Chapter 105: A Pleasant Surprise

Laika recalled the confident image of himself from the photo book.

If he tidied up his hair, sharpened his eyebrows a bit, and dressed a little more flamboyantly—would it be possible to look somewhat similar?

As Johannes pondered deeply, Iris glanced at him and spoke up.

“Jogging every day? You’re really diligent. I recently started jogging to manage my stamina…”

“Then! W-want to! Want to do it together?”

“Huh?”

Startled, Iris came to an abrupt halt.

Had his countless resolutions to be more proactive backfired? Johannes’s voice cracked again, sounding terribly awkward. It was a rare double slip, completely unlike his usual self.

He quickly lowered his head after glancing at the dumbfounded Iris.

His gaze lingered briefly on her chest before he was startled, looking up and then nervously down again, his eyes darting anxiously.

Though he could act taciturn in front of others, with Iris it was impossible for him to stay composed. He just liked her too much.

His rolling red eyes finally found a suitable focal point. It seemed better to look appropriately at her neck rather than anything impure.

Given what happened last time, if he stared at her chest or lips again, the lower part of his body might react once more. And he was scared Iris would notice his gaze and look down on him.

Unable to read her expression, he didn’t know how Iris was reacting. Was she frowning? Or raising an eyebrow in silent judgment, thinking, ‘Who do you think you are’?

The thought that she might be offended by his sudden offer to jog together made sweat bead on his palms.

Still, he didn’t want to avoid it anymore. No matter what happened, he had to at least say it.

It was pitiful how nervous he was each time, causing his voice to come out all wrong.

She could refuse, but that much failure was acceptable. If he stayed silent, he felt like he’d die inside.

Steeling himself, he tried to steady his uneven breathing and babbled on.

“Jogging, or walking, or whatever. It’d be nice to do it together… well, not necessarily nice… but two is better than one, right? The chance of meeting a mugger, or some dangerous person, would be lower!”

“Is… that so?”

Iris’s voice held a hint of doubt, and Johannes’s shoulders slumped.

His hands trembled as he wanted to say, “If you don’t want to, I understand. See you next time,” and run away immediately.

Feeling like he might sink into the ground, he fought the urge to give up this time.

He wracked his brain and awkwardly explained why they should jog together.

“Yeah. If you go to places with few people, you could meet a mugger… or dangerous people… Ah, you probably wouldn’t have any problems… but still! Being together is… better, I guess. It wouldn’t be boring… it could be nice, um. The chance of it being nice is very small… or maybe not…”

His voice trailed off after bravely speaking up.

Thinking about it, it wasn’t like Iris would be in danger alone. She was a Hero, after all.

And as for not being bored—that was just ridiculous to say after he’d said it.

He really was a boring person. Not only was he bad with words, but he was also an expert at killing the mood.

At that moment, the words his biological mother once said echoed in his mind.

“You’re a kid who just makes people feel bad. Even if you don’t say anything, you drain the energy and annoy everyone.”

Maybe she was right. Iris had never laughed joyfully in front of him.

Recalling Iris’s carefree laughter with her school friends made his breath hitch.

A kid who made people feel bad had just awkwardly asked to jog together without knowing his place.

Iris would surely be annoyed and never want to see him again.

What if she blocked his contact? Then it’d be completely over.

The confidence he’d barely summoned deflated like a punctured balloon, making his vision spin.

He felt dizzy, almost fainting.

Thankfully, before he lost consciousness, Iris’s voice broke the silence.

“Alright. But every day… is difficult.”

“Oh, I-I see. That’s quite difficult… It must be difficult with me…”

“No! I just meant I haven’t been doing it for long, so I don’t think I can do it every day yet. I’m still not used to waking up at this time. How about two or three times during weekdays? If I’m too tired to wake up, there’s nothing I can do.”

Iris proposed calmly.

Johannes’s shoulders twitched at her mentioning being too tired to wake up, and he exclaimed.

“Then! I-I’ll wake you up! If it’s by phone… then that works. Ah, if it makes you feel bad… well, I can’t help it…”

Iris couldn’t hold back her laughter at Johannes’s flustered reaction and quickly covered her mouth.

Johannes’s voice grew smaller and smaller until it was barely a mosquito’s chirp, and that was just too funny.

Watching this shy guy sweat nervously trying to make a friend was pitiful yet endearing.

How had she ever thought of him as a ‘psychopath jerk and annoying loser’?

Now she saw it wasn’t that he was rude—he just couldn’t talk well and was awkward with people.

Maybe because of his handsome face, his stammering and flustered manner wasn’t irritating at all, but rather extremely cute.

‘This kind of friend would be nice. Getting close to him could be really fun.’

At the sound of Iris’s laughter, which she’d never heard before, Johannes fidgeted his sweat-covered hands in the pocket of his hoodie and then stopped.

Had his tone been funny? She couldn’t see his expression, but it didn’t seem like it.

Her laughter was clear and pleasant.

Though she only heard a little, she was sure.

Carefully regulating his breathing so his rapidly beating heart wouldn’t escape his chest, he asked.

“Huh? Why… why? Why are you laughing?”

“Oh, sorry. Did I make you feel bad? It’s just… the way you talk is funny… no, interesting. That’s why.”

“The way I talk…?”

Johannes tapped the ground with the tip of his shoe.

It was adorable to see such a big guy sulk like a small kid.

Did Johannes know he was pretty cute?

Watching him smile shyly, Iris waved her hands quickly when he hung his head low.

“Oh! Don’t get me wrong. I’m not mocking you. It’s just… um… it’s because it’s pleasant.”

Just as she was about to say he was cute, Iris rolled her eyes and changed her words.

She didn’t want to risk misunderstanding with Johannes, who had been secretly in love with someone for a long time.

‘If we get closer, maybe I can hear about the girl he likes. Stories about other people’s crushes are the best.’

Iris looked forward to the day she could hear fun stories, completely unaware that she herself was Johannes’s secret crush.

Johannes’s mouth curled into a slight smile as he scraped the ground back and forth with the toe of his shoe again.

He felt so thrilled it was almost ticklish all over.

He had never been called ‘pleasant’ before, and the fact that it was Iris saying it made it feel even better than being called handsome.

He had been a source of discomfort and annoyance to his unknown biological mother, and reluctantly the only child to Reyners, his biological father.

His father always scolded him for being rude and told him not to read a father’s thoughts, wearing pitch-black sunglasses that hid his eyes.

But at the birthday party, Johannes had read the unpleasant emotions in his father’s eyes as he held him.

Despite sensing that negativity, he obediently listened to his father’s words.

He knew his father disliked the illegitimate child he was forced to raise, but Johannes didn’t want to be abandoned by his father.

He had already been abandoned by his only blood relative—his biological mother.

But now, he wasn’t a ‘bad kid’ anymore.

Because Iris said he was pleasant.

He rubbed his flushed cheeks with the back of his hand and widened his eyes looking down at the ground.

He had barely ever smiled before—not even a smile with his eyes—and the act itself felt awkward, his facial muscles twitching involuntarily.

“I… see. I’m… pleasant… I guess.”

“But won’t it be annoying to call you? Jogging alone must be more comfortable in many ways…”

Johannes, grinning happily, suddenly raised his head at Iris’s words and said.

“Not annoying! Ah, I mean, it’s not annoying… I jog every day anyway… I can just call you as soon as I wake up.”

Then he quickly lowered his gaze and hesitated as he continued speaking.

Iris covered her mouth and tried to hold back laughter.

Was being handsome really everything?

She couldn’t understand why his awkward, dorky way of speaking was so funny.

“Okay. So… does that mean we’re friends now? Since we’re jogging together. Um, maybe it’s too soon to call it friendship…”

“Friends? Friends…”