the summer of 1993 ── dohwa baek - Chapter 4: Chapter 4

"Class president! Collect the English homework of every student, and make sure to take them to the staff room."
Y/N was shaken out of her reverie at the teacher's authoritative voice, her back straightening in an instant. She responded with a curt, silent nod, and got up on her feet to greet the old man while he prepared to leave.
Her mind was clogged with numerous thoughts, causing her movements to appear robotic in the eyes of her classmates. One reason for her lack of attention might be Seojun. Another was, most definitely, her newfound acquaintance, Dohwa.
"Y/N!"
She froze.
"Uh... hey, Seojun."
The young boy with sable, short locks stood grinning in front of her. Although short, he was quite an athletic person. After all, not everybody made it to the football team.
"Let me help you with that pile."
"Oh, no. I'll manage." Y/N refuted with a small smile, "The staff room's not so far."
She could spot Eunji and Dokja from her peripheral view snickering at them. Now, she'd have to hear about this awkward interaction for at least ten years.
"Come on! Can't you take the hint?" Dokja shouted, "He wants to be with you."
Both Seojun and Y/N grew hot. All shades of roseate crept their way up to their neck and cheeks, making their embarrassment evident.
"Shut up. It's not like that." Seojun muttered, a tint of pink dabbed over the tip of his ears.
Eunji's eyes shone with a glint that screamed trouble. Without giving her the chance to speak, Y/N trudged on ahead to reach the door, desperate to leave the situation. It was uncomfortable. Very, very uncomfortable. Seojun and her could have been great friends if it wasn't for the constant teasing they were put through.
"Ah... seriously. Bunch of idiots." She grumbled to herself.
"Bunch of idiots indeed."
Y/N flinched. "Seojun? When did you get here?"
"Well. Dokja was partially right. I wanted to talk to you... about something."
No. Please. The last time you confessed was humiliating enough.
"...Go ahead."
"Will you come to see my match today?"
Relief seeped through her body like a splash of cold water on a hot day. She beamed.
"Sure! During recess, right?"
"Yeah!" He nodded with enthusiasm, "You remembered."
A nervous chuckle escaped her mouth. She only remembered because her seatmate had been talking about it for hours; apparently, someone he hated was in the rival team.
She didn't have the heart to tell him that.
"Heh... yes. Good luck for today."
The dimple on his right cheek grew prominent. "Thanks, Y/N! I'll do my best. See you around!"
She sent him a friendly wave, sighing in relief the moment his figure was no longer in sight. A tense atmosphere was one of the last things she wanted to be subjected to.
Sweat trickled down Y/N's forehead by the time she was done running the errand. Her throat felt parched, her strands matted because of the humid air. Afternoons were a battlefield and she was damn well losing the war.
She sought the wall's support, her collapsing lungs inviting broken chunks of oxygen. The distance between the green board and her seat had never seemed longer.
As soon as she settled down, her muscles relaxed, and sleep assaulted her senses.
Normally, she wouldn't take the risk to steal a quick nap, but her intuition told her that if she didn't fall into a slumber right now, she would regret it gravely.
And so she did.
Dohwa Baek was having a dream.
A dream where he was leaning against an off-white vending machine, with two chilling cans of soda in either of his hands. A dream where a tattered red telephone booth stood in all its glory. A dream where tall streetlights flickered against the tarmac of the road below. A dream where a girl—
....Girl?
Through the worn-out, dirty glass doors, a silhouette of a girl could be traced. The receiver was trapped between her ear and her shoulder, her gaze absorbing her surroundings with a coruscating gleam. The rings were loud— loud enough for Dohwa to hear. He didn't know why he was standing there, watching her every movement with curiosity.
Nobody answered the call.
She dejectedly pushed herself out after collecting her change, not sparing a glance at the boy who most people never ignored. Especially when he was standing at a spot that couldn't be missed. The very nucleus of the area.
He felt offended.
For some reason, his legs forced him to tail after her. Nothing except her was visible. Nothing except her was familiar. The boards of the shops, the advertisements on the poles— everything was a blur.
Then at the intersection, a pool of yellow light flashed in front of her.
A car. At a high speed. The blaring horn. Her screaming. The thud of her body hitting the ground. A bed of crimson soaked beneath her. A worried driver. A crowd.
The cans in his grasp slipping. A gasp.
A buzz.
Another buzz.
And another buzz.
Dohwa's eyes were peeled open in shock. He sat upright, the bloody contraption underneath his chest lurching against his ribcage. That was not a dream.
That was a nightmare.
Beneath his palm, he felt something vibrating. His phone.
That was what had woken him up with the buzzing. He wasn't sure if he should be grateful or scared. Either way, he blindly answered it, not wanting to let his brain replay the gruesome scene.
"Hey."
He sounded hoarse. That pretty much gave away his drowsiness.
"Dohwa? I didn't think you'd pick up. I was excited about getting my money back."
"Y/N."
Her name rolled off his tongue like a melody. He stared at the bright screen of his device, taking note of the time.
It was weird for him to doze off in the evening. Especially after dinner.
"Everything okay there? Did your crush destroy your pride in a new way or...?"
"Ex-crush. It's been ten seconds since I've woken up and you have already managed to ruin my mood."
"Then I'll hang up. Bye."
"Hey! Stop it." Dohwa grumbled. "I need a distraction."
Y/N sighed. "So do I. Do you want to go first?"
"No, not really. You should go first."
"No way, you finally gave your human diary the right to speech? I've been fighting for it for three days."
He scoffed. "I can take it back. Don't get too cocky."
"My bad, loverboy. I just wanted to talk about... a guy. A boy. A potential love interest. Someone who will probably get his heart broken."
"Oh lord, is the sweet, naive Y/N capable of breaking hearts too?"
"Necks as well. Do you want me to give you a demonstration?"
"Sorry. Abuse your right to speech while you still can."
She released a bunch of curses before continuing. "There's this person who likes me. He invited me to watch his football match and I agreed. When he scored a goal, I cheered with everyone else. Emphasis on everyone. But for some reason, me cheering specifically led to weird rumours. Rumours like I have a crush on him, or something of sorts. Now I never want to go to school again."
"That's... an issue? I kind of deal with something similar every day. Chill out. You'll be fine." He said with nonchalance, brushing away a single lock of blond that had fallen on his visage.
"You suck at comforting people."
"I don't have the mindset of a seventy-year-old grandma."
She inhaled sharply. "Did you really just call me a seventy-year-old grandma?"
"Yep. A hag. Philosophical worm. You always speak in cursive."
"What does that even mean?" Y/N asked, agitated.
"It means that you should act your age."
"How about you become mature, because clearly, you're losing an opportunity to get a girlfriend with your childish arrogance."
"Childish arrogance? Listen, I can easily get a partner. I just choose not to."
"Keep choosing not to. I wouldn't want a poor girl to put up with you."
Dohwa could sense the flames of seething rage enveloping his insides.
"Su-ae is not putting up with me."
There was a pause. Y/N was holding back a bubble of laughter, and Dohwa, his mortification.
"Did you... did you actually, genuinely suggest to me your crush's name when I asked for cat name ideas? Seriously?"
"Hey... Su-ae is a good name for a kitty..." He trailed off, scratching the back of his head. "And she's not my crush."
"You're not fooling anybody. I may be sixteen but I rent a lot of romance books."
"Okay, and? I'm seventeen and I've recreated most of the scenes from those stupid romance books without actively trying to. I've moved on. Trust."
"Denial. Such a sour term. How do you like its taste?"
"Your own love life is a shitshow. Clean that up."
"My love life doesn't exist. Unless you mean my cat. Then yes, I love him to death."
"What did you end up naming him anyway?"
Y/N chuckled. "Dohwa."
"What?"
"I call him Dohwa."
"...You... do know I was kidding back then... right...?"
"Wrong. He has been named. And I think it's absolutely perfect." She stated matter-of-factly.
"How even—"
"He's annoying. Unbearable. Aggressive."
"I'm none of those things."
"Plus, I like making fun of him. There, you have it."
"You just said you loved your cat. That means that applies to me too, yeah? I wouldn't blame you for that. Good looks and charming smiles are often irresistible."
She yawned. "I know you're a trainee and all, but pipe down your confidence before that Eunhyeok guy does it for you. You know, stay humble."
"...You're an asshole for bringing him up."
"You're an asshole all the time."
"I feel like I've struck a deal with Satan himself by asking you to call me daily."
"A deal with the devil leads you nowhere, but it's fun while it lasts."
Dohwa registered her sentence for a whole minute, and while he wanted to repudiate her claim, he knew that there was some validity in it. He wasn't certain what he was going to gain from this arrangement, but he sure was enjoying it.
It had been a while since he had poured his musings without any filters. Since he had accepted his exasperation regarding Eunhyeok and Su-ae, and even Ra-im, who was the closest thing he had to a friend.
His thoughts were polluted with toxic fumes— with experiences and memories that suffocated him. After years, he had released some of his baggage, and let the tainted broodings be purified. The burden, albeit by a negligible amount, had lifted.
"Then I hope it lasts the whole summer."
And it did.