60. Caught.
60. Caught.
60. Caught.
"Yu Ha-yeon...?"
What was she doing here?
I couldn't figure out why she'd come charging at me like she'd been lying in wait.
"What? Am I not allowed to be here?"
Yu Ha-yeon's voice was cold. She must have read my expression.
She gave me the answer to my unspoken question.
"Check your phone. See how many times I called."
"Ah, right."
I normally kept my phone on vibrate.
That meant I missed calls whenever I was deep in thought or on the move.
'How many times did she call that she actually came out to wait for me...?'
The thought sent a twinge of unease through me.
I pulled out my phone and checked it.
The screen was packed solid with missed calls.
"...That's a lot."
"A ton. Since you didn't answer all day."
Sixteen missed calls. If someone doesn't pick up after sixteen calls, Yu Ha-yeon had every right to be pissed.
But the real reason she was angry was something else.
'Please don't wake up, Ha-na.'
Like a rabbit in hibernation, Ban Ha-na was still deep asleep, letting out soft little breaths no matter how much commotion was happening outside.
Yu Ha-yeon was furious because she knew I'd gone to the amusement park with Ban Ha-na.
But how did she know? How had she pinpointed the amusement park so precisely?
I answered her with practiced calm.
"Sorry I missed your calls. But I didn't go to an amusement park. I was just getting investigated with Shin Si-hwa and Ban Ha-na. Nothing happened."
I'd been lying a lot lately, so I'd gotten pretty good at it.
Good enough that my childhood friend Yu Ha-yeon wouldn't catch on.
The investigation excuse with Ban Ha-na.
As long as there was no proof, I could slip out of it even if she pressed me.
Yu Ha-yeon responded to my lie.
"Didn't go to an amusement park? Really?"
"...Have you ever seen me lie?"
A line I used a lot to squirm out of bad situations.
Yu Ha-yeon let out a hollow laugh.
"Ha. So that's how you've been tricking me? I'm not falling for it anymore."
"What are you talking about, Yu Ha-yeon...?"
Why was she so certain?
Did she have proof?
Yu Ha-yeon was holding proof in her hand.
"You see this and you still lie to me...? Han Si-jun, you piece of trash."
"Wha... why do you have..."
The couple location-tracking app.
On Yu Ha-yeon's phone, the app screen was open.
On the screen, at 2:00 PM, my name was pinned at Hero Land.
'Did she hide the app...?'
I'd never seen a new app installed on my phone.
She must have installed it and then hidden it.
Her hands trembled in tight fists as she struggled to hold back her anger.
"You piece of trash... nothing but lies... I was an idiot for trusting you."
"P-please don't fight, students..."
Shin Si-hwa looked between us helplessly.
She'd turned off the car engine and was now trying to break up the fight.
'Is Shin Si-hwa my only hope?'
I pinned all my hopes on her.
If she stepped in and backed me up, I could smooth this over, at least a little.
I believed in you, Shin Si-hwa.
She opened her mouth, doing her best to help.
"Ha... Han Si-jun did go to the amusement park with Ban Ha-na. That part is true. B-but it wasn't a date... it was, um... a field study...? Something along those lines...!"
"A field study?"
"Yes! As you know, Ban Ha-na wasn't able to go on the school trip. You can think of this as an alternative."
Shin Si-hwa was repeating the reason I'd given for taking Ban Ha-na to the amusement park.
Yu Ha-yeon tilted her head for a second, as if wondering, 'Did I get this wrong...?'
But then she brought up why I'd lied and pressed me again.
"Then why did you lie? If that was the reason, you could've just said so."
"If I told you, you would've insisted on coming too. You two don't get along. Wouldn't it be awkward being in the same space? And Yu Ha-yeon, how did you secretly install a location tracker on my phone? Do you not trust me?"
"Th... that's because you've been weird lately..."
I turned it around on her.
That was the only way to slip out of this naturally.
'If I play this right, I might actually get out of it...?'
Yu Ha-yeon looked flustered, uncertain if she'd actually misjudged.
If things kept going like this, I could wash off the cheating accusation,
and we'd move past the whole thing without any incident.
If the person who'd been asleep hadn't woken up.
"Mmm... Si-jun...? Where are we...?"
Rubbing her eyes, Ban Ha-na sat up in the back seat, rabbit headband still on.
'Why are you waking up right now, Ha-na.'
Maybe this was what they meant by fate.
That's what I thought as I looked at Yu Ha-yeon.
"..."
Yu Ha-yeon was staring at Ban Ha-na with black eyes.
As if she'd realized something the moment she saw Ban Ha-na awake, she rushed toward her.
"Wh...what... you dark-haired woman...!"
"Ban Ha-na. I have something to ask you."
Ban Ha-na.
She was someone who made verbal slip-ups as naturally as breathing.
Even when I warned her, she still blurted things out.
'This is bad.'
Ban Ha-na was like Pandora's box.
If her slip-ups revealed everything I'd done with her to Yu Ha-yeon,
I might end up wearing the same expression as that guy in the mirror.
"Yu Ha-yeon. Ban Ha-na seems uncomfortable. Why don't we call it a day here?"
"Han Si-jun. Shut your mouth. Stay still."
Samramansang (All Creation)
That was Yu Ha-yeon's unique ability.
She used her magic to seal my mouth so I couldn't speak.
Then she restrained me so I couldn't move.
"You're not allowed to use your ability on campus, Yu Ha-yeon."
Shin Si-hwa helped me exactly once, then immediately switched to spectator mode.
She had the look of someone watching a drama, but Shin Si-hwa was still firm about enforcing school rules.
"I'll only use it for a second. Seriously, just a second!"
With that, Yu Ha-yeon started questioning Ban Ha-na.
If Ban Ha-na made a slip-up, I was done.
Since I couldn't move, all I could do was pray she wouldn't.
In that tense moment, Yu Ha-yeon spoke.
"Ban Ha-na. What did you do today?"
"...Why should I tell you?"
"Tell me."
"O... okay..."
Ban Ha-na folded instantly. She was weak against strong people.
No wonder she liked rabbits.
Her behavior was exactly like one too.
"To... today I went to the amusement park with Si-jun."
"And?"
"And... we had fun! We held hands, rode rides, went to the haunted house, ate together..."
"Held hands, huh...?"
Wait. If holding hands counted as cheating, wouldn't that make the one suspecting it the weird one?
While I was thinking that, Yu Ha-yeon withdrew her magic and spoke to me.
"Han Si-jun. Explain."
"...You know how Ban Ha-na is. I was worried she'd dart off somewhere. If I let go, she might've gotten lost. That's why."
"Is that so?"
Heh.
Yu Ha-yeon smiled, having regained the upper hand.
She turned back to Ban Ha-na and resumed questioning.
"So what are you doing next?"
"Wh... what do you mean...?"
Ban Ha-na stole glances at me and hesitated.
The behavior was obviously awkward to anyone watching.
Yu Ha-yeon flared her magic and started semi-threatening her.
"Answer."
"O... okay..."
Ban Ha-na folded instantly again.
Maybe it was the pressure, but she let a slip-up out.
"Next... was going to be with Si-jun... wait, no! I was going to go home!"
"..."
Yu Ha-yeon just stared at Ban Ha-na without a word.
Ban Ha-na, terrified by the relentless questioning, was sending me rescue signals with her eyes.
'Sorry, Ha-na. I'm restrained too.'
Unfortunately, I couldn't help her,
and Ban Ha-na seemed to be realizing that as well.
"Sa... save me, Si-jun..."
"Don't use my childhood friend's name so casually. Ask me first before you say it."
"You... you can't just..."
"Don't talk back."
Yu Ha-yeon was starting to discipline Ban Ha-na harshly.
She looked at Ban Ha-na with a questioning expression and asked,
"Why are you holding your phone so tightly?"
"Th... this is my treasure...!"
Ban Ha-na spent her time on her phone whenever I wasn't around.
Watching videos online, taking selfies by herself, stuff like that.
And her wallpaper was the picture she'd taken with me.
A picture where my lips were pressed against her cheek, no less.
"Can you give that to me? Just let me borrow it for a moment."
"N... no! It's mine!"
"Phone. Hand it over."
Yu Ha-yeon was using her ability shamelessly when she was at a disadvantage.
She forcibly took Ban Ha-na's phone.
"Hmm... I wonder what's on here that makes you treat it so preciously...?"
"Yu Ha-yeon, stop. I was wrong. Let's end this."
Ignoring my apology, Yu Ha-yeon turned on the phone screen.
As the screen lit up, the faint smile she'd been wearing turned ice-cold and died.
"..."
Yu Ha-yeon stared at the brightened screen without a word.
She didn't move. She just blinked.
A cold evening breeze brushed against my face.
I didn't take my eyes off Yu Ha-yeon.
'I'm caught.'
Because if I looked away, I felt like I'd actually die.
I didn't say anything.
I just stood there, frozen in place.