The Weight of Affection
Monday passed, and Tuesday arrived. After the heated night that stretched into the early hours, today would’ve been perfect if it were the weekend. But things never line up that neatly. Students have to go to school on weekdays, after all.
So, after waking up in the same bed, showering together, and finishing a simple breakfast, Seo Ahyeon and I strolled leisurely to school, trading light small talk.
“Haa, seriously… Everything’s great when I’m with you, but every morning after, my back feels like it’s about to snap.” She reached behind her and gave her hips a couple of light taps, letting out a pained groan. I chuckled softly in response.
“Quit exaggerating. You’re getting used to it by now.”
“Exaggerating?! This actually hurts, you know?”
When she puffed up with mock indignation, eyes flashing, I played along, teasing her just enough.
‘……Hmm.’
I casually pulled out my smartphone, checking the screen at an angle she couldn’t see. After all, I’d sent Kim Minjun a little farewell gift last night—a video, part revenge, part goodbye. I hadn’t expected a warm reaction, but……
‘Still no reply.’
Surprisingly, Kim Minjun hadn’t responded to my blatant provocation. The message had been read, yet there was nothing. Given his personality, I’d half-expected some vicious reply. Instead, he stayed silent. It left me oddly disappointed. If he’d lashed out without realizing his own faults, I’d been ready to tear into him. But the ending was anticlimactic.
I clicked my tongue quietly and turned my head—
“What are you so focused on?”
“……Whoa, you scared me.”
The moment I looked over, Seo Ahyeon’s face was much closer than I remembered. I flinched. That split-second delay cost me. She’d already glanced at my phone screen.
“Ah……” she murmured. “I figured as much, but no reply, huh? Minjun’s still the same.”
“……Huh?”
Her follow-up caught me off guard. She’d apparently expected no response at all—completely opposite to my assumption. Noticing my puzzled expression, she gave a wry smile and explained.
“He might not look it, but he’s actually pretty timid. Especially around guys with builds like yours, Taeyang. He gets intimidated.”
“……? Who’s timid?”
That explanation didn’t help much. I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it. Timid? Kim Minjun? That was news to me. I’d never once gotten that impression.
‘Well, it’s not like I’ve been particularly close to him since falling into this world.’
Still, from everything I’d observed from a distance, “timid” didn’t fit. Seo Ahyeon tilted her head, smiling knowingly.
“Doesn’t suit him, does it?”
“……”
She pressed closer, playfully bumping her small shoulder against mine.
“But it’s true. Think about it. When you picture Minjun, it’s all him yelling at me, throwing tantrums, acting high and mighty, right?”
“……Yeah.”
“Yet after I told him we were breaking up—and even punched him—he hasn’t said a word. Quiet as a mouse.”
“Ah.”
Only after hearing the full picture did it click. If that was the case, maybe the “timid” label made sense after all. If he were the guy I thought he was, he would’ve exploded the moment she hit him. But her phone had stayed silent until today, and he hadn’t reacted to my video either……
In short, Seo Ahyeon was saying Kim Minjun was scared of both her and me. It wasn’t hard to believe—especially the latter.
‘I’ve lived pretty recklessly, after all.’
My appearance alone screamed delinquent, and my behavior hadn’t exactly been model-student material. If Kim Minjun was genuinely timid, it wasn’t strange he found me intimidating. Still, the idea that one of the original male leads was actually afraid of me felt strange—different from how Lee Hyeonseong or Jeong Jaeha treated me.
‘Those two…… They might dislike me, but they don’t seem scared.’
That contrast made Kim Minjun’s case feel even more peculiar. I was scratching my cheek, feeling oddly unsettled, when Seo Ahyeon looked up at me with her violet eyes, a strange light flickering in them.
“……Hey, Han Taeyang.”
“Yeah?”
She spoke as if Kim Minjun’s reaction no longer mattered much to her. Something else was more important.
I met her gaze, and she got straight to the point.
“You and me…… About our relationship going forward.”
“……Ah.”
“I have something I want to say about that.”
The moment I saw the nervous flush on her face, I cut in quickly.
“Wait, Seo Ahyeon. No, Ahyeon. Let me say it first.”
There was no way I wouldn’t know what she was about to bring up. If I hadn’t noticed, I’d be an idiot. If I pretended not to notice, I’d be a jerk. I was neither, and I had no intention of becoming the latter. So I started choosing my words carefully, ready to clarify our relationship.
I’d been thinking about this ever since I meddled in her relationship with Kim Minjun. If I’d caused this—if I’d pushed her into breaking up with him—then as a man, I had to take responsibility.
Just as I was about to speak, she stopped me.
“No. Let me say it first.”
“……”
Her eyes held a meaningful glint, her tone unusually firm. I froze with my lips parted.
“I know you care about me a lot. Even if that affection started as pity or sympathy…… that doesn’t make your kindness fake. I’m always grateful.”
Her opening was different from what I’d expected. I stood there, caught off guard, simply looking down at her. Then she smiled brightly, her affection for me plain to see.
“But you don’t love me so deeply that you feel you can’t live without me, right?”
“──.”
The truth I’d thought I’d hidden well—something I hadn’t even needed to hide—was laid bare before me without a trace of sadness. No, it was more like she’d stabbed straight through me.
‘……Why? No, how……’
For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. It felt like a direct hit to the chest. I hadn’t expected it. I hadn’t even considered that she might know.
I parted my lips at her calm smile and gentle gaze, but no words came out. I could neither confirm nor deny it. Silence was all I managed.
Soon, guilt toward her surged up inside me. I had no choice but to look away, fingertips brushing my temple. Her words—her insight—had read me perfectly. Seo Ahyeon really did understand me well……
‘……Haa.’
I swallowed a sigh and tried to keep my expression neutral, though I still couldn’t bring myself to meet her eyes directly.
To be honest…… yes. I did care for her, cherished her, saw her as a woman, and felt physical attraction too. It was deeper than the shallow affection the original protagonist might have felt for a heroine. As the possessed ‘Han Taeyang’—as myself—I had built real fondness based on the relationships and bonds formed in this new reality.
But if she asked whether that fondness was as deep and desperate as the love she felt for me…… Well. I couldn’t confidently say yes. I didn’t want to lie, after all.
That was my true feeling. I liked the girl standing before me, but it wasn’t the same weight of affection she carried. ……I hadn’t built my heart up to that level yet.
“Seo Ahyeon, I……”
I hadn’t looked in a mirror, but my complexion was probably terrible right now. Not quite pale, but noticeably dark. Guilt weighed on me. Even if it was for her sake, I’d been hiding my true feelings while starting a relationship.
‘No, maybe it’s even worse than that.’
If she’d already seen through me, then perhaps it was even more despicable. I bit my lip, forcing back the heavy sigh that threatened to escape.
“Pfft.”
“……”
Just then, a laugh reached my ears—playful, mischievous, almost coquettish. I looked up, dumbfounded.
“Ahaha, seriously. Why are you making that face? Did you do something wrong? No, you didn’t.”
“……Ahyeon.”
Seo Ahyeon was laughing so hard she had to wipe tears from her eyes, genuinely amused by the situation. While I stood there flustered and sweating, she spoke with a bright expression.
“It’s not like I was even scolding you. Why are you so adorably nervous? Did I say anything about you not loving me?”
“……”
“What I wanted to talk about wasn’t that…… Hmm, yeah. I just wanted to have a more constructive conversation about our relationship.”
She clasped her hands behind her back, took a step closer, and tilted her chin up. Clearly enjoying my flustered expression, she continued with a grin.
“You know I like you, right? Han Taeyang.”
“……”
“Answer me.”
“……I know.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
She nodded in satisfaction after coaxing an answer out of me while I was still reeling.
“That’s enough for now. You seem to see me as a romantic prospect anyway…… I can wait as long as it takes.”
“……”
“Plus, I’m confident. Even if it takes months, I’ll have you completely wrapped around my finger by the end of the year at latest.”
With that, she reached out and lightly tapped the bridge of my nose with her slender finger.
“So don’t feel pressured. There’s no need for you to force yourself into a relationship with me right now.”
“……You……”
“Honestly, I’m still the girl who had a boyfriend until yesterday. Wanting more than this would be greedy.”
“Huu—!”
After saying her piece, she stretched with a refreshed expression and stepped back. Then—
“Ah, and one more thing.”
She winked at me cutely and delivered one final, confident flirt.
“Baek Seolah or any other girl I don’t know yet—it doesn’t matter. If you want, you can play around as much as you like for a while.”
“What.”
“After all, soon enough…… I’ll make it so you can’t live without me. I’ll do it myself.”
So look forward to it, Han Taeyang.
With that alluring smile, she tempted me, then flashed a confident eye-smile. I stared at her for a moment, speechless at her generous and deeply appreciated words.
“……Yeah.”
Before long, I found myself smiling helplessly, feeling a strange sense of pride at how much she’d grown mentally. I nodded easily.
“I’ll be looking forward to it, Seo Ahyeon.”
Even as a certain premonition formed in my mind. Honestly, it didn’t matter how hard she tried. Though my feelings were still closer to fondness than love right now…… I had a feeling that in the near future, I would come to truly love this girl as well.
I wore a relaxed smile, hiding the thought that would’ve turned her face bright red if she’d heard it.
*****
And so, the long, affectionate walk to school finally neared its end. Roughly ten minutes remained before class started in the second-year Class B classroom.
“Han Taeyang.”
Baek Seolah approached my seat with her usual graceful steps, twirling a strand of her snow-white hair around her finger. She spoke loud enough for the person sitting next to me to hear.
“This weekend…… You didn’t forget we’re going on a date, right? I’ll be waiting for my escort.”
Her intention was painfully transparent, her voice dripping with amusement.
“Huh?”
From the seat beside me came a terrifying crunch—something being crushed. I broke into a cold sweat, deliberately avoiding the person who’d just turned the corner of their desk to dust. But Seo Ahyeon’s chilling glare, which had been fixed on Baek Seolah, now turned toward me as well.
……She looked ready to grab a kitchen knife and stab me at any moment.
I swallowed dryly at the sharp, murderous aura that sent chills down my spine.
‘Ahyeon, Ahyeon……’
Just moments ago, she’d said she could wait as long as it took. That Baek Seolah or any other girl didn’t matter. Had she been lying to me?