’s question, several gazes followed suit.
The atmosphere suggested that just the answer would determine who would stay and who would drop out.
“I’ll pass.”
Cha Jeong-won said without a moment’s hesitation.
Sounds of disappointment came from here and there.
“Senior Jeong-won, come with us.”
There were juniors trying to hold him back, but he wasn’t swayed much.
Lee So-yul was still smiling. But if you looked a little closer, the disappointment was clearly visible.
“Alright, got it. Then come to the gallery next time. I’ll buy you lunch.”
“I’ll see based on my schedule.”
After giving a short answer, Cha Jeong-won slung his bag strap over his shoulder.
Haon, who had ended up just standing still, awkwardly looked at him before averting his gaze.
“What about Haon?”
Lee So-yul said as if tossing out the question.
“Come with us.”
This time, various gazes converged on Haon.
“I…”
Haon lightly bit the inside of his lip. There was no particular reason not to eat.
He could hear about practical work and get a concrete picture of how to proceed with the project going forward.
But his head didn’t readily nod either.
He had vowed not to be so self-conscious, but he wasn’t exactly drawn to it.
“Uh…”
Even after opening his mouth, he couldn’t continue speaking when a low voice fell right beside him.
“You have to come eat with me.”
It was so calm that it instead stuck out clearly. Haon reflexively jerked his head around.
What kind of talk is this now.
“Did we promise to eat together?”
Wasn’t that tone like saying he’d come to retrieve something left in his care?
Cha Jeong-won looked down at him with an indifferent face.
“You said so on the bench.”
He briefly lifted his gaze upward as if recalling a memory, then lowered it again.
“You said everything goes well when I’m with you. That I’m a mascot, a pollock. So you said I absolutely have to stick with you…”
“Wait a minute.”
Haon almost reflexively cut him off. He even slightly raised a hand as if to block any further words.
His mind went blank. The memory of sitting on the bench last night only rose very hazily.
He had no recollection whatsoever of saying such things.
“That’s right. We did promise to go eat together. We said we’d eat pizza.”
His mouth moved first.
Haon himself was more surprised by his own words. Cha Jeong-won leisurely crossed his arms.
“Pizza?”
“Pizza is delicious.”
Haon forced the corners of his mouth up.
“Should we get a margherita with prosciutto and arugula added?”
Even as Cha Jeong-won rattled off the menu he had eaten this morning, Haon accepted it readily without a single complaint.
“Let’s go, senior. Hurry.”
Haon pushed Cha Jeong-won’s back, trying to get away from this spot somehow.
“Uh, so Haon is…”
Lee So-yul’s voice followed from behind.
“I promised to eat pizza with senior.”
Haon gave a short laugh, not even looking back, and waved a hand once.
“Next time.”
With those words, the two left the design lab.
A buzz filled the space that had grown quiet for a moment.
“They really are dating, right?”
One junior nearby was the first to speak.
“I wasn’t the only one who felt that, was I? Yesterday had that vibe completely.”
“Whether at the cafe yesterday or the pub, it felt like they were in their own world.”
“Honestly, anyone who didn’t pick up on it is the weird one.”
Soft laughter and murmurs spread evenly through the design lab.
They suit each other, it’s a shame, and so on. While hearing all those voices, Lee So-yul couldn’t easily add his own words.
He clenched the tablet in his hand tightly once, then slowly relaxed his grip.
“Let’s go… eat.”
He did produce a bright voice again, but somewhere around his eyes was slightly stiff.
His gaze lingered towards the door a moment longer before finally returning.
＊ ＊ ＊
After dragging him to a place with few people, Haon stood blocking Cha Jeong-won’s path.
“Senior.”
“Yeah.”
“Why did you say that?”
“I considered hugging you instead but changed my mind. Was it that bad?”
Haon’s face flushed instantly.
It was what he had said to him before entering the design lab after class ended.
To throw that back at him like this!
“That’s not what I meant. You said there’s no need to bring it up. That it was nothing.”
It was the first words that poured out as soon as his speech returned.
He had said there was no need to think about what happened on the bench yesterday. So what was this sudden change?
Cha Jeong-won narrowed his eyes and looked at Haon.
“I didn’t say nothing happened.”
“That’s what that meant.”
Haon tapped the ground with his toes. It was more flustered than annoyed.
“If something happened on the bench yesterday, you should have said so. What else did I say?”
“Curious?”
The tone was too leisurely.
Haon hesitated to answer, then averted his gaze stubbornly even though he knew it was probably all over his face anyway.
“I’m not curious.”
“Liar.”
“I’m really not curious. It was probably just something I usually say.”
“It wasn’t something you usually say.”
The calm words hit a sore spot.
Haon’s eyes widened, then he immediately frowned.
“So. What did I say?”
“The wind is strong.”
Cha Jeong-won suddenly said that and took a step closer to Haon.
The back of his hand, trembling with only a thin outer layer worn, caught his eye.
“It’s colder than I thought.”
“Don’t change the subject.”
Haon took a step back but stuck out his lip. His heart was beating wildly, yet his mouth kept finding words.
“Do you intend to tell me or not?”
“I do, sort of.”
“‘Sort of’ is the worst. Don’t you know that means no?”
Even as he grumbled, Haon had already glanced at the bench placed by the roadside.
The distance between where the two sat yesterday and today was closer than he thought.
“If you want to know…”
Cha Jeong-won slowly continued.
His hand hovered ambiguously in the air. What is this, is he holding out a palm to tell me not to come closer, or is he suggesting a palm push or something?
“Let’s start with interlocking fingers first.”
“…What?”
It felt as if even the sound of the wind had stopped.
“You did that yesterday too.”
He said nonchalantly.
“You held my hand first, then meticulously intertwined your fingers between mine.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. Very affectionately.”
Haon’s face noticeably reddened.
“Was that my voluntary will?”
“How would I know the will of someone drunk.”
Cha Jeong-won shrugging his shoulders was so composed it was even more annoying.
“So.”
Cha Jeong-won took another step closer.
The distance between the two shortened significantly.
“If you want to know what you said yesterday, let’s try it sober today. Starting with the hand…”
Haon looked down at that hand.
Long, neat fingers. It was definitely the same hand he saw yesterday, but today it looked even clearer.
In his head, voices telling him to stop and voices saying he was still curious so he should just grab it were ringing alternately.
“…Senior, you know you’re really mean, right.”
That was what eventually burst from Haon’s mouth.
“I know.”
An answer without a hint of hesitation.
“But I’m not the only one who’s mean.”
“What am I being mean about?”
“You’re asking because you don’t know?”
Cha Jeong-won smiled slightly.
72 – NOT 72