I said to Sunwoo Jin,

“…Is this yours?”

Sunwoo Jin didn’t answer. Instead, he just smirked playfully.

Still half asleep, I stared blankly at his face.

The sunset glow from beyond the window illuminated Sunwoo Jin’s face. A different vibe from usual emanated from his face tinged with the colors of the setting sun, making it impossible for me to look away. With his chin rested on his hand, Sunwoo Jin tapped the desk with his fingers and looked at me.

“Still not fully awake?”

“Yeah.”

It was only then that I fully regained my senses.

To shake off the remaining drowsiness, I lightly tapped my cheeks with both hands. While hurriedly fixing my disheveled hair, I opened my mouth.

“What time is it now? Why didn’t you wake me up?”

Sunwoo Jin shrugged his shoulders with his characteristic nonchalant expression.

“Just. You were sleeping so well.”

Yeah, right. Don’t wait for me, just wake me up.

Feeling guilty for holding him back while he seemed busy, I apologized while organizing the desk.

“Oh, sorry. Sorry. I couldn’t finish everything today. I’ll do it at home.”

To that, Sunwoo Jin replied,

“It’s okay. I did it.”

Huh?

“You did?”

I asked absentmindedly. Sunwoo Jin raised an eyebrow.

“I can’t do it?”

No… It’s your homework, so of course, you should do it. But that’s not the issue.

I looked at the workbook spread out on the desk.

On the unfolded pages, Sunwoo Jin’s handwriting was all over.

“Did you just randomly scribble?”

With a worried heart, I brought the workbook closer to have a better look. Contrary to my expectations that the content would be a mess like his handwriting, Sunwoo Jin had surprisingly solved the problems properly.

“What, you knew how to solve these?”

To that, Sunwoo Jin said as if it were absurd,

“Aren’t you underestimating people too much?”

“No, it’s not that.”

I added defensively,

“You always ask me to do it. So, naturally, I thought you couldn’t solve it.”

Since Sunwoo Jin not only neglected homework but also didn’t attend classes regularly, I naturally assumed he wasn’t studying. But it turns out, it’s not just his handwriting that he can’t do.

Sunwoo Jin said with a sullen expression,

“If I couldn’t solve it, I wouldn’t go to school.”

Aren’t you not much different from someone who doesn’t go to school…? No. I shouldn’t think like this.

I looked at the workbook again. Seeing him solve even quite challenging problems, Sunwoo Jin seemed smarter than I thought.

Did I really underestimate him?

I put the items on the desk into my bag and said,

“Anyway, good job.”

By the time I finished organizing, I suddenly realized.

Ah, I was still wearing Sunwoo Jin’s jacket.

About to return it, I suddenly felt like playing a prank, so I put on the jacket.

“How is it?”

Perhaps due to the difference in size, Sunwoo Jin’s jacket was much bigger than my body. I shook the loose sleeves.

Sunwoo Jin chuckled.

“You look like a kid who stole dad’s clothes.”

“Then are you my dad?”
“What a horrifying sound.”

Well, I don’t need a dad like you.

I quietly took off the jacket and returned it to Sunwoo Jin. Sunwoo Jin shook it off once and put the jacket back on.

Due to the late hour, we decided to head home. Although our neighborhoods were different, we had to walk to the school gate anyway, so we walked together.

‘Come to think of it…’

It’s just like that day.

Walking across the field, I reminisced about the day I first exchanged greetings with Sunwoo Jin.

‘I didn’t expect our relationship to become like this until then.’

It seems like a past life when he avoided me and ran around swearing not to get involved. In the end, I should just accept the situation comfortably.

‘But even if I go back to that day, I’ll probably do the same thing again.’

If Banhamin comes running and shouts, “Chunja!” I won’t be able to escape.

“Why are you laughing?”

At that moment, Sunwoo Jin asked. I replied casually,

“Oh, just thinking about the first day I saw you.”

“Oh.”

In response to my words, Sunwoo Jin slightly furrowed his brow as if recalling something.

“Honestly…”

Honestly?

“I thought you were a crazy person.”

“…”

I now know something I didn’t really want to know. It wasn’t pleasant to hear from Sunwoo Jin how he perceived me on our first meeting, even though I had some expectations.

“I woke up, and suddenly, you covered my mouth and gave me a look. I wondered what was going on.”

It was embarrassing to hear about my crazy behavior from someone else’s mouth. Feeling like I wanted to hide in a mouse hole, I quietly covered my ears.

Sunwoo Jin glanced at me.

“Should I stop?”

Yeah… please stop…

As I nodded subtly, Sunwoo Jin chuckled as if amused by my helplessness.

“Amusing.”

“What is?”

“You even know how to be embarrassed.”

What kind of creature is Chunja inside Sunwoo Jin? A crazy being who doesn’t know shame? Although he’s not someone I need to impress, thinking about my image being this ruined made me feel depressed.

‘Oh, come to think of it…’

There was one more thing left for my image to fall even further. I urgently spoke up.