Chapter 10
Chapter 10
I had definitely heard those words before. That voice, that exact intonation. Something tried to surface like a sense of déjà vu, but it crumbled away before it could become clear. What was it?
“Come on, hurry.”
At his continued urging, I cautiously picked up a macaron. For a brief moment, my fingers brushed against Jae-gyu’s warm palm. A strange sensation washed over me, and heat rose to my face.
“Um. Thank you for today.”
When only ice remained in the strawberry latte, Jae-gyu, who had been staring intently at Bom’s now-dry cheeks, finally spoke.
“Were you crying because you were thinking of me earlier? You know, longing, or something like that.”
Of course. He never missed an opportunity to ruin a touching moment.
“...Don’t say such weird things.”
Bom forced Jae-gyu to stand up. Seeing him start with the nonsense, it was obvious he was looking for another way to tease her. It was better to just send him home.
“Whoa, hey.” Pushed by Bom, Jae-gyu stumbled down the stairs, chuckling as he waved his hand for her to go back inside.
He always exits like that. Feeling like she had finally figured out his pattern, Bom let out a small smile.
“Ms. Bom-Bom. I’ll find my own way out, so please, head on in.”
“Yes, get home safely.”
Bom watched Jae-gyu head down for a moment before turning back. As she was about to open the front door, her eyes fell on the money tree next to the wooden bench.
She walked over and crouched in front of it. She hadn’t given it any attention since receiving it as a gift, but somehow, it had grown significantly taller than when it first arrived.
The sun was getting stronger, so she checked to see if it had dried out, but it looked perfectly healthy. Bom felt a sense of pride, thinking she had chosen a good name for it.
“Jae-gyu. Do you want a drink?”
Bom quickly turned on the rooftop tap and sprinkled water over the money tree, Jae-gyu.
Just then, someone was coming up the stairs. Startled by the sound of someone running up, Bom turned off the water and stood there, her face pale.
“Hey.”
The person who appeared at the top of the stairs was Jae-gyu again. Bom snapped at him, her voice laced with annoyance.
“Ha! What the—? You scared me.”
Her heart had nearly dropped, thinking it might be someone dangerous. It also bothered her that he had caught her tending to the money tree.
“Are you doing this for fun? Why are you back?”
She crossed her arms, speaking as bluntly as possible.
“Well, the thing is...”
“...Mr. Jae-gyu? What’s wrong?”
Bom, who had been venting her frustration, noticed that the atmosphere around Jae-gyu had changed.
The man who had been grinning foolishly was nowhere to be seen. With his composure gone, Jae-gyu stood there, hesitating to speak.
Did something bad happen? She approached him, her eyes wide with concern.
“Is something the matter?”
“Actually...”
Jae-gyu couldn’t answer immediately even at her prompt. After a long hesitation, he let out a sigh and blurted out:
“Could you... help me get my car out?”
This was the reason for the dark expression? She was speechless.
“I thought you were the ‘Parking King.’”
“I managed to squeeze it in there confidently enough, but it’s being a real pain to get out.”
Bom followed a sweating Jae-gyu downstairs. It had seemed strange from the start that he’d managed to cram his car into such an impossible spot.
It looked like there was no way out, but Jae-gyu got into the driver’s seat and rolled the window all the way down.
“Right, just watch from there...”
“Oh, okay.”
“I’m going to pull out, so just give me an ‘all right.’”
“What?”
The car body squeezed out of the narrow gap, but the outdoor sink area blocked the path ahead.
Watching the car come perilously close to a collision, Bom finally managed to squeeze out a voice after much hesitation.
“All... right...”
She felt ridiculous for actually doing what he asked.
Even though no one was watching, the back of her neck felt hot. Unaware of her embarrassment, Jae-gyu stuck his head out and shouted.
“Huh? What was that? I can’t hear you!”
“All right...”
“Yeah, louder, louder!”
Despite the car being stuck, Jae-gyu was as skilled at driving as he had boasted.
He turned and straightened the steering wheel repeatedly, expertly avoiding the areas where he might hit something.
It looked like he might actually make it out with just a little more effort.
Bom didn’t know much about cars, but she knew that was a Porsche Panamera. She wouldn’t feel right if such an expensive car got scratched while he was trying to drop her off.
She decided she had no choice but to cooperate.
“All right! All right!”
Though she had started by muttering it out of embarrassment, Bom found herself getting caught up in the tension as the car neared freedom. Her voice grew louder.
“Good! Just a little more! All right!”
“Okie-dokie!”
Clenching her fists and giving hand signals, Bom worked in perfect sync with Jae-gyu.
“Heave-ho!”
Finally, Jae-gyu cleared the sink area by a hair’s breadth and pulled out.
“Ah, Mr. Jae-gyu! You did it!”
When all four wheels were safely out, Bom was so overcome with excitement that she almost clapped.
“Thank you. This is all thanks to your hard work, Ms. Bom.”
Jae-gyu leaned out and gave Bom a big thumbs-up.
“Oh, no. You’re a great driver. Honestly, I didn’t think you’d be able to get it out.”
“I told you, I’m the Parking King.”
“...”
Jae-gyu stared at Bom, his gaze lingering on her ears, which were flushed red with embarrassment. His Adam’s apple bobbed slowly.
“Ha...”
He let out a slow groan, a pained expression crossing his face. His intense gaze didn't pull away until much later.
“Ah, I finally managed to calm it down...”
Muttering something incomprehensible, Jae-gyu wiped his face with a dry hand.
“Sigh... I’m leaving.”
“Oh.”
Leaving behind only those three words in a strained voice, Jae-gyu rolled up the window and sped away.
It happened in an instant. Bom could only stand there blankly, watching his car disappear. She was dazed.
“What the—he just left. Didn’t even give me a chance to say goodbye...”
It had been a bit chaotic, but now that she had seen his car definitely leave, it felt like the day was finally over.
After tidying up the rooftop, Bom went back inside. She took out the macarons Jae-gyu had given her and took a bite.
It’s delicious.
She thought it would be banana-flavored because it was yellow, but a refreshing scent and a tart flavor filled her mouth. It was lemon.
The macarons from the village community cafe were better than she expected. A soft smile played on Bom’s lips as she chewed.
Sweet things really did work. Her tears had long since dried.
⋆★⋆
“Ms. Bom. Is this it? Just five people?”
Jung Jin-hyuk, the homeroom teacher of Class 3, took the camera away from his eye and asked again. Bom nodded and lined the students up.
“Hmm. The background looks decent, though...”
The decorative wind turbine object placed in front of the Science Hall looked like a real wind power plant in the photo.
“Okay, taking the picture now.”
“Wait a second, Mr. Jung.”
Bom hurriedly unfurled a banner and had Han-gyeol hold the left end and Se-jin hold the right.
Flutter.
The banner, printed with the words ‘Greennarae Green Energy Club Inauguration Ceremony,’ flapped in the breeze.
“Haha. When did you prepare something like this?”
“The Vice Principal said it would be good to have a banner...”
It wasn’t something she had wanted to do, but now that it was ready, it didn’t look too bad. Unlike last year, there were suddenly many more things to worry about this year. One of them was this Greennarae club.
“Ms. Bom, why don’t you stand there between Han-gyeol and Se-jin? The advisor should be in the photo too.”
“Oh, okay.”
Bom stepped away from the camera and stood behind the banner.
“Oh? Wait a second! Let me wipe the lens first!”
While waiting, Bom stole a glance at Se-jin’s expression. She wondered why Se-jin, whose goal was to enter law school, had joined this club.
Since Se-jin had just left the application on her desk the day after Han-gyeol joined, Bom hadn't had a chance to ask.
“Hey. You.”
Oh Dong-pyo, a senior standing behind Se-jin, lowered his voice. Bom pricked up her ears.
“You like him, don’t you? Just curious.”
Him? Just as Bom was wondering who he meant, Dong-pyo gestured with his chin toward Han-gyeol.
Turning her head back, Bom was startled to see Se-jin’s eyes widen. Seeing Se-jin looking visibly flustered, it seemed there was no mistake. Her curiosity was satisfied in an instant.
So Se-jin likes Han-gyeol. How did Oh Dong-pyo figure that out at a single glance? He’s so quick-witted.
Horrified, Se-jin hissed at Dong-pyo in a low voice.
“What are you talking about? Watch your mouth.”
“Tsk, I’m never wrong.”
“Whatever, just be quiet.”
“See? You’re not saying no.”
While they were bickering, Mr. Jung, who had finished wiping the lens, took his position again.
“Taking it for real now! Okay, smile! You twins back there! Smile!”
At his shout, Dae-han and Min-guk, standing in the back, grumbled.
“Why are we making such a big deal out of a photo?”
Seon Han-gyeol, Choi Se-jin, Oh Dong-pyo, Kim Dae-han, Kim Min-guk.
These five were the entirety of Greennarae’s membership.
The activity wouldn't end with just this one photo. Moving forward, they had to conduct green energy-related activities, go on field trips, and even submit reports.
She had been completely tricked by Seo Young-ju, the Head of Academic Affairs. But since she had already started, it was too late to back out.
“Ah, Teacher. Hurry up and take it.”
“Hey, hey, kids. This is a photo we have to report to the Office of Education later, so let’s all smile. Okay?”
“Yeaaaah...”
Amidst the reluctant, drawn-out replies, Bom also forced her lips into a smile.
“O-kay. Done.”
“Thank you.”
It seemed the photo turned out well enough, as Mr. Jung closed the lens cap with a satisfied expression.
“Ms. Bom. Clean up quickly and come to the seminar room. We need to go see the handsome prosecutor. What was his name again? Ah, Prosecutor Choi Yi-jun!”