PUPPY 79

The third day since distancing himself from Juwon.

It felt as if all the storms of the world were sweeping past him. Seowoo’s mind and body were becoming haggard in real time.

“Everything’s his way….”

Words of resentment, resembling a monologue, flowed from Seowoo’s lips. Seowoo, who would normally have rested in the classroom after lunch, was loitering near the school field.

“…Hoo.”

Even after a long sigh, the stifling feeling didn’t go away. He just felt empty, as if a gaping hole had been punched in his chest. Seowoo sat down on the stairs in front of the field and opened his cell phone.

There was no sign of any contact from Juwon. He hadn’t expected him to obey his words—don’t talk to me, just wait at a distance—so well. Just a little while ago, he had been glancing over furtively, but now his whereabouts were a mystery again.

Seowoo went into his past chat window with Juwon. Juwon’s lovely messages, full of kiss and heart emoticons, had come to an abrupt halt a few days ago.

Closing the messenger app, Seowoo tried his best to compose his bitter heart and opened the internet browser. Traces of Seowoo’s diligent searches remained on the internet.

— How to use SNS after a breakup (when you want to get a call back)

— How to make someone contact you after seeing your SNS

— A collection of SNS profile pictures/phrases to make someone who’s become distant curious

He hadn’t realized it when he was searching, but looking at them all together, it was utterly pathetic. Seowoo quickly deleted the search terms, in case anyone saw them. He had actually tried some of these, but none had been effective.

“……”

Seowoo put the silent cell phone into his pocket and looked at the field. He saw students gathered together, chasing a ball. Judging by the color of their gym clothes, most of them were second-years. Juwon, with his good social skills, would often naturally mix in with other classes and play whenever he saw a ball. As Seowoo narrowed his eyes and looked at the field, he heard an unfamiliar voice from his side.

“Cha Juwon isn’t over there.”

When he turned his head, he saw Lee Yerin.

“Hi?”

“Oh…, uh. Hi.”

Yerin smiled brightly and greeted him, but Seowoo replied awkwardly with a stiff expression. Looking at Seowoo, Yerin gave a small smile.

“It was fun watching you two flounder, but I felt a little guilty, so I came.”

“……”

Flounder?

His world felt like it was collapsing because of his conflict with Juwon, but she called it mere ‘floundering.’ Seowoo’s lips pouted out just a little.

“The reason I went to Cha Juwon’s house last time was because Hyewon unnie called me. It looks like you misunderstood something because of me.”

“Ah…, that day.”

At Yerin’s words, Seowoo let out a short sigh.

He recalled encountering Juwon’s family and Lee Yerin in front of the gate to Juwon’s house. That day, his heart had been aching so much that he couldn’t think of anything else, but thinking back, Lee Yerin and Juwon’s other family members had all been watching, and he felt embarrassed belatedly.

He had wanted to show them his most proper and neat side, since they might not like that he was dating a boy, but he had completely ruined it.

“No, it’s not because of you….”

Seowoo replied with a serious expression. Yerin, who was watching him, threw a direct question.

“Are you dating Cha Juwon?”

“Huh, what?”

“I’m not prejudiced.”

“…It’s not something I can just say.”

At Seowoo’s answer, Yerin showed an expression of excessive disappointment. Though he had deferred his answer, his lack of denial seemed to have conveyed his meaning sufficiently.

Sitting next to her, Lee Yerin’s face seemed particularly close. It was a random thought, but he was thinking that she was truly pretty.

“I’m not interested in Cha Juwon.”

At the sudden words, Seowoo’s eyes widened and he stared at Yerin.

“Actually, I asked Cha Juwon to introduce you to me.”

“…Me? Why?”

At the unexpected words, Seowoo asked with his mouth slightly open. Lee Yerin shrugged her shoulders and answered as if it were obvious.

“Because I’m interested in you.”

“Me…? Not Cha Juwon?”

“Cha Juwon? Why would I be into him?”

At Seowoo’s question, Yerin asked back with a look of disbelief. She seemed faintly displeased and, at the same time, clearly flustered.

They’re both pretty and handsome, so why does she hate the idea so much? Is it like… intraspecies hatred?

Seowoo’s rough guess was more or less correct. Neither Juwon nor Yerin saw Beastmen as potential romantic partners. Their type was a gentle and kind ‘human.’ Just like Seowoo.

“But what do you mean by that.”

“The meaning that I’m interested in you?”

Yerin smiled, putting an end to Seowoo’s doubts.

“…In me?”

“When I asked Cha Juwon to introduce you to me, he showed his dislike so obviously. I wondered why, but hmm, to think you were in that kind of relationship….”

Yerin narrowed her eyes and looked at Seowoo with a playful expression. Seowoo licked his lips out of unnecessary tension. Then, he asked Yerin.

“…But, what’s the reason you’re telling me this?”

Regardless of who she was interested in, he couldn’t quite understand why Yerin was trying to clear up the misunderstanding between him and Juwon. At Seowoo’s innocent question, Yerin raised one corner of her mouth and stood up from her seat.

“Jindo dog.”

“Huh?”

“You saved a Jindo dog, didn’t you.”

“…Huh?”

The reason was so unexpected that he was even more confused.

“Think carefully.”

“About what?”

“Ours is the best. You know, native breeds, right?”

What on earth is this all about….

Leaving Seowoo, whose face was covered in question marks, Lee Yerin turned around and ran off, patter-patter-patter. When he had only heard rumors that she was pretty, she had seemed somewhat cold and difficult, but after talking to her up close, she seemed like a bright and kind person.

Left alone on the stairs again, Seowoo puffed out his cheeks.

Even after hearing Yerin say it was a misunderstanding, feelings like resentment didn’t all melt away. Moreover, the fact that Juwon had lied to him remained unchanged.

Still, should he have given him a chance to explain?

Seowoo, who had been sitting still, took out his cell phone again. He launched the internet browser and typed in one word to search.

Reconciliation

Soon after, the information Seowoo needed began to pour out.

[When you want to become friends again after a huge fight?]

[SNS posts that show you want to reconcile]

[TOP 3 ways to make up with your partner again.]

🦴

Screech—

The classroom door opened with a rough sound. Break time had just started, and the noisy classroom became as quiet as if water had been thrown on it.

“Hey, Oh Dongjae.”

The gazes of all the students sitting in the class turned to Juwon, who had appeared, opening the back door, and was standing at an angle.

“Huh?”

“Come out.”

Juwon said with a nod of his head. In an instant, the atmosphere in the classroom turned as cold as if ice water had been poured over it. To the kids who didn’t know Juwon’s true personality, he was still the person who ‘shut up the school bullies as soon as he transferred.’

It was also because the reason Juwon had been forced to transfer just before his third year of high school had not been clearly revealed. On top of that, there were faint rumors that his family was so well-off that his parents would take care of any trouble he caused, so Juwon’s rank within the school was high.

That very Juwon, with a tired face and a low, cracked voice, had called out Dongjae. Even though they knew the two were friends, a sense of tension lingered in the classroom even after they left, perhaps because of the ominous atmosphere. After walking with Dongjae for a while, Juwon sat on a bench and let out a deep sigh.

“…What’s up?”

“It’s about a friend of mine.”

“Yeah.”

“He said he fought with the person he’s dating.”

I wondered what he was going to talk about, but it’s a consultation about his own love life.

‘It’s about a friend of mine.’ It was such a cliché opening. He had already felt that something was unusual about Juwon and Seowoo’s relationship. Seowoo, who usually left his account dormant as if it didn’t exist, was also strange for posting like a runaway locomotive. As if his world had collapsed, he would edit all his photos in black and white and add some strange famous quote.

“Why did they fight?”

“There’s a secret I couldn’t tell him. Because of that, a misunderstanding arose, and I ended up lying too, it’s a bit complicated.”

“Ah, a lie? That’s a bit dangerous.”

He thought it was just a lovers’ quarrel at most, but this was a bit of an unexpected development. Moreover, it was at a very dangerous level. Oh Dongjae made a serious face. Juwon’s expression darkened along with his.

“…Really?”

“Yeah. If there isn’t a valid reason, it’s hard to fix. You should try putting yourself in his shoes too.”

At Oh Dongjae’s words to try putting himself in his shoes, Juwon let out a deep sigh.

“I can explain now why I lied. But Seo…, no, my friend’s boyfriend says he doesn’t even want to see his face, so how can I start a conversation.”

“No matter what….”

“What.”

Juwon suppressed his anxiety and looked at Dongjae with a desperate expression. After receiving the restraining order, Juwon would turn into a dog at all hours, hiding his small body here and there to secretly observe Seowoo. He wanted to run and hug him right away, but the situation that prevented him from doing so was so sad that he almost shed a tear. Such a Juwon needed a clever trick to be able to talk to Seowoo again.

“I said what is it?”

As Juwon urged him once more, Oh Dongjae shrugged his shoulders and replied.

“A public confession, of course.”