You Don't Listen to Rock (4)
"Cute."
My head was being ruffled, but Haneul swatted his hand away and gestured for him to bring the mic.
As if born an insider, the guy grinned sweetly in response to my provocation. "People might find you even cuter, though?"
"Obviously."
Taking the dis with pride— that's hip-hop. You bury the wounds in your chest and meet the words with a perfectly blank expression.
"Kyaaah!!"
"Be my girlfriend!"
"Do aegyo for me!"
"Shibam! I'll raise you!"
"Let's date, hyung!"
Hmm. I'd been hearing some weird stuff since the middle, but it really didn't bother me at all.
"Haneul senior had such a cool resolve, after all! Then how about you, Yujin senior? Say something representing the Blue team!"
Following the underclassman's lead, Haneul passed the mic to the guy. Reversing the order, I looked at Haneul first, then shifted my gaze to the friends standing out on the field.
After letting my voice go quiet, I spoke calmly. "You said you'd show us the difference in class. The only thing we can win with a class gap is tug-of-war, though."
*Pff—.*
"We'd win everything and it'd be boring, wouldn't it? I'll let you have that one so the White team can have some fun too."
I snorted with the most uncool expression I could manage.
"Cool guy! Cool guy!"
"Damn sexy, my baby!"
"King! You can't beat us!"
"Shiieeeeiit!!"
"Uuuuuh!!"
"Go home, baby!"
Way more heated reactions than I expected.
"I love the way you act all cool!"
"Do aegogo, do aegogo!"
"Because you said let's date your hyung?!"
Someone poured cold water on that— the toxic Yujin moms had been raising their voices since earlier, but swallowing even that was hip-hop.
Shh. I made a gesture and locked my eyes on them. I didn't so much as twitch my lips until everyone went quiet, and only then did I pull my finger from my lips.
"One more thing."
*Whip.*
"I'd been waiting for football, but you ran off to tug-of-war instead. I mean, if the only thing you can win with a class gap is that, you gotta try hard, right?"
I turned my body and leaned against the railing, looking at Haneul. He met my eyes with that same sunny smile as always.
"See you at the relay. My Blue team and I will crush you."
I nodded sharply and sent him an arrogant look straight out of a mid-high teen drama.
"Student council annihilation war started?!?!"
"Seol Yujin! Seol Yujin!"
"Are you out of your mind?!"
"So damn cool!!"
"Let's date, hyung!!"
The effect was tremendous.
* * *
…except I almost lost at football.
"Uwaaaah!!"
"3-on-3 match over! The first Blue-White battle will be decided by penalty kicks!!"
The whistle blew the instant the White team's attack hit the goalpost and bounced off.
Definitely not easy—their defense was sloppy, but with two forwards up front, they weren't pushovers. If we hadn't managed to score a late equalizer and everyone hadn't committed to defense, we'd have lost for sure.
"Yusukeee…!"
"…Nice play. How did you even hold on?"
The soulmate duo, Min-ho and I, slapped each other's hands and caught our breath. The temperature had climbed a full two degrees since yesterday, and there wasn't a cloud or a breeze in sight. No matter how small the field was, constantly moving around made it a real endurance test. I swept my bangs aside and wiped the sweat from my forehead.
I glanced toward the stands beside the Guryeongdae. Without anything to block the Blue-White view, everyone was in a state of excitement. Naturally, my gaze leaned a little more toward our team on the left side…
"That's my baby…! That's my baby right there!!"
It was you, President of the Toxic Yujin Moms.
"Yujin-ah!! That was so cool!!"
My childhood friend, jumping up from her seat and flapping around. I appreciate the cheering, but you're being such a nuisance I can't even watch properly.
"…Yeah. Thanks."
"Go score on their goalposts!!"
Sorry, but even our hyung couldn't do that.
"…Huff."
I chugged an ion drink can I'd been cooling in ice water in one go. A sideways glance at the opposing side showed the two forwards grimacing with all their might. For the two of them, failing to finish it in extra time was a scratch on their pride, apparently. I didn't know their skill level, but those two aces couldn't keep their emotions in check, and it was tanking their team's mood.
"A fiercely contested match from the very first event! And to prove that intensity, a heat haze is rising over the field right now."
"Just one step until the first victory! Whose victory goddess will smile upon them?"
I really hope you two end up in broadcasting. Your smooth hosting is making me want to apply. I was finding my composure listening to the two underclassmen's commentary when the whistle blew. I tossed the can and gathered at the teacher's spot. Our Blue team was up first.
"Yujin-ah, which way should I kick it?"
The first runner came to me right before his kick. Our team's average was solid across the board. Somewhere else it might be seen as a weakness, but this is a middle school for ping-pong football. Unlike the other side where the two forwards had been carrying things, penalty kicks were overwhelmingly in our favor.
"Kick it decently hard, except for the center. If you have to pick, aim for the left—you're good with that side. And when the whistle blows, take two deep breaths before you kick."
"Okay…!"
I tapped the tense friend's shoulder lightly and stepped back. The whistle blew, and he kicked the ball hard after two deep breaths just as promised.
*Whoosh—!*
"Blue team's first attack goes in perfectly!!"
"Senior Hojun cleanly breaks the start!!"
Total success. Hojun raised his fist to the cheering.
"Siiiberr…."
"Tighhh…."
But there was no time to celebrate—the rest of our team, starting with the goalkeeper, were swallowing their tension by the bucketful.
"What are you so nervous about? It's just a sports day."
I had no choice but to defuse the tension myself.
"They're worse than us anyway. Those two might fall for it, but the others are worth playing against, aren't they? What are we, that we couldn't get past them?"
"…Cool guy thing. Doesn't look back. Those guys are natural disasters, so just go get the ball and come back."
"Cool guy thing. Doesn't cling to past events. Copy that."
As expected, one of the forwards stepped up as the first runner to set the mood and nailed it. But look at our jerseys.
"…Cool guy thing. Doesn't get excited even when scoring."
"SIUUUUUUUU!!"
"Juuuuuu!!"
If they score, fine—bounce it back. Next time, stop it.
"…Cool guy thing. Doesn't care even after two misses."
"Your mindset is fire right now, Min-jae."
"That's me."
Whatever. Scored again? Then just do better next time. I kept feeding them that winning mentality, repeat after repeat, until…
"YUSKEEEE!!"
"Our neighborhood hero!!"
"End it already!!"
Before long, the score was 4-3. Thanks to our cool guy goalkeeper Min-jae, we had a chance to finish it. The fifth kicker was me.
*Thwack, thud—*
I stretched my ankle after lightly pushing off the ground with my toes and lifted my head. Closing my eyes, I steadied my breathing a couple of times. A cool breeze started to pick up—southeast wind, perfect for cooling sweat.
"Yujin-ah!!"
I swept my bangs aside and turned my head. There was my childhood friend, shaking an cheering stick with all her might—I had no idea where she'd gotten it. While I was about to deliver one clean, focused kick for the victory—
"One, two, three."
A group of girls bunched together started a countdown that made no sense.
"Yujin-ah!! Yujin has something to say!!"
Then a piercing shriek burst out. I couldn't help but turn my head back toward that side again. Yeah. My gaze had been weirdly centered on that childhood friend from the very start.
"Seol Yujin!!"
You called my name. For all her incredible voice, the reflexive thought that popped into my head was whether it was really okay to shout that loud right before a performance—
"If you miss, you're dead to Eye-kid!!"
You smile with shallow dimples. Those big eyes narrow so softly it's like you can't find them, and your lips curve into a crescent, so your laughter spreads out crisp and clean. The way you laugh—unchanged since the day we first met. It's a world that doesn't match me at all, a person who doesn't laugh easily…
But as is commonly known, smiles are contagious. I don't know the science behind it, but the fact that I keep catching myself smirking on the days I spend time with you is proof enough, and evidence enough.
"Let's see at football time."
Right—just like now. *Click—* I stood in front of the line. All I could see were the ball, the goal, and the goalkeeper in between. That's all it was. I'd been playing to win from the start, so what other thoughts could I possibly need?
*Beep!!* The moment the whistle blew, I stepped up. The goalkeeper shifted nervously, so where to kick was crystal clear. I went straight at him.
*Whoosh———.*
And just as I'd declared, I brought the victory.
"Match over!!"
"Senior Yujin's clean shot earns the Blue team their first victory!!"
A thunderous trumpet and a burst of cheers. Especially the other Blue team members who'd been brutally defeated on the opposing side reacted so enthusiastically that to any outsider it looked like the sports day was already over.
"We won one, so what. We're cool guys, so we don't flail around like that——."
"YUSKEEEE!!"
No, we did.
"We won!!"
"Crazy bastard. You went head-on?"
"You told us to wait and kick, but what's with that random full-power shot?!"
The guys from the neighboring class all came running at Min-ho at once. Normally I'd dodge saying his sweat stinks, but how could I do that to friends I'd just played a match with?
"YUSKEEEE!!"
Fine. Let's run. After finishing up with the opposing team, I bolted away from Min-ho, who acted like he was some kind of hero, heading straight for the bench. The kids were still buzzing with the heat of the match, so the bench was all mine.
I was planning to cool off and drink some water while wiping my face, when—
"Ptoo. Then my hard-earned painting job gets erased."
From the other side of the bench. A mischievous voice, and a little peek of slightly green-tinted hair.
I let out an involuntary snort looking into those wide, blinking eyes. "What are you doing here when it's your turn next?"
"I'm so hot my arms and neck are all sweaty, so I figured I'd splash some water on my scarf too."
"But if you're gonna wet your scarf, isn't the ice water right there way better?"
"…Oh, yeah?"
Yujin's eyes blinked like there was a delay. I know it's a bit much for her to be spacing out like that, but this was exactly the princess and childhood friend I knew.
"Ugh."
"Huh?!"
Water splashed across my face out of nowhere. A stream that would normally stop after one hit just kept pouring. Water is life. Is it even okay to mess with life like that?
"My eyes— it got in my eyes…?!"
I reflexively raised my arms to block it, and only then did the stream finally subside. I dabbed my face with my T-shirt and looked forward— the little rascal was gone.
"Yuseol~!"
I turned my head toward where the voice was coming from. The little rascal who'd somehow sprinted all the way to the center of the field was waving at me with everything she had, her friends pushed behind her.
"Leave the next one to this Eye-kid! And you have to cheer hard~!"
Yeah. Always smiling that bright smile…
That was the you I knew.