Chapter 1

“Do you not have a dad?”

Chae Ah.

A childhood friend since starting elementary school.

“Do you not have a dad?”

“…What?”

Our first meeting was the worst.

Hyun Woo.

After losing his father last year, he moved to start elementary school.

He insisted on carrying the memorial photo himself while moving, and it was then that Chae Ah from next door discovered this and immediately satisfied her curiosity.

As a result…

“…Hiccup.”

“Eh, eh? Are you crying?”

The still-healing wound made the little boy cry without resistance.

“I-I’m sorry. Please don’t cry… “

Even if she didn’t know better than to bring up one’s parents so casually, she understood that something was wrong when tears started flowing.

Chae Ah’s heart sank as she tried to console him in her own way.

Cloooose!

She hugged Hyun Woo tightly with her small arms.

How would an 8-year-old know how to console someone? She only remembered how her mother always held her whenever she cried.

Had Hyun Woo been 18 instead of 8, he might’ve slapped her and called her crazy for pulling such antics upon their first meeting.

“…”

The tears suddenly stopped.

It had been too long since he felt the warmth of another person.

His busy businesswoman mother spent little time with him,

And his kind father had passed away a year ago.

“Stopped crying…?”

“…Yeah.”

From the very beginning, even after being insulted by this child, he found comfort in her embrace.

Chae Ah sighed in relief and slowly let go of Hyun Woo.

“So, where’s your mom?”

After making him cry by asking about his dad, this was quite an insensitive question.

“She’s at work.”

Luckily, Hyun Woo’s mother was alive and well.

“Umm? Then are you moving all the stuff by yourself?”

Chae Ah was shocked.

Hyun Woo’s new house was a massive single-family home—close to a mansion from a child’s perspective.

Yet, this little kid was supposedly moving into such a large house alone?

“No, the movers are helping me.”

Hyun Woo pointed at the movers finishing up and leaving.

“Ah, I see.”

Watching this, Chae Ah pointed at herself.

“I’m Chae Ah, Yoo Chae Ah.”

“Huh?”

“What’s your name?”

Only now realizing they hadn’t introduced themselves before the insult, but at 8 years old, such things weren’t really kept in mind.

“Do Hyun Woo.”

“Hyun Woo, huh? Do you want to be friends?”

“…?”

This was moving too fast, especially for Hyun Woo, who rarely had friends.

“We’re neighbors, right? We’ll see each other often, so let’s be friends!”

“…Okay.”

Before he knew it, he nodded, and that day marked the start.

“I’ll give you a present, so come over to my house!”

“A present?”

“It’s something I really cherish… But I’ll give it to you specially because I’m sorry.”

Since early childhood, Chae Ah had been incredibly open-hearted and brought this stranger boy home.

“Come inside already.”

“Why?”

“Hurry up!”

She flapped the blanket inviting him onto her bed.

We’re told not to follow strangers…

Maybe I’m getting involved with some dangerous kid.

“Come on already!”

At the same moment, Chae Ah grabbed Hyun Woo’s hand and pulled him along.

“Wow…”

That day, Hyun Woo tasted a whole new world.

“Doesn’t it shine brightly? It’s a glow-in-the-dark dinosaur.”

Glowing dinosaurs in the dark under the covers—a type of toy Hyun Woo, who regularly received gifts from his mother, had never seen before.

“I’ll give you this if we become friends. How does that sound?”

“…Sure.”

The lonely boy was dazzled by the glowing dinosaur and ended up becoming friends with the rude girl.

* * *

A childhood friend living next door.

That connection proved to be surprisingly enduring.

“Are you going to this school too?”

“Yeah, I moved here for that.”

“Oh, I hope we end up in the same class!”

It was natural that they both entered the same elementary school.

“Eh? Really? We’re in the same class? Nice to meet you.”

“Same here.”

Right off the bat, they were placed in the same class.

Though there was no specific agreement,

Living next door naturally led them to walk to and from school together.

“Whoa, we’re in the same class again this year.”

“…Again?”

Even in second grade.

“…Same here?”

Third grade too.

“I knew it!”

Fourth, fifth, sixth grades… until graduation, they were assigned to the same class every year.

Next-door neighbors.

Same school.

Same class.

There was no reason not to be together.

“Are you two dating?”

“Why are you always sticking together?”

It was only natural that teasing from elementary school kids followed them.

“We’re not dating.”

Hyun Woo honestly explained every time, but…

“Of course not. Why? Are you jealous?”

Chae Ah, always busy playing around, brushed it off vaguely.

Thanks to this, Hyun Woo’s explanations became meaningless.

“Do Hyun Woo, hurry up!”

“…I don’t feel like running.”

“Ah, we’re short one person without you!”

Social butterfly Chae Ah dragged everyone in the neighborhood, ensuring Hyun Woo was always included.

Every time, he hovered on the edges, but gradually developed social skills.

* * *

Starting middle school while being treated as an official couple.

Until then, neither Chae Ah nor Hyun Woo paid much attention to it, but…

“Man, Do Hyun Woo is so lucky.”

“What do you mean?”

“How does a guy like you end up with someone like Yoo Chae Ah?”

“We’re not dating, I said.”

“Ooh, liar!”

The problem arose during puberty.

Girls generally mature faster than boys.

By the upper grades of elementary school, Chae Ah was already showing impressive growth,

Her striking appearance and rapidly developing figure drawing the eyes of her male peers.

Then, slightly later, in the first year of middle school,

Hyun Woo also experienced secondary sexual characteristics.

“This is driving me insane…”

When he finally learned how to relieve sexual tension,

He couldn’t help but look for actresses or characters resembling Chae Ah in any video or show he watched.

“Hyun Woo, I’m spending the night at your place again today.”

Unaware of Hyun Woo’s feelings,

Chae Ah continued joking around as she did in elementary school, throwing headlocks.

Hyun Woo imagined the soft armpit pressing against him while thinking about the trash can he hadn’t emptied yet.

“…No, you can’t.”

“Why? Is your mom coming over?”

“Not that…”

“Then why not? We need to defeat Diablo today!”

A daily visit from an outgoing, curvy, cute childhood friend.

“Do Hyun Woo, you owe double taxes.”

“I don’t even earn money, and you…”

“Just pay.”

Outwardly bearing the criticism from his few friends,

Inwardly feeling guilty for harboring such feelings toward a friend, Hyun Woo graduated middle school.

* * *

“Isn’t this destiny?”

“Destiny? It’s just a coincidence.”

“Still, how do we end up in the same class even in high school?”

First-year high school students who once again ended up in the same class as if it were obvious.

As time went on, various changes began to appear.

– Why do you always keep tissues on your desk?

– …There’s a reason.

Hyun Woo’s tissue consumption rate,

– What do you think? Am I pretty?

– Yeah.

– Am I cute?

– Yeah, you’re pretty and cute. Just be yourself.

– Hehe.

Chae Ah constantly seeking approval from Hyun Woo was a subtle change.

“Hyun Woo, I got asked out yesterday too?”

The biggest change was Chae Ah’s skyrocketing popularity.

A clean-cut bob cut,

Mysterious violet-tinted eyes,

A tear-shaped beauty mark as an accent,

And a magnificent chest that made anyone, regardless of gender, glance back at least once.

Not only that,

– Chae Ah, how do you solve this?

– Oh, like this…

She ranked among the top students academically,

– Yoo Chae Ah, are you joining us for basketball at lunch?

– Of course!

– Okay! Yoo Chae Ah is joining!

With her easygoing personality that got along with everyone,

She even started receiving confessions from girls.

“Lucky you.”

“Is that all you have to say?”

“You’ll just reject them anyway, right?”

“It could be different this time.”

“But you’re right.”

“Well, yeah…”

An increasingly expressionless Chae Ah pricked up her ears in dissatisfaction.

Over time, Chae Ah became less expressive,

Her unreadable blank face contrasting with her outgoing demeanor contributed to her growing popularity,

But Do Hyun Woo was the only one who could read her emotions by observing her slightly twitching ears.

“Say whatever you want to say.”

“Do you know why I haven’t received any confessions?”

Chae Ah turned to Hyun Woo as if waiting for this moment.

“I don’t know.”

“Ask me.”

“Why haven’t you received any?”

“Because of you.”

“…What?”

Hyun Woo hesitated, breaking his usual casual responses.

“What did you just say?”

“Hmm?”

Hyun Woo never knew how to respond in these moments.

When she nonchalantly blushed and dropped hints,

Thump thump.

His heart started racing uncontrollably,

Every day of high school life was like this.

“Do Hyun Woo, why don’t you have a girlfriend?”

“How am I supposed to have one with you always around?”

“…Hehe.”

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing.”

They spent their first year testing each other’s feelings,

“Hey, if neither of us has a partner by graduation, what if we just date each other?”

“…What do you mean by that?”

“You know exactly what I mean.”

They solidified their resolve in their second year.

And so, winter break arrived.

After watching a movie together, Chae Ah received a lengthy confession text message.

“Sorry, it’s just not my type… Was that too direct?”

“Why are you asking me?”

“Because you’re here?”

“That’s enough.”

Walking home together,

“So, what’s your ideal type?”

Hyun Woo asked.

“Ideal type? Why suddenly?”

“Well, it’s strange that you’ve rejected everyone so far. You must’ve received several confessions. How high are your standards?”

“Hmm… It’s not about having high standards…”

Chae Ah tapped her lips with her finger before speaking.

“First, glasses suit them well.”

Hyun Woo wore round, thin-framed glasses.

“They seem indifferent but are actually considerate.”

Chae Ah fiddled with her jacket.

When she muttered about being cold, she realized Hyun Woo had just lent her his jacket.

“They look tired sometimes, but also sexy… What do you call it? Oh, right. Decadent charm. They exude decadent charm…”

Halt.

Hyun Woo stopped in his tracks and caught his breath.

Chae Ah continued talking as if nothing was unusual.

“Childhood friend turned ideal type.”

“…Is this a confession?”

“Hmm. I’ll wait until you’re ready.”

Whether from the cold or for another reason,

Chae Ah’s ears turned bright red.

“Hmph.”

Hyun Woo chuckled nervously.

He didn’t realize his confession preparation had been exposed,

And her shy pretense was unbearably cute.

“…How did you know?”

“I saw it when you went to the bathroom yesterday. You should’ve hidden it better.”

“Sigh…”

Hyun Woo ran his hand through his hair and spoke.

“Alright. Then go to the playground and wait.”

“Playground?”

“Yeah. Let me show you what I prepared.”

Twitch.

Chae Ah’s reddened ears moved,

Trying to say something,

“Then let me show you what I prepared.”

“What you prepared?”

“Yeah. I’ll bring it. See you at the playground.”

As Chae Ah trotted away,

Hyun Woo muttered to himself while heading home,

“Good thing I planned to do this today.”

He originally intended to confess before the vacation ended,

Unable to hold out any longer as they were about to enter their third year.

Gathering the poorly hidden bouquet,

He tidied up his clothes in the mirror before leaving the house.

The playground he was heading to was a special place.

From elementary school until the second year of high school,

Whenever they were bored,

Exercised together,

Or when Chae Ah fought with her parents and needed a place to pass the time—it was this spot.

“Phew…”

Hyun Woo took a deep breath and hid the already revealed bouquet behind his back.

Even with the outcome predetermined,

Dropping a decade-long childhood friendship

To move forward to the next step was nerve-wracking.

“…?”

However, after an hour passed,

And two hours passed,

Chae Ah didn’t show up.

“She said she’d be right there.”

Initially, he thought she was taking her time preparing something.

–Yoo Chae Ah, where are you?

But with no response,

By the time two hours had passed, he sensed something was off.

Could she have arrived already but stayed outside because he wasn’t ready?

Just as this thought crossed his mind,

Ding-dong!

His phone rang.

Hyun Woo immediately checked the screen.

He assumed it was Chae Ah, but…

[Chae Ah’s Father]

The name on the screen was unexpected.

Curious, he pressed the call button.

“Hello, Uncle…?”

“Hyun Woo, we need to go to the hospital.”

Uncle, whom he’d grown close to always hanging out with Chae Ah,

Was usually relaxed and warm, but this urgent tone was the first time he’d ever heard it.

“Is something wrong?”

“Listen carefully without panicking. Chae Ah… “

The following words were shocking.

“She’s been in an accident and is on her way to the emergency room. So, Hyun Woo, please come quickly… “

The surrounding sounds faded,

And his mind went blank.

Why today, of all days,

Why now, when our feelings had just connected,

Did this happen?

What could she have been preparing that caused an accident?

While pondering these questions,

Hyun Woo tossed aside the bouquet and raced to the hospital.