Childhood Friend Who Sees the Future Utters Nonsense

120 – The day of the college entrance exam

On the morning of the CSAT, I finally woke up a little earlier than usual, took a quick shower, and packed my things in my bag.

ID card, exam ticket, pencil, eraser… .

I double-checked to see if I had forgotten anything, but fortunately I didn’t forget anything. Still, I was anxious, so I checked twice more before I could finally throw my bag on the bed.

dripping.

“Son, come out and eat.”

“yes.”

I absentmindedly checked my phone when I heard my mother’s voice along with a knock.

Since the day started early, I ended up eating breakfast pretty early. Honestly, I wonder if I’ll be able to eat rice, but I think it’s better to have a bite or two. It’s bad if I get hungry in the middle of the day and worry about it.

“…Why did you prepare so many things?”

When I arrived at the kitchen with the idea of ​​mixing rice in soup and having a spoonful, a neatly laid out table caught my eye. It was obvious to anyone that it wasn’t enough for breakfast, so I was dumbfounded for a moment.

There was an abundance of all kinds of food, from my favorite pork ribs to pickled mackerel.

“It’s the college entrance exam day for our only son. I have to work hard.”

“… … .”

As I watched my mother speak so proudly, I felt a mixture of emotions. No matter how I looked at it, the amount of food she had prepared was not something that could be prepared by someone who had just woken up. It was almost 7 o’clock now, so she must have woken up at least 5 o’clock to prepare it.

You can just serve it the way you usually eat it.

“I’ll eat well, Mom.”

“Yes, my son.”

However, I am not so ignorant as to say something to my mother who has worked so hard, asking her why she is acting so strangely, so I decided to sit down and enjoy a hearty breakfast.

I don’t think it’s right to just have a drink and then go into the room.

“Now that I think about it, wouldn’t it be better to take a car? Yuna’s mom asked me yesterday if she could give me a ride. Or maybe take a taxi…”

“It’s okay. It’s the school next door. What is it?”

The moment I picked up the spoon, I laughed and declined at the worried voice my mother gave me.

I know you’re worried, but this year’s college entrance exam venue is none other than Han Yu-jin’s school, so it’s literally within walking distance. Of course, it’s a bit farther than our school, but it’s not that far.

In addition, I have heard that on the morning of the CSAT, there are often traffic jams, so it is safer to walk a relatively quiet distance than to drive.

“It’s a shame that Yuna can’t come.”

While I was eating a piece of rib with my mouth full of enthusiasm, my mother muttered to herself.

It seems that he was sad that none other than Yuna couldn’t come today because she was going abroad for some filming.

“It’s a shame. I have something to do, so there’s nothing I can do.”

“I said that because I thought it would give you some strength if you saw your girlfriend on a day like this. I know there’s nothing you can do about it.”

My mother, who understands but still feels regretful, licks her lips and sips water.

Well, that’s true. From my perspective, it’s an undeniable fact that my motivation changes even a little bit depending on whether or not I can see Yuna’s face on such an important day.

Even if I express my regret, Yuna who went abroad won’t suddenly appear in front of me, so there’s nothing I can do. Later, after the college entrance exam, I’ll have to enjoy the feeling of liberation together.

“Or should I just walk with you to school?”

“I told you it’s okay. Just rest well at home, ma’am.”

I’m not a child anymore, and I’m at an age where I should be labeled an adult next year. I don’t want to burden my mom with more trouble just because it’s the college entrance exam day.

You’ve worked so hard taking care of your useless son, so you should at least rest comfortably at home on the day of the CSAT. Besides, they say there’s no time as cold as the morning of the CSAT, and I don’t want to take my mom out in this bitter cold.

“I ate well.”

“Okay, would you like some coffee?”

“It’s okay, I’ll buy it later.”

I answered while showing off the tumbler I had prepared in advance. I was told that it would be okay if I just got permission from the supervisor, so I plan to fill up on coffee on the way here.

【Girlfriend★ – Are you going?】

The moment I left the room with my bag full of things, I received a text message from Yuna. It was quite early, but had she woken up already because of her schedule? Or had she woken up early on purpose to worry about me?

To be honest, I was a bit surprised and happy because I expected to go into the testing room without being able to contact them.

【Me – I’m about to leave home now.】

【Girlfriend★ – Cheer up! Fighting!】

【I – I’ll be back safely.】

The image of Yuna clenching her fists and cheering came to mind, and I smiled without realizing it and went out to the living room.

“I’ll be back, Mom.”

“Okay, have a nice trip, my son.”

Kwak.

Mom must be more nervous than I am, because she’s hugging me with considerable force. If this keeps up, my son’s bones will break before he even takes the CSAT.

“…let’s go.”

As I stood in front of the front door, I found myself mumbling to myself, as if to encourage myself, even though it was the same scenery as every morning when I left school.

Suddenly.

As I leave the house, trying to stop my mother from coming out the front door to see me off, a rather chilly air greets me. Even though I’m indoors, it’s this cold outside.

Finally, I took the elevator that arrived and went down to the first floor. As I walked down the long hallway and arrived at the apartment entrance, the door opened automatically.

Whew.

Beyond that, a cold winter wind blew. It was a cold that literally bit the flesh.

【-2°C】

“…crazy.”

I wondered what the temperature was and that it was so cold, so I opened the weather app on my phone, and when I saw the numbers that suddenly appeared, I couldn’t help but curse.

It’s only mid-November and it’s already -2 degrees Celsius. This is so realistic. I think it was around 4 or 5 degrees Celsius yesterday. It seems like the saying that the morning of the CSAT is the coldest isn’t for nothing.

I need to warm up my body by drinking some hot coffee.

It was so early in the morning that I couldn’t tell if any cafes would be open, but fortunately, I saw a cafe in the distance that was just about ready to open, so I approached it with my eyes sparkling.

“Would you like a warm Americano?”

“Would you like an Americano? Would you like it in a tumbler?”

“yes.”

“It’s 4,500 won.”

After finishing the calculation, I waited for the coffee to come out in a room with a fairly warm air, as if the heater had just started working. Fortunately, it didn’t take long for the tumbler I had handed to the staff to come back up on the bar.

“The Americano you ordered is here.”

“Thank you, thank you for your hard work.”

I bowed my head to say hello, took a sip of my coffee, and left the cafe. It was a little hot, but I thought it was enough to endure the cold, so I drank it little by little.

How many minutes did I walk like that? Soon enough, I could see Han Yu-jin’s school building in the distance. It wasn’t a place I visited often, but I had stopped by a few times when I passed by, so it was a familiar sight.

As expected, there was a crowd of people in front of it. There were students holding drums and cheering, and there were also people handing out warm tea and other things to people.

Wow, there are so many. As expected, most of them came with their parents or acquaintances.

Only then did I feel a little embarrassed that I came alone, and my mind started to wander as I thought that maybe I should have just come with my mom.

“…uh?”

I noticed a huge van parked near the school gate and stopped in its tracks.

That makes sense, that van is definitely… .

“Armoda!”

As if to interrupt my thoughts, someone among those gathered in front of the school gate pointed somewhere and shouted.

“Huh? Seriously. Isn’t that Yuna from Armo?”

“Did Yuna come to take the CSAT too? I heard she’s a senior in high school too….”

As if that was the starting point, people all started looking somewhere and chatting. My gaze naturally turned there as well.

“Siyoon!”

“… Yuna?”

There was Yuna, approaching me with her arms wide open, accompanied by her manager.

What is this, is this a dream? Why is Yuna here? She must have a schedule overseas, so she won’t be in Korea until the day after tomorrow… .

Wow!

As if to let me know that this wasn’t a dream but reality, Yuna ran to me and hugged me. I almost dropped the tumbler, but fortunately, that didn’t happen.

“How is it, are you surprised?”

“Oh, oh… . Well, I can’t help but be surprised. Didn’t you go abroad?”

When I asked her to explain what was going on, Yuna arrogantly waved her index finger from side to side as if to say, “You little brat.”

“Of course it was a lie, you idiot. I meant it to surprise you, did it work?”

“… If you surprise me twice, I’ll lose my liver.”

When I said that half-seriously, Yuna burst out laughing. Only then did I come to my senses and awkwardly greet the manager standing behind me.

We’ve met a few times since we went public with our relationship, but we haven’t really talked much, so we’re still on an awkward level.

“By the way, isn’t that a bit unexpected? I thought you’d ask me what I’m doing here when my boyfriend is cold.”

“How can you say something like that when you have a good heart? Besides… .”

“furthermore?”

I paused for a moment in embarrassment, scratched my cheek, and hugged Yuna. It wasn’t as intense as when Yuna hugged me earlier, but as if I was holding something precious as carefully as possible.

“Actually, I really wanted to see you. I didn’t say anything, but I was a little sad when I heard you couldn’t come.”

“Hey, isn’t it good to be honest?”

Yuna must have been quite satisfied with those words and actions, because this time she stretched her arms a little deeper and hugged my back. It was very warm.

“I should give a gift to a boyfriend who is so honest.”

“A gift? What is it?”

I tilted my head in confusion at Yuna’s behavior of suddenly putting a gift in her mouth on the morning of the CSAT.

Surely she wouldn’t just kiss me on the street like this. Since Yuna usually gave me gifts like that, I felt uneasy for no reason.

“Here, this!”

“…muffler?”

But the anxiety was short-lived, as Yuna took something out of the paper bag the manager was holding and showed it to me, which was none other than a muffler.

“Yeah, I saw your muffler last week and it was really worn out. If I had known a little sooner, I would have knitted it for you myself.”

“ah….”

Come to think of it, last week when we got our couple rings, Yuna was particularly staring at my muffler. Even during the meal, she asked me all sorts of questions like whether I should buy a new one, and if I did, what style would be good.

I never would have guessed that this was the stepping stone for this. I really never thought of it.

“Can I try it?”

“No! I’ll take care of it myself!”

“Okay, okay. Then take a look around.”

I handed back the muffler I had received and lowered my waist slightly to Yuna’s eye level. Then Yuna came over to me with an excited expression and neatly wrapped the muffler around my neck.

By the way, I was surprised because it felt a bit more stylish than the way I usually tie my hair, whether it was because of the styling. I guess idols tie their mufflers differently too.

“How is it, do you like it?”

“Of course you like it, then.”

The design itself is my style, and more than anything, it is meaningful because it was a gift from my girlfriend. I think I will continue to use this muffler for a long time, even if it gets worn out.

Even if I lose it, I don’t think I can throw it away.

“Thank goodness. In fact, I didn’t want to burden you as much as possible on the day of the CSAT, so I planned to give you a gift after the test. But Jiwon said something? The morning of the CSAT is the coldest.”

“… That’s right.”

I don’t know if it was really cold because the temperature was low, or if it was cold in some other sense, but it was incredibly cold. It was only warmer when Yuna came.

“And you said that before when we were getting matched. You said you wanted to be encouraged.”

“That’s right.”

“But I wasn’t the one who gave you courage back then, so this time I wanted to give it to you.”

Yuna looked up at me blankly as she tied her muffler more tightly.

“How about this, it will double my courage?”

“I think it will not double, but a hundred times.”

He said that sincerely to Yuna, who asked him naturally.

To be exact, it wasn’t the courage that this muffler gave me, but the courage that Yuna gave me in front of me. It was a time when I could strengthen my will to figure out what I wanted to run for before going through that school gate.

Hug.

“Cheer up, fighting!”

“…I’ll be back soon.”

They hug each other and exchange the same greetings they had exchanged via text message.

But somehow, the feeling is completely different from back then. Is it the difference between greeting someone with just a few words without even seeing their face and greeting someone while sharing each other’s warmth?

Leaving Yuna behind, I confidently walk towards the main school building beyond the school gate. The faint sense of anxiety I had felt before leaving home is nowhere to be found.

I must do my best to return in order to live up to this courage. With that determination, I gripped the muffler around my neck tightly.