IOSMC Chapter 2 (Part 3)

“You don’t have to go that far… Are you really going to come find me?”

Though he tried to play it cool, joy bubbled out of his face — like it couldn’t be contained. His whole expression lit up like someone had turned on a spotlight just for him.

“Yeah.”

When I nodded gently and gave him that answer, he smiled brightly, clearly pleased. He shouted, “See you at school!” with that shining face, and I smiled back before leaving the shop.

On the way, I stopped by a convenience store to grab some drinks and snacks — something filling.

Since kimbap could keep well if stored properly, I bought plenty, telling myself I could eat it for breakfast. But thinking that it still might not be enough for a growing kid, I ended up buying all kinds of things just in case. Both hands were full by the end, and I had to struggle up the stairs with everything.

When I arrived, there was still a lot of time left before 3 o’clock. I stood there, wondering what to do, when I heard footsteps from somewhere.

Even though we’d only met a few times, I knew they were his. Somehow, I was certain.

I’d slightly lowered my head to catch my breath, but now I looked up — and there he was, standing a few steps above me, looking down.

“I was wondering what to do since I got here early, but you showed up right on time.”

“……”

“How did we end up meeting at exactly the same time? Is this fate?”

I asked playfully, laughter in my voice. The boy’s lips twitched like he had a lot he wanted to say, then he let out a soft laugh.

I didn’t know why he laughed, but seeing it made me feel happy too. Without thinking, I mirrored his smile and lifted the plastic bags in my hands with a flourish.

“I bought tons of food. Let’s eat together.”

He slowly came down the stairs and stood next to me. That’s when I noticed the mug in his hand. Curious, I glanced at it, and after a brief hesitation, he held it out to me.

“……It’s nothing special. Just warmed-up milk. It gets pretty chilly here around four, and I didn’t want to just show up empty-handed.”

“Milk?”

“It’s fresh! Just bought today! Still well within the expiration date — don’t worry about anything weird.”

“If it’s from you, I’d drink expired milk, even sour milk, so you don’t worry about it either. I like it. A lot.”

Like it? That doesn’t even begin to cover it. It’s so good it scares me — like, what if you change your mind?

I quickly set the heavy bags down on the ground and snatched the mug from his hands.

As I gripped it, the warm, nutty scent of milk reached my nose. And sure enough, it was still hot — freshly warmed.

Giving me such a cute gift… It felt like he’d almost completely let down his guard. I couldn’t stop smiling.

“Whoa, it’s super warm.”

“……If it cooled down, I went back home and reheated it.”

“Huh?”

“You said earlier it was fate we met like this, right? It’s not. I thought you might come early, so I’ve been out here for an hour. I kept reheating the milk so it’d stay warm for you… because yesterday, you gave me something too.”

This kid can talk that much? I was so stunned I just stood there, mouth agape.

He’s the main character. He has to be.

Main lead — which means he must be Hee-jun. No other eleven-year-old could have this much thoughtfulness, this kind of etiquette.

I was touched — overwhelmed even — and just stood there, lost in the moment. By the time I came to my senses, he’d already unpacked the food and was quietly waiting for me.

As I looked at him, something caught my eye.

A new cut on the corner of his mouth — one that hadn’t been there yesterday. A fresh mark of violence, but his gaze wasn’t sharp or guarded. If anything, his eyes looked gentler than they had before. I’d given him strong ointment on purpose, and from the looks of it, he’d used it — the swelling seemed slightly down.

I wanted to say something, anything, but no words came to mind. My lips parted, but instead, I downed the milk in a few big gulps before it could cool any more.

I wasn’t great with hot drinks, so my throat burned — but I ignored it. Instead, I sat down quietly on the stairs, pulled him into a sudden hug, and held him tight.

Startled, he froze completely, even held his breath for a second.

I gently rubbed his back, silently urging him to breathe again, and rested my face on his bony shoulder.

“What do I do… I really like you.”

“What are you saying? Don’t hug me! That’s gross.”

“Me? Hey… now that’s just unfair. I even showered this morning just to see you, okay?”

“What are you talking about. I’m the one who’s gross.”

“You’re not gross at all. You’re cleaner than most of the kids I see at school, and when I hold you, you smell good. Plus, you’re really pretty. So don’t say stuff like that, okay?”

The words slipped out in a childish voice, carrying emotions I couldn’t fully understand myself. The boy didn’t respond for a while, then gently rested his round forehead on my shoulder.

With that small movement, his hair lifted slightly, then settled softly. It wasn’t just a figure of speech — a clean, pleasant scent really did tickle my nose with that motion.

“…Lee Sa-eon.”

“Yeah.”

“My name…”

After a long silence, he finally spoke. I listened quietly, waiting for him to go on, his voice cautious.

“It’s ‘Gu.’ Just… Gu. It doesn’t really mean anything. They gave it to me because they said I wouldn’t live long. That’s why I hate it. So… can you not call me by my name? I don’t care if other people do, but you… I don’t want you to call me that.”

I hadn’t expected him to tell me his name so easily, so I froze for a moment, then nodded over and over to show I understood.

The original novel didn’t explain why he hated the name Gu, but I remembered that when he met his aunt, he changed his name from Gu to Hee-jun. That meant the boy in front of me was definitely Hee-jun.

I’d suspected it, but hearing it confirmed made my heart twist in a strange way. Overwhelmed, I hugged him tightly.

“I will. I won’t ever do anything you hate.”

I repeated that promise again and again, and finally, he gave me a small smile.

It was soft and warm — like sunlight gently settling on your skin.

* * *

Today, once again, I climbed the stairs behind the school to find him.

Thinking I couldn’t just keep feeding him tteokbokki every day, I packed seaweed soup and side dishes that kids usually like into a lunchbox.

Remembering the awkward moment this morning when I had to ask the still-unfamiliar housekeeper to make the soup and side dishes with as little seasoning as possible for Gu—no, Hee-jun—still makes me a bit embarrassed.

But thankfully, the soup I brought in a thermos to keep warm seemed to suit his taste. Seeing him with flushed cheeks, eating eagerly, I felt like I could go through that embarrassment over and over if it meant seeing this.

While he blew on the soup and sipped it spoon by spoon, I sat next to him, practically fussing to feed him more.

I never understood the saying that just watching someone eat could make you feel full. But now, watching Hee-jun with his cheeks puffed out, eating so earnestly — I totally got it.

Every time he lifted a spoonful of rice, I hurried to add a bit of this or that side dish on top.

He must have liked what I brought, because while he was hungry, he ate without question. But once he was full enough to notice his surroundings again, he started eyeing the food I added to his spoon with a bit of suspicion.

“Aren’t you eating?”

“I like watching you eat more than eating myself.”

I flicked my chopsticks lightly and opened my mouth, going “Ahhh~” like I wanted to be fed. Reflexively, he opened his mouth just as I asked.

Guiding his hand, I slipped the spoon into his slightly open mouth. Then I noticed some bulgogi sauce smeared at the corner of his lips — but there were no napkins around.

I hesitated for a moment, then pulled down my sleeve and gently wiped the sauce away.

Note to self: definitely bring napkins from tomorrow on.

“Isn’t it good?”

“…Yeah.”

“That’s a relief.”

I smiled wide. Then, though I wasn’t really feeling it, I picked a random side dish and popped it into my mouth, thinking Hee-jun might get suspicious if I didn’t eat anything at all.

It was tasty, but the seasoning was so mild it felt like something was missing. While I was licking my lips at the blandness, I noticed Hee-jun eating spinach without being prompted, so I offered him some bulgogi as a reward.

He looked a little unsure, like Is this right?, but took it obediently. I watched him with a proud smile and took a sip of water.

Maybe it was because I now knew he was Hee-jun, but honestly, just watching him was enough to make me feel full — I wasn’t exaggerating.

“What should I bring tomorrow? Is there anything you want to eat?”

At first, I was about to say I could bring anything. But then I realized — feeding just anything to a growing kid, one who hadn’t had proper meals in who knows how long, probably wasn’t a great idea. So I stopped myself.

I should definitely bring more home-cooked meals like today.

“Hmm, eating too much junk food isn’t good for you… Alright, I’ll bring burgers tomorrow. But the day after, let’s eat something healthy. Do you like home-cooked meals?”

“…Home-cooked meals, that’s something you’re supposed to eat alone, right? I’ve actually been meaning to ask — the food you brought today, you could have eaten it all yourself.”

“Why are you so bad at picking up on things? I brought it ‘cause I wanted to eat with you!”

“No, but I’m pretty sure you said earlier—”

“Shh, my friend. The past isn’t important. What matters is that I want to share meals with you now.”

Even at my ridiculous excuse, Hee-jun just made a face like he had so much to say, but didn’t actually respond.

After that, he ate like any growing boy would — for a long while. Still, I’d packed more than enough again, so we had plenty of food left over.

I pushed it all into Hee-jun’s arms.

“…There’s so much. Do I really have to eat all this?”

“Yup. Just carrying that down the stairs is a whole mission. If I try to lug all of it back, I might fall — and falling on the stairs could hurt bad. I’ll come get the empty containers tomorrow, so you have to finish it all. If there’s even a little left and I trip while carrying it home, that’s on you.”

I said it with a dead-serious face, and Hee-jun let out a breathy laugh.

As we cleaned up together, he went quiet, like something was weighing on his mind.

He said he’d throw out the trash later, so we piled it up neatly. Then he suddenly stood, cradling the lunch containers in his arms, and said he’d take them home — disappearing for a bit.

Not even a few minutes passed before I heard footsteps I was already familiar with. I was crouched, gathering up the trash, and lifted my head.

There he was, standing a few steps above me, with the sunlight at his back casting his face in shadow.

It was too bright to see his expression clearly, but somehow, I already knew what it was.

A look I’d grown used to in just three days — the weary, somber face he wore when he thought no one was watching.

I wasn’t even sure if that was the expression he was making now, but before I could think, my instincts tried to reach for words — something to comfort him.

But before I could speak, Hee-jun’s voice cut through the silence.

“I know it’s pointless saying this to someone who’s being nice to me… but I have to ask. Do you pity me? Am I just some sad case to you? Someone you feel sorry for, someone you have to help?”

He looked down at me, his face so pale it was almost ghostly. I met his gaze without blinking and slowly stood.

My legs were stiff from crouching so long, and I pressed my palms against them to ease the ache as I answered in a flat tone.

“What made you think that?”

“Well, what else would explain it? A kid like you wouldn’t be calling someone like me a friend and tagging along after me all the time. Know what I kept thinking while eating all the stuff you brought? ‘Is volunteering your hobby or something?’ That’s how this felt.”

“I don’t know what you mean by ‘a kid like me’… but when you like someone, following them around and taking care of them is natural, isn’t it?”

“What, are you saying you fell for me at first sight or something?”

‘Fell for you at first sight.’
It wasn’t a complicated sentence, but for some reason, it didn’t quite compute.

I fell for Hee-jun at first sight?
Forget my mental age or orientation — by his logic, this meant the sub Gong fell for the main Gong at first sight.

…If ××Friend had a plot twist like that, I definitely wouldn’t have quit reading it halfway.

That thought was so ridiculous, I couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

I knew I shouldn’t laugh — not when I imagined how much Hee-jun had agonized over asking this.

But thinking about the thought process he must’ve gone through to reach that conclusion? There was no way not to laugh.

I felt his stunned stare on my face, but I couldn’t stop. I laughed until tears welled up at the corners of my eyes, gasping for breath.

Finally, when I could actually breathe again, I managed to speak — a bit urgently, because if I didn’t, I was pretty sure Hee-jun was going to walk off and never come back.

“Haah, I laughed too much. I wasn’t teasing you, you know that, right? Mm, love… if we’re talking about love, sure, I do love you. There’s more than one kind of love in the world. Though, calling it first love is a bit much… but if that makes you feel better, then go ahead and think of it that way.”

In the original story, there’s no way a scene like this would exist — where the sub Gong is mistaken for falling in love at first sight with the main Gong. But this wasn’t the original story — this was reality, the life I was now living.

So no matter what happens, all that matters is Hee-jun accepts my care and grows into a healthy adult.

“What’s certain is that I like you. And I want you — the person I like — to eat good food, wear good clothes, see good things, and live a good life. That’s it. Nothing more.”

I shrugged lightly and smiled, my eyes curling.

“I hope you become an adult soon. I’m not saying that fantasy stuff about how everything magically gets better when you grow up. Just that, once you’re an adult, you can do more, you’ll be way freer than you are now.”

“……”

“You won’t need anyone’s permission to do what you want. If you want to, you can go to the end of Korea all by yourself. Actually, with enough money and time, you could go anywhere. Think about it — how freeing is that? Of course, it’s not all sunshine. Being an adult means more responsibilities… but I think you’re more than capable of handling all of it.”

Once he gets through this moment and becomes an adult, I know — even without the novel — that the boy standing in front of me will become someone amazing.

Maybe he’d never heard someone say this before. He stared at me, stunned. I stepped up the stairs, three or four at a time, to stand beside him.

Now that we were eye-level, I could really see the dazed look on Hee-jun’s face.

I was the one standing in the sunlight, yet somehow, it felt like he was the one bathed in light. Like he was standing before something so blinding you could be dazzled — or blinded by it — if you weren’t careful.

“You’ll be able to do everything, for sure.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Just because. Some things, you just know. And I know you’ll become a good adult. It’s like… you don’t need to say ‘I love you’ to know when you’re loved.”

As I spoke, I reached into my pocket and pulled out a hairpin.

I’d seen him rubbing his eyes because his bangs were bothering him, so I’d picked this up from a convenience store that morning — but I hadn’t found a good moment to use it. Figured if not now, then when?

I gently clipped his bangs to the side.

I didn’t know if he was just too stunned to stop me, or if he really didn’t mind. But one thing was certain — he stayed still, silently watching me until I was done.

With his hair finally out of his eyes, Hee-jun reflexively touched his bangs.

Worried he’d knock the pin loose, I reached out and gently pulled his hand down. Then, like coaxing a dog into a sweater, I praised him.

“Look at you — so cute! You can see better now, right? I heard letting your hair cover your eyes ruins your vision. And with such a pretty face, this suits you perfectly, so keep wearing it like this.”

If he had long hair like my exes in my past life, maybe I wouldn’t worry, but with his short hair, just one pin didn’t seem secure. If he ran around, it’d probably fall off. I ended up stuffing the extra pins into his pocket and grinned.

“Anyway! Grow up fast and become an awesome adult, got it?”

“…When I’m an adult, will you still be by my side? You talk like once I grow up safely, you’re going to disappear — like you’ll only stick around until then…”

Hee-jun mumbled, eyes on my smiling face. I flinched — I hadn’t expected him to see through everything.

Honestly… I couldn’t say I never intended to leave.

Even though I’d ended up in Lee Sa-eon’s body, I planned to live my own life, separate from the original plot. That didn’t necessarily mean staying close to the other characters forever. They had their own paths. And I — I could still get dragged into theirs.

So, once Hee-jun and Eun grew up without the tragedy of the original story, I intended to go my own way.

But there was no way I could say that to him right now.

While I hesitated, wondering what to say, I saw his anxious expression.

The future wasn’t certain, but I had planned to stay as a friend — and yet, he looked so young, so small, even saying that felt like too much.

In the end, I had no choice but to smile.

“…Yeah. I’ll always be by your side. Whether you stay a kid forever, or grow up a little early.”

Even though I knew nothing lasts forever, I whispered it anyway.

At those words, Hee-jun nodded, looking just a bit relieved.

Then, realizing what he’d just done, he quickly ducked his head.

Like hiding would help — his neck and ears were burning red, and it looked like he might burst from embarrassment at any second.

Watching him like that, the awkward tension melted away, and a quiet joy settled in its place.

“Hmmm, do you like me that much?”

“…No.”

“Haha! You’re gonna cry at this rate. Even if you like me a lot, don’t cry, okay?”

“…Shut up.”

“Whyyy? Your face is all red like a cherry. So cute.”

“I said stop it!”

Hee-jun shouted — but ended up startling himself more than me.

There’d been a stray cat I used to take care of before I ended up here, and his reaction was exactly like that cat’s. When it got too excited and scratched my hand with its claws, it’d jump back with that same panicked look.

Lost in that silly memory, I slowly smiled with my eyes.

“Good job. Oh — I don’t mean yelling was good. I mean, it’s good you expressed how you felt. Remember what I told you about treating your wounds? If you don’t take care of yourself, no one else will.”

“…Yeah.”

“People are more affected by what they see than you think. So if it shows — if people see you love yourself — they’ll love you too, at least a little. So care for yourself. Love yourself, even just a bit more.”

“Okay?” I asked gently.

Hee-jun nodded.

Helping expand someone’s world… was way more rewarding than I ever imagined.

* * *

There’s no such thing as a beautiful, soft, heart-fluttering first meeting between the main Su and the main Gong in real life. Honestly, if we’re talking about reality, there wouldn’t even be terms like “main Su” and “main Gong.”

But what I’m trying to say is… that whole “The moment I saw him, I knew he was my destiny!” thing only happens in novels.

Yeah. In reality, if your heart feels like it’s about to explode and you see fireworks the moment your eyes meet someone’s, you don’t need love — you need a hospital. Maybe this kind of messy situation is actually the natural order of things.

I’d been trying to escape reality with dumb thoughts, unable to accept the situation in front of me — but now I was back in it. The cause of my escape was standing right there, looking straight at me. The two of them, who had been bickering with each other all on their own, suddenly turned their attention to me and spoke.

“Un-ah, I don’t like this guy. Can’t it just be the two of us? If it’s you and me, I’ll listen really well, and it’ll definitely be fun.”

“…Lee Sa-eon, who is this kid you brought? You said he was super nice, right? Your standards for ‘nice’ must be weird.”

“I’m the one who said I didn’t like him — why’re you picking a fight with Un?”

“Un? Un?? And when did I ever pick a fight?”

…They didn’t even give me a second to think before arguing again, and all I could do was let out a hazy smile. Seeing them like this, they actually seemed like they got along — in their own chaotic way.

I brought them here so they’d get along, but why are they fighting instead…? I muttered in a hollow voice, and of course, both of them denied it. Apparently, they weren’t fighting.

So this is the iconic first meeting between the main couple of the novel — in all its messy glory. Is this really okay? No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem okay.

Ever since I introduced them, half excited, half worried, their reactions had been the same — the exact look someone would give a person who made them uncomfortable or rubbed them the wrong way.

The only silver lining here was that neither of them were the violent type. And despite all the bickering, both of them had claimed a spot beside me and hadn’t moved an inch. So it didn’t feel dangerous.

“So, how long is this going to go on for? Hey, you guys listening to me? Hmm… I guess not.”

Meow meow. Whine whine.
Weird. There were only three people here, but why did it feel like one human and two cats?

Normally, both of them were mature for their age — I never thought they’d clash this badly. It was like I could see the image of fluffy paws clashing midair between them, while my voice scattered uselessly into the tense air, blocked by their constant hissing.

Both of them insisted on sitting right next to me on this narrow staircase. Now stuck between them, I stared blankly at the sky, thinking back on how this even happened.

Right. How did we get here?

Honestly, it wasn’t anything special. I had nothing to do at school, so for the past few days, I gave Eun a bit more attention. And apparently, Eun really liked that.

So much so that whenever the bell rang for break, he’d immediately show up at my classroom, treating it like his personal attendance check. Then after school, he followed me around, eyes big and teary, asking if he could come along too.

Which left me, who had been about to head over to Hee-jun, in a very awkward spot.

“Where are you going? Can’t I come with you, Un-ah? I won’t be a bother, promise. Please?”

If he’d thrown a tantrum, I could’ve flat-out refused. But with him gently tugging at my sleeve and staring up at me with those sparkling eyes, I just couldn’t bring myself to push him away.

Still, I had to go see Hee-jun no matter what, so I tried my best to gently shake him off without hurting his feelings…

“Um, the friend I’m going to see is super shy, so it might be hard to bring someone else along.”

“Really? But I’m cute, so it’ll be fine.”

“…Huh?”

“People like cute things, right? So we’ll get along quickly. Let me come too, please? I wanna be with you, Un-ah…”

As you can see, I failed spectacularly.

So, since I couldn’t shake off Eun, I told him to wait at the bottom of the stairs just in case and ran up to ask Hee-jun if I could bring another friend along.

“…A friend?”

“Yeah! They’re really pretty and nice. I think you’ll really like them.”

“As much as me?”

“…Huh?”

“As pretty and nice as me?”

“Uh… well, yeah? I like them, so…”

“…Bring them.”

And that’s how I ended up bringing Eun along.

Now that I think about it, I should’ve known things would go south from the moment Hee-jun said, ‘Bring them.’

If I’d realized he meant it negatively, I would’ve just sent Eun home. But no — I was too busy worrying about Eun standing alone in the cold to think straight.

As soon as I got “permission”—which definitely wasn’t permission—I rushed down like a fool and brought him up here.

Now I just laughed hollowly and mentally punched my past self for that decision.

Yeah, this is all on me.

Honestly, saying I wasn’t worried about the original plot would be a lie. It’s not that I wanted to live as the sub Gong, but it’s also not like I didn’t want these two to end up together.

Since the story is a romance, them dating is probably the most perfect happy ending — and I had no intention of taking that from them.

…But what if I ruined everything?

As I seriously stressed out, I glanced at the two kids’ bright faces and relaxed a bit.

The novel didn’t give much detail about their pasts, so I had no idea what their “first meeting” was supposed to be like. But if they’re really destined lovers, even if this first meeting is a disaster or strays from the original, won’t they still end up together?

And more importantly, they’re eleven. Right now, just growing up safe and sound matters most. Worrying about their love life at this point is just plain insane.

Yeah — better to argue now while they’re kids than grow up and fight ugly later.

Nodding to myself, I sprawled out on the steps. My backpack supported my neck and back, so it wasn’t uncomfortable.

“Let me know when you’re done fighting. Let’s eat.”

“We’re not fighting.”

“…Not fighting.”

“Sure. Let’s go with that.”

With the warmth of the two kids pressed against my sides, my whole body felt toasty. I didn’t bother stifling the yawn that slipped out as I muttered to myself.

The two of them, lying back just like I had, gave me matching looks — equal parts baffled and amused.

“Well then, let’s eat.”

“Un-ah, sometimes you worry about my meals more than my parents do.”

“Think about how old you are. You’re still growing, right? If you don’t eat a lot now, you won’t get tall later.”

I pulled a spooky face, like I was warning them, and both of them shot up at the same time.

“You hate being told to eat, but you do want to grow taller, huh?”

I teased them and sat up too, following their lead.

“Let’s not eat on the stairs today. It’s too cramped. It was just right when it was only us… but up there — there’s a better spot to sit.”

“Alright, let’s eat there then. Eun-ah, come on.”

“Okay.”

Walking after Hee-jun, who led the way, I made sure Eun was following close behind.

Just like Hee-jun said, once we reached the top of the stairs, we found flat ground. We cleared away some rocks and trash to make a space to sit and plopped down.

Even with all this open space, the two of them still sat right up against me, one on each side — exactly like on the stairs. I looked at them, each clinging to a side, and couldn’t help but let out a laugh.