SMW 21

“The police officer was telling the truth.”

“……About what.”

“That Han Yeo-reum’s stamina is pathetic.”

Choi Seol, who had been silently following behind, finally threw a comment my way. I didn’t even have the strength to look back. I could tell by his voice alone how pitifully he viewed me. I admitted it, but I hated admitting it.

“Hey, give me a break……. Huff, this place is……. Huff, huff, just brutal.”

“It hasn’t even been five minutes.”

“What? How!”

I shouted as if in despair. Before I knew it, Choi Seol was standing in front of me. He was looking at a wristwatch that looked expensive at a glance instead of a phone. I stared at it blankly and unconsciously spoke.

“Choi Seol.”

“What?”

“You know, that wrist……”

As I hesitated for a moment, Choi Seol tilted his head.

“Wrist what?”

“That watch.”

“Watch?”

Choi Seol glanced at his own wristwatch and turned his wrist toward me.

“You mean this?”

“No, I mean……”

As my hesitation became frustrating, Choi Seol stolen contentnarrowed his eyes. Before he could say visit our site[stolen content]anything, I ruffled my hair and waved my hand.

“Nothing, forget it. That watch is cool. Looks expensive.”

I didn’t know why that memory suddenly came back to me. Maybe it was because we had passed through the stream. Even so, what would I even achieve by bringing up the past now? It would only be a loss for me.

I pushed past Choi Seol and hurried up. Of course, I fell behind again shortly after. Seeing this, Choi Seol, who had been moving ahead of me, clicked his tongue.

“You’re seriously in worse shape than my grandma.”

“……You said your grandmother takes ten minutes.”

“At this pace, twenty minutes wouldn’t be enough.”

I was speechless at the merciless bombardment of facts. Even so, Choi Seol, looking down at me as I continued to struggle, let out a sigh and reached out his hand.

“Grab on. We’re almost there anyway.”

I stared blankly at the hand, then at Choi Seol, and straightened my bent waist.

“I’m really grabbing it.”

“…….”

“I’m struggling a lot right now. If I grab it, I’m never letting go.”

Choi Seol chuckled at my almost solemn declaration.

“That’s why I offered it.”

I rubbed my palms against my pants, worried I might have sweated, before finally taking Choi Seol’s hand. Immediately, Choi Seol stepped forward with strength, as if pulling me along. However, he maintained a slow pace, providing just enough power for me to walk. Strangely, it felt as if my exhaustion vanished in an instant.

Was there any need to long for those days? Another memory was being created right here, right now. Rather, because it wasn’t as poignant or desperate as it was back then, I felt I had the leisure to enjoy this feeling.

I looked up at the sky. The weather was still overcast, as if it could pour rain at any moment, and the summer air was, as expected, humid. Perhaps that was why Choi Seol’s body temperature had risen as much as mine. The inside of my palm felt ticklish again, but I felt like I was walking on air.

“Here it is.”

I think I understood why there had been no stories about Choi Seol’s house despite how famous he was. It wasn’t in our school district, and anyone would likely give up if their house were in such a steep area. Youth are often overflowing with motivation and energy for useless things, yet become more lethargic than anyone else when faced with something they don’t want to do.

I looked at the red-brick two-story house before me. It was structured with an external visit our sitestaircase allowing separate unauthorized copyaccess to the second floor. I was inwardly relieved that the house was [stolen content]larger and in better condition than I had expected.

Since I had seen a few dilapidated houses while climbing up here, I had my doubts, but this seemed like a place where I wouldn’t have to be as self-conscious. Choi Seol was silently looking up at the house.

“Is there anything that’s changed?”

When I asked cautiously, Choi Seol shook his head.

“The exterior is the same. But……”

A sense of confusion emanated from Choi Seol as he fell silent for a moment.

“I think someone else is living here.”

“Ah……”

It wasn’t a surprising thing to hear. Ten years had already passed, and Choi Seol had transferred after only one year of high school.

Following his gaze, which wouldn’t leave the house, I looked up as well. In front of the main gate, a tricycle and a scooter for a young child were parked. He had likely guessed based on those.

Honestly, I found the fact that Choi Seol grew up here more surprising than that. Perhaps because visit our siteof that, I forgot that I was peeking at someone else’s house, and just as I was staring, I heard the sound of the front [Read on Read BL Novels]door opening. Soon, a middle-aged woman stepped outside.

“Who are you?”

“Ah, hello. Are you the homeowner?”

“I am.”

At the highly guarded tone of her voice, I quickly bowed with a bright expression.

“I apologize for visiting so suddenly. It’s just that this guy lived in this house ten years ago. So, even though I know it’s rude, we were just taking a quick look.”

“Ten years ago?”

Though I quickly offered an excuse, her guard didn’t easily drop. Two young men staring at someone’s house would certainly look suspicious. While I was pondering how to explain further, the homeowner’s gaze shifted to Choi Seol.

“Wait a minute, you’re the person who came by last time.”

I could tell the homeowner’s guard dropped in an instant. On the contrary, Choi Seol looked flustered. It seemed the person the homeowner had seen was the Choi Seol from after the age of seventeen. The situation had become even more awkward.

“Hey, I told you we should come together.”

I intentionally made a hurt expression and nudged Choi Seol with my elbow. Leaving the guy alone—who only narrowed his brow slightly without responding—I smiled at the homeowner.

“He kept making a fuss about how much he missed the house he lived in with his grandmother and how badly he wanted to come, so I guess he came alone and left me behind.”

“Oh my. Is he the same age as you? I thought he was a student, but you don’t look like brothers… so you must be friends.”

“Yes. We’re high school… classmates. And he is a student. I just look much younger than him.”

As I was about to say “friends,” I felt Choi Seol looking at me, so I quickly changed my words. Fortunately, the homeowner let her guard down and treated us kindly.

“You’re both still young, but I guess you both missed your hometown. That young man was lingering around here not too long ago.”

“……Not too long ago?”

I thought it would have been after he became an adult, but to think it was so recent. I quickly asked the homeowner for more information.

“By ‘not too long ago,’ exactly when……”

“About a week ago, wasn’t it?”

The homeowner looked at Choi Seol as if confirming. I wondered if he would ignore her or act strange, but Choi Seol nodded calmly.

“I apologize for the intrusion then as well.”

“Oh, intrusion indeed. As I said then, I heard a lot about this place when I moved in ten years ago. They said a grandmother and a tall grandson who looked like a model lived here together, and there were so many praises about how polite and smart he was that I really wanted to see him. But then I heard that after the grandmother passed away, he went abroad to study immediately with his father.”

I felt as if I had heard a massive amount of secrets all at once. I stealthily checked Choi Seol’s reaction. His expression was unusual. I felt a sense of danger.

Fearing the silence would stretch on, I quickly struck up a conversation with the homeowner.

“Then you bought this house ten years ago.”

“That’s right. When we signed the contract, a middle-aged man who said he was that young man’s father’s lawyer came instead. I thought I was watching a drama. You know, they say chaebol families have dedicated lawyers who handle everything for them?”

As I stood there blankly, wondering what I had just heard, the homeowner let out a deep sigh and muttered as if lamenting.

“Anyway, back then, I never thought he would leave in such a rush. Even though commuting to the city was hard, the scenery was beautiful and the neighborhood was quiet, so I thought I could live here for the rest of my life. But suddenly it was included in the redevelopment zone……. Of course, the land prices went up, so that part was good.”

This time, it was a shocking revelation.

“Redevelopment? Then, this place will soon be gone?”

“That’s how it is. We’ve decided to move this month. So I think that young man came to take one last look at his childhood home.”

The homeowner looked at Choi Seol to confirm. It was then that I turned around to check on him.

“Choi Seol?”

Choi Seol suddenly turned around and walked far away.

“Hey, where are you go……! Hahaha, I guess he’s very heartbroken. Thank you for your time. Well then.”

I hurriedly greeted the homeowner and followed after him.

“Choi Seol!”

“…….”

“I told you to wait a second. Let’s go together.”

I shouted and chased after him, but Choi Seol ignored me and quickly headed back down the path we had come. It was easier than the climb, but it was impossible for me to catch up to Choi Seol at my own pace. The distance grew. I was out of breath.

Now, unexpectedly, I resented my pathetic stamina. But what I resented more was Choi Seol, who still didn’t even look back. Thinking I might lose him, I grit my teeth and started running down the slope.

“Hey! If you keep doing this, I’m leaving you behind!”

In reality, the opposite was more likely, but it didn’t matter. As I screamed with all my might, only then did Choi Seol stop. Just then, my knees gave out.

Damn, when I go back, I really have to start exercising. If Hae-sook Noona heard this, she’d be shocked that a miracle had occurred. I was about to lift my bent upper body, thinking I’d catch that guy first, when…

Choi Seol’s shoes appeared before my eyes. A drop of water fell on them, leaving a dark stain. One by one, they increased, and soon they began to spread stains on the backs of my hands, my head, and my clothes with a tap, patter sound. Soon, the rain began to pour down with a whoosh.

“Ugh! Why does it have to rain now? Choi Seol, is there anywhere to avoid the rain……”

Suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed my wrist. With a strong grip, as if catching someone trying to run away and forcing them to sit, I looked at Choi Seol in confusion. Soon, our eyes met. In that moment, my mind went blank.

The need to avoid the rain, the request to let go of my hand, and the questions about why this situation had suddenly happened—all of it vanished. Choi Seol’s face, drenched in rain, looked as if he were about to burst into tears at any moment. Perhaps he was already crying. I couldn’t tell the truth because it was mixed with rainwater, but I was shocked by a side of him I had never seen before. Then, Choi Seol spoke.

“Don’t leave me.”

As I stood there flustered by the sudden, desolate voice echoing, Choi Seol closed the distance. This time there was no threshold to trip over, but I couldn’t move. In the meantime, Choi Seol finally approached close enough for our breaths to touch and whispered desperately.

“Because if you leave me again, I might actually go crazy, so please……”

Please don’t leave me.