A Sudden Pop Quiz, But It's Fine (3)
Unlike Jihyeok and Yoona, who both wore relaxed expressions, the other students were visibly tense. They stared at their textbooks as if trying to bore holes through the pages right up until the pop quiz began. A moderate level of tension could help improve performance, but cramming desperately until the very last second like the students in this classroom often backfired due to excessive stress.
“Huuu…”
Yoona took a deep breath after hearing Jihyeok’s earlier advice: “Studying like you’re cramming right before a test actually makes things worse. Trust yourself and keep just the right amount of tension. That’s all you need.” She repeated his words in her head and finished her final review.
Once everyone was ready, the classroom door burst open. The Korean language teacher—the very cause of this chaos—strode in.
“Alright! Is everyone prepared?”
She fixed an enormous sheet of paper covered in questions to the blackboard with magnets, then distributed the written answer sheets according to the number of students.
“Since this is a surprise pop quiz and I’ve carefully selected only the most ridiculously difficult problems in history, we’ll be doing this open-book!”
“You should’ve told us that in advance!”
“It’s a surprise, you dummies! Hahaha!”
“If I’d known the difficulty would drop like this, I wouldn’t have overprepared!”
Students erupted in complaints over the sudden easing of difficulty.
“Oh? Feeling confident, are we? Want me to take away the open-book option and make it a proper test?”
“Thank you so much, teach!”
“As expected of our Korean teacher! I was so shocked I almost felt happy!”
“There’s no teacher better than you!”
“…Look at how fast these kids flip. That’s straight-up Udyr level.”
At the teacher’s not-quite-a-threat, the students immediately shut up and pulled out their textbooks, ready for the test.
“The questions are exactly as written on the board! As I said, anyone who gets more than six wrong will have to study the rest of the material! About sixty students from other classes failed last time, so you can see how hard these are. Pay close attention!”
The moment the class bell rang, the teacher announced she would collect the answer sheets immediately, and the pop quiz officially began.
As soon as it started, Jihyeok looked at the blackboard and began committing the questions to memory. Seven of the problems were ones he had personally selected. Since the questions were designed so their difficulty varied based on the student’s level of understanding, he could clearly see both the question-setter’s intention and the teacher’s reasoning for creating this surprise test.
This is simple enough.
The final three questions were a bit complex, but Jihyeok understood them instantly. With a confident expression, he began solving the problems. Twenty minutes later—
…Perfect.
After completing his final review, Jihyeok flipped his answer sheet over and gave the teacher a look that said he was finished. The teacher nodded and shot him a thumbs-up.
With time to spare, Jihyeok glanced at Yoona to check her progress.
“…”
Watching her silently alternate between the questions and her answer sheet as she wrote down answers, he could tell just how hard she had worked. Seeing the determination on her face—the same girl who used to struggle so much with this unit, now refusing to accept anything less than a passing grade—Jihyeok smiled softly.
Does she want to kiss that badly…?
Skinship with someone he liked was something Jihyeok actually wanted too. Even a simple peck made his heart race with immense satisfaction. The thought of kissing his beautiful girlfriend Yoona on the way home from school made him want even more.
Yoona seemed like she would agree to anything he suggested. She was completely smitten with him, and Jihyeok’s own feelings for her were steadily growing stronger. These days, if Yoona wasn’t by his side, a corner of his heart felt empty.
That was why he sincerely hoped she would pass in one go. Only then could he give her the gift he had prepared.
As he watched her solve the problems, the bell signaling the end of sixth period rang.
“Alright! Everyone stop writing! Pass your sheets forward starting from the back!”
After collecting all the answer sheets, the Korean teacher left the classroom with these parting words:
“I’ll tell your homeroom teacher the results during the end-of-day homeroom, so keep that in mind! Good work, everyone!”
“Thank you!”
Once the open-book pop quiz was over, the students collapsed onto their desks as if utterly exhausted. Yoona seemed just as drained; she leaned her head on Jihyeok’s shoulder and let out a long sigh.
“Haaaa… I feel so tired…”
“You worked hard, Yoona.”
“Yeah…”
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a gentle hug. Yoona savored his touch as she rested. Breathing in the unique scent that came only from the nape of his neck, she asked,
“When did you finish, boyfriend?”
“Hmm… including the final review, it took about twenty minutes.”
“…That fast?”
“The last three questions were a little tricky. The rest were things I already knew, so I solved them without even using the textbook.”
“Wow… that’s amazing.”
“After reading them a few times, even the last ones weren’t that hard. So I wrote everything down quickly and just relaxed. While watching you.”
“…Huh? While watching me?”
“Yeah. You look pretty and cute when you’re solving problems.”
“…Don’t say things like that. …It makes me want to kiss you.”
At Yoona’s unintentional display of cuteness, Jihyeok let out a small laugh and carefully kissed her on the cheek.
Chu.
“Like this?”
“…No. Like this.”
Yoona pressed herself tightly against him, cupped his face with both hands, and kissed him on the lips.
Chuuu.
The sound was a little loud. Worried that their classmates might have heard, Jihyeok glanced around. Everyone was still face-down on their desks with no reaction at all. They seemed to have zero energy left to care.
“Why are you so timid, boyfriend?”
“…It’s because you’re way too aggressive, Yoona.”
“So? Do you hate it?”
“No.”
If no one had been around, they could have spent the rest of the school day exchanging light kisses. Thanks to Yoona, Jihyeok had grown surprisingly immune to skinship. She continued to steal occasional kisses from him as she recovered her stamina. By the time seventh period began, she had fully regained the energy she’d had before the test.
“Thanks for the stamina recharge~”
“…Next time you’re exhausted, I guess I’ll have to kiss you all day.”
“Hehe. Maybe?”
As the students who had been lying on their desks began to sit up one by one, their homeroom teacher entered instead of the English teacher.
“Huh? Isn’t this English class?”
“I’m borrowing one minute. Everyone, wake up and sit properly.”
Once even the sleeping students had roused themselves, the homeroom teacher spoke.
“Starting next week, we’ll begin club activities every Wednesday. You’re free to choose which club to join, but each of you must participate in at least one, so pick one that suits you well and get involved!”
“Can we know what clubs are available?”
“I’ll post the list in the class chat. Look at that and use it as reference.”
“Okay.”
“That’s all I had to say. See you after seventh period!”
“Yes!”
The moment the homeroom teacher left, the English teacher walked in.
“You heard about the clubs, right?”
“Yes. Are you joining a club too, ma’am?”
“Well… I’ll probably be an advisor. If there are any English-related clubs, I’ll have to join and manage them.”
“What if there are multiple English clubs?”
“Just join whichever one looks the most fun!”
“Ah, I see.”
The English teacher opened her textbook and began the lesson.
“Alright, let’s get through the material!”
By the end of seventh period, tension hung over the faces of students who had been looking forward to going home. The reason was simple: today’s pop quiz results would decide whether they could leave on time.
When the homeroom teacher entered through the front door, her expression was one of great amusement. Students who couldn’t read that look clutched their heads, muttering,
“Please… please…”
“I can’t fail… anything but that…”
“Pass or give me death…”
…Don’t curse like that.
Before starting the end-of-day homeroom, the teacher drew the students’ attention to announce the pop quiz results.
“You all worked hard on that surprise quiz. The Korean teacher asked me to deliver the results for her.”
Jihyeok, who already knew the outcome, and a confident-looking Yoona had already finished preparing to head home.
“From the looks on your faces, she said it was clear how hard everyone tried. So she asked me to just announce it clearly.”
The students began to feel such extreme tension that their hearts seemed ready to burst. Seeing their state, the homeroom teacher didn’t drag it out.
“Only the cleaning duty students need to stay. Everyone else can go home. Congratulations—you all passed!”
At those words, the students jumped from their seats and cheered wildly.
“Waaaaaaaaaah!!!!!”
“We’re going hoooooooome!!!!!”
“Mom!!! I did iiiiiiiiiit!!!!!”
“Humanity has triumphed!!!!!”
Watching the students react in all sorts of ways, the teacher smiled and left the classroom. The students then swarmed toward Jihyeok and began hugging him.
“Jihyeok, it’s all thanks to you. Seriously!”
“I’m going to call you our savior from now on!”
“Oh god! Thank youuuuu!”
Jihyeok was completely flustered by the sudden group hug.
“G-guys?! I get that you’re grateful, but… let go! It hurts!”
As his friends squeezed his neck like they were trying to choke him and he neared the point of being crushed, Yoona grabbed his arm and pulled him into her embrace to rescue him.
“My boyfriend looks like he’s having a hard time. I know you’re happy, but look at the state he’s in.”
Seeing Jihyeok nearly suffocated, the classmates immediately began apologizing. Their excitement had simply gotten the better of them.
“…Sorry.”
“I got too excited. My bad, Jihyeok.”
“I couldn’t control my tension. My mistake.”
Yoona nodded and spoke to the friends.
“I’ll take care of Jihyeok, so you all head home. Good work today~”
“Yeah. Take good care of him.”
“I’m jealous of guys with girlfriends. For real.”
“Then get one.”
“With this face? Yeah right.”
“Ah. Fair point.”
“Hey. You. Come here.”
Finally regaining his composure, Jihyeok looked at Yoona and said,
“Whew… I almost died. Thanks for saving me, Yoona.”
“My boyfriend was in danger, so of course I had to rescue him~”
“Haha… You worked hard today, Yoona.”
“You worked hard too, boyfriend~”
With the day’s events finally over, Jihyeok and Yoona grabbed their bags and left the school.
“I didn’t expect everyone to pass.”
“It’s all because my boyfriend explained everything so well. You even covered the parts they were weak in, right?”
“When you look at their answer sheets, you can see exactly where they’re lacking. I just taught them based on that.”
“The kids were so grateful to you.”
“Yeah… I really thought I was going to die back there…”
“Hehe.”
They chatted about everything that had happened at school and before they knew it, they had arrived home. Standing in front of the house, Jihyeok took Yoona’s hand and led her to a quiet, secluded spot.
Yoona was startled by his sudden action, but she quickly remembered. He had promised to kiss her after school. Just thinking about it made her cheeks flush and her heart race.
Jihyeok stopped behind a building where no one ever went and took both of Yoona’s hands.
“…It’s time to keep my promise.”
“…Yeah.”
The thought of their first kiss, which was about to happen, made Jihyeok so nervous he swallowed dryly. It was Monday, March 28th. Eighteen days had passed since Jihyeok and Yoona started dating. He wondered if there were any other couples who waited eighteen whole days before kissing, but now that he was that couple, he felt a little embarrassed.
To ease some of his own shyness, Jihyeok said to Yoona,
“This is a reward for how hard you worked today, so… don’t think of me as some guy who’s desperate for this.”
“Pfft… I know~ You’re nervous, aren’t you?”
“It’s because I’m embarrassed… Cut me some slack…”
Holding her hand, Jihyeok took a deep breath and finally calmed his racing heart before looking at her.
“…”
When he saw Yoona gazing at him with loving eyes, he could feel her silent wish for him to make the first move. He didn’t want to keep her waiting any longer. She had worked so hard for this moment. He was endlessly grateful to have a girlfriend who loved him this much. He felt proud of her for trying so diligently while looking forward to the skinship he would give her.
Looking at her, Jihyeok gently placed his right hand on her cheek. He softly stroked it, signaling that he was ready.
“…Close your eyes.”
At his request, Yoona silently closed her eyes and slightly parted her lips. Jihyeok closed his eyes as well and slowly leaned in.
And then.
Their lips met.
Jihyeok didn’t stop there. He gently parted the lips that had touched hers and took her lower lip between his own.
“…Mmph.”
The unfamiliar sensation made Yoona let out a surprised little sound. But as if she liked it, she opened her mouth too, pressing her lips fully against his.
With no room for air to slip between them, they felt each other’s breath and the texture of their lover’s lips. Wanting to feel even more of each other, Jihyeok gently wrapped his arms around Yoona’s back while she lightly circled her arms around his neck.
The kiss with Jihyeok felt so intoxicating that Yoona nearly lost her mind. She wanted to slip her tongue into his mouth and taste him. But she knew that would probably startle him and end the kiss they were sharing right now, so—regretfully—she kept it like this. Because kissing Jihyeok was already incredibly… happy.
“Huuu…”
“Haa…”
It felt completely different from the light pecks they usually shared. The satisfaction of feeling their lover’s touch for such a long time. And the desire to enjoy it even more. These three emotions enveloped both Jihyeok and Yoona.
But they stopped there. It wasn’t like they could only kiss today. They would be together forever. They would remain lovers for the rest of their lives. …Moments like this could happen anytime.
And so their first kiss—filled with joy and happiness—came to an end.
The lingering sensation lasted quite a while. Instead of heading inside, they simply stayed in each other’s arms. Yoona had her face buried in Jihyeok’s chest, listening to his heartbeat, while Jihyeok gently stroked her hair, savoring the afterglow.
The long silence was finally broken by Jihyeok.
“We’re in trouble…”
“…Why?”
“I’m so happy… I think I might get addicted.”
“It’s okay if you get addicted… Whenever you want… I’ll do it for you…”
She was so happy that even catching her breath made it hard to speak properly. Jihyeok found her offer to kiss him whenever he wanted so adorable and touching that he said,
“…Thank you. And… I love you.”
He kissed her once more.
Chu.
Yoona seemed startled by the sudden kiss, but she quickly broke into a smile.
“Today’s events are going to appear in my dreams.”
“Same. It’s burned into my brain. I can’t forget it.”
“Really? Then I’ll have to kiss you often so that the only thing in your head is me.”
“…Only when no one’s around, please.”
“Got it, boyfriend~”
After their first kiss, only affection for each other began to bloom between them.