Chapter 72
Chapter 72
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Sports Day
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Seol-i had started acting strange.
Yeah, "strange" was the right word. To be precise, the distance between us felt off.
It was the same as always up to a point. Holding hands was still normal. But the moment we got home...
"...Haneul."
"Yeah."
"......Hug me."
She kept asking me to hold her.
Ever since that time in the empty classroom when I'd hugged her tight, she'd been making these requests nonstop.
Why? Was she craving human warmth?
But that didn't fit—Seol-i got along great with her parents. She still hugged her mom or dad as a given and acted all cute with them in all sorts of ways, from what I knew.
Yet she was asking me for that? For warmth?
No way. That couldn't be it. So why was she asking me for this?
I could accept the hand-holding. That was still within the realm of what friends could do.
But after that... starting with the hugs, it felt like territory friends shouldn't cross.
Sure, abroad you could do it. Some countries there greet with cheek-to-cheek presses or even kisses on the cheek, going beyond hugs.
But this was Korea. The land of propriety and decorum.
Even if the author—practically a god in this novel world—was from a very open Western culture and mixed that in, just looking at my friends' or people's reactions and behaviors around me showed that wasn't the case at all.
So why was Seol-i asking for this from me? And...
-Squeeze
Why was I hugging her like this?
Of course, we never hugged for long. I didn't want any embarrassing situations from natural male physiology, and whether at my house or hers, there were too many people around for prolonged hugs anyway.
Seol-i must have had enough sense for that, too—she'd obediently pull back after just a brief embrace.
Anyway, amid this ambiguous atmosphere dragging on...
...the sports day began.
*
May was the perfect month for a school sports day.
And there was one person who hated it the most...
"Ughhh... I don't wanna..."
Seol-i.
Seol-i had never liked moving her body much since she was little.
It wasn't that she was frail or anything, but she was pretty much a klutz.
In class races, she was always counted from the back way faster, and if phys ed involved evaluations, Seol-i was the one you factored in for the lowest score.
During gym class, she'd hang out with the girls or just watch me exercise, never trying to do anything herself.
For someone like that, sports day was a straight-up nightmare.
Obviously, it had nothing to do with me.
Among the boys, only about three or four per class hated phys ed. That was common knowledge.
And naturally, I wasn't one of them. I loved phys ed. Adored it, even.
For one, gym class meant we could legally take over the gym or field, playing soccer, basketball, volleyball—whatever we wanted.
No one could deny how fun that was.
So for me, sports day was an absolute blast.
And, though it might sound weird to say it...
I hadn't been able to enjoy sports days properly before. Back before coming to this world, I mean.
In elementary school, going to the same school as the orphanage kids meant I was stuck babysitting them during sports day.
In middle and high school, I'd skip sports day altogether to go take care of the orphanage kids.
Because of that, sports day was this event I desperately wanted but couldn't have, craved but couldn't enjoy.
That's why I always got extra hyped for it now.
"Haneul looks super excited."
Seol-i pouted her lips, half-jealous, half-teasing.
"What's wrong with that? Isn't sports day fun?"
"It's not..."
Seol-i declared it boring, but unfortunately, she had to participate too.
Her events: just two, strategic tug-of-war and jump rope.
Both required the whole class, so that was the bare minimum.
I knew exactly how bad her coordination was, so I warned her earnestly.
"Seol-ah, don't push yourself too hard. Just go through the motions and lose if you have to, or sit it out. Don't get hurt."
Seol-i shook her head firmly.
"I'm gonna try hard. The class practiced a ton, so I can't be the deadweight."
"Ooh..."
That's why I liked Seol-i so much.
If she was given a role, she'd give it her all, whether she liked it or not. Pure sense of responsibility.
That was her charm.
"Still, be careful not to get hurt. Got it?"
"You too, Haneul—don't get hurt. Got it?"
"Got it, got it."
I secretly loved that she was worried about me, so I nodded with a bigger smile than usual.
Seol-i seemed to like that too, smiling softly and nodding back.
A short time later, when sports day officially started, Seol-i and I headed to the field with our classmates.
We listened to the principal's opening remarks on the field, then went to our class's waiting area.
Now the events would proceed by grade, then by class.
For us first-years, it started with the obvious: tug-of-war.
Morning schedule: all-in strategic tug-of-war and girls' dodgeball reps.
Afternoon: reverse climb or all-in jump rope, boys' foot volleyball reps, and finally mixed relay.
The first one, strategic tug-of-war, worried me a bit.
Since it required real strength, Seol-i seemed at high risk for injury...
"Ughhh... So frustrating...!"
Surprisingly, she was fine.
If anything, she was fuming over the loss.
Unlike her earlier grumbling about hating it, now she was fired up—classic Seol-i.
That cool side of her that gave everything her best, no matter what.
(Side note: we won tug-of-war overall. Her team just lost.)
Morning went off without a hitch, so I hoped afternoon would too—and be fun.
...But afternoon was the problem.
Jump rope was simple: jump in one by one while the rope spun, then count jumps once everyone's in.
-Thud!!
...Seol-i tripped mid-jump, foot slipping wrong.
-Smack!
"Ow...!"
The second she fell, my body was already bolting forward.
The girls already jumping had stopped to tend to her.
"Seol-ah, you okay?"
"Hey, she's bleeding...!"
"Someone—anyone—take Seol-i to the nurse...!"
"Guys... I'm fine..."
"Seol-ah...!!"
I pushed through the girls to her side.
"Ah, Haneul... Don't worry so much. It's not that bad..."
Ignoring her, I spun around and crouched.
"Hop on."
"Uh... Haneul..."
"Hop on quick."
"Huh...?"
"Now."
I barely heard her. All I could picture was her knee, blood trickling down.
"I'm really fine..."
"Now."
Finally, she climbed on my back, and I bolted for the nurse's office with her light weight.
It was on the first floor, right by the main building entrance—super close.
We rushed in panting, startling the school nurse who looked up.
"Huff... huff... Nurse! She fell... Quick...!"
"R... right."
Meanwhile, Seol-i, who'd buried her face in my back, awkwardly got down and sat in a chair.
And...
"...Not too bad. Don't pop the blister. Come back tomorrow, I'll change it."
"Thank you..."
"Seol-i, you've got a good boyfriend there. Piggybacking you here the second his girlfriend fell."
"N-No... He's not my boyfriend...!"
Her treatment finished quicker than expected.
Now I saw it was just a scrape from the fall—nothing to freak out over.
Embarrassed for nothing, I turned away, staring out the window. Once done, Seol-i approached me.
"Haneul."
"Y-Yeah?"
"...You were so cool back there. Like a hero from a comic."
I turned back at her beaming smile.
This time, not from embarrassment.
I just couldn't control my face.
One look at her, and I'd probably grin like an idiot, so I turned away.
(Side note: After that day, the class nicknamed me the "lovestruck hero."
The guy who piggybacked his fallen girlfriend to the nurse.
No, we're not dating!)