CHAPTER 10     “Hello Kim Taeyeon speaking!”   “Fany! What made you call?!”   “Oh… about Yuri’s birthday gift…”   “Hmn? Oh, you’re knitting a handmade scarf? And you’re asking if it’s safer to buy one at a store, so that she won’t get suspicious?”      “Taengoo~! I’m done taking a shower~!!!”     “No, No, just give her that one, you’ve spent a lot of time making it…   She’s sure to love it.”     “Taengoo…”     “Uh huh.   Yeah…   For sure…   Bye, Fany See you tomorrow at school.”     Click.   Sigh… I love that Fany is calling me more often now, but… she only calls for advice on Yuri…     “Here it comes Taengoo! The FISH!!!!”   Wha-?! The what?!
  GUMPPPPPPPPPP   “Yah! You’re wet Sica! Don’t hug me from behind! And plus you only have a towel wrapped onto you!”   Totally ignored my comment.   “She’s been calling you every night! Why don’t you try confessing your feelings now Taengoo?”   “Are you crazy Sica? You gotta be out of your mind! Fany doesn’t see me that way… Look, I’m not in the mood to play around with you now and that washboard chest of yours is killing me. Do you mind?”   “Washboard?”   … … …   I did it, she finally released me. Sorry Sica, I’m really just not in the mood for some teasing… was I too harsh? I knew the girl was sensitive with her chest size…     “TAENGOO!!! YOU MEANY!”   …   I’m sorry Sica, I’m just really not in the mood…   …   “GET READY FOR FISH PART 2!!!”   wha- yah! Why are you pulling my sweats up over my bac-     ZHAAAAAAMMMMPPPPPP     Huh? I’m feeling two bumps on my back… Veryy Soft… it CAN’T BEEEEEEEE?!!?!?!   Direct contact…     BLAGG   “KYAA!!!! Don’t push me so hard like that Taengoo!!!”     My nose! My nose!!!   “Yah!!! A-are you comple-tely without shame Sica?!”   The my nose is bleeding like a waterfall!     “Ouch my pretty bums… HiHiHi Well, That’s what you get for picking on me Taengoo! Merong!”   KRACK.     “Huh? What’s that sound?”   ! I accidentally leaned on the Fany’s picture and the frame broke!   It’s a bad omen!   A bad omen!       XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX       The next day at school     And guess what? I wasn’t wrong about being superstitious about the broken picture frame…   Here I am now hiding behind a bush behind the school’s concert hall after being dragged by Fany all over town looking for the perfect gift to give Yuri… which anyway ended up back to the originally planned handmade scarf.     It was fun at first, cutting class with the girl you like, looking at different shops for nothing in particular, the atmosphere felt so comfortable and easy, it really seemed like a real date with Fany… I was so happy until…       Flashback:     Hmn?   Oh a huge rectangular pillow, shaped like a biscuit with pink fillings…   This is kinda cute. That sleep addict, this is definitely something she’d like.   “Tae Tae! OMG this is so cute!!!”   Wha-! Oh My Gadd!!!! Fany’s wrapping her arms around me again!!! And… I can slightly feel her chest against my arm!!!! First Sica gives me the fish part 2 attack, then this!   MY BYUNTAEMAGINATION is outta control!!!!   Breathe Tae, Breate… Can’t have another nose bleed with Fany here!   I’m so freaking lucky today though! Hahahhaha!!!!! @u@   “Tae Tae…”   Woah! Man! Nose-bleed City!!!   “W-what?”   “Did you go to that “girl you like” and confessed your love?”   “Huh? O-of course I d-didn’t!” That “girl I like” that’s you! Badump Badump Badump     “What?! So you chickened out just like me? Hi hi hi, we’re such cowards… You should tell her though Tae. I’m sure she won’t mind. You’re such a great girl.   She’d be crazy not to go out with you.”   That eye smile again!!! To die for!!!   Fany… S-she’s so cute!!! L-look at her face! She can’t be lying!   D-does that mean that…   If I tell her, she’ll go out with me?!   Can I really???     “You have to set an example for me!! So tell her alright Tae Tae?!”   B-b-but!!! If I set an example… I’ll be confessing my love for you!!! Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump     “She’s been calling you every night! Why don’t you try confessing your feelings now Taengoo?”   Sica…   Sica may be right! Maybe this is the perfect chance to confess my love to Fany!   “F-fan”   “This pillow is so cute isn’t it Tae Tae? It’s even pink! But… I’m sure Yuri would hate it.”   … …   Yuri again huh…?   “Let’s go to a different store Tae! Yuri plays lots of sports right? I saw a sports store by the distance maybe we’ll find something there.”   … … …   Yuri. Yuri. YURI.   Aish.   Aish!!! Aish!!!   What’s the point in confessing…? She’s only thinking about Yuri…   … …   B-But…   If I don’t… We… We’ll never be able to go shopping like this again…   It won’t be me here with her, it’ll be Yuri.   I…   I…   “Tae Tae why are you stopping there? Are you okay? You suddenly look pale, should we head back to school then?”     NO!!!! That can’t be!!! I can’t stand it! Just the thought of her being with someone else!   It’s unbearable!   It hurts…   It hurts too much.   Badump Badump Badump     “Tae Tae?”   Okay fine! I’ll go ahead and tell her! Bad Omen… I-if we’re together I wouldn’t even need that broken picture frame!   Badump Badump Badump   Could it have been a message to tell her how I feel?   Badump Badump Badump   “She’s been calling you every night! Why don’t you try confessing your feelings now Taengoo?   Badump Badump Badump   … try confessing your feelings now Taengoo?   Badump Badump Badump   … try confessing your feelings now Taengoo?”   Badump Badump Badump   !     “F-FANNY!!!!”   Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump     Shocked. “Ugh yes TaeTae?”   “I-I” The two of us together from now on!     Courage!   Badump Badump Badump     Courage!!   Badump Badump Badump   … … …   “I love you!!!”   … … …   But…   W-why?   Wh-y is Fany not reacting??!     “Umn… Taetae, you’re embarrassing me”   Huh?!   What?   “You’ve been just standing there with your mouth open. People are beginning to stare.”   “I-uhh…”   Crap…   “Come on, let’s go to that sports store.”   “O-okay…”   Damn… I… I couldn’t say it in the end…   Right when I needed to…   I couldn’t ing say those three little words…     End of Flashback       Again even without trying, the missing Yuri beat me to a pulp for a quarter inside Fany’s heart… again and again Yuri would resurface in our conversation that it made me realize that maybe it wasn’t wrong to conclude that all I would ever be to Fany was a confidant…   But still… like a stubborn mule I haven’t completely lost hope!   Because there most certainly would be a second chance to confess right?!   Right?!     “Yah!”   “Ouch!” the who kicked me?!   “Serves you right! Hmp! Where have you been?! I’ve been searching all over for you!!! Do you know how tired I got from walking around the campus looking for this midget I call Taengoo?”     “You Stupid-Meany-Miny-Pabo!”   Sica…   Yah! Miny-Meany?!       “A birthday present for me? Why?”   Oh Fany finally is giving Yuri her gift… I hunched my back and hid behind the bush with Sica by my side…     “W—What do you mean?”   “I can’t take your gift Fany. I’m sorry if I sound old fashioned but