The Kiss I Never Should Have Asked For - Chapter 21 – Something Was Different

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The drawing Korn had given me remained inside my notebook.

Every morning before class...

I opened my notebook to check my homework.

And every morning...

My eyes landed on that small drawing beneath the first page.

The tree.

Two school bags.

A quiet afternoon.

For some reason...

It always made me smile.

"You're smiling."

I quickly looked up.

Narin was standing beside my desk with his arms crossed.

"What?"

"You've been staring at your notebook for almost a minute."

"Really?"

"Yes."

He laughed.

"You look like someone in love."

I felt my face grow warm.

"It's just homework."

"If you say so."

He sat beside me as the first bell rang.

Normally...

He would spend the next few minutes talking about football or joking with our classmates.

But today...

He kept looking toward the classroom door.

As if he were waiting for someone.

During lunch break, I looked around the canteen.

"Narin?"

"Hm?"

"I thought we'd eat together."

He looked at his watch.

"I... actually promised someone I'd help them."

"Someone?"

"Yeah."

"A classmate."

"I'll eat later."

Before I could ask anything else...

He picked up his tray and hurried away.

I watched him leave.

It felt strange.

Narin had never left me alone during lunch before.

That afternoon, I walked to the junior building.

Korn was already waiting beneath our usual tree.

"You look tired."

"I am."

"Long day?"

I nodded.

"Narin disappeared during lunch."

Korn looked surprised.

"He did?"

"He said he was helping someone."

Korn thought for a moment.

"Maybe he really was."

"Maybe."

I smiled.

"I guess I'm just overthinking."

Korn didn't answer immediately.

Instead...

He handed me my notebook.

"I checked your essay."

"There were only two spelling mistakes."

I laughed.

"Only two?"

"I'm improving."

"You are."

His smile was warm.

Encouraging.

Being around him somehow made the frustration disappear.

We sat together beneath the tree, talking about homework, teachers, and the upcoming exams.

For almost an hour...

Everything felt peaceful.

Then my phone buzzed.

It was a message from Narin.

Sorry. I had something important to do. I'll see you tomorrow.

That was all.

No explanation.

No "I miss you."

No teasing.

Just a short message.

I stared at the screen for a moment before putting the phone away.

"You okay?"

Korn asked gently.

"Yeah."

"I'm fine."

But for the first time...

I wasn't sure that I was.

That evening...

I lay on my bed thinking about the day.

It wasn't a big argument.

Nothing terrible had happened.

Narin had simply been...

Different.

Maybe I really was imagining things.

Maybe he was just busy.

Maybe tomorrow everything would go back to normal.

I closed my eyes, trying to convince myself of that.

But deep inside...

A small voice kept whispering that something had begun to change.

And I had no idea...

Whether I was ready for it.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtmr8eP8aDN

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