.  When he kicked the wall for the second time, I stepped back instinctively and shouted, “Yeo Dan oppa! What’s going on, again?!” He, however, scowled at the door nonchalantly and blurted, “Those bastards are the ones who made you get used to these kinds of things.”


  “What?”


  He tried to step inside while kicking the door open. I pulled him away with a pale face.

  Thankfully, the bathroom was all the way inside the hall, so the noise didn’t reach the counter. A few customers came toward this side without being aware of what was going on. Then I saw them quickly moving back as they found out the strained atmosphere.

  Trying to grab and pull Yeo Dan oppa’s waist, I yelled, “Oppa, you’re gonna have a lot of trouble if some bad news comes out! You really hate troublesome things, don’t you?!”


  At that moment, he replied with a subsided voice, “I hate that you’re used to this. That’s what I hate more.”


  I raised my head that I shoved between his side and his arm until then. I tossed a question involuntarily, “What?”


  “I hate that you’re used to these kinds of things.”


  He slowly repeated the sentence with a frown. Standing still blankly for a moment, I released my hands that were around his waist desperately.

  Staring at me while showing a mixed feeling in his eyes, he uttered, “You still worry only about me.”


  I didn’t know what to respond, so I dropped my gaze to the floor in silence.

  Since I had spent a long time with Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings, I couldn’t help but, first of all, think about the aftermath instinctively whenever this kind of thing happened. As I mentioned earlier, rumors could sometimes work as a lethal poison to people like Yeo Dan oppa, who had a high reputation. Besides, he hated troublesome things; therefore, I didn’t want him to be involved in such a situation.

  While I wiggled my fingers, his determined response returned.

  “I don’t care how much I become annoyed.”


  “Uh……”


  “When it’s something about you.”


  My eyes widened at his words. Pouting my lips for a moment, I soon covered my mouth with both hands as if I was suddenly lacking oxygen then stood still in that posture for quite a while.

  Meanwhile, there was a fuss behind us. Probably Sohn Se Young and Chun Dong Ho would have heard all our conversation over the bathroom door. Thus, they might have roughly grasped the relationship between me and Yeo Dan oppa.

  Suddenly, their irritated voices intervened in the hallway that was silent for a moment.

  “You fu*king idiot, I told you to watch what you say!”


  “Did I know this would happen?”


  Their stinging words, which scratched my heart sharply just until now, felt like nothing as if they were a story about someone else. Blinking my eyes vacantly, I looked up at Yeo Dan oppa out of the blue.

  Glancing at his stern face, which looked as though he was still angry, I suddenly smiled. I knew that it was inappropriate to grin at someone, who was losing his temper for me, but I couldn’t help but smile at him.

  Yeo Dan seemed to wonder why I was suddenly showing a grin. Placing my hand on his hand, I quietly detached my lips.

  “Oppa, to be really honest, I actually didn’t feel good until just now.”


  “Uh-huh.”


  “But now, I’m sincerely fine.”


  Yeo Dan oppa pulled one side of his brows upward as if my response sounded doubtful. Watching him having that look, I shouted with a smile, “I mean, really! I’m truly okay.”


  “I don’t think so.”


  Speaking that way in a slightly louder voice than before, Yeo Dan oppa threw a glance at the bathroom again where Sohn Se Young and Chun Dong Ho would be inside. Wondering about his intention, I soon grinned.

  I then corrected my impression I had about him. I thought he was a tactless guy, but he could threaten others with a straight face than he looked.

  Now I was able to grasp the facial expressions of the two boys inside the bathroom without seeing them directly. With a giggle, I beckoned to Yeo Dan oppa to come closer. He tilted his head toward me. I brought my lips near to his ears.

  “Actually, when you kicked the door……”


  I lowered my voice as much as possible on purpose. Sohn Se Young and Chun Dong Ho would be dying to know what we were now talking about right now.

  Yeo Dan oppa nodded, “Uh-huh.”


  “I felt so cool.”


  Watching him put a slight grin on his lips, I added, “I’m quite mean, right?”


  “Not at all.”


  Replying that way, he lifted his hand and gently patted my head. That simple gesture felt like I was suddenly returning to my days in middle school. The time when the difference between his and my height was larger than now…… In my eyes, he looked so handsome, reliable, and undefeatable.

  Being with Yeo Dan oppa, nothing in this world seemed that frightening. When someone snatched my wallet in the arcade, I returned home crying. He saw me and got my wallet back. Whenever I was involved in a dangerous situation with Yeo Ryung, he finally appeared and saved us. Recalling those memories, I flaunted a smile.

  That was why I wanted to be his real sibling at one point and later had a crush on him. If I couldn’t be his real sister, I would rather become his closest person, so that he could stay beside me as long as possible.

  Well, nothing came true eventually, but thank god, he was still living next door. Keeping my smile at him for a while, I soon shook my head when he asked me what I was thinking about. I made an eye gesture to the table. It had been too long since I said to the kids that I would just make a call shortly.

  When we returned to the table, Lee Mina, who was touching the phone, raised her head. She suddenly asked, “What took you so long? I heard some loud noise from the bathroom just now.”


  The person who made that loud noise was here beside me. However, I couldn’t respond that way, so I just threw a glance at Yeo Dan oppa. He sat across me while showing a nonchalant look on his face as if nothing had happened.

  Kim Jimin, who was sitting here for the whole time, gently greeted both me and Yeo Dan oppa. Nodding my head, I heard Lee Mina’s voice.

  “Do you know what happened? You were just there from the bathroom.”


  “Uh, that’s because……” Glancing at Yeo Dan oppa, I continued, “There was almost a fight……”


  Lee Mina’s eyes brightened as if they were lit at once. Geez, what people said was true; watching a fire or fight was indeed the most exciting thing. Including Mina, Ahn Ji Young and Moon Sarah also got closer to me and asked, “A fight? What fight? Why?”


  “What happened?”


  Haha…… I opened my lips with a grin.

  “It’s a long story. Let me tell you later at school.”


  I should tell them what happened anyway since they were also the people, who were involved in the situation. While I rambled those thoughts in my head, Chun Dong Ho and Sohn Se Young came back to their seats.

  Looking incomparably pale than before, they just rubbed their faces with their hands and glanced at someone to study his face. In the direction where they fastened their gazes, there was Yeo Dan oppa typing something quickly on his phone.

  That was what he had been doing right now; however, the two boys couldn’t move as if they had turned into frozen statues. ‘Yeah, that’s all you guys can react now.’ Clicking my tongue with that thought in mind, I suddenly came up with something then quickly raised my head.

  Yikes, now that I had come to think of it, did I ask Yeo Dan oppa to bring me back home? Recalling the conversations I had with him in front of the bathroom, I finally got the answer.

  Since I was desperate to let Yeo Dan oppa understand that I was fine, I forgot to ask him to bring me back home, which I actually was about to say to him outside the café! I disheveled my hair nervously.

  What should I do now? I had no way left to get out of this place and no excuse to make. Should I have to keep facing these kids until the end of this group hangout then?

  That was when I bit my lips while having those thoughts in my head. Lee Mina, sitting beside me, poked my thigh under the table. I lifted my eyes and directed them on her.

  ‘Huh?’ When I asked her with my eyes instead of speaking them out loud, Lee Mina pointed down. Under the table, I saw a typed message on her phone screen.

  [Did something happen between that oppa and those boys?]