“Isn’t it really nice, right?”
Ha Neul, who was glued to my side, asked like that.
The road we were walking on was lined with cherry blossoms in full bloom.
Actually, saying they were in full bloom feels a bit late. Strictly speaking, they were starting to wilt. Fortunately, right after the cherry blossoms bloomed, spring rain fell, so there were no petals falling down without having bloomed properly, but technically it was the time for the cherry blossoms to fall.
The cherry trees by the roadside were also slowly sprouting fresh green leaves, so there was more blue than pink.
But still, it was enough for the petals to flutter in the wind.
The petals still hanging from the trees danced lightly in the gentle breeze, making a flower path on the street. That scenery made me feel, “Ah, it’s spring now.”
The reason we came out to see the flowers like this was because I had miraculously remembered what Ha Neul said to me last month.
Having become friends for just over a month, there were so many things that happened that I wasn’t able to properly remember such promises.
…Well, thinking about it, it felt more like a passing conversation than a promise, but hey, since it’s pretty, it doesn’t really matter.
The clothes we were wearing were also what we bought back then.
To be honest, I could have put on something lighter instead of a jumper, but Ha Neul was different. She was wearing a dress.
Since it was a dress I wore in March, wouldn’t it be a bit hot to wear it now?
Well, she didn’t seem bothered, so I shouldn’t stick my nose in it.
Still, April flowed much more leisurely than March. Sohee was still in the middle of handing over responsibilities, Sua had started visiting home occasionally, and Ha Neul sometimes came over to sleep in the mansion. Since we stopped acting embarrassingly in school, Lead Committee Member Son Ah-reum had become very quiet, and the teachers, perhaps not thinking of anything to criticize, no longer picked fights with us.
Of course, I felt a bit uneasy.
Choi Na-kyung hadn’t shown any signs of activity until mid-April. I didn’t know if that meant she had given up her obsession with Sara or if she was just waiting for the right moment. I could only cautiously guess that she was sharpening her knife.
Anyway, well… that was the situation.
It was extremely peaceful.
…silence
“……”
“……”
It felt like I was the only one who sensed it.
Once, I read that jealousy exists even among friends. I’ve never felt jealousy towards a guy, but I heard in sex education class that it could happen.
And probably, the girls around me definitely felt such emotions.
Right now, Ha Neul and Sua were positioned on my side. They all clung to me, refusing to let go. After briefly stepping away, Sohee wore a constant frown, while Sara emitted her unique displeased vibe from deep within.
Yeah, this is definitely jealousy.
Until just recently, I kept denying it since I had never been the focus of female attention. But based on a month’s experience, I realized that the feelings these girls had centered around me were jealousy.
Ah, of course, I know that it’s not jealousy stemming from romantic feelings. No way am I that self-conscious and arrogant.
Having read articles about the embarrassment of thinking ‘a girl liked me but actually didn’t’, there’s no way I would fall into the misunderstanding that all girls showing me kindness liked me that way.
But even so, we’re close friends.
If I think about it, the friendships formed around me. I talked to Sua, became friends with Ha Neul, and I covered Sohee’s… that skirt.
If we were to measure our ‘closeness’, I was the closest to each of the three.
…Yeah, of course, it’s the same for Sara too.
So, if I got close to one of them, the others would unknowingly get jealous.
I was trying to balance it out, but… that was easier said than done. Rather, the more I tried to balance it out, the more jealousy intensified.
…
Well, I admit it’s a bit annoying.
I know that well.
I couldn’t argue against Sara’s words.
*
After ending our walk under everyone’s gaze, we decided to head home.
“Is Ha Neul going to sleep over tonight?”
“Yes!”
Ha Neul cheerfully replied to my question. She leaned against my arm and pressed her cheek against my shoulder.
…Maybe we should order a ton of late-night snacks today.
Actually, no matter how many types I order, I can’t eat much. Still, I’ve improved a lot since I first came in.
Back then, I had gained a bit of weight, and now I didn’t feel like I would break if I got hit. However, I was still on the thin side.
And to top it off, I had bruises all over, so the doctors and police who saw me back then would have freaked out.
Well, today there would be a lot of people around, and while chatting with everyone, there were many occasions where we didn’t sleep until late at night, so having something to munch on would be nice.
The other three could eat a lot more than I could.
…
…No, Sara, you eat with me!
Of course, when talking about such things, numbers don’t matter.
While I felt slightly awkward walking with Sara, who didn’t hide her displeasure—
“…Huh?”
In the distance, at the front gate of the mansion, someone was seen having a confrontation with the guard.
No, it wasn’t just ‘someone’. There were three people.
One looked slightly older, another was a younger man, and the last was a young woman.
“W-well, if there really are no problems, we’d like to see that ‘young lady’ face. If we can confirm she’s safe, we’ll be on our way.”
“So the young lady is currently out…”
“Even if you say that, we all know what’s going on. We have proof photos, and trying to hide it will only make it worse.”
As the older man and the young woman spoke alternately, the guard seemed at a loss for words.
…Of course, that was because I was actually out.
And the staff here, aside from Sohee and Yang Hye-in, would consider me very inconvenient. I probably made them feel that way.
Since I’ve made it this way, they likely never thought to call me.
In fact, there wouldn’t be any problems even if I held out like this.
Knowing I needed to assess the situation, Sua and Ha Neul, who were right next to me, quietly let go of my arm. I took a small breath, and then walked over to where the three were.
“Uh, wait a moment, Senior.”
Seeing me approach, the young man reacted.
“Yeah? What’s up?”
The older man turned to the young man’s voice, then froze.
The last to recognize me was the young woman. Once she finally turned her head toward me, it was only after seeing that I was perfectly okay walking outside that she dropped her jaw.
…Yeah, I think I have an idea of what those three are here for.
The policemen saw me for such a short time back then that I couldn’t recall their faces, but their attitude was similar.
Of course, I don’t think that woman was there back then.
“Uh…?”
The three of them glanced at me, then back at the guard, and then back at me.
The guard let out a big sigh as he wiped his face.
*
“Ah, uh… thank you.”
As Yang Hye-in poured black tea for the young woman sitting in the reception room, she said that with a somewhat flustered expression.
“So…”
I was the first one to speak up.
“Did you come because of a report of domestic violence?”
The three had introduced themselves before entering the mansion. The two were police officers from the Criminal Investigation Division, and the young woman was a civil servant. They probably came after hearing the word ‘domestic violence’.
And all of them seemed a bit overwhelmed once they entered the mansion. Is this their first time?
…Well, how many people live in a place wide enough to resemble a department store in the middle of Seoul? It was literally a department store building too. Had I not been holed up here, it would’ve been used as a special branch of Yujin Group. Most of the mansion was empty too.
“Yes, that’s correct. Actually, the report came in quite a while ago…”
It seems they didn’t deploy immediately after the report.
…That made sense.
I don’t know who Yang Hye-in called, but it’s true that they withdrew on directions from a high-ranking police official. They hadn’t heard my side of the story at all.
Back then, I was kind of dazed.
Anyway, since they came to deploy like this, it was reasonable to assume that whatever issue they had was skipped over initially. It probably took a long time to quell those issues.
However, it was too late now.
Even if they came to gather evidence now, there was nothing left. The wounds on my back were already healed, and my health had been steadily improving, while the employees were compliant with my words and showed no neglect at school.
What could the police even do now that they were here?
“Is that so….”
But I let out a deep sigh.
That’s only natural, considering I had plenty of things I could get in trouble for.
Right next to me was Sohee, dressed in a maid outfit, who was still a minor. Although her parents had given permission and Yang Hye-in had handled the paperwork neatly, there was still the matter of ‘bribery’ in that process. A substantial one.
Sua was a runaway. Although she consistently kept in touch with home and returned occasionally, it could easily be said that she was a runaway…
Among the three friends here, only Ha Neul had no legal trouble whatsoever.
“So, we’d like to have a consultation.”
The civil servant from the district office said.
“Is that possible?”
“…Yes, that would be fine.”
It would only amplify suspicion if I tried to escape now.
