Lie Again! Chapter 90

<Chapter 90. Neatly, Clumsily (4)>

 

“Do what you’re good at. You have more than enough talent to pursue sports, and you enjoy it, so why are you giving it up like it’s nothing?” 

 

Jin, sitting up, looked down at Evan as she spoke. He sat up to face her, staring at her for a long moment before letting out a quiet sigh.

 

“I told you. Spending time with you is more important—at least to me—than things like that.”

 

Even at this moment, her heart fluttered at his words, yet she felt a suffocating weight in her chest, as if something were stuck. Was Evan really okay with this? Was she the only one feeling anxious?

 

In the darkened attic, with the monitor light flickering over only one side of his face, the boy suddenly reminded her of the unreadable person she had met back in the chemistry lab.

 

Suppressing her unease, Jin stared into his green eyes.

 

“It’s the same for me. But I’m saying we need to think about this more seriously. Joining the orchestra is the best choice I could make given my circumstances, but it’s different for you.”

 

“I don’t understand why we have to fight over something like this.”

 

“Evan, I just… if I were you…”

 

“Jin, isn’t this actually because your heart feels uncomfortable?”

 

A brief silence fell between them. A character in the movie on the laptop was still rambling on, but neither of them heard a word.

 

“…What is that supposed to mean?”

 

“I’m not so dense that I don’t know you’re always ready to walk away.”

 

Evan muttered with an expressionless face, then stood up and walked out without waiting for her answer. The heavy thud of the attic door closing followed. 

 

Left alone, Jin bolted up from the bed and strode toward the door. But as she stared at the tightly shut wood, she couldn’t bring herself to turn the handle and eventually turned back.

 

It seemed they both needed time to think. Both her and him.

 

* * *

 

Monday arrived after a Sunday spent without either of them reaching out first. The moment Jin arrived at school, she realized that not chasing after Evan that night had been a mistake.

 

“Evan, about Saturday…”

 

“I’ll go first. See you later.”

 

During first period, as Mrs. Haide announced the end of class, a hesitant Jin turned her head slightly. Since they’d had time to sort out their thoughts, she intended to talk to him now.

 

But what she faced was Evan bolting from his seat before she could even get the words out.

 

Jin looked up at him blankly. Was he still upset? But the eyes looking down at her were gentle.

 

When Jin nodded instinctively, Evan slipped out of the classroom. Watching his receding back as he stroded away, a bewildered Jin looked away. 

 

There will be plenty of chances to talk, she thought. They had to see each other again in seventh period anyway; there was still plenty of time.

 

However, it didn’t take long for Jin to realize that this thought, too, was a blunder.

 

“….”

 

Jin glared at his back as he was the first to open the door and leave the moment class ended. These past few days, it felt like she was seeing his back more than his face.

 

Of course, Evan wasn’t avoiding her to the point of disappearing entirely like he used to.

 

In fact, he insisted on keeping the seat next to Jin in every class—to the point where she worried someone might catch on to their relationship—and he looked at the boys she hung out with, especially Ruth, with a sour expression. 

 

But that was as far as it went. 

 

The damn boy gave her absolutely no opportunity for a serious conversation. Evan, who used to be so easy to run into in the hallways, was now nowhere to be found, as if he were subtly dodging her. Even when she did manage to catch him, he would leave the room or change the subject the moment she tried to bring anything up.

 

As a result, for several days, Jin felt like she was playing a game of hide-and-seek.

 

But this exhausting game was ending today.

 

‘I’m settling this today.’

 

Quickly gathering her books, Jin pushed through the crowd of students gathered at the exit. Stepping into the hall, she saw that distinct head of hair walking ahead of her.

 

Seeing Evan moving away with long, rapid strides, Jin narrowed her eyes and quickened her pace to a near-run. 

 

Zip.

 

When his figure turned a corner and vanished from sight, Jin’s heart raced, and she hurried her steps to round the corner after him. Fortunately, there was no one else in the hallway but him and her.

 

With her eyes flashing, Jin ran at her top speed and grabbed Evan’s wrist.

 

“Stop running away and—!”

 

But Jin couldn’t finish her sentence. With the sound of a door swinging open, a swarm of students poured out.

 

Startled, Jin stopped and let go of Evan’s wrist.

 

She stepped back to avoid the students who were grumbling about the teacher not letting them out even after the bell rang. A few people glanced at Jin standing there awkwardly, but no one seemed to suspect her and Evan.

 

While feeling relieved, her eyes met Evan’s.

 

“….”

 

“…”

 

Through the gaps between the students passing by, she saw those green eyes staring at her quietly.

 

Because of the people obstructing her view, Jin couldn’t see his expression clearly. He looked blank, perhaps angry, or perhaps empty.

 

By the time the students had all cleared out, Evan was no longer there.

 

* * *

 

The weather wasn’t officially “spring” yet, but as if signaling the approach of March, the trees were green and the sky was clear. A flock of swans that had returned to the school after a short winter floated on the water, occasionally flapping their wings.

 

Jin was absently bringing a hamburger to her mouth, feeling the muggy breeze tickle her bangs.

 

“I mean, if you steal your friend’s boyfriend, the least you can do is keep quiet about it. But she went and posted photos like she wanted everyone to see! Not even on her story, but on her feed!”

 

Beside her, Joey was ranting passionately, but the words didn’t register. Jin’s mind was already busy with a full-scale war.

 

The ‘Why did you meddle and cause this mess?’ faction and the ‘If I can’t even say this much, what can I say?’ faction were constantly fighting for dominance.

 

“And there’s a limit to how much you can edit a photo. Do you guys really think this is Lopez?”

 

Joey waved her phone, which displayed Lopez’s account, as if the image were absurd.

 

“Looks like Lopez to me.”

 

Dustin, who was sitting nearby, looked at the photo in question—where Lopez was pouting her lips sexily alongside her new boyfriend—and whistled thoughtlessly. 

 

Punishing him with a slap to the shoulder, Joey shoved the phone right in front of Ruth’s eyes, telling him to look again.

 

After eventually forcing an agreement out of the two boys, Joey moved on to get a nod from Amanda, who was focused on her assignment, and from a dazed Jin, before flipping through the social media feed with a satisfied look. 

 

After that, Jin continued to nod along to whatever anyone said while lost in her own thoughts. She was finally snapped out of it near the end of lunch by Joey’s voice shouting, “What?!” in shock at something she saw.

 

“They say Hansen and Butterfield were just trading blows in the cafeteria, though? ”

 

She held out her device, which was playing a short video. The cafeteria was a mess of screaming girls and excited boys.

 

Amidst the buzzing crowd, two guys were seen tangled on the floor.

 

‘Evan.’

 

Though the video was shaky and low-quality, Jin recognized the boy instantly.

 

Jin’s anxious gaze remained fixed on the face in the video.

 

On the screen, Hansen and Evan were scuffling until Hansen, who gained the upper hand, didn’t miss the opportunity to land a punch on Evan’s face.

 

“Ah.”

 

As Jin let out a small cry, Evan’s foot kicked Hansen’s stomach with force. The video ended with Hansen being sent flying with a crash.

 

Before the video even finished, Jin bolted from her seat, abandoning the hamburger in her hand, and ran toward the main building. 

 

“Jin!”

 

She heard her friends calling her from behind, but she didn’t have time to stop.

 

By the time Jin arrived at the Economics classroom, it was already packed with students gathered for fifth period. After peering through the small window in the door with an anxious expression, she spotted Evan before long.

 

Even from a distance, she could see the dried blood crusted around the mouth of the expressionless Evan sitting near the window. As Jin’s face hardened, Evan turned his head.

 

For a moment, they stared at each other through the glass.

 

Evan stared at Jin with a calm expression before eventually turning back toward the window first. As if he knew she wouldn’t move.

 

That was when Jin flung the door wide open.