As I tried to pacify Haewoon, who wanted to play, and engaged in studying with occasional breaks, the exam day approached swiftly. Considering we had started studying two weeks prior, the exam results weren't bad. Apart from one mistake in the Awakened Theory, everything else was perfect. While it wasn't a perfect score overall, Kang Sihyun felt satisfied with the mock exam scores.
I hadn't intended to study like my life depended on it, but it seemed like a habit to passionately study during exam periods without me realizing it.
Thanks to the slightly more diligent study sessions than last time, the other kids' grades weren't bad either. Especially in Hamin's case, judging by how he was teasing the sulking Haewoon, it seemed like he had won their bet against Haewoon this time.
"Hamin."
I waited until he finished teasing Haewoon before calling his name. Hamin turned his head when I gestured for him to come over, and I opened my notebook.
"Did you mark your test?"
"Yeah. Except for one mistake each in English and Math, everything else is correct."
"What score did you get?"
"97 for English, 94.6 for Math. The rest are perfect scores."
"It seems like you made a big mistake in Math."
For just one mistake, it was quite a low score. After recording the score he called out, Hamin, who had been silently observing, settled on the edge of Sihyun's desk.
"Come down."
"Why are you writing that down?"
"I have something to check."
"What is it?"
"It's something you don't know."
After avoiding the answer, he moved his pen. He had thought of writing something like 'Check scores properly' on his palm to reassure himself that incidents like Sihyun's mental manipulation wouldn't happen again, but he couldn't completely erase his anxiety. The fact that he hadn't had a dream involving Kang Sihyun recently also contributed to his growing unease.
What could possibly have happened?
He usually didn't think about wanting to dream, but with no news for so long, he started to feel a bit concerned. Avoiding the answer actually stimulated his curiosity, and Hamin glanced at the notebook. Sihyun, who had accidentally covered his own handwriting, thought it might be a good idea to record the scores of the other kids as well and asked the remaining kids about their mock exam results.
The scores for all students in Class A were recorded in the blue notebook. After observing their scores, Sihyun checked Hamin's score once again before closing the notebook. Now he completely felt that the exams were over.
"Good job on the exam."
When he calmly talked about the scores and looked at the kids who had gathered around him, the kids exchanged glances and cheered quietly. Looking at the kids he liked who seemed relieved that the tiresome study session was over, Sihyun wondered if his study was really that difficult.
"Shall we go play now? We agreed to go to the karaoke last time, remember? We haven't gone yet!"
Haewoon, who had been eagerly waiting for a long time, asked expectantly. Sihyun, who was about to nod out of habit, hesitated for a moment. Karaoke, well, the words tickled his throat. Still, even though Haewoon had only participated in the study sessions with the promise of going out to play together once the exams were over, it seemed pointless to refuse.
They were already attracting attention. On top of that, if Haewoon sang with her thick voice, the people in the other rooms might wonder if it was really a human singing and gather outside their room.
"Oh, Haru hyung. Wasn't there anything difficult in this exam?"
As I imagined people crowding in front of the karaoke room, Haru, who was sitting next to Sihyun, nodded in surprise when I turned to speak. His mock exam score was significantly higher than last time.
Actually, what if our kid is a genius?
Even though he had only studied for about six months, his improvement was remarkable. When asked if he would perform better than himself next time, Haru, with wide eyes as if taken aback, denied it, saying it wasn't that much. Despite being a polite refusal, the intense gaze still felt piercing.
Ignoring Haru's diplomatic refusal, Haewoon sent an unspoken pressure to go out to play. His persistent face showed no signs of giving up. Sihyun sighed reluctantly.
"...Sure, let's go to the karaoke."
"Yeah!"
With the cheerful "yeah" that I hadn't heard in a long time, Haewoon hopped back to his seat. Was it really okay? Watching his excited face as he eagerly expressed his anticipation, Sihyun walked to the teacher's desk and put down his exam papers.
"Can you handle it?"
Suddenly, Hamin's voice came from above. Although he had been sitting on his own desk, it seemed like he had followed suit when he stood up. Whether Haewoon heard it and would jump on him, he leaned towards Sihyun as if to check.
"What if he gets kicked out for disturbing the other customers while singing?"
"He won't get kicked out."
"Think again about Haewoon's singing. Do you think it'll be fine?"
He added in a low voice. Trying to recall Haewoon's singing for a moment, Sihyun could only sigh.
To be honest, Haewoon wasn't the best singer. Even without a microphone, she belted out loud sounds, and with a microphone, it was like giving wings to a goblin.
"Have you ever been to the karaoke with him when you were in middle school?"
"No. He might have gone by himself, but at least he didn't go with me or anyone else."
"Oh."
It was new information to Sihyun. After hearing about Haewoon's past, which wasn't particularly useful even if he knew it, Sihyun just tapped his pen.
"But you can't just not go. You've been looking forward to this weekend for two weeks. Can you handle Haewoon's reaction if we don't go to the karaoke?"
"...."
When he asked a question similar to what Hamin had thrown at him, Hamin fell silent. Looking at Hamin's expression, Sihyun suddenly thought of something and stared at him. With clear facial features in his eyes, as their gazes met, Hamin furrowed his brows.
"Why."
"Oh, nothing. I just thought, maybe we could rent a karaoke room like we did before."
"Do you have enough money, Kang Sihyun?"
"It's not for me, but you have plenty."
When they went to the PC bang before, Hamin rented the place. At that time, he had cursed silently about money issues, but now it was somewhat funny that he was suggesting Hamin to rent a building. Looking at Sihyun with an incredulous expression, Hamin hesitated for a moment and scratched his head.
"I do everything because of Haewoon."
"Anyway, we're going together."
"Is it the same as going to a PC bang? There won't be many people who go to sing, right?"
"Why, can't you sing?"
Come to think of it, Sihyun had never heard Hamin sing properly. Curious, he asked if Hamin couldn't sing well.
Hamin singing?
It was hard to imagine, but it didn't seem like he couldn't sing at all. When Sihyun shook his head and answered no, Hamin chuckled and said he could sing roughly. As Sihyun momentarily recalled the first time he met Hamin, he looked at him with a faint smile and spoke.
"You've changed too."
"What?"
At the sudden comment, Hamin tilted his head.
"You seem less annoyingly cheerful these days."
"Huh?"
Thick eyebrows twitched upward at the words, whether they were praise or mockery. Whether it was a difference in perception or if Hamin had changed significantly, the Hamin who had initially come off as a bratty chaebol now seemed quite ordinary like his peers. He laughed well, got angry well. He was clumsy too. The atmosphere itself had become more stable than it was back then when it was fraught with tension. And decisively so.
"I feel like I've grown more tolerant."
"....?"
"At first, you seemed to dislike me."
To be precise, it seemed like we both disliked each other.
Kids fight and grow up, they say. That was exactly the case with me and Hamin. After the incident at the orc stronghold, we argued and fought over trivial matters, and since then, Hamin seemed less resentful, which was surprising. When I mentioned this, Hamin, who had been staring blankly at me, turned his head and covered my face with his arm. After a moment of silence, he let out a faint voice.
"...That's right."
"What?"
He seemed to say something, but it was muffled by his arm, and I couldn't hear it properly. When I nudged him to lower his arm, Hamin sighed and obediently lowered it. Leaning on the desk, he stared out the window.
"...At first, you weren't interested in me, not that you disliked me."
His murmured words sounded like a little boy clumsily making excuses. Seeing him, whose ears turned slightly red as if embarrassed by his past actions, Sihyun checked the time with a faint smile. It was almost time to finish.
"Then do you treat me well now because you're interested?"
"...."
Hamin's response to my joking remark didn't come right away. That was strange. When I looked away from the clock to him, his face, which was usually paler than usual, appeared in my sight. Although there was a slight change, it wasn't enough to go unnoticed.
It couldn't be hot in October. His blue eyes narrowed.
"Are you hot?"
"...No."
The answer came back a beat slower. Thinking that something had suddenly gone wrong with him, Sihyun mulled over their conversation to see if he had made a mistake. Then he suddenly realized that there might be room for misunderstanding in his question and sighed softly.
"Hey, I was just kidding. Why are you taking it so seriously?"
"...What?"
"I asked if you're treating me well because you're interested. You've grown up a lot, Hamin. You even know how to consider other people's feelings."
He seemed to have taken my words as a rational inquiry. When other boys his age hear such remarks, they usually grimace, ignore it, or get angry, but Hamin seemed unable to act as he usually would because he was worried about me.
Why is he doing this now?
Thinking that he might have unexpectedly paid attention to my feelings, Sihyun nudged him with his elbow. Just then, as the bell rang, Sihyun, who had moved away from the teacher's desk, looked at Hamin, who seemed to be disapproving of something, with a puzzled expression.
"Let's go eat."
Since there was no separate closing ceremony on the day of the exam, they could just disperse after the bell rang. Since it was just lunchtime, Sihyun suggested, and Hamin, who had been frowning for some reason, glanced around. Haewoon, who had been talking to Gunwoo and Haewon, had already left the classroom with Seowoo, carrying their exam papers. Haru, who had been standing next to him, mumbled without lifting his foot.
"He might be interested."
As he muttered with his throat, Sihyun looked at Hamin with a puzzled expression. Seeing Hamin, who seemed not to understand his words, Hamin sighed and pressed Sihyun's head with his hand, then put his hand in his pocket and headed for the classroom door.
Even though I had waited for him to go together, Sihyun, who felt annoyed as Hamin rushed ahead, followed him with a puzzled expression.
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