Chapter 7: A Smile Meant for Another
1504 Words
The sun was already beginning to sink when the school gate slowly grew less crowded, the noise of the day softening into scattered conversations and fading footsteps. Students drifted away in groups, some laughing, some arguing, others simply eager to leave behind the weight of lectures and expectations. The air carried that quiet transition between day and evening, where everything seemed calmer—but not necessarily peaceful.
Minjea stood just a few steps away from the gate, his figure steady, composed, almost blending into the stillness around him. There was nothing restless about him, nothing impatient. Even in waiting, he seemed completely at ease, as though time itself moved according to his pace.
Beside him, however, the contrast was obvious.
His younger brother shifted constantly, glancing toward the gate every few seconds, then looking away again as though afraid of being noticed. His hands moved restlessly, fingers tightening and loosening without purpose. It was clear he was not used to this—waiting, anticipating, hoping.
“You’re going to make it obvious,” Minjea said calmly without looking at him.
The younger brother stiffened slightly. “I’m not.”
Minjea finally turned his head just enough to glance at him, his expression unreadable but sharp enough to see through everything.
“You are.”
The younger brother looked away immediately, exhaling quietly. “I just… don’t know what to say to her.”
“That’s why you asked me to help you,” Minjie replied.
There was no judgment in his voice, only a simple statement of fact.
The younger brother hesitated, then nodded faintly. “If I talk to her directly, she’ll ignore me. Or worse… she’ll say something I don’t want to hear.”
Minjea did not respond immediately.
His gaze returned to the gate.
“You already know the answer,” he said after a moment.
The younger brother frowned slightly. “What do you mean?”
Minjea’s tone remained calm. “You’re just hoping it’s different.”
Before the younger brother could reply, movement at the gate caught their attention.
She had arrived.
She walked alone, just as she always did, her steps neither hurried nor slow, her presence quiet but noticeable in a way that did not demand attention yet still drew it. The fading sunlight brushed softly against her figure, outlining her in a gentle glow that made her seem distant from everything around her.
The younger brother straightened immediately, his heartbeat quickening in a way he couldn’t control.
“That’s her,” he murmured.
Minjie had already seen.
He stepped forward without hesitation.
“Wait,” he called.
The girl stopped.
It wasn’t abrupt, nor reluctant. She simply paused, then turned slowly, her gaze moving first to Minjes, then briefly to the younger brother before settling again.
There was no surprise in her expression.
Only quiet curiosity.
“Yes?” she asked.
Her voice was calm, steady, almost detached.
Minjie met her gaze without hesitation. “We’re having dinner at our place. I thought you might want to join us.”
The invitation was simple.
Too simple.
The younger brother felt his chest tighten slightly.
That was it?
No explanation?
No reason?
The girl tilted her head slightly, studying Minjie for a moment as though weighing his words carefully.
“Why?” she asked.
Minjie did not avoid the question.
“You helped my brother before,” he said. “We never properly thanked you.”
It was not entirely false.
But it was not the full truth either.
The younger brother glanced at him briefly, surprised by how naturally the excuse came.
The girl’s gaze shifted slightly toward the younger brother, who quickly looked away, pretending not to be watching her so closely.
“I don’t remember doing anything worth thanking,” she said calmly.
“Whether you do or not,” Minjea replied, “we do.”
There was something about the way he said it—calm, confident, without pressure—that made it difficult to refuse.
The girl remained silent for a few seconds.
Then she sighed softly.
“…I wasn’t planning to go anywhere today.”
Minjea nodded. “Then consider this a change of plan.”
A faint pause followed.
Then—
“…Fine,” she said.
The younger brother blinked, clearly not expecting her to agree so easily.
Minjie simply turned slightly. “Let’s go.”
—
Their house stood quietly away from the main road, its structure elegant without being overly extravagant. It carried a calm presence, much like Minjie himself—controlled, balanced, deliberate.
When they entered, the girl’s eyes moved slowly across the space, taking in the surroundings with quiet observation. She did not comment, nor did she show any visible reaction. She simply acknowledged what she saw and moved on.
Minjie gestured toward the dining area. “Sit.”
But she didn’t.
Instead, she walked a little further, toward the steps near the side of the room, and sat there casually, as though that position felt more natural to her.
The younger brother noticed immediately.
A small detail.
But one that unsettled him.
Why sit there?
Why not closer?
Why not… with them?
Minjie, however, showed no reaction. He took his seat calmly, as though her choice made no difference.
The younger brother hesitated for a moment before sitting down as well, though his attention never left her.
Silence stretched between them briefly, but it was not uncomfortable.
Just unspoken.
Minjie broke it first, speaking casually about small things—school, classes, nothing too serious. The girl responded when necessary, her tone calm, her answers short but not dismissive.
But the younger brother—
He could not focus.
Every word spoken around him felt distant.
Because his attention remained fixed on one thing.
Her.
The way she sat.
The way she spoke.
The way she looked at Minjea—
That bothered him the most.
Finally, unable to hold back any longer, he spoke.
“Why did you agree to come?” he asked.
His voice came out sharper than he intended.
The girl turned her gaze toward him, her expression unchanged.
“Because I was invited,” she said simply.
“That’s all?”
She raised an eyebrow slightly. “What else should there be?”
The younger brother hesitated, his thoughts tangled, his emotions pressing forward without control.
Then he asked the question he had been avoiding.
“…Do you like my brother?”
The room fell silent.
Minjie’s movement paused slightly, though he did not turn.
The girl looked at the younger brother for a moment, then leaned back slightly against the step, her expression carrying a faint trace of indifference.
“How can I possibly like someone like you?” she said.
The words were calm.
But they struck harder than anger ever could.
“And if I had to choose,” she continued, her gaze shifting toward Minjea, “I would prefer someone like him.”
The younger brother froze.
Something inside him tightened sharply.
He forced a small laugh, though it sounded hollow.
“I don’t believe that,” he said. “No girl would actually like him like that.”
His voice carried something deeper now.
Something raw.
“Girls just say things like that,” he continued, his tone growing more strained. “Of course they’ll pick someone like him. Handsome, calm… perfect.”
Minjea remained silent.
The girl, however, did not look away.
“You asked,” she said quietly. “I answered.”
That was all.
But it was enough.
so-jung leaned back, his hands tightening into fists, his gaze burning with emotions he could no longer hide.
Jealousy.
Frustration.
Anger.
Minjea stood then, breaking the tension without addressing it directly.
“I’ll get something,” he said calmly before walking away.
The moment he left—
The air shifted.
The girl turned her gaze away, no longer interested in continuing the conversation so-jung stared at her, his chest rising and falling slightly faster.
He wanted to say something.
To argue.
To deny.
But no words came.
Because deep down—
He knew she meant it.
When Minjie returned, everything changed again.
The girl straightened slightly.
And then—
She smiled.
It was soft.
Natural.
Unforced.
And it was directed at Minjie.
The younger brother saw it clearly.
And something inside him burned.
Because that smile—
Was not for him.
It had never been.
As they continued talking, her tone shifted subtly, becoming more open, more engaged.
“Did you want me to come here?” she asked suddenly.
Minjie paused briefly. “I thought it would be good if you did.”
She held his gaze for a moment.
“…I didn’t feel like coming at first,” she admitted.
“And now?” he asked.
She looked at him quietly.
“…It’s not bad.”
The younger brother looked away.
His jaw tightened.
Because no matter how he looked at it—
He was standing right there.
And yet—
He felt completely invisible.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD