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“The first-year boys think I’m pretty,” Seungkwan announces the moment she opens the rooftop door.
Hansol frowns. “Okay?” he says, mostly because she seems to be waiting for some kind of response. “Good for you?”
Seungkwan tuts impatiently. She flops into a sit across from Hansol, lunchbox tossed carelessly on the floor. “No, listen, a few of them were gossiping about who the prettiest girls in school were, and I happened to overhear–”
“So you were eavesdropping–”
“–they put me on that list!” Seungkwan is beaming at him, clearly excited about this. Hansol doesn’t really get it, but then again there’s lots of stuff he doesn’t really get about Seungkwan.
“Um, that’s great?” Hansol offers, unsure what she wants from him. Honestly, he’s more interested in what she’s brought for lunch. He hopes it’s japchae, Seungkwan’s mom always makes more japchae than her daughter can eat because she knows Hansol likes it.
Clearly, this is not the reaction she wants, because Seungkwan’s face scrunches into a scowl. “Yah, is that all you have to say? This is a big deal! They mentioned me in the same breath as Kyulkyung. Kyulkyung!”
Hansol sighs. There’s no way they’re just going to brush over this now, he’ll just have to humour her. “Okay, so the first-years think you’re pretty–”
“No, but that’s not all! They said, of all the girls they thought were pretty, they’d want to date me the most! Me!” Seungkwan exclaims. She’s finally cracking open her lunchbox. Hansol tries not to look too eager as he peers in– yes, there’s japchae in there today!
“Right, okay,” Hansol agrees, forcing himself to look away from the mouth-watering japchae, because there’s no way Seungkwan’s going to give him any if she doesn’t feel listened to. “So the first-years want to date you. And?”
“Why are you being so blasé about this,” Seungkwan complains. “You should be happy for me, nobody has ever wanted to date me more than Kyulkyung!”
“I’m literally sitting right here–”
“And anyway, aren’t you supposed to be jealous? Other boys are going around talking about how much they wanna date your girlfriend because they think she’s super pretty, aren’t you supposed to, like, fight them or something?”
Hansol makes a face. “You’ve been watching too many dramas,” he tells her, unimpressed. “Why would I fight a bunch of kids just because they think you’re pretty?”
“And they want to date me,” Seungkwan reminds him, pointing with her chopsticks for emphasis. “What if one of them is, like, super handsome and steals me away–”
Hansol snorts. “Are you planning on leaving me for a first-year?”
“Well, no, but–”
“And if I went around fighting every kid who has a crush on you, I’d be beating up, like, half the school,” Hansol points out, quite reasonably in his opinion.
Seungkwan gapes at him. The half-chewed kimchi he can see in her mouth is kind of gross, but her cheeks are flushed a pretty pink. “Half the– don’t exaggerate!”
“I’m serious,” Hansol tells her. He takes a bite of his red bean bun. Maybe if he pretends he doesn’t actually care about the japchae, Seungkwan will be more inclined to let him have some. “I mean, are you really surprised? You’re smart and funny and the sweetest person I’ve ever met–”
“Um,” squeaks Seungkwan.
“–and you’ve been the prettiest girl in school since, like, first year of middle school–”
“UM.”
“–what, did you expect the rest of us not have a crush on you?” Hansol finishes, squinting at his bun. It tastes different. His mom must’ve bought it from a different shop than usual. “Hey, you want my red bean bun? It’s a little too sweet for me.”
Seungkwan groans, burying her face in her hands. Her ears are flushed red. “You’re too sweet for me, what the heck,” she mumbles, voice tiny and embarrassed.
Hansol is honestly blindsided by this. “Oh, uh,” he says awkwardly, scratching his neck. “That, um. Came out of nowhere.” He figures Seungkwan is just, like, flirting with him. Which, it’s been months since they started dating, but he still isn’t really used to it.
Seungkwan huffs a little laugh. She picks her face up and gives Hansol a grin, small and shy and lovely. “It really, really didn’t,” she tells him, voice heavy with fondness. “Have I told you how much I like you?”
“Uh,” Hansol says dumbly. He’s oddly struck by the honey-sweet warmth in her gaze. Have her eyelashes always been this long? “I think you might have mentioned it.”
Seungkwan laughs again, the sound coloured pink with her bashful joy. “Good, because I like you a lot,” she says sweetly, then finally takes pity on Hansol’s poor racing heart and continues, with more of her normal cheer, “Here, trade lunch with me, I’m sick of japchae!”
Hansol perks up. “Oh, well, if you insist,” he says, trying to sound nonchalant about it as they trade lunches. Hansol mutters a quick, “Thanks for the meal,” before taking a bite of Seungkwan’s mom’s delicious, delicious japchae.
“Your mom should open a restaurant,” he says through a full mouth. “How do you ever get sick of this?”
Seungkwan snorts. “You only say that because you don’t have to eat this every single day.” She takes a bite of his red bean bun. Her face scrunches up into an odd expression. Hansol remembers a time he would have found it weird, or maybe sort of funny. Now it’s just kind of endearing, like everything else she does.
“Oh, you’re right, this is sweeter than usual,” she says, chewing thoughtfully. “The bun’s a little flaky, too. Did your mom buy this from the little shop by the market?”
Hansol shrugs. “You can ask her later. You’re coming over, right?” It’s their regular midweek study date, usually at Hansol’s house because Seungkwan’s sister has violin lessons and the sound resonates throughout her whole house.
Seungkwan’s face goes pink again. “Actually,” she says, with a nervous grin, “my sister rescheduled her lesson today because she has a test tomorrow. She’s going to her friend’s house to study. And my parents are away on that trip to my aunt’s…”
Hansol feels his face heating up too. “Oh,” he says dumbly. That meant the house would be empty. Except for them. Just the two of them. “Um.”
“I-I mean, we don’t have to!” Seungkwan is babbling, embarrassed. “S-Sorry, forget I said anything–”
“I’ll come over,” Hansol decides abruptly, and Seungkwan falls silent. “Um. If that’s okay.”
They look at each other, both wide-eyed and red-faced. It’s kind of funny; they haven’t been nervous about going to each other’s houses for almost a decade, but now…
“Definitely okay,” Seungkwan says softly, that tiny lovely smile back on her face.
Hansol feels a bit like he’s melting. He always does, when she looks at him like this. “Okay,” he finds himself whispering back, and they grin at each other like the sappy, disgusting couples they used to make fun of in middle school, all the way until the bell rings for the end of lunch.