GRR 98

Although he hadn’t properly checked yet, Jion jumped to a conclusion. And he was convinced that this conclusion couldn’t possibly be wrong.

“I think I need to meet with Seon Ayoung and talk to her.”

He felt he needed to ask who that girl was and also tell her that, aside from Han Heeju, the other three had transferred schools. Deciding there was no time to waste, Jion jumped to his feet.

“Jion, come with me!”

Yu Chasa, who had immediately stood up as well, called out cheerfully. Jion hesitated, unable to answer right away. He felt a little bad for Yu Chasa, but if he had to go with someone, he wanted it to be Kwon Chasa. However, he had been caught hugging him earlier, and since Yu Chasa had offered first, he felt too embarrassed to voice his preference.

As he looked at Yu Chasa with an awkward smile, Kwon Chasa stood up.

“Yu Chasa, you rest. I’ll go with him.”

“Uh… really?”

“Do you want to go?”

“Ah, no! Please go ahead!”

Jion’s eyes widened in surprise at Kwon Chasa’s words, and Yu Chasa hurriedly bowed his head, afraid he might change his mind. Kwon Chasa gave a small smile, made eye contact with Jion once, and gestured toward the hallway leading to the entrance. Kwon Chasa, who had already started walking, turned back to look at Jion, who hadn’t moved, and asked,

“Student, aren’t you coming?”

“No! I’m coming!”

This time, Jion raised his voice and shouted urgently. He quickly followed after Kwon Chasa. Left standing alone, Yu Chasa tilted his head as he watched Jion’s retreating figure as he scurried after Kwon Chasa.

He couldn’t help but feel that there was some kind of strange tension between Jion and Kwon Chasa.

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Just as he had guessed before meeting Seon Ayoung, Han Heeju had indeed been here. Han Heeju knew where Seon Ayoung lived, and she said the two of them had come to this children’s park together many times before.

At first, Seon Ayoung thought Han Heeju had come here to apologize to her. But once she realized Han Heeju hadn’t come with the grim reapers or Jion, she said she kept watching, unable to fathom Han Heeju’s true intentions for coming all the way here. Seon Ayoung explained everything calmly, but her voice was cold.

Jion told Seon Ayoung what he had learned that day. The three of them, excluding Han Heeju, had been forced to transfer schools, and Han Heeju, left alone, appeared to be an outcast in her class. Seon Ayoung didn’t react even after hearing that.

After wrapping up the conversation with the remark that he’d just come to tell her this, Jion and Kwon Chasa moved to a nearby cafe. Jion was reluctant to part ways with Kwon Chasa just yet. He rubbed his hollowed-out stomach, claiming he was hungry.

“I’m going to have a hot chocolate. What about you, Kwon Chasa-nim?”

“I don’t need one.”

“Then I’ll order the same thing as mine.”

“…Do whatever you want.”

Jion glanced at Kwon Chasa, who spoke indifferently, then smiled before ordering two hot chocolates and a bagel sandwich. When asked to put his card in the front slot, Kwon Chasa took his card out of his pocket and paid for it himself.

After the payment was complete, Jion took the buzzer handed to him by the staff and looked around the cafe. Just then, he noticed two women sitting in a corner packing up their things.

Jion kept an eye out and went over to their table and placed the buzzer on it the moment they stood up with their bags. Kwon Chasa followed behind and, after confirming Jion had taken his seat, sat down across from him.

Jion rubbed his frozen, red hands together to generate some warmth. Kwon Chasa wondered if it had been that cold outside, but it seemed to have been harsh for Jion, a human.

Kwon Chasa’s gaze lingered on Jion. His neck, his body buried deep in a coat that was a bit too big for him, his rosy earlobes, even his eyelashes fluttering with every blink. As he examined each detail, he felt a strange sensation.

Just as his gaze was about to grow more intense, the buzzer on the table began to vibrate.

“I’ll go get it…”

“Stay seated.”

Just as Jion shifted in his seat to stand up, Kwon Chasa pressed down on his shoulder, forcing him back into his seat, then picked up the buzzer. He stood up confidently, but not knowing where to go with it, he scanned the area with his eyes. Jion chuckled softly and pointed somewhere with his finger.

“Chasa-nim, it’s over there. Where the guy with glasses is standing.”

Only then did Kwon Chasa realize where he was supposed to go, and he walked toward the employee wearing glasses. When he handed over the buzzer, the employee checked the number and handed Kwon Chasa a tray with two mugs of hot chocolate and a sandwich.

Jion watched as Kwon Chasa picked up the tray and made his way through the crowd toward him, then suddenly realized that too many eyes were fixed on him.

He is a bit… no, actually, really handsome. He’s tall, and he looks great in whatever he wears. Hmm… or maybe not? It’s hard to say for sure if he really has a great sense of style, since he always wears the same suit, I don’t know if other clothes would suit him. But then again, wouldn’t anything look good on him?

Feeling pleased, Jion chuckled, and just then, Kwon Chasa returned to his seat. unauthorized copySitting across from him in the cafe felt just like a date, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Just… because I’m happy.”

Jion’s cheeks puffed out as the corners of his mouth turned up. When Kwon Chasa, momentarily speechless at his honest answer, showed no reaction, Jion seized the opportunity to grasp the handle of his mug. He carefully took a sip of the steaming hot chocolate to warm himself up, then peeled off the plastic wrap from the sandwich and offered half to Kwon Chasa. Seeing the food right in front of him, Kwon Chasa shook his head.

“You said you were hungry.”

“But it feels so cold-hearted to eat it alone.”

He knew that reapers had no appetite, but he offered it again, hoping that having one more shared meal would create more memories to cherish together. However, whether Kwon Chasa understood his feelings or not, he pushed his outstretched hand away and said,

“It’s fine. You just eat plenty, student.”

It was a bit disappointing, but just being at the cafe together today was ​Read on​enough to make him happy. Instead of offering it to Kwon Chasa one more time, Jion opened his mouth and took a bite of the sandwich. The sauce inside oozed out, staining the corners of his mouth. Kwon Chasa picked up a napkin from the tray and nonchalantly wiped the corners of Jion’s mouth.

Startled by the sudden reach of his hand and the unfamiliar texture of the napkin against his lips, Jion’s eyes widened. Could it be… did he just wipe my mouth? The act was so surprising that the sandwich, which he hadn’t even chewed properly, slid down his throat.

When he first walked into this cafe, he had been cold, but now he felt not just warm, but hot. Jion hurriedly took off his coat and took several deep breaths to calm his pounding heart. Kwon Chasa was completely unfazed, as if he had no idea how his actions were being perceived.

Jion gulped down the hot chocolate as if it were a cold drink and stared at Kwon Chasa. Something was definitely different. He had definitely changed. The fact that he didn’t push him away, as if there was nothing awkward about standing so close and hugging each other, the fact that he met Seon Ayoung with him instead of Yu Chasa, the fact that he wiped his mouth himself instead of handing him a napkin…

Whether he knew Jion was lost in thought or not, Kwon Chasa lifted his mug and gazed at the drink inside. Without letting it cool, he took a sip, held it in his mouth, then looked into the cup again, only after taking another sip did he set the cup down completely. Every movement was relaxed, yet there was not a single superfluous gesture.

He’d completely thrown his emotions into disarray, yet he acted as if he had no idea.

Lately, it seemed like Kwon Chasa would listen to anything he said. Then again, even before this, he’d always been firm and unyielding, yet in the end, he’d always done exactly what Jion wanted. Recently, the number of times he spoke to him harshly had also decreased.

His desire to know what thoughts were hidden behind that impassive expression gradually morphed into him arbitrarily speculating about his true feelings.

Could it be… that my confession is actually getting [Read on]through to Kwon Chasa? After hearing me say I like him so many times, could he have started to like me back? Is he trying to hide his feelings by pretending not to care?

The moment that thought crossed his mind, his throat went dry, and his heart raced so fast that his fingertips began to tremble. When Jion suddenly started taking loud, deep breaths, Kwon Chasa gave him a puzzled look. Even then, Jion continued staring at him.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Do you have something else to say?”

His tone was as cold as ice, but the way he nodded, as if ready to listen to everything, made Jion’s heart flutter once more.

“…Kwon Chasa-nim.”

“What?”

His throat was parched. Whenever he met him, he always confessed his feelings, but today his heart beat harder than usual.

“You know, Chasa-nim….”

“Know what?”

“You know I like you, right?”

“…More nonsense.”