A sudden uproar—
The sound of waves crashing. It was a night at sea.
A ship navigating the darkened waters suddenly began to rock violently, as if an earthquake had struck the ocean.
"Scream!"
A sharp cry echoed.
Krrrrang!
As the sky roared, lightning struck the sea. In a flash, at the moment when the world seemed to tremble, a massive ship tilted to one side. Amidst the chaos aboard the tilting vessel, a deafening scream resounded. Then, a giant arm emerged from the sea.
"Ahh!"
Amidst the screams, the arm that pierced through the air reached the ship, swiftly grasping a person.
"Cough!"
The captured boy coughed up blood.
"Sihyun!"
Desperate shouts rang out.
Snap!
The arm that had taken the boy retreated into the sea.
"..."
The tilting ship calmed, and the storm that had shaken the sea vanished. At that moment, the boy also disappeared from there.
"Ah..."
"..."
"Sihyun!"
"!"
Bam! Startled by the call, Sihyun opened his eyes, sitting up. He gasped for breath, and Haewon followed suit, gasping. Sihyun's sudden awakening surprised him.
"What's wrong, did you have a nightmare? Why are you so jumpy?"
Haewon remarked, feeling Sihyun's reaction was a bit exaggerated. Nightmare. Hearing that word, Sihyun, taking slow breaths, looked around.
It was a room.
The same room where he had always slept and woken up.
As he glanced around the familiar surroundings, he saw familiar faces. Looking at those sharing the room with him, Sihyun held his forehead.
Damn dream.
It was a strange dream. A huge ship appeared, a boy with an obscured face being dragged into the sea. And, of all things, that boy's name was Sihyun.
A strange and ominous dream.
Sighing and defining the nightmare he had dreamt after a while, Sihyun suddenly felt the cold sweat on his skin and glanced at Haewon.
"What time is it?"
"8 o'clock! We have to leave in 10 minutes! I let you sleep a bit longer because you looked tired, but now it seems like you need to get up. Did you have trouble sleeping last night?"
Sihyun, feeling surprisingly normal about Haewon's concern, shook his head. It was just a bad dream. While shaking his head, suddenly, Pya! Pia whimpered beside Sihyun. He had placed her on the bed and she must have fallen off while he woke up.
"Sorry."
"Pya pya pya!"
He reassured her. As he petted Pia, who seemed to indicate he should hold her hand while she went to the bathroom, Sihyun washed his face with one hand. After brushing his teeth and changing clothes, he barely managed to finish within the remaining 10 minutes.
"I'll be back."
"Pyyyii..."
As Sihyun bid goodbye, Pia whimpered sadly. Seeing her like that, Sihyun glanced at the others behind him. Sending a silent request for cooperation, the rest of the kids also petted Pia.
"I'll be back!"
"Don't get into trouble."
"I'll be back soon."
As they exchanged farewells, Pia's crying became more heart-wrenching. Sihyun, who had delayed for an extra five minutes trying to calm the crying baby Irregular, finally realized he had to go and put Pia down.
"Paff!"
"If you wait quietly, the teacher will come and take care of you."
"Pyy, pyy..."
"I'll be back soon."
He initially thought of her as just a stray, but somehow, he couldn't help growing attached. It had only been four days since they met, yet her incessant crying worried him. Reluctantly tearing his gaze away, Sihyun sighed. He strained to ignore Pia's crying from behind.
After closing the door, it was 8:20. Rushing to the field, the teachers, who had been waiting, scolded them for being late, reminding them that the assembly time was 8:20. Feeling a bit unjust, Sihyun was about to retort but then quietly nodded.
"You're late."
Returning to the A-class line after the lecture, Seowoo spoke up.
"Pia was crying."
"That's too bad."
It felt pitiful. There was a hint of insincerity in his attempt to console her. Feeling that way, Sihyun nudged Seowoo's back with his tongue-tied expression.
"Stop talking nonsense and look ahead."
The principal was discussing details about the math field trip. Sihyun firmly nudged Seowoo's back, urging her attention. Only then did Seowoo turn her head and listen to the principal's words.
"This math field trip is a cruise trip, and for safety, we've invited A-grade or higher Awakened individuals."
"Wow."
A-grade, just below S-grade. Even B-grade was sturdy enough, but A-grade was beyond words. Sihyun, who had just had an ominous dream, felt relieved. If A-grade individuals were present, everything would probably be fine no matter what happened.
Of course, students like Hamin and Haru in Class A were also at a semi-A-grade level, but they were still semi-A-grade. Despite their abilities, they lacked experience. They couldn't compare to A-grades who had been through various situations and actively operated in real-life situations.
"The approximate travel time to Germany is about 20 hours, and on the first day, a pre-cruise party will be held aboard the ship. There will be recreational activities in the conference room, and if you follow the teachers' instructions well, you'll have enough freedom. The details of the travel schedule will be provided later by each homeroom teacher. I know you're excited about the first field trip, but please follow the guidance of the teachers."
Kids expressed disappointment, saying they would only get to enjoy a day in Germany. However, only two words stuck in Sihyun's ears.
Pre-cruise party and recreation.
It made him realize anew that today was the day for the long-awaited showcase.
"Alright, let's go, Class A!"
At the teacher's call, Sihyun and the other Class A students moved from their places. Each class had prepared vehicles, so A-class enjoyed a bus with just eight of them. With so much space, there was no need for the usual seat fights.
Gotta sit at the front.
Due to severe motion sickness, Sihyun decided to sit at the back, not wanting to endure the unsettling feeling in his stomach for no reason. When Haru mentioned finding a front seat mate, Sihyun nodded. Sitting too far ahead felt burdensome, so the second or third row seemed better. Slowly walking towards the bus, he felt something brush against his fingertips. When he turned, it was Haru.
"Would you like me to grab it?"
"Uh, what?"
"Your hand."
"Oh..."
It was just a brush.
Haru murmured softly in response to Sihyun's words. At that, Sihyun sighed and turned his head forward. He seemed to be in a real dilemma.
Thinking that Haru probably liked being affectionate and recalling the times they had held hands before, Sihyun embarrassingly assumed it might happen again this time. As he was lost in thought, Haru's fingertips touched Sihyun's hand. Expecting it to just brush past again, a soft voice reached his ears as he gazed ahead.
"Can I hold it?"
"...."
At the sound near his ear, Sihyun looked at Haru. They were so close, and due to the difference in height, what he said reached directly into Sihyun's ear, creating an unexpectedly ticklish sensation.
"Your hand?"
Just to be sure, Sihyun asked. Haru nodded. Wondering if he should ask or grab it this time, Sihyun blinked and grabbed Haru's hand. Whether it was a gasp or a sigh, Haru's voice was unclear. Sihyun walked silently while holding onto his hand.
Haru and Sihyun, boarding the bus, promptly took the front seats as previously discussed. However...
"Sihyun, Haru hyung!"
"...."
"Come over here!"
Darn it, Kang Haewoon was vigorously calling out from the back.
Their distance wasn't that far, yet he was yelling as if they were a mile apart. The bus resounded with Haewoon's voice, so Sihyun covered his ears. His expression crumpled involuntarily.
"I feel sick."
"I'll buff you!"
"What?"
Was there a buff that prevented motion sickness in this world? Perplexed, before he could ask, Haewoon swiftly ran to the homeroom teacher to get permission to use his ability. Haewoon wanted to cast a resistance buff for Sihyun, and the teacher's approving face, aware of Sihyun's discomfort, was pitifully unpleasant.
After reluctantly receiving permission, watching Haewoon confidently approaching, Sihyun hesitantly spoke up.
"Is there really a buff like that?"
"There's a status abnormality resistance buff! Since I mentioned a status abnormality, wouldn't it resist motion sickness too?"
"...."
It was oddly persuasive. While Sihyun pondered, it seemed Haewoon didn't care about his opinion and cast the buff anyway. A golden energy enveloped Sihyun. Despite feeling that the cool sensation might help with the motion sickness, buffing without consent was clearly wrong. His blue eyes narrowed.
"Hehe!"
Haewoon laughed at Sihyun's sharp gaze. It was annoyingly audacious to swear at a smiling face like that. Sighing, Sihyun swallowed his resignation. It was a buff done for his sake, and the cute guy was smiling like an angel. What could he say?
Of course, deep down, there was a desire to sit together.
With reluctant acceptance, Sihyun got up from his seat.
"Alright, let's just go."
"Yay!"
Haewoon displayed a victory V-sign at Sihyun's resignation. Eventually, at the far end, the four kings sat, leaving the remaining four in front. Divided into pairs, Jihye and Daun on the right, Haru and Sihyun on the left, Sihyun gazed widely ahead. Nine people in this large bus, yet they all reluctantly crowded the back seats, which seemed comical.
"I'm an all-rounder!"
Separate from Sihyun's situation, Haewoon got excited and led a mini-game. Sihyun, who had leaned back in the chair to give way to Haru, ignored Haewoon's petulance, finding it petty.
Vroom, and the bus roared to life. As the kids chattered on the finally departing bus, a hand extended over the upset Sihyun's shoulder.
"....?"
"You seemed to need this."
Turning his head at the sudden hand, he saw Geonu handing over a sleep mask. It had been a while since they'd talked.
"Isn't this yours?"
"It's fine if you use it."
"Then, I'll borrow it for a bit."
At Sihyun's words, Geonu nodded dazedly. Upon asking if he had earplugs, Geonu silently nodded again and passed them over. As if that wasn't enough, Geonu even offered the neck pillow I was using.
He was overly giving and accommodating.
Sihyun, grateful for the sudden luxury, thanked Geonu and one by one donned the items.
Putting on the earplugs and placing the neck pillow, then wearing the sleep mask, he reclined fully in the chair. There was no better paradise.
"Ahahaha!"
Haewoon's intermittent laughter woke Sihyun several times. However, he quickly fell asleep on the bus, making up for the dreams he couldn't have at night.
Though he'd said he'd borrow for a while,
He couldn't return Geonu's items until they got off the bus.
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