"…"
The phrase 'This guy doesn't like me' was emitting through his aura.
After being shut down by him on the spot, he remained silent for a while, still following the same footsteps in a narrow lane, processing his thought pattern.
"…He is the second guy to say that.!"
His voice said in his mind.
He raised his chin and examine the way he was walking from the dark silhouette of him. His hair bounced and slightly fluttered every time he took a few steps. For a brief moment, he even felt that his hair was unusually long in some part as it goes back on his head. He wondered about it.
Overcoming a small cliff, john went down. When Aiden was about to continue, the cold breeze of the nighttime hit his nose. From the front, the familiar scent of rose was flowing to him. It was the same as Nina's.
Out of blue, his lips curved into a fine short smile.
"I guess he is just a child after all!"
As soon as he finished the conclusion in his head, the next moment, he almost bumped into john's back.
God knows for how long he was a freeze on the spot.
He turned around and pulled out a fake concerned face, "Is something the matter? You have been silent for a while. If there is anything, feel free to talk without hesitation, alright?"
And swiftly turned back in a way as if he was avoiding the possibility to talk.
"?"
At this point, he could only respond to himself, "Your face is saying otherwise."
If it's the distance itself or the déjà vu, for some reason, Aiden felt the destination point was too far. Even surpassing the amount of time he spent while traveling from Seoul to there.
Unlike newmoon and Jina noona, he was on a whole different plane. At least newmoon used to talk even in the worst-case scenario but he was an expectation. A faint source of regret was evaporating in his heart. But it was obvious that john was the prime one who was pushing him to think like that.
However, Aiden brushed it off and let it slide because he was still a child. Though he wanted to ask him questions related to himself, newmoon, and Jina noona. He wanted to be close to them. But no! Before he could utter a single word, john had built an invisible wall between them.
Another few moments lasted with pin drop silent. In the end, he couldn't help himself but swallow his pride and once again become the shameless Hyung to break out of the surrounding wall.
And what could that breakthrough topic of the conversation be?
Other than talk about 'Girlfriend' between the two young men on a naked starry night what would there be anything else?
Clearing his throat Aiden shamelessly asked, "..As a senior student in high school, I bet you have a secret girlfriend right?"
There he said it! Finally said it!
John was the second guy he had pushed himself hard to smoothen the atmosphere. Not even for a girl he had done before.
When people aren't swayed by looks, power, and money, they would become the ordinary hopeless ones!
Nobody other than him felt the meaning behind them to his bone.
On the other side, the moment john seemed to hear it, he kind of froze on the spot. Aiden noticed the distance between him and john was getting caught up and his movement was slowed down by twice as if something was going on his head.
Just when Aiden was about to catch up with the same wavelength of him, John turned around and surprisingly gave a glare instead!
"The word 'date' doesn't even exist in our whole family's dictionary!"
Not only his eyes were cold but so was his tone too similar to a distant moon.
"It is strictly prohibited to date at a such young age according to our rules. And if in case one goes against it mistakenly then-!"
He continued the rest of the sentences by wriggling his straight thumb and crossing his neck in a significant gesture as though he was hinting it'll be some sort of direct death penalty more or less.
God knows the reason why Aiden gulped down his saliva secretly at that moment. It's a good thing, he couldn't see his face otherwise..!
As far as the interaction he had with Jina noona's parents till now, it was hard to imagine and digest such strict scenarios.
However, deep down he felt the seriousness of john's voice too!
In a midst of weighing down the opinions they eventually reached the stationary shop.
As if nothing happened, john bowed to an old grandma who seemed to be the owner of the shop and bought the necessary items with a caring and considerate tone. The flow of conversation was way natural too to the point that he was a whole different person from earlier. This time Aiden was observing the environment without the need to butt in.
When they were about to head out from the place, suddenly someone shouted from somewhere back side of the door.
"John! What're you doing here?"
Hearing it, john flinched for the very first time. Except earlier, this time Aiden got a chance to peek at his expression thanks to the light hanging up on the side of every corner of the wall.
For some unknown reason, john's face withered in an instant and turned pale like a white sheet of paper. It was also the first time, Aiden get to say that sort of horrified expression. With a question mark hanging on his face, Aiden decided to stay aside and observe the surroundings.
Soon after that, he saw the pair of young, cute lookalike twins a similar age to john. No doubt they're his acquaintance of him.
Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, john shudders as he turned around to face his friends,
"…You guys, what are you doing here? Why are you here?"
By the second question, john had already pulled out a straight face.
One of the twins respond carefreely as he approached john.
"Uh..Us? Earlier in the evening time, we got an earful from our mum for not studying at all. So, we're forced to do self-study for a whole week until upcoming exams would finished."
"Oh so! You're here for a practice set books?"
"Um! Kind of!"
At the same moment, the other twin interfered right in the middle of the conversation. He integrated,
"Leaving that aside, Weren't you not feeling well at school this afternoon? Just when we're planning to gather at the pc center to upgrade our character level, you ran away to the toilet saying you're having an upset stomach, and now how come you seemed all flawless right now?"
"…"
The more that twin guy spoke, the more his eyes squinted in a doubt. He lowered his eyes to john's hands where he was handling the new notebooks. Seeing it, a sharpness flashed in his eyes.
"Don't tell me you're studying-!"
John hysterically shook his head and immediately denied, "No-No! You're wrong! You're misunderstanding something here!"
And the very next second, out of nowhere, Aiden felt his arms feeling heavy.
"See? This notebook isn't mine! It's for Hyung!"
"…"
"…"
Now, all the 3 pairs of gazes fall upon him including the old grandma who was listening to them without getting involved in it.
John cleared his throat and explained in a clear tone,
"You see, this handsome guy is my sister's relative. Aiden Hyung! He is a foreigner who came to visit our country for his holiday destination.Blah~Blah~Blah! So, in the end, my mum urged me to his Korean tutor and teach some basic introductory parts while he is here with us!"
Aftermath, he turned around and winked at Aiden and reassured him,
"Right Hyung?"
Seeing out of nowhere, Aiden nodded twice.
"Yes! Yes! He is my Korean tutor for me! I don't know a single word of Korean that's why aunty ordered him to be mine!"
"…"
"…"
Once again, john halted on his postures.
Emitting out such extraordinary, murderous energy twin guys glared at john in such a way, as though they were about to devour him alive right away. In threatening and menacing eyebrows, they confront,
"Care to explain, john?"
Unfortunately, His lies came into the spotlight. Being caught red-handed he gave it up no- he gave up because Aiden was the one who pissed his intention.
Brushing his back hair, john awkwardly laughed as he glared at Aiden secretly.
However, Aiden was looking blankly at him with naïve eyes. He was still unaware of the situation he was into! He had no idea not only did he speak Korean so fluently but also in a great accent. Now, what's left there to drag the topic further?
"Take it, easy man. Did I say which part I was assigned to? He speaks Korean great but lacks in writing! So, I bought him some note copies so that I can teach him how to write some basic alphabet of Korean!"
Several questions and assumptions were raised in Aiden's head but he pulled himself up and remained calm. Somewhere within his heart was instructing him to stay away from butting in as the fact he had already done once just a few minutes ago.
The twin guys were silent for a brief moment. Their eyebrows intertwined with each other as though they were seriously considering it.
Figuring out they're buying it, john turned it out to his advantageous side. Without bothering to spend any other second, he quickly spoke persuasively, "Common guys, leave it already! We both seemed to have a lot of things on our hands right now. And It's not like you all made it through too, right? So chill out. Why the hard feelings?"
Come to think of it, it wasn't a great issue in the first place. Having their problems going on, the twin guys let it slide.
Dropping down his eyebrows, john added in a low tone somewhat sad and heartbroken, "I see you guys are working hard behind the scene while I'm just slacking around, on top of it, I even fall sick quite often nowadays. I'm afraid I might fail-"
Before he could finish his words, those twin guys who were standing beside john quickly bought the essential notebooks and flee out from the stationary shop. All in split seconds.
"?"
Only Aiden, john, and the old grannies were left by themselves inside the shop.
Aiden could only ponder about the weird behaviors that both john and he did unconsciously. Reading the room, he dared not to ask a single word to him, afraid of being either shut down directly or avoiding it right in front of his face.