SMW 10

It was just one of those days.

A day when the heatwave warning alert arrived before the text from a friend sent secretly from the desk right next to mine. A day when it felt like I might actually boil alive, facing the hot wind blowing through wide-open windows thanks to the oldest teacher in our school, who preferred electric fans over air conditioning.

It was just such a day, and that was when it happened.

Clang! Screech, thud!

For a moment, the classroom—where the sound of cicadas had been louder than the teacher’s voice—fell completely silent. Along with the other students, I turned my head to find the source of the noise.

A single chair lay overturned on the floor.

The owner of that chair had already opened the back door and left. He had moved so quickly that by the time my gaze reached the spot, all I could see was a broad back disappearing through the door.

“Ahem!”

The teacher, who had worn a displeased expression for a moment, simply cleared his throat to redirect the students’ attention and said nothing about the incident. The male students, exhausted by the heat, no longer cared for the minor commotion. I was the same.

It was just a case of a male student with some influence and backing in school expressing his frustration with the heatwave through a sprawled chair and then vanishing. It was just one of those summer days.

“Yeo-reum, why on earth do I have to go to school even during break?”

“I wonder.”

“Hey, are you listening? My mom told me, you know? She said I have to put something in my head at school so I can live well and eat well later. But listen, I’ve actually gone to school during this precious break, so why does my head still sound empty?”

“I guess so.”

“…Are you even listening to me?”

“Would you listen if it were me?”

It was far too hot to keep up with my friend’s sudden bout of self-reflection.

“It’s seriously hot. Don’t they hand out fans or something these days?”

As I ignored the glare full of disappointment from my friend and looked around the street, I heard the guy—having given up on his self-reflection—let out a sigh deep enough to sink the ground.

“Humanity’s kindness has all burned up in this crazy heatwave. Just watch, the earth will perish soon. And keep in mind that this is entirely your fault.”

I frowned at the sudden accusation.

“Why is that my fault?”

“Why else! Because you’re Yeo-reum. [visit our site]And not just any Yeo-reum, but Han [unauthorized copy]Yeo-reum! The reason we’re boiling alive right now is [visit our site]because of this Han-yeo-reum (midsummer) heatwave!”

He wasn’t wrong. It was all because of Han Yeo-reum.

The fact that I happened to be born on a day like this, the fact that my parents wanted to give their only child a pure Korean name, and the fact that my father’s surname happened to be Han—all of it. Likewise, having endured that tedious, repeating joke for seventeen years was also the fault of Han Yeo-reum.

“If you understand, hurry up and commit an act of formal apology to me, Han Yeo-reum.”

“Do you want to die?”

“…Or just buy me an ice cream.”

So that was the point.

I looked at a stand selling Turkish ice cream at the corner of the street. However, I didn’t feel much excitement. Eating that stuff a hundred or a thousand times would only give me a stomachache. I needed a winter—one that made the tip of my nose sting and sent shivers through my body.

“Ah, I miss winter.”

“Since when did Han Yeo-reum start having a crush on winter? Ahhh, it’s hot. So hot!”

Fine, I am Han Yeo-reum. Even so, there is no obligation for me to endure the humid scent of a teenage boy’s sweat and the murderous heat rising from the concrete.

A certain place suddenly came to mind. Just then, the blinking green light of the crosswalk caught my eye.

“Gyeong-ho, see you tomorrow.”

“Huh? Hey, Han Yeo-reum!”

Leaving my friend’s shout behind, I bolted across the crosswalk. By the time I stepped on the last white line, the light had already turned red. I caught a glimpse of my friend’s sense of betrayal beyond the cars speeding down the road, but those were things that would disappear by tomorrow anyway.

“Ugh, sweat.”

I had only run for a few seconds, but my school shirt was drenched in sweat. The dampness of the bag pressing against my back pushed my irritability even higher.

I wiped the sweat pouring down from my chin and readjusted my bag on one shoulder. Without lingering, I left the red light, my friend, and various other things behind and moved forward.

Even though it was a city, it was the outskirts. If I walked briskly, I could sufficiently escape the scorching concrete floor. My friend’s face, whom I’d abandoned at the crosswalk, flashed through my mind for a moment, but since he lacked this kind of diligence, the answer would have been obvious even if I’d invited him along.

“Ah, this is nice.”

Along a stream where the bottom was faintly visible, though not clear, lined street trees that turned the blazing sun into a lush green miracle. As I strolled along the riverbank, my collar fluttered in the breeze. A sigh of relief escaped me at the coolness that swept away the sweat.

I quickened my pace and began searching for a shaded spot to sit and rest. If you walked straight along the stream, there was an old, large tree. Lying in the shade cast by its countless stretching branches and wide leaves while watching the river flow was my own personal sanctuary where I could completely forget the sweltering heat.

It was just as the large tree I was looking for came into view.

“Huh?”

My hurried steps stopped, and my mouth fell open unconsciously. An unwelcome guest unauthorized copyhad already taken over my sanctuary. The guy leaning against the tree trunk [visit our site]with his school bag crushed beneath him, eyes closed in total comfort, was someone I knew very well.

“Choi Seol.”

At the name I murmured softly, his eyes slowly opened. I had merely moved my lips instinctively, yet as if responding to the call, he looked exactly at me.

The moment our eyes met, my shoulders flinched. At his sudden appearance, the area around my chest, which had been calmed down, began to stir.

“What?”

Is this what it feels like to poke a sleeping lion? His gaze and voice were by no means gentle.

As I stood there frozen, unable to answer, his eyes narrowed. He didn’t seem angry, but the persistent gaze was far from comfortable. I felt like I would be burned by the look he was giving me before the heat of the heatwave could get to me. It was truly hot.

“Tsk, it’s hot enough to die as it is.”

The persistent gaze paused for a moment, and then he clicked his tongue and muttered with an expression that suggested something was displeasing. For some reason, I felt the atmosphere soften just a little. It was then.

“Han Yeo-reum, come here.”

Did he know my name?

For a moment, my mind went blank. It had already been half a year since we became classmates. But neither he nor I had exchanged a single word or even locked eyes once. Even today, I had been conscious of him exactly once. To be more precise, I had simply looked with pity at the chair that had been abandoned by him in the middle of class.

“Aren’t you coming, quickly?”

“Huh? Okay.”

Sensing the atmosphere sharpening again, I instinctively ran toward him. Stepping into the shade of the tree, I realized how I had been left exposed to the absurd heat until just now. Perhaps because of that aftereffect, my head began to spin.

“Huh? Uh…”

A sudden wave of dizziness tilted my vision. I felt my bag hit the ground with a heavy thud before I did. I figured my body would likely follow suit shortly.

Ah, I’m falling. The moment I realized it, I squeezed my eyes shut.

“What? What’s wrong all of a sudden?”

Something firm blocked my path. The sour smell of sweat wafted in. Separate from the heat of the weather, I felt a physical warmth. I slowly lifted my eyelids. Filling my narrowed field of vision was a face with a sharp impression, brow deeply furrowed.

“This guy is quite a nuisance.”

“…”

With a short click of the tongue, my vision tilted once more. As my strengthless body slowly sank, something soft touched the back of my head. Before I knew it, lush leaves were sparkling before my eyes.

“Does a guy just collapse from a little heatstroke? Your name is a waste.”

He looked at me with patheticity while I was still rolling my eyes, trying to grasp the [visit our site]situation. Even so, his persistent gaze [Read on Read BL Novels]scanned me here and there. He seemed to be checking my condition.

Maybe he’s a nice guy if you get to know him.

Thanks to the cool shade, the dizziness in my head improved significantly. It seemed I had indeed collapsed from heatstroke.

Thinking that, I felt a bit wronged. In the first place, if he hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have been standing stupidly in the heatwave. Besides, what does my name have to do with getting heatstroke?

“Thanks.”

However, I wasn’t bold enough to voice all these thoughts. Even though I had received help, the guy in front of me was still just a scary classmate.

Satisfied with my answer, he smoothed out his furrowed brow and leaned his back against the tree trunk again. The old tree trunk was quite large, and since I was lying in front of him, there was plenty of room.

Wait, lying? He’s sitting…!

That’s right. What I was using as a pillow was Choi Seol’s lap. To be precise, it seemed to be the bag resting on it, but I couldn’t just keep lying there. I startled and tried to push myself up. Or rather, I tried to…

“Hey!”

Just by lifting my upper body a bit, my head spun again. Due to the severe dizziness, my upper body swayed and lost its direction. Eventually, my body sank back down. This time, I felt a firmer heat against the back of my head.

“Hey, Han Yeo-reum. You okay?”

An urgent voice rang in my head. Yet, why did it feel more pleasant than noisy? I blinked my blurred eyes and tried hard to look forward. Then, instead visit our siteof [Read on Read BL Novels]the sky, Choi Seol’s face entered my vision. We were too close. There was no need to check what position we were in.

“S-sorry.”

The moment I realized the heat I felt behind my back was Choi Seol’s body temperature, I tried to lift my upper body again. But as if telling me it was impossible, the hand gripping my shoulder blocked my movement.

“Stay still. If you collapse one more time, you’re going in an ambulance.”

“B-but…”

Being held in Choi Seol’s arms was even more embarrassing than lying on his lap. However, it was hard to defy him when he told me not to be a nuisance, so I just rustled weakly, and a sigh fell over my head. Before long, my body was leaned against the tree trunk.

“If the previous position was uncomfortable, just stay like that. If you move one more time, I’ll actually kill you.”

I quickly nodded, conveying my intention to stay quiet as much as possible. As if he didn’t trust that, Choi Seol observed me for a long while before finally leaning his back comfortably against the tree trunk. No matter how large the tree was, it seemed a bit tight for two high school boys to lean side by side, as our shoulders barely touched. I had made such a fuss to avoid contact, yet I felt like the distance hadn’t increased at all.