Footsteps filled the empty sports hall. You turned and saw Sungjae looking at you. You didn’t move from your spot and just waited for him to sit next to you. “Noona koenchana?” You just smiled bitterly to the floor. He leaned his head on your shoulder. “Noona, I’m doing skinship on you. Will you talk to me?”

You let out a loud sigh as your heart wrenched again. “Sungjae-yah, am I ugly?” His head lifted from your shoulder. “Is my makeup terrible?”

“Was that what all this was about?” he asked. You couldn’t even lift your gaze from the floor. He leaned toward you and gave you a tight hug around your shoulders. “Noona, you’re beautiful with or without makeup. It doesn’t matter what others say. You will always be my beautiful noona.” He got up from the bench. “That’s enough skinship for a day. Let’s go!”

Your stayed glued to the bleachers. “You go ahead first. I need some more time alone.” Sungjae hesitated for a moment before he patted your head and walked off.

You sat there and thought of all the times he made fun of you. 2 years. You had finally cracked. Whenever it looked like he was coming over to join your friends, you rushed off to somewhere else. As you thought of having to escape all this, you couldn’t help but weep.

“Are you wearing makeup again?”

“Eh… like an ahjumma… Stop wearing makeup!”

“Why do you look so different? Are you sick? Oh ahjumma, you didn’t wear makeup?”

“Why do you have so much makeup on?”

You composed yourself and walked out of the bleachers, not knowing about the guy hiding guiltily under the bleachers. He sighed and wiped the tear from his eye. His shoulders sunk so low after Sungjae raised his hand at him when he was leaving the hall. So that was why she was avoiding me.

You were at peace for a few days. He didn’t seem to join your group of friends, so you could be with them all the time. Even if he were a close friend, the peace felt more precio