Childhood Friend Edification Theory - CHAPTER 1.8

01.Childhood friends – Part 8

“Oh… Senior Jung-woo…”

?Why does your voice sound like that? Are you sick??

“No, I was just surprised. Please go ahead…”

?Well, this is the first time I’ve called you… I was just curious if you got home alright. It’s well known in our department that you don’t check your KakaoTalk very often, but not checking for four days is a bit much, isn’t it? Everyone’s worried about you. Your brother seemed really angry that day.?

Haea turned off KakaoTalk notifications except for a few close people, including Jaeha. The same went for group chats for presentations; once the presentation was over, she ignored those notifications as well. Jaeha had done it from the beginning, and Haea, satisfied with that, had followed suit.

“I’m an only child… A brother? Do you mean…”

?Isn’t the Ferrari GTC4Lusso your cousin??

For a moment she was confused, wondering why he would refer to a person by a car model, but then something clicked. Although Haea did not have a cousin who drove a Ferrari, she did have a childhood friend who did.

‘Didn’t Jaeha have a car like that?’

Although he was in the medical department, Ha Jaeha was better at stock trading than Yun Haea, who was in the economics department. His credentials were quite intimidating. If he had any hobbies, they were collecting various car models with the modest profits he made from stock and cryptocurrency investments, and the ‘Ferrari GTC4Lusso’ was one of the cars he had collected that way.

“Ah…“

Haea sighed, expressing a lot in that single breath. A few days ago, Haea went to an end-of-semester party for the economics department and somehow ended up drinking until 1 a.m. She hadn’t exceeded her usual limit or drank excessively, but she felt unusually dizzy and her mind was foggy. She vaguely remembered explaining her situation to Jaeha when he called.

She couldn’t remember everything, but she knew that Jaeha had picked her up and taken her home. Uncharacteristically, he had dropped his wallet, so she went to his place in the morning and found him m*sturbating. And the cousin… there was definitely something suspicious about that.

“Ah...”

Haea was at a loss for words for a moment.

?Why? Have you been scolded a lot??

“No, it’s not that… Senior, I’m sorry. I just remembered something I have to do.”

?Oh. All right. Call me next time.?

“Okay. Thank you, Senior.”

Haea hurriedly ended the call. Just before she pressed the end button, she heard Jung-woo say something, but it was already cut off. Haea, who was thinking about calling again, just put down her mobile phone and stood up. Normally, she would have called back to apologize and ask what he was going to say, but she didn’t care at the moment.

Thud!

The bathroom door closed and the sound of the shower filled the room. The drops of water bouncing off the tiles sounded as lively as the chirping of birds announcing a new beginning.

* * *

When Haea entered the same middle school as Jaeha, who was in his third year at the time, was already a well-known figure in the school. His popularity had already been impressive in elementary school, but it became even more pronounced during puberty, when his secondary sexual characteristics developed.

Not only the middle school students, but also the nearby high school students knew who he was. Haea, who walked to and from school with him every day, also attracted attention because of him. Soon after the new semester started, Haea’s classmates started asking her about Jaeha, curious about how a freshman like her knew him.

?Haea, it must be nice to have a brother like that!?

?Huh??

Her ‘huh?’ was meant to ask what they meant, but her classmates interpreted it differently.

?It’s true, isn’t it? That he’s your cousin!?

?Haea, are you really cousins with Senior Jaeha? Is that why you go to school together??

Unfortunately, it was break time, and her friends, who had overheard, swarmed around her with bright eyes. Jaeha was popular with both boys and girls, and Haea suddenly found herself the center of attention.

Haea, who was shy, could feel her cheeks slowly turning red. But the blush on her cheeks wasn’t just from embarrassment. It was something deeper, something more innocent. Her neck was flushed, and she didn’t know what to do.

As an only child, Haea had always wished for a brother. At first she thought of Jaeha as a ‘younger brother‘, but in truth she didn’t care if it was an older or younger brother.

Jaeha’s role couldn’t be called a younger brother at all, and by then Haea had stopped hoping that he would be her ‘younger brother’. She was fine with him being an ‘older brother’. The constant calling of his name was more of a habit.

?Hmm…?

Middle school Haea’s cheeks puffed out, her lips twitching as she couldn’t easily affirm or deny. In the first year of middle school, Haea was quite happy that her peers treated her and Jaeha like siblings. Childishly, she wanted to brag: ‘My brother is like that.’

?Yun Haea, come out for a moment.?

Just then, Jaeha, who had come to her class, called her out. They mumbled that they were cousins, but Jaeha just frowned, so Haea thought it was okay. That’s why she neither confirmed nor denied it, taking an ambiguous stance. Haea could have said no at that moment. But she didn’t. She kept her mouth shut and walked over to stand in front of Jaeha.

?What’s going on??

?Huh? They’re my friends. What else would it be??

?Why are they all gathered around you? They’re not bullying you because they think you’re a pushover, are they? You know if something like that happens, you tell me.?

?It’s nothing like that. Really. They’re just friends.?

?You know you’re going to get in more trouble if you keep things to yourself and get caught, don’t you??

Even though everyone was watching, he didn’t lower his voice. His words were so confident, almost arrogant, that Haea was taken aback and turned away in embarrassment.

Her classmates didn’t seem upset. It was Haea who felt overwhelmed by the many pairs of eyes that gleamed with interest, as if the situation were fascinating. No, she wasn’t overwhelmed. She was caught up in a strange excitement that made her cheeks flush.

?And why should I be a pushover? They’re just asking if… Oppa is… my cousin…?

Haea’s eyes sparkled with anticipation as she whispered. The corner of his mouth twitched at the cruelty that clawed at the kind brown eyes that had awakened him.

?Oppa??

His tone implied, ‘Since when am I your brother?’.

?Uh-huh…?

?Do whatever you want.?

Haea flinched at his somehow ferocious tone, noticing his hand crumpling his textbook.

?Um...we’re childhood friends! I guess everyone misunderstood because we looked so close!?

Haea shouted, squeezing her eyes shut. Her voice was almost a scream. It was an uncomfortable volume for her vocal chords, which had only whispered before, and they cracked a little. Jaeha seemed startled by Haea’s loud voice, his eyes widening.

?You…?

?That’s right. We are childhood friends, we live next door to each other, we go to and from school together…?

Haea felt so embarrassed and ashamed that she was on the verge of tears. If Jaeha had said that they weren’t even childhood friends, that he hated it, she would probably have burst into tears.

That’s how much she wanted it. She wanted to call him ‘Oppa‘. She wanted to justify it by saying that their mothers called each other sisters, so it wasn’t completely wrong.

But it seemed like Jaeha didn’t want that, so Haea gave up the idea at that moment.

And so the ‘cousin brother’ incident ended, buried deep in her heart.