Just Twilight

Suddenly, the casual tone of Beomjin’s words made Junyoung’s heart drop. Her mouth hung open, unguarded. She blinked rapidly and then, in a flash, she sprang to her feet.

“Ha. Me? It’s probably you who likes me, right? Otherwise, how do you explain that you’re being framed as the culprit and then refuse to reveal your alibi? Does that make any sense?”

Junyoung, who was about to point a finger at him in a fit of rage, froze. It was fine when she stood up in anger, but now that she was standing, she felt uncomfortably close to Beomjin, who was casually perched on the desk.

As she subtly took a step back, Beomjin muttered,

“Doesn’t make sense.”

“Exactly.”

Junyoung nodded, but then a crease slowly appeared between her brows. Her eyes, which had been facing down, now turned toward him.

“What?”

Her eyes, unusually dark and intense, were like the calm, deep sea at night. Beomjin, with a stoic expression, met her gaze and said,

“I know my own feelings, but I’m asking about yours.”

An unexpected silence settled between them. Her mind seemed to go blank. She opened and closed her mouth a few times, but the words just wouldn’t come out. Standing there, staring at her, Beomjin folded his arms.

“You act all smart, but sometimes… you seem so dumb.”

“What does that even mean?”

Finally pulling her lips apart, Junyoung stammered out the question.

“So, you’re saying you like me? Why?”

Beomjin raised an eyebrow at her unexpected question. He sighed and muttered quietly.

“I don’t know either.”

In an instant, Junyoung’s face twisted. The feeling of floating seemed to crash down on her all at once. Her eyes narrowed in a questioning glare.

“How can that be? When you like someone, there’s this moment, this moment when you just know that you like them.”

Beomjin looked upward, as though trying to think of something, and then casually shook his head.

“I don’t remember such a moment.”

Junyoung fought to hold back all the harsh words that were about to escape. Clenching her fists tightly, she asked,

“How is that even liking someone?”

“All I ever think about is you, day and night.”

Beomjin shrugged his shoulders as he looked at her and said in a low voice,

“If it’s not liking, then I must be crazy.”

Kwon Beomjin didn’t just have a talent for making people laugh, but he also had a knack for silencing others. After a long pause, Junyoung nodded as if waking from a dream.

“…Right.”

Without realizing it, Junyoung had taken a few steps back and slumped into a chair. Beomjin, watching her stunned expression, couldn’t help but let out a quiet laugh before getting up from the desk.

“You’re done talking, right? You can focus on your studying now. I’m going to get some rest.”

“Hey.”

Junyoung, grabbing onto her scattered thoughts, turned to look at him. Just as he was about to climb the stairs, he turned his head. Before she even had time to think, the words flew out.

“I’ll answer you after the exam. If I get first place.”

She could’ve answered right away, but her heart was pounding too hard to say anything clearly. Plus, with Beomjin bringing up studying, she realized she needed to focus on what was important right now.

Still, she felt a strange sense of excitement, like floating on cotton candy, and wanted to savor it a little longer.

Beomjin, hearing her conditions, slowly took a deep breath. With a furrowed brow, he suddenly asked,

“Was the perennial second place, Im Hyuntae?”

“Why are you asking that?”

“Just forget about it.”

Nodding, Beomjin strode up the stairs. Junyoung’s lips curled into a natural smile as she bit down on her lower lip, trying to hold back her laughter.

“Hey, you just got out of juvie, right? Can you stop saying dangerous things for a second?”

“Then get first place, Yoon Junyoung. Put your pride on the line.”

Soon, the sound of Beomjin collapsing onto the bed could be heard. Junyoung, who had quickly turned her chair around to avoid laughing out loud, had to force herself not to burst into laughter.

She felt like she was floating. Bringing her hand to her cheek, she could feel how flushed her face was. It was surprising to realize how differently the world around her felt in just one day.

‘Who can beat you in this school?’

Beomjin’s voice echoed in her mind. Smiling to herself, Junyoung slowly opened her bag and took out her books and pens. As she opened the book, the words seemed clearer and more vivid than ever before.@@novelbin@@

“Of course.”

Her voice, low and almost a whisper, briefly echoed in the air. Her hand tightened around the pen as she straightened her back in the chair, focusing on the work ahead.

***

The bell rang. Beomjin put down the pen he had been twirling between his fingers and stood up. The last exam of the last day had ended.

In fact, there was a time when he studied quite hard. He was interested in math and science, and he was good at memorizing things, so his grades weren’t bad. But that was before his father passed away, and his life got off track.

Now, in a situation where he didn’t know when he would leave this place or what kind of life he would have, what was the point of studying? It might sound like an excuse, but Beomjin had been living with such thoughts.

However, strangely, recently, he found himself thinking more and more, "Maybe I should try studying again." Perhaps it was because he had been watching Junyoung, who was relentlessly studying every day. Especially these last few days, her concentration was so intense that he thought she might actually get sucked into her books.

When Junyoung studied, it was as if she was in a different world. The only sound was the scratch of the pen against the paper. It was a world surrounded by an invisible force field that no one could disturb.

Watching her, Beomjin often felt a contradictory urge—to protect that world, and at the same time, to break it with his own hands.

It didn’t take long for him to realize: he wanted to be part of that world.

He couldn’t see a future with Junyoung. Their paths were too different. But if Junyoung’s feelings were the same as his...

Then maybe, just maybe, they could be together for a little while. Not forever, but at least in the near future.

...If they kept walking together like this, maybe a distant future together wouldn’t be impossible.

He had started to entertain such foolish thoughts.

“Everyone did well. We won’t know if you really did well until the grading results come out, but anyway, pack up, don’t hang around, and don’t get into trouble. That’s all.”

With the homeroom teacher’s brief announcement, the students stood up in a rush, cheering as they gathered their things. The results would come later, but for now, they were just happy to be leaving school early.

As the other students quickly made plans, chatting excitedly as they packed up, Beomjin slowly gathered his things. He watched Junyoung, who was strangely taking her time.

She didn’t move until the classroom was nearly empty. Seungwoon, who had been about to say something to Junyoung, saw Beomjin and then quietly left. Soon, the classroom was down to just the two of them.

The hallway was noisy, but Beomjin stood still, staring at Junyoung’s straight back with his arms crossed. After a moment, she looked around, then slowly got up. He couldn’t help but smile softly, lowering his eyes. Soon, her footsteps were coming closer.

“I’m hungry.”

Suddenly, Junyoung spoke, and Beomjin looked up, surprised. Even though he knew the classroom was empty, he instinctively glanced around. Exhaling in disbelief, he narrowed his eyes.

“The exam?”

“Are you asking if I did well?”

Junyoung wrinkled her nose and sat in the seat in front of him. Just the shift of one seat made it feel like they were at home instead of in class. Beomjin tilted his head slightly.

“Do I have to go find Im Hyuntae now?”

Junyoung, her eyes wide in surprise, quickly smiled. She looked a little tired, but her eyes were still sharp. Pouting her lips, she muttered,

“What’s the point of asking about that after the exam? You should have just made sure he couldn’t take it.”

“Are you saying you’re not confident?”

Beomjin provoked her, and Junyoung immediately narrowed her eyes, glaring at him.

“Ha. That’s ridiculous. Hey, do you think Im Hyuntae could ever beat me?”

“Alright, enough. Get going. The others will see.”

With a sulky look, Junyoung got up and clapped her hands, then lowered her face slightly and whispered,

“I want a sandwich.”

“Why would you want something sweet… I threw all the ingredients away.”

“I’ll just buy it again. Don’t you have money?”

Her confident gesture made Beomjin chuckle despite himself. Shaking his head, he said softly,

“I’ll go buy it, so you wait here.”

“Why? We can go together.”

“Yoon Junyoung.”

Beomjin shot her a sharp look, and after a brief sigh, he added,

“I just got out of juvie a few days ago. Be glad if I don’t get hit by an egg while I’m out there.”

“You must not know much, but there’s no one around here with the guts to throw eggs at you in broad daylight. And there’s no one rich enough to waste eggs like that. You’re overthinking things.”

Junyoung shrugged in a dismissive way. Normally, he would have backed off by now, but for some reason, it didn’t feel like that was going to happen. Beomjin’s eyebrows shot up.

“You don’t know what I’m worried about?”

“I think I said I don’t care.”

Their eyes met in the air. Looking down at him, Junyoung pouted. Turning her head, she mumbled with a muffled voice,

“How can we even have a relationship when we can’t even act like we know each other in front of people?”

The words brushed past his ears, and for a moment, Beomjin’s mind went blank. He blinked slowly and stumbled over his words,

“…What do you mean?”

“If you didn’t hear, forget it. I’m leaving.”

“Hey, wait a minute. Yoon Junyoung!”

In a hurry, he stood up and grabbed Junyoung’s wrist just in time as she turned to leave. Her wrist felt so delicate in his hand. She stood there, glaring at him, her cheeks flushed a little.