By Zephyria 
Ban Pyo-ran’s subsequent explanation was as follows:
Because I was frail since childhood, my parents doted on me almost exclusively, leaving my twin Seong Hae-min behind. Seong Hae-min’s only wish as a child was for our parents to also acknowledge his gifts. Therefore, I had been living with guilt over stealing Seong Hae-min’s share of love. And because of that guilt, I had been hiding, suppressing, denying, and postponing my emotions, living my life…
…Me??
How does Ban Pyo-ran know about my past that I don’t even know about?
“I know you’ve gotten used to enduring things alone and pretending to be okay… that it’s become a habit. And that it’s hard to be honest. But…”
“……”
“You don’t have to do that with me.”
Tears welled up in Ban Pyo-ran’s eyes as he finished speaking with difficulty.
It was utter chaos. I was dumbfounded. I was speechless. After stammering for a long time, I asked blankly, “Did Seong Hae-min tell you that?”
“Don’t blame Hae-min, Hae-jun. Even if it wasn’t Hae-min, everyone knew.”
“That’s not it.”
“I heard about when you first met the Four Heavenly Kings!” Ban Pyo-ran exclaimed, cutting me off. “You said you didn’t want to be a burden to Hae-min, so you didn’t say anything even when you were bullied! That you never complained once. I know you won’t admit it easily because you’ve always denied your true feelings…”
“No, it’s not like that… really, it’s not…?”
“You’re doing it again now. It’s really upsetting…”
Even seeing my vehement denial, Ban Pyo-ran shed tears as if he were the one who had suffered. The pure gaze within his kind eyes showed a deep, deep misunderstanding! He was thoroughly mistaken. My tongue felt frozen.
‘Where did it go wrong?’
My brain tried to find a cause and effect, but it was futile. It spun uselessly like a dust-covered piece of scrap metal. It felt like I’d been handed a tangled knot that human intelligence could never unravel. Suddenly, I felt a knot in my stomach.
Ban Pyo-ran squeezed my clasped hands. His grip was so strong that my hand crumpled like a flattened dumpling, without resistance. Like a broken grandfather clock, I kept repeating, “No… it’s not like that…!”
“But you can rely on me. You can be honest. Everyone is on your side. Sniff… Ohhh…” Ban Pyo-ran broke down into sobs as he spoke. His face, streaming with tears, was red and wet. Watching him, I could only purse my lips, unable to speak properly, like an idiot.
No…
No, why is this happening! Am I crazy! I was so speechless that only curses came to mind.
“Hiccup. Sniff.” Ban Pyo-ran, after crying for a long time, gasped for breath and managed to swallow his sobs, sniffling. He then squeezed my hand. His palm, which had been holding mine for so long that my cold hand had become lukewarm, was now sweating.
“…You noticed I liked Beom, didn’t you?”
“Huh? Uh-huh…”
“I knew it… But Hae-jun.”
“Huh?”
“Friendship is more important to me than love. So…” Ban Pyo-ran took a breath. “For you. Sniff. I can give up on Beom. So don’t give up. I don’t want to prioritize my feelings for Lee Beom by causing you distress. Sob…”
“What?”
“So… don’t keep hiding it, don’t try to yield.”
“No! That’s not it…!”
You like Lee Beom, and Lee Beom likes you, so what kind of nonsense is this! I don’t believe in God, but I swear on my life, Lee Beom and I are not a couple. I was truly innocent.
I was so dumbfounded that all I could say was “No!” but I knew I wouldn’t get anywhere if I kept stammering like this. I put on a serious expression. I had to stop this runaway chain of misunderstanding, like a runaway train with broken brakes.
“Pyo-ran. I’ll tell you honestly. Truly.”
“…Really?”
“Yeah. Listen carefully, you don’t have to give up anything. Because I, I don’t like Lee Beom! I hate him! Really! I’m not yielding, and I’m not hiding my feelings!”
To resolve the misunderstanding somehow, I decided to even bring up a conservative perspective. “I like girls! Really!!” I figured it was generally accepted that men liked women, though I didn’t know why Ban Pyo-ran was so open-minded.
Honestly, I had never seriously considered this issue. I had never liked anyone in the first place and had lived conventionally. It was more surprising that Do Yun-hyeok and Ban Pyo-ran, who seemed to have no barriers regarding homosexuality, acted so casually. And this was even in an older era!
‘…Am I the strange one?’ My values were shaken as if I’d encountered a sudden storm. I added, as if making an excuse, furrowing one eyebrow, “And he’s just good-looking, but he’s a delinquent. I hate people who bother me with that kind of thing.”
“You were bothered by him…”
I added that unnecessarily, when it wasn’t what I meant! Reacting to Ban Pyo-ran’s interpretation, which was the exact opposite of my intention, I panicked and listed traits that were the complete opposite of Lee Beom. “No, I’m telling you honestly. Why don’t you believe me? He’s nothing like my ideal type. First of all, I like girls. I hate delinquents. What else, I can’t stand a blunt personality either. We don’t match. I don’t even like his dark eyes…”
“Stop, stop…!” Ban Pyo-ran cut me off. The hands covering his face were trembling. I stopped listing my supposed ideal type criteria and looked at Ban Pyo-ran, bewildered.
“It’s hard to hear…”
“Huh?”
“I don’t want to see you hurting yourself by lying anymore. Sob… Ohhh!”
“What? Hey, hey!” I was going crazy! Ban Pyo-ran burst into tears again, spouting nonsense. I wanted to set him straight, even if it meant getting angry, but I couldn’t say anything when he was crying like this.
Clutching at straws, I scanned my surroundings, but it seemed that a girl crying at an amusement park was a common sight, as surprisingly, no one paid any attention.
‘Help me!!’
Whether it was comforting or consoling, I was equally bad at it. However, I had to try to comfort him, fearing that the Four Heavenly Kings would misunderstand and think I made Ban Pyo-ran cry. No more misunderstandings, please!
‘But how am I supposed to comfort him!’
Helpless, I first pulled down my sleeve and wiped the tears smeared on his face. “Hey, stop crying and let’s talk…”
“Hoo-hoo-hoo-.”
“Hey…!”
However, my clumsy attempt at comfort seemed to have acted as a catalyst. Ban Pyo-ran, who had been sniffling, stopped trying to stop crying altogether and wailed. Just like parents trying to soothe a child, I now felt like crying myself.
At this point, I even wished the Four Heavenly Kings and Kim Yi-dam would hurry back. I didn’t care if they misunderstood and beat me for making Ban Pyo-ran cry, as long as he stopped crying!
‘When are those guys coming back!’
As the saying goes, you can’t find a needle when you need one. The Four Heavenly Kings and Kim Yi-dam, whatever they had gone to buy, showed no sign of returning until Ban Pyo-ran stopped crying.
After a while, Ban Pyo-ran finally finished crying, completely exhausted.
“…Are you done crying?”
“Yeah… Sniff.”
“Haaah…”
Ban Pyo-ran cried, but I was the one who collapsed, utterly drained. Gathering my last bit of strength, I tried to talk. “Pyo-ran, I swear on everything. I don’t like Lee Beom. Stop misunderstanding. It’s unpleasant. It’s annoying. Please stop.” I conveyed my intentions clearly, without strange excuses, like chewing each grain of rice thoroughly. If he misunderstood even after this, it was truly hopeless.
“Even in this situation…” Sniff. Ban Pyo-ran interrupted, sniffling. “You’re not being honest. Stubborn…”
“I told you, I’m not! This is driving me crazy!!”
“It’s okay. I’m good at waiting.”
Can’t he hear me? Does he not understand Korean? I wanted to tear my hair out. At this rate, I’d end up causing someone’s demise. “I can wait. Until your heart opens.” Ban Pyo-ran smiled brightly through his sniffles. It was a line straight out of a teen romance novel.
I gritted my teeth so hard my jaw joint ached, and suppressed the urge to pull out all my hair. At this rate, I’d get hair loss, which wasn’t even in my family history, let alone a nervous breakdown.
“…I really wasn’t lying. But you have no intention of believing me, do you?”
Give up. Surrender. I’m done! I don’t care anymore. Ban Pyo-ran, wiping his nose with a tissue I didn’t know where it came from, looked at me with his large, tear-filled eyes. Was he going to cry again? Reflexively, I trembled with fear.
“Hae-jun, love… can’t be hidden.”
“……”
“Denying it doesn’t make it untrue.”
“……”
I might as well end my life today. I hadn’t enjoyed any of it. Damn teen romance novels! Like someone who had been confirmed for demolition because their parts couldn’t be fixed even with replacement, I closed my eyes, listening to the layers of misunderstanding piled upon me.
‘I lost!’ I heard Ban Pyo-ran’s surprised voice calling, “Hae-jun? Hae-jun!” At that moment, I wished I could strike myself unconscious.
Of course, I was unwillingly forced to open my eyes by the dramatic commotion of the Four Heavenly Kings and Kim Yi-dam, who returned with uncanny timing.
“Hey-o!”
“Pyo-ran! We’re here.”
“Guys, guys, Hae-jun…”
“What?”
“Seong Hae-jun!!” The sound of Seong Hae-min dropping the bag in his hand and rushing over made me force my eyes open.
Those crazy bastards…
“Don’t shake me… my head hurts…”
“Should we go home? Let me carry you!”
“Carry me on my back!”
“I’m hungry…”
“Oh right, the food we bought! Where did I put it?”
“……”