73 A Call (2/2)

”...” This time, it was Hyuk who was lost in his thought. ”What are you on about now, you little brat?” Hyuk cleared his throat, feeling bashful.

”Hehe,” Yeo Ri giggled. She leaned against the wall, drawing circles on the surface with her forefinger with a slight smile on her face. Just talking to him made her feel happy.

”Oppa.”

”Hm?”

”I miss you.”

”You—!” Hyuk was at a loss for words. Since when had she been such a sweet-talker? ”We just saw each other this morning,” he exasperatedly reminded her. On the other side of the call, Hyuk had ran to an empty alleyway, allowing himself to talk comfortably with the girl. ”So? Why did you call?”

”Ah, right. You said Jin Goo-oppa offered to let us stay at his house?”

”Mm. He said he was worried about you staying outside.”

”Oh... that's nice of him. Oppa, you should treat him more nicely. Friends that go above and beyond like Jin Goo-oppa are very rare, you know?” She lectured.

”I know, I know,” Hyuk sighed. He had heen thinking about how he should repay his friend. He seriously had no idea how he got such a great friend. Both In Guk and Jin Goo had continually had his back from the day they became friends. It felt like he had spent an entire lifetime's worth of luck just to meet these guys.

”What about Gun-oppa?”

”What about him? I sent the address to him. He can find it himself.”

Yeo Ri frowned in dissatisfaction, ”Oppa, can't you be nicer to Gun-oppa?”

”...” Hyuk opened his mouth to say another biting remark, but stopped himself. He didn't want to make Yeo Ri angry with him, so he shut his mouth. ”Fine, I'll try,” he grumbled.

”Good,” Yeo Ri nodded in satisfaction. They were blood brothers, so she didn't understand why they never got along. She understood from the soap operas that she had watched in her free time that half-siblings usually never got along, but for some reason, the two doted on her—who was born from a different mother—more than they doted on each other.

”Then, I'll be waiting. I love you, Oppa,” Yeo Ri concluded the call with a light tone. She returned to her friends with a skip in her steps.

On the other side, Hyuk stared at his phone with a flabbergasted expression. He couldn't believe his ears. Did she just say she loved him...? His heart raced from the unexpected statement. All this time, he had always been too afraid to ask her how she felt; he had been too insecure to hear the answer.

After standing dazedly for a long time, Hyuk finally woke up from his trance and went back to what he was doing before the call, a mixture of emotions brewing in his heart.