That's Not It
I said, that's not it.
"...Ugh."
The muscles in both arms throbbed again. I was going to need to stretch or this would never get better. I stopped walking for a moment, set down my school bag, and did some light stretches, pulling my arms this way and that.
"Augh... I'm seriously gonna die."
I must have overdone the workout yesterday. After showering last night, I'd basically blacked out the second I hit the bed.
"...Maybe I should've taken it a little easier."
But yesterday I hadn't had a choice. I'd been hung up on Shin Ayoung's inner thoughts, that was why. The word the real deal she'd let slip yesterday was something I simply couldn't brush off. Unlike everyday speech, there's no such thing as a lie in someone's private thoughts. Of course it hit harder.
"...It'd be nice if I were just a little taller."
I pressed down on the crown of my head with a regretful sigh. My height was on the short side for my age group—about 168 centimeters. The average for high school boys sat at 173, so I definitely wasn't tall. Still, my growth plates hadn't closed yet. Last year I'd been 162. I'd already grown since then, so maybe this year I'd shoot up for real.
—Throb!
"Augh..."
Another stab of muscle soreness ran through my whole body. Yeah, I'd definitely overdone it yesterday. From now on, I needed to stay within reasonable limits. Better get to school and sit down for a bit...
"Meow~"
Then, out of nowhere, a cat's cry drifted over. Could it be Chunsam? The cat that lived in the school backyard. And as it happened, I was right near his territory. I'd last seen him last year—this would be the first time this year. It had been a long while.
"Around here...?"
I followed the sound around the corner of the alley. The first thing that came into view was a black guitar case. Wearing it was a girl with short brown hair, crouched down and staring at something.
"......"
That profile... No matter how I looked at it, it was Ji Nuri.
"Come here~ Meow~"
She was waving a stalk of foxtail grass, calling to a cat sitting in the corner by the stone wall. Those usually sharp eyes of hers had softened a little. The relaxed, gentle expression on her face was nothing like her usual self.
......I should pretend I didn't see this and walk past.
Hop—
Chunsam rose from his spot and, with light, easy movements, headed somewhere else.
"Ah."
Nuri made a disappointed sound as she watched him suddenly leave. Her gaze naturally followed him—straight toward where I was standing.
"......"
Our eyes met right there.
"?!"
Nuri startled at the sight of me and shot to her feet. She must have been pretty shocked; the tips of her ears were already starting to turn red.
"Uh, uh..."
— Why is he out here??
Nuri's flustered thoughts came through loud and clear. Though honestly, I wanted to say the same thing.
— Meow~
Whether we cared or not, Chunsam rubbed his head against my leg. After I'd given him churu treats a few times, he'd remembered me and started acting affectionate like this. The pitiful pleading of a street cat angling for snacks. I stroked his head.
"Hey there, Chunsam. Long time no see. You've been well?"
At the name, Nuri looked puzzled.
"...Chunsam? Do you know this cat?"
"Yeah. He lives in the school backyard. I played with him a few times and he remembered me."
He was the wary type, usually hiding somewhere out of sight. Not sure what had brought him out today. I glanced at her with a knowing look.
"You like cats, huh?"
Nuri nodded slightly.
"......Not a ton. A little?"
— I love them so much.
Right. She loved them so much. In that case, consider this a free service.
"Alrighty."
I scooped Chunsam up. His body stretched out like melting cheese hanging downward.
"...Hey, I think you've put on more weight since last time?"
I was inwardly surprised by how heavy he was. A weight beyond anything I'd expected climbed up through my wrists, and my arms tingled from the muscle soreness. What had this guy been eating? He was living better than I was.
— Meow~!
I couldn't read animals' thoughts, but the meow somehow sounded indignant. I held Chunsam out toward Nuri.
"Want to pet him?"
"Huh? Is it okay?"
"He's just skittish, that's all. As long as you don't pet him roughly, he won't scratch."
"......"
Without a word, Nuri locked eyes with Chunsam. Her throat bobbed with a swallow. She carefully stretched out one hand and stroked the fur as gently as if handling a newborn baby.
Soft. Fluffy.
Nuri covered her mouth with her hand.
— Whoa...! This texture is insane...!
She was even more satisfied than I'd expected. How much time passed after that?
"...Hah."
Finally content, Nuri pulled her hand away. Then she took a wet wipe from her bag and held it out to me.
"Here. Wipe."
"...Oh, thanks."
Cute as cats were, they were also dirty, so we should wipe our hands. This little detail felt very much like her.
Come to think of it, what time was it? We should get going soon. I stood up from where I'd been.
"Let's go. We don't have much time left."
I'd spent too long here. About fifteen minutes remaining. If we set off diligently from now, we could still make it without being late. Just as I was about to step out of the alley—
Grip—!
My body yanked backward. Nuri had grabbed my bag and pulled.
"?!"
What was this? She was pressed right up against my back. It was a situation easy to misread, but—
— ...I came out early on purpose and I run into them here? Haa... Just hurry up and pass already...
Reading her thoughts, I could be sure it wasn't that. She'd deliberately hidden to avoid someone. I followed Nuri's gaze—a boy and girl in school uniforms were walking to school. Faces I recognized.
Those two are definitely from the same band club as Nuri...
...What were their names again? I couldn't remember the names, but I knew the faces. They'd performed on stage at last year's school festival.
"Hoo..."
Once they completely disappeared from view, Nuri let out the breath she'd been holding.
"...Ah."
Only then did the situation seem to register with her. Nuri released my bag and put some distance between us.
"Sorry. I startled you, huh?"
"...A little?"
It would have been a lie to say I hadn't been startled at all. At that, Nuri awkwardly averted her eyes.
"Really sorry. I had my reasons..."
She looked like she found it hard to explain. I wasn't that curious anyway. Nuri had her own circumstances. I gave her a light nudge.
"Got it, so let's just hurry. We're actually gonna be late at this rate."
"Ah, yeah. Let's...!"
At the fact that I wasn't going to ask, the slight tension in Nuri's face melted away.
— ...He's not asking what happened. Is he being considerate on purpose?
"......"
A slight misunderstanding had formed. ......The thing was, I'd already overheard everything in her thoughts, so there was no need to ask.
Thankfully we weren't late. Rushing had even left us a little time to spare. When we entered the classroom, kids were gathered in little groups chatting away. Nuri went over to where Shin Ayoung was sitting.
"Ayoung, hi~"
"You're here? A little late today?"
"...Yeah, something came up."
Nuri deflected vaguely. She apparently couldn't bring herself to say she'd been late because of a cat. Ayoung didn't press further and just gave a small laugh. She looked like she had a pretty good idea what it was.
"......"
Then Ayoung casually shifted her gaze toward me.
"...Seungho came with you?"
"Uh, yeah."
I answered, tilting my head slightly. Something felt off. There was a slight dissonance in Shin Ayoung's expression.
"......"
She was smiling, but she wasn't smiling. It wasn't something I'd read in her thoughts—it was right there in what I could see. From a girl who never showed dissatisfaction outwardly, I could feel an outward dissatisfaction. As if she were intentionally letting her real expression slip a little, performing for me.
And then—
"......"
Whoosh— she turned her gaze away from me.
"?"
What was this about, seriously. Hadn't we gotten a bit closer after gaming together yesterday?
— ...Just watch me never text him first again.
Suddenly, Shin Ayoung's thoughts drifted over.
"......"
What was that supposed to mean. It seemed directed at me, at least. Text? I pulled out my phone to check if any messages had come in. I'd never gotten a text from her—
"......"
No, wait. There was one. And it was already marked as read. I must have checked it while falling asleep last night—her message was sitting there in the read chat history. ...So that was probably why. The message she'd gone to the trouble of sending had been left on read.
"......"
I looked up at Ayoung again. She was chatting and laughing with other people, but the moment she saw me, her expression sank just a little. Timed precisely for when I was looking—just enough that only I would notice. She was sulking, clear as day. Leaving this alone would only make things more annoying later.
"Shin Ayoung."
"...What?"
Her reply came out curt.
"You texted me? I was pretty tired yesterday, so I fell asleep while checking it."
At that, Ayoung froze mid-motion. As if that possibility hadn't even occurred to her.
"......Ah."
A small sound escaped her. She carried it on as naturally as she could.
"Aaaah~? So that's what happened~?"
— Wait, that was it?
Thankfully, Ayoung's expression snapped right back to normal. Her mouth had already loosened into a relaxed smile—mood recovered. Good. Easier to fix than I'd expected.
"......"
Beside us, Nuri—who'd been watching the whole exchange—sucked in a sharp breath.
— ...What's with this vibe? They're texting each other? Don't tell me...?
I said, that's not it.