Then, quietly, he leaned a little closer.
"Hey… about this morning," he whispered.
My heart stopped for a second.
Was he really going to talk to me?
Or… was this just the beginning of something I wasn't ready for?
After a brief pause, he spoke again, his voice soft.
"I'm really sorry for splashing water on you this morning."
I blinked, a little surprised, then replied, "It's okay… no problem."
After that, an awkward silence fell between us. Neither of us said anything.
Just then, Minsu came over. She's my cousin.
She excitedly said, "Hey! After school today, let's go to the game center together!"
Before I could respond, our math teacher entered the classroom—and gave us the worst news possible.
"We have a test in one month."
My mind went blank.
I haven't even properly started studying yet…
Class ended, and the final bell rang. As I was packing up, Minsu came to call me. I hesitated for a moment, then turned to Elmon.
"Do you want to come with us?" I asked.
He didn't even look interested.
"I'm not into those kinds of things," he replied coldly, then walked away.
Minsu and I looked at each other in disbelief.
"Is there really someone who doesn't like games?" we both muttered.
Then we headed to the game center.
As soon as we entered, John Uncle came forward with a smile. He's the owner of the game center, and we're really close to him. He treats us like his own children.
"Hey! There's a new character in one of the games today," he said excitedly.
We immediately started playing.
After a while, a boy wearing our school uniform walked in and started talking to John Uncle. Soon, Uncle introduced him to us.
"This is Kavin, my daughter's son. He studies at your school."
We greeted him, and he instantly started chatting like we had known each other for years. He was very energetic and cheerful.
From the next day, we started going to school together. Kavin lives near our house with his grandparents since his parents stay abroad.
Even though we are in the same class, Kavin and Minsu are in Section A, while I'm in Section B.
That day, I entered my class and sat down. A few moments later, Elmon came in. He sat beside me, placed his bag down, took out his recorder, and started listening to music.
I tapped lightly on the desk.
"What are you listening to?" I asked.
He looked at me but didn't reply.
I tried again, "Which singer do you like?"
After a moment, he said softly, "Stray Kids," then turned his face toward the window, earphones in, completely lost in his own world.
I didn't disturb him anymore. Instead, I took out my diary and started drawing.
Soon, the teacher came, took the lesson, and left.
It was tiffin period. Minsu came to get me, and we went to the canteen together. While we were eating and chatting, Kavin joined us and started talking non-stop.
After that, we returned to class, and soon the school day ended.
On our way out, I noticed something unusual—Elmon's car hadn't come to pick him up. He was standing alone near the school gate.
We walked up to him and offered, "Do you want to come with us?"
He replied coldly, "I don't go anywhere with just anyone."
We stood there for a moment, surprised. Then Minsu whispered loudly, "No wonder he has no friends with that attitude."
I quickly covered her mouth and dragged her away before things got worse.
As we walked, I couldn't stop thinking…
Why doesn't Elmon talk to anyone?
Does he really not have any friends?