Korean-Style Bonding Activities (3)
Kang Hyeona was always looking at something narrow.
That cramped little world inside her smartphone, filled with nothing but lines of text.
If she lifted her head, a wide world and open scenery would spread out before her.
But she kept her head down, staring into that narrow place.
Because another world existed there.
A world so vast and expansive it made reality look tiny by comparison.
It made her happy. It made her sad. It made her heart race.
Enough to forget the blandness of real life.
It was a captivating world.
"……."
But not anymore.
Peeking into other worlds no longer brought her any joy.
A new work from her favorite author.
In the past, that alone would have set her heart pounding with excitement.
Now, as Kang Hyeona read, her eyes stayed dull and flat.
Had the novel changed?
No.
The elegant prose was the same as ever, and the material still had the power to make a heart flutter with interest.
A fresh, charming heroine and protagonist.
Even though it was only the early chapters, the writing had already climbed the rankings, packed with praise from readers.
Throb. Throb.
Yet Kang Hyeona felt her heart being squeezed tight.
Every time she read a romance that made her chest flutter just from imagining it, she couldn't help measuring it against her own love.
If their love was pure devotion… then hers was ruin. Misery.
No—could it even come true in the first place?
Despair bloomed inside a wind that held no hope at all.
Maybe that was why.
Why she had finally pulled her hands away from novels.
Because every time she read, that throbbing pain started in her heart.
Because it dragged reality back into her mind and made everything hurt.
Even so, reality kept going.
She got off the bus and carried on with the activities.
In the middle of that tedious everyday life, Kang Hyeona did what she had to do.
Looking after Kim Hyeongmin, keeping him from going too far off the rails.
Sometimes she even orchestrated the whole situation.
But it wasn't the same as before.
"Come on, eat with us."
"I'm good. Gotta supervise the courage training."
"……."
It might have looked a little strange.
Kang Hyeona was clearly Kim Hyeongmin's servant—his dog.
Do what you're told, bark when you're ordered to bark.
But at the same time, she was an intelligent person.
Kang Hyeona could think, and that was exactly why she could support him far beyond simple obedience.
Kim Hyeongmin knew that too.
Rebellion?
No.
If anything, it was closer to a little coquettishness.
Kang Hyeona didn't enjoy drinking.
Even after becoming an adult, she never sought out alcohol unless the occasion forced her to.
So Kim Hyeongmin didn't get angry.
Maybe I should loosen the leash a little?
It was a kind of freedom.
Even if you turn a cow out onto the prairie, a fence still waits beyond the reach of its eyes.
The cow wouldn't know, of course.
The grassland spreading before its eyes looks endless.
But that was as far as it went.
Someday it would learn.
That no matter how far it ran, what eventually greeted it wouldn't be green fields—it would be the fence.
So.
Kim Hyeongmin gave Kang Hyeona her freedom.
Freedom under the name of free-range grazing.
"Let's go."
The errands were already finished.
Kim Hyeongmin led his pack of followers outside.
They would leave the noisy auditorium and go drink, no doubt.
In about three hours it would be barbecue time.
Of course there would be alcohol, and everyone would enjoy themselves together.
Can't even wait that long?
An uncomfortable feeling twisted deep in Kang Hyeona's chest.
She set that aside.
It was time to focus on reality now.
She had volunteered as courage-training staff specifically so she could get away from Kim Hyeongmin.
Once the talent show ended, she would need to start preparing soon.
And then.
How much time had passed?
The talent show finished, and the next schedule arrived.
The spring evening air tickled the tip of her nose pleasantly.
She could have closed her eyes tight and drawn in a deep breath—but Kang Hyeona was too busy crushing down the envy rising inside her.
"Me! Me!"
A route laid out along the mountain path.
There was a proper exit, of course, but since it was a mountain, side trails existed too.
So.
Kang Hyeona had been stationed at one of those possible back-path exits, just in case.
Even though she was a little ways off, she had no trouble reading the situation at the entrance.
The guide's instruction: form pairs and come out in order.
Words shot out with the reaction speed of a pro gamer.
How could she not recognize that voice?
The one who was a victim and yet stood in a position more enviable than anyone else's.
Jeong Ayeong's voice.
Kang Hyeona let out a long breath.
Of course she'll be with Han Sein, right?
Kang Hyeona, who had never known a single inconvenience in her life, found herself deeply envious of that girl.
Bullied every day, suffering constantly—yet close to the existence called Han Sein.
A situation so completely different from her own, where she could never get close no matter what, that the envy cut deep.
She sank into thought.
Kicking a stone stuck in the dirt with her foot, she tried to protect herself by thinking about anything else.
"Yes, yesss…!"
"You like it that much…?"
"Mm. Mm."
Jeong Ayeong's quick reflexes.
Fast enough to surprise everyone.
Maybe thanks to that?
Han Sein and Jeong Ayeong got to go in first.
The corners of her mouth twisted into a sly curve.
The moment she had imagined and re-imagined for over a week!
She would wrap her arms around him calmly and coolly.
How cool would that be!
Still lost in her wicked fantasies, Jeong Ayeong started down the mountain path.
The atmosphere grew more and more frightening.
There were no special decorations or any visible traces, but the situation of having to rely on a single flashlight on a desolate, dark mountain trail pressed in with real fear.
"It's dark."
"Yeah."
"We just keep going up, right?"
"Probably…?"
They would need to climb for about ten minutes.
The mission was to bring back a note left around the mid-slope.
She had heard random prizes were written on them.
The distance between the two of them kept shrinking.
Closer than when they had been walking side by side.
But even though the situation she had wanted had arrived, Jeong Ayeong showed clear signs of tension.
Because Han Sein had gotten closer?
No.
She was simply terrified.
It felt like someone was watching them from far off among the dark trees.
Since this was courage training, the staff waiting in place would definitely jump out to scare them.
Jeong Ayeong repeated the theory over and over in her head.
Human fear comes from the unknown.
In a place where you can see nothing, you lean on imagination, and naturally it starts to feel scary.
That was the driving force that let humans survive, a defense mechanism…
As long as she knew that fact, there was no reason to be afraid.
"I-i-i-if you're scared, just say so."
"Uh..."
Han Sein looked at Jeong Ayeong with eyes that clearly said she was pathetic.
She was too busy staring straight ahead to notice.
You're the one who's the most scared.
To protect a girl's pride, Han Sein kept his mouth shut.
If anything, he was the calm one.
Maybe because he already knew that people were the scariest things of all?
He was pretty unfazed when it came to this kind of thing.
In the quiet forest.
Only the occasional chirp of insects rang out, and Jeong Ayeong spoke to Han Sein as if uneasy.
"D-don't worry. I'll protect you."
"Thanks. That makes me feel better."
"Hehe…"
Praise makes even whales dance.
It melted the tension that had been gripping Jeong Ayeong's heart.
Those words also meant this:
Her guarded mind loosened.
And right at moments like that…
"WAAAH!!"
"Kyaaaaaaah!!!!"
"A-Ayeong…"
Han Sein's words never finished.
Because one hand held the flashlight while the other clamped onto his wrist and she took off running at full speed.
A face twisted with pure terror and fright.
Her eyes could see only what was straight ahead.
"Kyaaaaaah!!"
Screams poured endlessly from her mouth.
Scary, so scary!
In truth, the sight of her completely terrified was scarier than any ghost, but Jeong Ayeong was the most frightened of all precisely because she couldn't see herself.
"Hah, haah, haaak, A-Ayeong… A-Ayeong…"
How long had they been running?
By the time Jeong Ayeong came back to her senses, they had already turned onto some strange path.
Where is this…?
But there was no room to care about where they were right now.
What entered Jeong Ayeong's eyes wasn't the unfamiliar surroundings.
It was Han Sein's deathly pale face.
"A-a-a-are you okay?"
"Hnn, hnnk, ha-haak, haah…"
Jeong Ayeong's eyes trembled.
Her restless hands had nowhere to go, and all she could do was stare at Han Sein, half-collapsed on the ground, gasping for breath.
He looked precarious.
Han Sein's condition was serious enough to be summed up in a single word.
From Jeong Ayeong's perspective, she had done it to protect him—to not abandon him.
But.
That very action had only made things harder for Han Sein.
Why, why did it end up like this?
Watching him pant for air, Jeong Ayeong began blaming herself.
Why am I always… like this?
Unable to do anything properly.
Instead she just made mistakes with the boy she liked and made things harder for him.
Apologies spilled out over and over.
There was nothing else she could say.
"Hnn, hnnw. Hn…"
"I-I'm sorry. Sein. Are you okay? Y-your body…"
"I-it's just… hard to breathe… yeah. Hnn…"
Even so.
He looked far too fragile.
His body had finally given out and sat down hard.
Jeong Ayeong dropped to her knees in front of him.
Worry came before any apology.
How much time passed?
Han Sein's breathing gradually began to steady.
But then.
"Ayeong..."
"Y-y-yeah. What?!"
Jeong Ayeong answered with extra force in her voice.
Maybe because of the guilt.
She wanted to do whatever he asked.
"M-my legs… don't have any strength left."
In the dark mountain.
Even carefully walking down relying on a single flashlight would have been hard enough.
And now Han Sein's legs had given out completely.
Sitting on the ground, the gaze he turned on her wavered.
"...Get on my back."
She had to take responsibility.
For the situation she had created.
No matter what state he was in.
Jeong Ayeong turned around and offered her back.
"Thanks…"
"Don't… say thanks."
The expression on Jeong Ayeong's face—where Han Sein couldn't see—crumpled.
This is my mistake, and he's thanking me…?
Her heart throbbed painfully.
I have to take responsibility.
Jeong Ayeong waved her hands.
Han Sein moved his body and climbed onto her back.
"Don't worry. We'll get down safely."
"Okay..."
She spoke boldly, but Jeong Ayeong's expression slowly hardened.
Not from shock or depression.
Because a sensation that made her heart tremble all by itself was pressing against her waist.
Her hands were supporting his thighs, so that part was fine.
But.
Maybe because of the center of gravity.
Han Sein's crotch was pressed right up against her lower back.
That soft, yielding feeling through his pants was transmitting straight into her waist.
Anyone would know what the thing touching her waist was.
Jeong Ayeong's body froze solid.