Chapter 127: A Heart-to-Heart
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 127: A Heart-to-Heart
"Ryu-chan, why did you get so muscular?"
It was a completely unexpected question.
"Huh? My muscles?"
"Yeah. To be honest, I've been curious for a while."
Rika said, looking over at my body next to her.
It seemed she couldn't understand why I was so obsessed with building muscle.
"Well..."
When I tried to answer, I was at a loss for words.
The truth is, I first started working out so I could handle whatever came my way.
This is the ruthless world of a romantic comedy, where you never know what might happen.
I figured that for an ordinary person like me to survive, the only way was to train my body.
And in a way, my prediction was spot on.
If I hadn't built up my muscles, I can't even imagine what would have happened to me during Golden Week.
Sasha's father, Ivan, was the very incarnation of unreasonable violence.
But I couldn't tell Rika all that, so I hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"I used to be weak, and people looked down on me for being Korean. So after I started high school, I began working out to make sure no one could push me around."
It wasn't a complete fabrication.
In my faded memories, Kim Yoo-Sung was what you'd call a 'creepy kid'.
He was pointed at behind his back and often subtly ostracized in class.
The more that happened, the more the introverted Kim Yoo-Sung escaped into the world on the screen.
Truthfully, the past Kim Yoo-Sung and I are two different people.
They're just memories I know as information, so my only feeling is, 'Ah, so that happened.'
But if I had known the past Kim Yoo-Sung, I definitely would have told him to work out with me.
To shatter the 'prejudice' that had bound him since childhood.
After hearing my story, Rika looked apologetic.
"I had no idea..."
"It's okay. It's all in the past. And now, I just work out because I enjoy building muscle, so don't get the wrong idea."
"...Okay."
Rika gave a calm nod and then turned her head toward the sea.
The already awkward atmosphere seemed to grow even more so.
At this rate, I was worried I'd get indigestion from dinner.
We walked along the dark beach until we realized there were no more buildings around, so we decided to head back.
It seemed we had walked too far in our silence.
We were on our way back the way we came.
"Ouch!"
Suddenly, Rika, who was walking ahead of me, cried out.
"Are you okay?!"
I rushed over in surprise, and Rika, crouching with her face scrunched in pain, said, "My foot got caught in a hole, and I twisted my ankle."
Hearing her, I looked down.
It was hard to see in the dark, but there was indeed a shallow hole dug at Rika's feet.
"What should I do? We're still far from the inn."
I let out a small sigh.
"What do you mean, 'what should you do'? I'll have to carry you."
With that, I turned my back to Rika, who was sitting on the ground.
"Here, get on."
Rika waved her hands, looking flustered.
"It's fine, Ryu-chan! It'll be okay if I just rest a little!"
"Even if the pain subsides, walking on it will strain the muscle. It's better if you just let me carry you."
When I offered my back again, Rika hesitated before climbing on.
A soft sensation pressed against my back, but I tried my best to ignore it as I wrapped my arms under her thighs and slowly stood up.
On my back, Rika asked, "Are you sure you're okay, Ryu-chan? Am I not heavy?"
Instead of giving a straight answer, I gave her the classic line for this kind of situation.
"If anything, you're as light as a feather."
Rika's face flushed slightly, and she wrapped her arms around my neck.
"...You're so mean."
Hearing her simple complaint, I couldn't help but laugh.
*
Swaaaaaa!
The sound of waves crashing against the rocks filled my ears.
The quiet seashore.
With Rika and her twisted ankle on my back, I walked silently toward the inn.
Rika, as if she had already given up, clung tightly to my back and asked, "You know, Ryu-chan, I feel like we don't know that much about each other."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, we hang out together almost every day at school, right? But it feels strange that even though we're always together, we don't know any of the deeper stuff about each other."
Well... if Rika had been a guy, we hung out enough to be called best buds, but probably because we were different genders, we'd never shared our deeper feelings.
Part of it was worrying the other person might feel burdened, but it was more likely just because it would be awkward.
After all, to share things that deep, it wouldn't be strange for it to take not just one year, but several.
But it seemed Rika now wanted to move beyond that simple friendship.
If possible, to listen to the other's worries, think of solutions together, and laugh together.
Does she think you have to do that to be real friends?
To be honest, it was hard for me to define it clearly right now.
"What are you curious about?"
When I asked, Rika paused for a moment before asking her own question.
"What's your favorite food?"
"...Chili shrimp."
Of all Chinese dishes, I liked the ones with shrimp the best.
Hearing my answer, she tugged on my collar and asked, "Favorite song?"
"Sanada Nobuyuki's 'White Fall in Love'."
"Who do you like?"
Thud-
I stopped in my tracks.
I didn't understand her intention behind such a sudden question.
But since she was on my back, I couldn't see her expression. Soon, she spoke.
"Hehe, just kidding."
"......"
I had noticed her feelings for a while now, so I knew she wasn't really kidding.
But I was inwardly relieved that she had taken a step back.
If she had confessed right now, I would have had no choice but to reject her, just like with Minato.
Right after, Rika hugged my neck tightly and said, "Did your heart flutter, even a little?"
I nodded honestly.
"Yeah. It did."
"...Then I'm glad."
With that, Rika buried her face in my shoulder.
After that, we didn't exchange another word until we reached the inn.
*
When we arrived at the inn, Rika said she could walk on her own and got off my back.
I had intended to carry her all the way to the girls' room, but she adamantly refused, so I had no choice.
Just before heading to her room, Rika handed me the cardigan, saying she'd worn it well.
I took the cardigan, still warm from her, and waved goodbye.
Rika replied, "You too, Ryu-chan, good night," with a bright smile, then disappeared down the hall.
I only stopped waving after she was completely out of sight.
"......"
Being left alone, I felt a little empty.
It was also proof of how significant Rika's presence was.
I glanced at the hands of the grandfather clock, which now pointed to 3 a.m., and decided to head back to my room.
Perhaps because of the long walk, I felt a pleasant sense of fatigue.
I felt like I'd be able to sleep soundly until morning.
*
After my late-night walk, I woke up again at 8 a.m.
Compared to my routine at home, it was incredibly late, but I didn't feel the need to stick to my usual schedule when I'd come all this way to have fun.
After waking up late, we gathered in the dining hall for a simple breakfast.
Well-toasted bread, eggs and sausage, and a cup of coffee.
It was a Western-style breakfast that didn't quite match the distinctly Eastern atmosphere of the guesthouse.
After breakfast, we headed straight to the beach to enjoy the time we had left.
There, instead of doing our own things like yesterday, we all gathered to do some watermelon splitting.
'Watermelon splitting on the beach.'
A classic activity that always comes to mind in the summer.
We had already prepared a perfectly ripe watermelon, so all we needed was a stick.
But since we didn't have a stick, we decided to make do with what we had, changing the rules so that I would split the watermelon myself.
The result—
Crack!
I ended up showing everyone the sight of a watermelon being split with sheer grip strength.
"Amazing!"
Ryuji, who was watching, exclaimed in pure admiration.
"Seriously, what kind of grip strength is that?"
The Class President, looking dumbfounded, went to push up her glasses before realizing she was wearing contacts and awkwardly lowered her hand.
Afterward, I held out the ripe, red flesh of the watermelon and said, "It's fine to be surprised, but let's eat first."
At that, the group rushed in and started demolishing the watermelon.