Chapter 27 : Intimidation

In the quiet room, I sat leaning against the sofa.

Faint street light flickered beyond the window.

In the air still damp with moisture, I took a deep breath.

A cold sensation seeped into the depths of my lungs.

And yet, somehow…

I couldn’t tell where my breath was going.

Shhhhh—

The sound of running water echoed from the bathroom.

A rhythmic yet scattered noise.

Unintentionally, I found myself focusing on that lingering sound.

Clothes soaked by the rain. 

Pale skin peeking through.

A figure gradually growing larger, spreading like a stain—

“No… 

Ha…”

 It was nothing, yet I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

 No, I shouldn’t be thinking about this.

I closed my eyes and then opened them again.

 And…

I raised my hand, pressing against my temple.

When did it start?

This feeling of unraveling?

I used to be so skilled at this.

I was used to wrapping myself up.

Slowly covering my emotions, smoothing them over—

Turning them into something no one could ever see.

So even if I wavered, it never showed on the surface.

It shouldn’t have shown.

But now—

Shhhhh—

The sound of the shower, the droplets falling.

It started to sound different than before.

Somewhere, a tiny crack had formed.

A barely audible splitting sound.

I tried to stop it with my fingertips, but emotions leaked through the gaps.

As if everything would collapse in an instant.

I took a deep breath.

There’s no need to dwell on this any longer.

I need to return to the way I was.

This is nothing more than a fleeting illusion.

So—

I raised my hand.

And—

Slap.

A faint sting spread across my cheek.

“…Ha.”

Enough of this.

Shhhhh—

And at that exact moment—

Click.

I flinched.

When I looked up, the bathroom door was half open.

And—

“What are you doing?”

Standing there, towel-drying her hair, was Lee Jian.

She wore a pair of my sweatpants—too big for her, so she had tied the waist with a hairband.

A familiar sight, yet somehow unfamiliar.

I froze.

“……”

She narrowed her eyes at me.

“…What were you just doing?”

“Nothing.”

“If it’s nothing, then why is your cheek red?”

“…I was just thinking about something.”

“What? 

Me?”

“…No.”

I firmly drew the line.

She stared at me.

And then, suddenly—

“Pfft.”

She laughed.

“Hey, you’re acting really suspicious. 

Were you thinking about something embarrassing?”

“…”

“Oh my, how indecent.”

Lee Jian crossed her arms over her chest in mock concern.

I silently reached out—

And flicked her forehead.

“I wasn’t.”

“Ohhh~ 

I don’t know about that~”

“……”

I let out a sigh and stood up.

I need to sort out these emotions.

“Go now. 

It’s late.”

I have to follow the original flow of the story.

I must.

Even as I thought that—

I was still wavering.

The emotions I had buried—

The fear that they might never be contained again.

“I’m hurt, though.”

Lee Jian stretched out her leg.

“You said you’d treat me.”

But there was no injury on her knee.

“There’s nothing there.”

“Oh, wait. 

Wrong leg.”

She switched, stretching out the other.

There was a wound, barely noticeable.

Why did I even bring her to this house?

“Fine.

Sit still.”

She exaggerated a limp as she sat down.

Watching her, I couldn’t help but mutter—

“That’s not even the leg you were limping on.”

She hesitated—then subtly switched legs.

I scoffed.

And before I knew it—

A laugh escaped through the small crack I hadn’t fully closed.

“Haha.”

Strangely enough, I felt lighter.

Lee Jian gave me a strange look.

Hurriedly, I turned away and grabbed the first aid kit from the shelf.

She sat on the sofa, and I knelt in front of her, quietly opening the kit.

A soft noise settled into the silence of the room.

I took out the ointment and carefully unscrewed the cap.

Scooping a bit onto my fingertip, I brought it to her knee.

For a brief moment, I hesitated.

And then—

My fingertip touched her skin.

A strange sensation passed through me.

A warmness, as if I were wrapping the wound itself.

As I spread the ointment, I deliberately kept my gaze lowered.

Avoiding eye contact.

But I was still aware.

Of where my hand was touching.

Of what expression she might be making right now.

Slowly, I smoothed the ointment over.

My fingertips gliding over her skin.

Her warmth seeping into me.

It was nothing.

Just treating a wound.

And yet, it felt strange.

This distance, this atmosphere—

Too close.

A tiny wound on her knee suddenly felt impossibly heavy.

“It might sting a little.”

I murmured without realizing it.

And then—

As the ointment spread, her leg flinched slightly.

She stayed silent, and that made me even more conscious of her.

“Does it hurt?”

“No.”

Her voice trembled slightly.

I finished applying the ointment and took out a bandage.

Peeling off the small strip, I carefully placed it over the wound.

Just as I pressed down lightly to secure it—

Her leg trembled again.

At that moment,

I paused.

And slowly,

I lifted my gaze.

Our eyes met.

A close distance.

So close I could feel her breath.

Her pupils wavered.

I wondered—

What kind of expression am I making right now?

This was supposed to be nothing.

But.

I swallowed.

My throat felt strangely dry.

I looked down at the bandage again.

Pressed the edges lightly with my fingertips.

A simple touch.

Yet, her breath trembled ever so slightly.

Why?

I kept my head down and thought.

This feeling—

It was unfamiliar.

This emotion—

I wasn’t used to it.

“It’s done.”

I said briefly.

And just as I was about to pull my hand away—

“…Hey.”

She called me in a low voice.

Instinctively, I looked back up at her.

A faint trace of moisture lingered in her eyes.

And then—

“Don’t avoid me.”

Her voice carried a hint of desperation.

Her lips curled into a teasing smile.

But at the edge of that smile, there was something else—

A faint, yearning emotion.

“If you do, I’ll spread this around.”

On her phone screen—

A picture of me, drenched in rain, reflected in a puddle.

I looked at it silently.

It didn’t even feel like a real threat.

But somehow,

There was something much heavier in the air.

This distance,

This atmosphere,

This gaze.

I felt like I wouldn’t be able to run away anymore.

“…Alright.”

And just like that, I answered.

I sighed, shaking my head slightly.

“…You’re good at blackmail.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“No.”

“So it is.”

She laughed again.

I quietly stared at her for a moment—then slowly closed my eyes.

How was I supposed to sort out these emotions?

Maybe,

I wouldn’t be able to anymore.

That night, after the rain had stopped, the damp air carried a faint warmth.

Streetlights stretched long reflections over the wet asphalt.

I walked quietly.

And beside me—

The sound of footsteps.

A familiar sound.

But tonight, for some reason, I was unusually aware of it.

Her footsteps matched mine.

If I slowed down, she slowed down too.

If she walked ahead, she would eventually adjust her pace and return to my side.

I noticed it, but I didn’t say anything.

Because if I walked just a little slower—

She would match me again.

It was strange.

I was used to walking alone.

I glanced ahead at the bus stop.

A bus was parked there, its blue light glowing faintly through the windows.

Inside, people sat silently.

Each looking in a different direction, lost in their own thoughts.

And soon,

The bus departed quietly.

As it passed, I couldn’t help but ask—

“Weren’t you supposed to take that bus?”

I glanced at her.

Lee Jian tilted her head slightly.

“It was only one stop away anyway.”

“Then why were you taking the bus before?”

“The distance was… weird.”

Weird.

I repeated the word in my mind.

Too short to justify taking a bus.

But too far to walk comfortably.

Then what about now?

“Then why are you walking this time?”

When I asked, she stopped in her tracks and turned to face me.

Then, she smiled.

“Who knows? 

What do you think?”

Playfully, in a lighthearted voice.

I didn’t answer.

I just shrugged.

I didn’t want to define it.

“…I don’t know.”

I walked at my own pace.

Slowly, taking in my surroundings.

And yet—

Lee Jian walked ahead again—

Only to pause, glance back, and match my pace once more.

I naturally walked at a slow pace.

It wasn’t intentional.

Just a habit—

A tendency to observe others.

She followed that pace.

Stepping ahead, then slowing down to match me again.

I slowed down even more.

And again, she adjusted.

A warm summer night breeze blew past.

The damp, heavy air shifted slightly.

I walked in silence—then let out a small chuckle.

Saying nothing.

Not adjusting my pace.

And yet, we ended up walking side by side.

We arrived in front of her house.

“Wait here a sec.”

She said, stepping inside.

I stood there for a moment.

The summer night air was pleasantly warm.

Somewhere, the faint sound of crickets echoed.

Above, a dimly lit sky scattered with stars.

After a while, the door opened again.

“Here.”

She placed something in my hand.

A small object.

Lightweight.

I opened my palm to look at it.

“…Procute?”

A keychain of a small, wandering magical girl.

Wearing a straw hat, her coat billowing behind her.

Procute.

A character from a story about magical girls who saved the world—

Only to be forgotten afterward.

Everyone thought it had ended.

But in truth, it wasn’t the world that ended—

It was them.

Discarded, unrecognized as heroes.

Left only with side effects.

Bodies that could never grow older.

Existences that became increasingly faint.

And so, the girl wandered—

Hoping that someone, somewhere, would remember she had once been there.

I stared at the keychain in my hand.

…Why did it feel like it overlapped with me?

I was a wanderer.

Never settling anywhere, never getting too involved in emotions.

That was how I lived.

And I thought that was how it would always be.

And yet—

I quietly closed my hand around the keychain.

Then, I looked up at Lee Jian.

“What’s this supposed to be?”

“A challenge.”

“…A challenge?”

I repeated the word.

She grinned.

“A rematch. 

This time, our final exam scores.”

I responded immediately.

“That’s not even a fair competition.”

She smirked.

“It’s not about that.”

“Then what?”

“Whether or not my grades improve.”

I was momentarily at a loss for words.

“…Your grades?”

“Yeah. 

If my final exam scores go up, I win.”

“And what are you betting on?”

She still looked playful—

But her eyes held something more serious.

“A wish.”

I looked down at the keychain in my hand again.

Small and solid, yet leaving a distinct presence in my grip.

After a moment, I slowly spoke.

“If I win… you’ll cancel my wish, won’t you?”

She didn’t answer.

She just smiled.

“Well?

Are you accepting or not?”

I looked at the keychain again.

The little magical girl, pulling down her worn-out straw hat.

Holding a small lantern in her hand.

I sighed quietly.

“…Alright.

I accept.”

Her smile deepened.

Lee Jian mimed adjusting an invisible hat and lowered her voice.

“One old lantern, one old song. 

That should be enough, don’t you think?”

She quoted Procute’s famous line.

“The reason to stay in this world.”

In response, I murmured the next line.

She waved her hand.

“See you tomorrow.”

I nodded.

“Yeah.

Good night.”

She closed the door behind her.

Through the crack, I saw the tips of her ears flush red.

Reciting lines from a comic must have embarrassed her.

So why did she do it?

Why did she keep shaking me up?

I stared at the door for a while—

Then looked back at the keychain in my hand.

Light, yet strangely heavy.

And then, I whispered.

“One old lantern.”