Chapter 197
Chapter 197
Where is Sara?
Lee Su-a was growing anxious.
She had a gift she'd picked out after agonizing over it for days. If possible, she wanted to give it to her when she was wearing pretty clothes, at a moment when the two of them were alone.
She knew perfectly well it wouldn't create an intensely romantic mood.
To Sara, Lee Su-a was a friend.
Lee Su-a did harbor feelings for Sara that went beyond friendship, but that was strictly a one-sided thing, something Sara knew nothing about.
And yet Su-a, who hadn't found the courage to confess to Sara directly, wanted to keep this friendship going.
Someday, definitely someday, she'd have to tell her she liked her.
So she'd picked out a gift to serve as proof that the friendship would continue.
But friendship or not, she didn't want to hand it over in front of the other friends.
A gift of friendship, shared just between her and Sara.
Because she wanted to at least feel that sentiment.
Earlier, when Sara had been on her own, Su-a had thought it was her chance and tried to follow her—
But she'd lost her in the crowd, and she'd been circling the spot where she'd last seen her.
Then a person caught Lee Su-a's eye.
Yu Ha-neul, slipping out of a room off in the corner with a step so light she looked ready to take flight.
A smile filled her face. Something very good must have happened to her.
And seeing that smile, Lee Su-a thought:
Of course, the only person who could make Ha-neul smile like that was Sara.
She wanted to go confront her right then and there, but... somehow she couldn't muster the courage. Ha-neul had always been a bold kid, the type who wouldn't let herself be cowed by criticism if her reasons were just.
Standing in front of Ha-neul always made Lee Su-a feel smaller, and she didn't want to clash with her.
...Well, in terms of literal height, she was definitely shorter than Ha-neul.
Honestly, even without asking, it was all too obvious that Sara was in the room Ha-neul had just come out of.
Lee Su-a hid behind a thick pillar until Ha-neul had completely passed by, and only once she was gone did she creep out.
If someone nearby had been watching, anyone would have thought her behavior was deeply suspicious.
Fortunately, it didn't look like anyone was paying attention to a corner like that.
Lee Su-a quickly approached the closed door, cracked it open, and peeked inside.
Sara was crouched down.
She let out a sigh of relief and stepped through the door—only to realize something wasn't right.
Sara was still crouched, her face buried in both hands.
As if she were crying.
"...Sara?"
Her mind went completely blank for a moment.
Had Ha-neul done something to Sara?
Lee Su-a trusted Ha-neul. She was one of the most upright people Su-a had ever met.
She trusted her.
She did trust her, but...
Seeing Sara in this state right after Ha-neul had left the room unsettled something in her heart.
Had Ha-neul, by some tiny, minuscule chance, done something weird to Sara?
Lee Su-a slowly, cautiously, inched closer to Sara's side.
And as she did, she sensed something else odd.
...Sara was crouched down with her face buried in her hands like she was crying, yet there was no sniffling, no sound of tears at all.
The only sound she heard was deep, steady breathing, as if she were trying to calm herself.
"...Sara?"
Having come right up behind her, Lee Su-a gently placed a hand on Sara's shoulder and called her name.
"Huh-hyak!?"
Sara's reaction was explosive.
Her left shoulder, where Lee Su-a's hand had rested, flinched sharply, and she immediately tried to dodge sideways.
But Sara was in a crouched position, and whether attempting a quick sidestep or an outright sideways roll, neither was within Sara's athletic capabilities.
The result: Sara flopped unceremoniously onto her side.
"S-Sara!?"
Calling Sara's name over and over, Lee Su-a rushed to her side.
"Uh, ah, Su-a...?"
After floundering on the floor for a while, Sara finally realized from that voice that the person in front of her was Su-a.
"Sara, did something happen?"
Lee Su-a extended a hand toward Sara.
"Ah, uh, no, nothing happened..."
And then Sara's hand, which had unconsciously reached out to take it, froze completely.
Lee Su-a's movement stopped almost at the exact same moment.
"...."
"...."
Neither said a word for a long time.
Lee Su-a's eyes were fixed on Sara's left hand, which was holding hers.
Having fallen to her right, Sara had instinctively offered her left hand to Su-a.
And on that left ring finger was a ring Su-a had never seen on Sara's hand before.
"Uh, ah, um, this is..."
Flustered, Sara stumbled over her words, then—
"Th-this is a friendship ring!"
She blurted out.
Only after hearing that did the frozen Lee Su-a start moving again.
"Th-this, a friendship ring?"
Who wears a friendship ring on the left ring finger...?
Certainly, Lee Su-a knew about the existence of friendship rings. But she'd never actually seen anyone deliberately coordinate wearing matching rings.
Because, obviously, if you walk around wearing a ring like that, a hundred percent of the people around you are going to get the wrong idea.
Two girls dating wasn't exactly considered entirely ordinary, but it wasn't so vanishingly rare you'd never see it in your life, and these days it wasn't really something to be ashamed of.
The same was true for the reverse.
And naturally, if people match rings claiming it's for "friendship" or whatever, even wearing it on a necklace instead of a finger invites misunderstanding.
As far as Lee Su-a could tell, that gift was one deliberately meant to invite exactly that kind of misunderstanding.
Even if Sara didn't wear it on her hand all the time, obviously people would get the wrong idea just from seeing her carrying it around.
Above all, the excuse of "we're just friends" was a favorite among people who felt self-conscious about two girls dating.
...It was infuriating.
The gift Lee Su-a had chosen was also clearly one that would signal closeness with Sara.
Ha-neul was running miles ahead of her.
...At least, as long as Sara kept thinking of it as a friendship ring, it would be okay.
"...."
"...."
A slightly awkward tension filled the air as Sara took Lee Su-a's hand and pulled herself up.
"S-so, um, what brought you here?"
Seeming embarrassed by Lee Su-a's silence, Sara asked.
"...A gift."
"Huh?"
"I came because I wanted to give you a gift too."
Lee Su-a barely managed to hold on to the thread of her reason and took a deep breath.
"This gift... I wanted to give it to you when it was just the two of us."
"Is... is that so...?"
Su-a nodded, then deliberately held up the box she had gone back to the room to fetch.
It was a box small enough to fit neatly into the palm of a hand.
"Th-thank you..."
Perhaps it was because Lee Su-a's face had turned red as she handed it over. Sara took the gift with her own face flushed, as if she were embarrassed too.
Inside the box was yet another box.
It wasn't one of those "box inside a box inside a box" pranks; the inner box was wrapped in a luxurious fabric that made it look, even at a glance, as if it held jewelry.
"I-I'll open it..."
As Lee Su-a stared intently at Sara opening the packaging, Sara said with a touch of awkwardness.
Seeing Su-a, tense and nodding with a slightly stiff motion, Sara took a breath and set the empty outer box on a nearby chair.
Now only the jewelry box remained in Sara's hands.
Sara slowly lifted the lid.
"...Wow."
Inside the box was a single slender thread, like a strand of silver.
Looking closer, though, you could tell it was a finely detailed necklace.
Neither too flashy nor so plain it went unnoticed; it was by no means a cheap-looking piece.
It was the same kind of necklace currently hanging around Lee Su-a's own neck.
"Sara."
"H-huh?"
"Could you sit in the chair for a moment?"
"Uh, uhh..."
At Lee Su-a's request, Sara carefully sat down on an unoccupied chair nearby.
Lee Su-a approached her and picked up the necklace from the jewelry box in Sara's hands.
"...Just a second. Can you hold your hair up for me?"
"O-okay..."
Looking slightly nervous, Sara answered quietly and lifted her hair with her hand.
Lee Su-a moved behind her and took in the sight of her pale nape.
The pale skin, perfectly exposed now that her hair was neatly gathered up, was dazzling.
A single silver line crossing that dazzling skin.
"There, all done."
Sara let her hand fall at those words. Her black hair cascaded back down, covering the back of the necklace.
"It's... it's pretty..."
Sara spoke in a slightly trembling voice.
"...."
"Um, Su-a?"
Feeling uneasy at Su-a's lack of response, Sara turned her head slightly.
The white skin peeking out beside her black hair.
And the faint, glistening line of her lips, barely visible.
"...."
Seeing that, Lee Su-a felt a wave of anxiety.
The fear that she might end up witnessing someone else's lips brush against those lips.
No, the fear that maybe it had already happened.
Even after hearing the words "friendship ring," she was still uneasy.
Because she had watched Ha-neul walk out of that room wearing a perfectly cool expression.
Of all the girls surrounding Sara right now, the one farthest behind was Lee Su-a.
Yes. That's how it was, and so—
Lee Su-a made up her mind.
I want to run too, just like those girls.