Chapter 15: Flag (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 15: Flag (1)
*
Early April.
It had been exactly one month since the start of the new semester.
The playground was eerily quiet for a school that had just let out. Usually, the air would be thick with the rowdy sounds of soccer games, but a sudden late spring cold snap had driven everyone indoors.
“...”
The Counseling Club room was just as silent.
Only Shin A-young, who had dropped by for a visit, and I were in the room. The others hadn't arrived yet.
I sipped on warm cocoa, leisurely scrolling through NewTube.
While I was relaxing—
“Oh, right.”
Shin A-young suddenly stood up and walked over to her backpack.
She pulled something out.
“Here. Thanks for letting me use it.”
She handed me a shopping bag. Curious, I looked inside and found a beige hoodie.
“...Ah.”
Now that I thought about it, I had lent it to her a while back.
The timing was actually perfect. I was just starting to feel a bit of a chill in the club room. I immediately pulled the hoodie on over my school uniform.
“Phew.”
Once it was on, the sleeves hung slightly past my wrists. It was an oversized fit. I usually bought things a bit large because I didn't like looking scrawny; I figured the extra fabric might make me look a bit broader.
“...Hm?”
Every time I moved, the fabric rustled, releasing a faint, delicate scent of lavender. A peculiar fragrance wafted up.
“...Did you wash this, by any chance?”
Shin A-young looked up, startled.
“Huh? Why? Does it smell weird?”
“No, it just smells different than usual.”
Shin A-young nodded quickly.
“I did wash it. I thought it might have picked up a bit of a scent while I had it.”
She looked somewhat worried.
“...It doesn't smell bad, does it?”
— Is the detergent smell too much?
Not at all.
I took another sniff. Yeah.
“It’s fine. It actually smells really nice.”
“Oh... well, that’s a relief...!”
Shin A-young’s voice was strangely loud. Then, with oddly hurried movements, she retreated to the sofa across from me.
— Smelling it... makes me think of that time for no reason. No, don't think about it. Calm down, calm down.
...What is she on about now?
I read her thoughts, but I had no context for what she was referring to.
...Anyway.
Does she plan on staying here the whole time?
“Is it okay for you to skip your own club?”
Shin A-young had been camping out in the Counseling Club room ever since school ended. Looking at the time, she was definitely late for her own activities.
She waved her hand dismissively.
“It’s fine. Midterms are coming up, so attendance is optional until then.”
“Really?”
“Isn't the Counseling Club the same?”
“For us, as long as there are no consultations, it’s always pretty chill.”
If someone wanted to study for exams, they could just use the private counseling room in the back. We never lacked for time to the point where club activities would interfere with exam prep.
At my words, Shin A-young looked envious.
“...Must be nice. You're living the dream.”
I didn't bother denying it. It was a sweet gig. That’s exactly why I joined.
Slide—
“Ughhhhh...”
Just then, the door opened, and a drooping-eyed Lee Sol trudged in. Ji Nuri followed behind her with a wry smile.
“......”
Lee Sol looked overtly depressed. It was obvious why.
“Did you fail again?”
This was already the second time for Lee Sol. It seemed her homework had been rejected once more.
“Yeah... he told me to do it over.”
Lee Sol nodded gloomily.
“...”
Was it really that difficult? Honestly, I didn't see what the big deal was.
The assignment she was struggling with was the one the career counselor had given us: "Write down what you want to do in the future."
The catch was that you had to exclude "studying" and "future career goals." You just had to write down a simple, ordinary life goal.
...Perhaps the problem was that the person writing it wasn't exactly ordinary.
“...I told you 'rich slacker' wouldn't work.”
A rich slacker. That’s what Lee Sol had written. She’d written it down quite proudly, too. I had a feeling it would turn out like this from the start.
“...But that’s what I really want to do. What else am I supposed to say?”
“No, besides that. Is there nothing else?”
Lee Sol thought for a moment.
“...A building owner?” she replied.
I was speechless at Lee Sol’s honesty. A building owner. Sure, it’s a great goal. But honestly, it was far outside the realm of a typical high schooler’s objectives.
“......”
...But I couldn't really criticize her. Why did it feel like she could actually pull it off? With the money Lee Sol could make from modeling, it seemed entirely possible.
While we were chatting—
“Hey guys, hello~”
Senior Min-ji walked in with a bright greeting.
“You’re here?”
The Club President wasn't with her for once.
“Where’s the President?”
“He said he had something to take care of at home today, so he left early.”
I wondered why he wasn't around. He wasn't the type to skip club meetings without a reason.
“But...” Senior Min-ji tilted her head as she saw us huddled together on the sofa. “What are you all doing? Studying for finals?”
“Career homework.”
“Oh... Is it that thing where you write what you want to do in the future?”
“...Did you do it too, Senior?”
“Of course. Everyone does it in their second year. The second-year career counselor doesn't usually give out much homework, after all.”
I thought it was a sudden assignment, but I guess it was a regular annual event.
Lee Sol clung to Senior Min-ji with a tearful face.
“Senior... this is my third attempt already...”
Senior Min-ji gave a soft smile.
“Still, try to think about it carefully on your own.” She took a teacup from the shelf and continued calmly. “We’re people in the arts and physical education fields. In reality, there are countless cases where people don't achieve the dreams they wanted, right?”
The arts are professions where you survive on pure skill. Most people give up halfway or get pushed out by superior talent and have to look for other jobs.
That’s why.
“Thinking about something else you want to do... there’s no harm in doing it in advance.”
Senior Min-ji sat on the sofa and took a sip of warm black tea. Then, she gave a gentle smile. It was a bit different from her usual vibe.
— ...Didn't I look pretty cool just now?
Hm. She almost did. It would have been great if not for that thought. Still, I should at least give her a reaction.
“...You sounded like a real adult just now.”
When I marveled quietly like that—
“Ahem. Really?” She nodded, looking satisfied with herself.
If I kept this up, I might get an extra snack out of her later. This is what they call social skills.
“...By the way, Senior, what did you write last year?” I asked her the question that suddenly popped into my head.
“Me? I...” Senior Min-ji, who was about to speak, unnaturally changed the subject. “...Uh, yeah. What did I write again?”
What was this? Her face was turning a little red.
— I could never say I wrote that I wanted things to go well with him.
The Senior’s Mini-Me was twisting its body in embarrassment.
“...”
...I shouldn't have listened. I got curious for nothing and ended up seeing a display of affection. Let’s just pretend I didn't hear that.
“...”
I looked at Ji Nuri, who was scribbling in a notebook next to Lee Sol.
“...Lee Sol aside, I didn't expect it to take you this long too.”
Ji Nuri hadn't finished the homework yet either. It wasn't that she’d been rejected like Lee Sol; she was just contemplating it for a long time. Even so, it was unexpected.
“Nothing came to mind immediately,” Ji Nuri gave a hollow laugh.
— It’s not like I can write down 'trying to debut as a cosplayer.'
She muttered that thought to herself.
But... what’s a cosplayer?
“...”
I searched on my phone, and images of people in elaborate costumes popped up. I see. So "cosplayer" is short for costume player. My knowledge increased by one.
This was definitely not a goal Ji Nuri would openly reveal. From what I could see, many of the outfits were quite revealing.
“...”
...Hm.
Save image.
“...You really are a guy, aren't you?”
Twitch—
The hand holding my phone shook.
“...”
I glanced back to see Shin A-young standing behind me. She was looking at my screen with a rather intrigued gaze. The image currently displayed was a photo of a female cosplayer.
It’s not like I clicked it because I wanted to. I was just curious.
“Oho. Cosplay. So that’s your type~?” Shin A-young looked at me with a mischievous expression, teasing me playfully.
“...”
In contrast, Ji Nuri was looking at me with a somewhat expectant gaze.
— ...Could Lee Seung-ho be one of us...?
She was probably wondering if I was one of her kind. I’m not.
“...”
First, let’s change the subject.
“...Shin A-young, what did you write?” I brought up the previous topic.
Shin A-young’s eyes were still full of mirth, as if she knew I was trying to deflect, but she answered the question as if she’d let it slide for now.
“Going to Antarctica.”
“Huh?”
That was another random goal. Did she write it like a bucket list item?
“Don't you want to go at least once before you die?”
“Well...”
I was certainly curious. If I had enough time and money, it might be worth going once.
“What about you, Seung-ho?”
“...I just wrote something I really want to do. Simply.”
I wrote something very straightforward. It was a short-term goal rather than a long-term one. I placed the paper on the desk so everyone could see.
[To date someone before graduation.]
That was my goal.
Seeing that, Shin A-young tilted her head slightly.
“Dating?”
She looked genuinely surprised, as if my answer was unexpected. Did she think I had no interest in the opposite sex?
“Do you have someone you like?”
“No, not yet.”
I didn't, but I wanted to date regardless. At least before graduation. I’d heard that dating as an adult feels quite different from dating as a student.
“Did the teacher pass you with that?”
At Lee Sol’s question, I nodded.
“Yeah, he just let it go.”
The teacher really didn't say much. If anything, he seemed pleased, saying things like, "Ah, youth is great."
“Fine. I’m going with that too.”
Lee Sol scribbled "Dating" on her paper. She was just copying me. Or did she actually intend to do it?
“You’re going to try dating?”
“...Eh? No, no way.” Lee Sol rested her chin on her hand. She looked like she thought I was saying something very strange.
“Isn't Sol popular? You could do it if you set your mind to it.”
It was just as Shin A-young said. Setting aside her personality, her looks alone were enough to get by. We just didn't know it; she’d probably been confessed to several times already.
“I don't know...” However, Lee Sol didn't seem interested. “I don't really want to. If you date, you have to go out on regular dates, and you have to stay in touch all the time.”
Every single one of her reasons was...
“Wow... just thinking about it is exhausting...”
It was so like her. A high schooler finding dating to be a chore.
“That’s not true! You’re only saying that because you don't know how great dating is.”
As one half of the Counseling Club’s first couple, Senior Min-ji couldn't let that comment slide.
“Sol, you’ll see things differently once you find someone you like.”
“Mmm~ I don't know about that...” Lee Sol looked unconvinced.
“What if you do find someone you like?”
“...I told you, that’s not going to happen.”
“Just what if! Hypothetically.”
“Mmm... it won't happen, but if it did...” Lee Sol let out a chuckle, as if the mere thought was hilarious. “Then, well. I’ll do one thing you want, Senior.”
— Though that’ll never happen.
*
Zero students came for counseling today as well. Club activities ended as usual.
“Hum-hum~”
What should I eat when I get home? No one’s home today, so I can order something.
The moment I stood in front of the shoe lockers, lost in happy thoughts—
“Lee Seung-ho.”
Someone called my name.
“...”
“Do you have a moment?”
Kang Han-sol appeared. He was Client 1 from the Band Club—the one who had been rejected by Ji Nuri.
Had he been waiting for me?
Since Ji Nuri joined the Counseling Club after leaving the Band Club, I had a feeling this might happen.
“Let’s talk for a bit.”
He had come sooner than I expected.