Lie Again! Chapter 22

<Chapter 22. Sudden Heavy Rain (2)>

 

The sky was ominous. When Jin received Riley’s call and left the chemistry lab, raindrops were falling one by one. 

 

Jin ran toward the red truck parked in the parking lot, roughly shielding herself from the rain with her hand. 

 

“Hello, Jin!”

 

“Thank you, Ivy.”

 

Jin thanked Ivy as she quickly opened the passenger door, shaking off the raindrops from her body. Fortunately, she had managed to leave school before the rain started pouring, so she wasn’t nearly as wet. 

 

It looks like it’s going to pour heavily. Riley muttered as she looked up at the sky while driving. Large gray clouds slowly and heavily split the sky. 

 

“Jin, when do you think the cleaning you’re doing will be over?” 

 

“Oh… this week is the last one.” 

 

Jin thought for a moment as she calculated the time, then answered. As she did, she was a bit surprised by how quickly time had passed. 

 

It had already been a month. It had been a month since she got caught fighting and ended up doing detention cleaning with Butterfield. At the same time, Jin recalled what had happened earlier in the chemistry lab and let out a sigh of frustration. 

 

‘A month that begins and ends with a fight. Perfect.’

 

“Then tomorrow’s the end, huh? You’ve worked hard, Jin. It must feel refreshing.” 

 

Jin nodded and gave a smile at Riley’s words.

 

In reality, Jin didn’t feel relieved at all. The events from just moments ago slowly began to weigh heavily on her chest. 

 

What kind of face should I make when I see Butterfield tomorrow? Should I apologize first? No, what did I even do wrong? Maybe I should just let it go, since it’s the last time. But if I do that, what should I even say…? 

 

On the way home, Jin couldn’t focus properly on the conversation between Riley and Ivy. 

 

Jin didn’t even know what she wanted with Butterfield. Like the dark clouds hanging low in the sky, her mood seemed to sag lower and lower. 

 

As soon as they arrived home, the dark sky opened up and rain began to pour. Jin and Ivy, who had been helping Riley prepare dinner, rushed to the living room at the sound of thunder echoing all around them. They sat side by side in front of the living room window, watching the rain pour down like it was coming from a hole in the sky. 

 

Every time lightning struck, Ivy and Jin clapped their hands. On the cat tower near the living room window, a cat lay on its back, stretching out in a yawn. Whether it was the flash of lightning or the roar of thunder, the cat didn’t seem to care at all.  

 

‘A fearless cat.’

 

Other cats from different houses get scared and hide when thunder strikes. Jin looked at Freckle with curious eyes. 

 

The two of them watched the rain for a while until Riley called them after finishing dinner preparations. 

 

During their meal, Riley spoke with a worried tone about the upcoming homecoming game. Even though the game would take place despite the rain, the royalty event might not be properly announced. 

 

The heavy rain continued without showing any signs of easing, even as they finished dinner and went to bed. Jin couldn’t fall asleep easily, tossing and turning to the sound of the rain tapping against the ceiling.  

 

Naturally, all kinds of thoughts came to Jin.

 

Joey and Amanda continued as usual, with no signs of anything unusual, after the nervous Wednesday.

 

Ruth, after coaxing and scolding Dustin, found out the reason why he was flirting with Joey. “The basketball guys were whispering about how good-looking Joey McCoy is, and that’s when he started acting differently toward her,” Ruth relayed with a bewildered expression. He had known Joey since elementary school and couldn’t believe that a single conversation could spark romantic feelings. 

 

Pablo seemed to always have lunch in the library. Jin realized she had never once seen him in the cafeteria. 

 

And then Butterfield. Thoughts of Pablo brought Jin back to the afternoon she had fought with Butterfield. 

 

‘When you’re standing in front of me, your face just hardens.’

 

His last words lingered in Jin’s ears. To be honest, she hadn’t expected him to think that way. She knew she acted stiff around Butterfield, but it wasn’t because she disliked him… rather… 

 

It was more of a defense mechanism to prevent her fragile heart from being exposed. It was the best way to ignore how she fumbled around, acted strangely, and subconsciously let her gaze wander whenever she was around him.

 

She was so focused on hiding it that she never considered it might come across as excessive. 

 

‘I didn’t mean to hurt his feelings.’

 

Should I apologize first? No, but he was the one who was rude first. If I talk to him like I’m lecturing, I’d be annoyed too. It’s sarcastic, and I got irritated as well…

 

Jin was torn between herself that wanted to apologize and end things on good terms, and the part of her that felt she hadn’t done anything wrong.

 

“Oh, I don’t know.”

 

After a while of running through various scenarios in her mind, Jin groaned and pulled the blanket up to her head. 

 

The raindrops continued to pound fiercely against the roof. The sound of the rain echoed through the attic as loudly as the chaotic noise in her mind.  

 

Jin buried her face in the pillow and forced herself to sleep. 

 

* * *

 

The rain that had poured relentlessly until dawn gave way to a bright sky by morning, as if it had never rained. The only evidence of last night’s downpour was the puddles scattered along the road.

 

Jin, who got out of Riley’s red truck, carefully avoided the puddles as she made her way to school. 

 

On the last day of Homecoming Week, Crawford was livelier than usual. The yellow and blue outfits worn in preparation for the Homecoming game seemed to reflect the excitement for the evening ahead. 

 

The students gathered to predict the results of the royalty vote and the outcome of the game. The heat, which had lessened after the rain, the coordinated school colors, and the 30-minute shortened classes all seemed to contribute to the excitement. 

 

The events that had been eagerly awaited for the entire week overlapped, making Crawford feel like the night before a festival. 

 

However, there was one person—Jin—who couldn’t join in on the atmosphere, staring blankly at something, lost in thought. 

 

In the dim classroom, the light from the screen flickered across his delicate face. Instead of focusing on the movie that Mrs. Haide had put on, Butterfield was playfully throwing paper wads at Jonathan, who was sitting nearby. 

 

It seemed that Jin was the only one who couldn’t sleep properly due to all sorts of troubling thoughts. Butterfield, on the other hand, looked completely unfazed. As Jin gazed at the back of his head, which seemed to have no care in the world, her heart sank with a heavy sense of defeat. 

 

Jin bit her lower lip tightly to hide the emptiness she felt. The fact that she had spent the night reflecting on yesterday’s argument, while everyone else seemed to have moved on, bruised her pride. To Butterfield, it probably seemed like a trivial encounter, something no more significant than a small incident with a stranger on the street. Or maybe it wasn’t even that much. 

 

‘I thought at least we were something like friends.’

 

The feeling of helplessness that washed over her when she realized she had been holding onto the thread alone, thinking the two of them were holding it together. The person who had let go of the thread long ago might not even realize she was watching from across the way. 

 

Embarrassment, awkwardness, loneliness, and a faint sense of betrayal she couldn’t quite place rushed toward her. The familiar return of emotions she had already experienced made Jin let out a hollow laugh.

 

She was foolishly repeating what she had promised herself never to do again. 

 

However, despite everything, the reason Jin decided to apologize to Butterfield was because she had learned something from her past experiences, even if not entirely. 

 

She knew all too well how unsettling an unresolved ending could be. She couldn’t afford to ruin things even after coming to America. It wasn’t for Butterfield; it was something she needed to do for her own peace of mind. But… 

 

‘…Later. Not now.’

 

Her wounded pride hurts quite a bit now. Jin needed a little time to heal her heart. She promised herself she’d deal with it later and turned her gaze back to the screen.  

 

* * *

 

“That’s all for today. I hope you all enjoy your fun homecoming.”

 

When Mr. Ross announced the end of class, sighs erupted from all around. He had shattered the students’ expectations of a shortened class, having filled the full 30 minutes instead.

 

Jin glanced at the figure rising in the distance, quietly packing her books.

 

Jin watched the large figure slip out the door for a moment before turning her head away. After much hesitation, she decided to postpone the timing for her apology until they were cleaning. 

 

Just as Jin was about to take a step, trying to calm her strangely anxious feelings, she reminded herself that there was no need to rush.

 

“Ah, Jin, there’s no need to clean today. You’ve worked hard for a whole month.”

 

Mr. Ross stopped and spoke to Jin as he was leaving the classroom.

 

“Oh…yes.” 

 

He added that he had already told Evan in advance and then left the classroom.

 

Taken aback by the unexpected words, Jin stared blankly at the front door where Mr. Ross had disappeared, then shifted her gaze to the seat where Butterfield had been sitting. 

 

The place was already tidied up, without a trace. Jin’s last lingering hesitation to apologize was, ironically, cleared away as neatly as everything else. 

 

You don’t seem to care at all? Even knowing this is the last time…

 

Jin looked at the empty space in vain. The month-long punishment cleaning ended in vain without any particular conclusion.

 

Instead of words of appreciation, they left sharp remarks at each other, filled with nothing but lingering discomfort instead of relief.

 

And Jin saw the brown-haired boy again that evening, on the field bathed in the fiery crimson sunset, as the homecoming game was about to begin. 

 

When the stadium announcer called out Butterfield’s name, cheers erupted from the stands. It was the loudest cheer of all the royalty candidate introductions so far. 

 

Beside Butterfield stood Emily Gwen, dressed in a gown, with her arms crossed.

 

Amidst the crowded people, Jin looked at the scene once again, realizing once more the contrast between the cheering field and the cheering spectators in the stands. 

 

Ah, the distance between you and me was this much.