Lie Again! Chapter 97

<Chapter 97. A Season for Something to Ripen (2)>

 

“Ah! Let’s rent a limo next year too! The photos from Prom looked really good.”

 

In May, the Prom for the graduating class ended in great success. Now that everything from the final exams of the year to the big events was over, what awaited them was a long summer and a break to endure the sweltering heat.

 

The only thing the 10th graders did together was talk about their plans for the break or share behind-the-scenes stories about Prom, building anticipation for the party they would have next year.

 

And Jin’s friends were no exception.

 

“What kind of junior rents a limo? That’s just a perfect way to spend money and get mocked.”  

 

“Ugh, fine, then let’s do it when we’re Seniors!”

 

Joey glared at Ruth, who had just poured cold water on her excited expectations. But that lasted only a moment; Joey opened her mouth again as if she couldn’t rest for a single second.

 

She looked exactly like a baby bird chirping with its beak constantly open for food. Though she was different in the sense that this baby bird mostly carried rumors.

 

“Olson became Prom King this year.”

 

“That guy who looks like a frog?”

 

When Dustin asked back, Joey let out a huffing sound. Pfft.

 

“If only he were as cute as a frog. He looks a bit like a poisonous toad. Is the senior class really that lacking in looks? James didn’t run as a candidate this time?” 

 

“You have to actually show up to school to do anything. He barely managed to attend the Prom itself.”

 

Amanda answered indifferently. When the conversation drifted to who the Prom Queen and King from their own grade might be—“Obviously it’ll be Butterfield, duh”—Joey suddenly lowered her voice and whispered to Jin.

 

“Oh, right. Jin, is the preparation for that all done?”

 

It was a sudden question, but Jin immediately knew what “that” referred to. It was the very topic Jin had been thinking about constantly lately.

 

“Not yet. I’ve mostly decided… but I want to think about it a bit more.”

 

“I’ll lend you Ruth’s house! We’ll invite a lot of people, turn off the lights, everyone hide, and then make a surprise appearance…”

 

“I’m sure he’d just love that.”

 

Joey, who was more excited than the person involved, started listing a surprise party plan at Ruth’s house—“Wait, is it your house now?” Ruth asked with a bewildered face—but she stopped at Amanda’s quiet remark.

 

“Where could you find an American who hates parties…”

 

She stopped mid-rebuttal, stared at Jin for a moment, and then shook her head.

 

“Hmm. Never mind, forget it.”

 

“I’m telling you, going to see a sports game is the best.” 

 

Dustin cut in while Joey was silent to voice his own preference, but—

 

“The NFL is over and the NBA already dropped out of the playoffs this season, so what are you going to see? The Rays? Or the Fish?”

 

At Ruth’s sarcasm, Dustin made a foolish expression that said, ‘Now that I think about it, you’re right,’ and backed down.

 

“Forget this too, Jin.”

 

Jin, who hadn’t understood a single thing Ruth said from beginning to end, looked confused until Amanda waved her hand for Jin not to worry and looked away from the boys.

 

Amanda, who had given the boys a pathetic look for never uttering a single helpful word, offered Jin serious advice for the first time. 

 

“Just do what you want to do. He’ll like whatever you do. There isn’t much time left to do anything now, anyway…”

 

“What do you mean, there isn’t much time left?”

 

With the screeching sound of a chair dragging against the floor, someone plopped down in the seat next to Jin.

 

Simultaneously, a silence fell over the table. It was a silence born from everyone exchanging glances.

 

Lately, Evan had been coming to find Jin much more frequently. As if he had been lenient because it was exam period, Evan didn’t think of leaving Jin’s side the moment exams were over. He eventually ate lunch with Jonathan due to his whining—“There are no friends in this world!3)”—but once the meal was finished, he invariably found his way to Jin’s table. 

 

On top of that, there was an undeniably obsessive streak in his actions, like changing his schedule to match Jin’s or showing his face during every short break that lasted less than five minutes. Joey had shaken her head, telling Jin, “If you allowed it, he’d probably try to stay attached to you all day.”

 

Anyway, since what he was asking about was something he shouldn’t hear, Joey, who had been watching with wide eyes, hurriedly changed the subject.

 

“Break! I mean there’s not much time left until break, haha. Oh, I’m so excited! I decided to work at the cafe where Peter used to work this time! You know, that place with the handsome owner! Right?”

 

“Oh, yeah, I decided to work as a lifeguard this time.”

 

“Ruthie, at the pool near your house? You finally decided to do it!”

 

Thanks to Ruth quickly picking up the conversation, the talk at the table naturally flowed into chattering about part-time jobs during the break.

 

‘He didn’t notice, did he?’

 

And as the only international student with no job to catch and nothing to say, Jin stole a glance at Evan beside her with a nervous heart.

 

A sharp edge had momentarily flickered on his face when he asked what she meant by not having much time left. That really weighed on Jin’s mind.

 

She wondered if the exceptionally quick-witted boy had realized everything she was planning from that one remark. Jin’s gaze searched him cautiously.

 

But fortunately, the sensitivity that had been on Evan’s face had vanished without a trace. He was simply listening with a bored expression to things like how the hourly rate for dog walking was decent and how unpaid internships should be legally banned.

 

Jin let out a sigh of relief behind Evan’s back. 

 

Somehow, she wanted to do her best with this particular task without any interference. Jin wasn’t someone with many greedy desires, but she didn’t want to yield on this.

 

She couldn’t let go of the greed to make just one day—just one day before she left—the best day possible.

 

Evan’s birthday was approaching.

 

* * *

 

Jin had found out about Evan’s birthday not long before Prom.

 

Amidst the rowdy atmosphere involving not just the graduating class but also the 9th and 10th graders who couldn’t even enter without a partner request, Jin, who was walking down the hallway like a remote island, stopped at a voice calling her.

 

‘Yo, Jin!’

 

It was Jonathan who approached. He was now comfortably calling Jin by her name. After coming up to Jin and looking around, Jonathan spoke quickly before someone who had been tiresomely inseparable from this girl lately could arrive.

 

‘You know it’s Ev’s birthday soon, right?’

 

The words out of his mouth were news to Jin. Not only had the birthday boy himself never uttered a word about it, but there was also absolutely nothing related to it on his social media, which was barely clinging to life with only two posts.

 

Before Jin, who was dazed by the unexpected information, could even shake her head, Jonathan smirked and made the first proposal.

 

‘Should we throw a huge party? We couldn’t do it before because he detested it, but I feel like he’d actually show up if you’re the one asking. The party prep… hmm.’

 

He had been continuing excitedly when he looked at Jin with a strange gaze and paused for a moment.

 

‘If it’s too much for you, why not leave it to McCoy? Doesn’t she go crazy for that stuff?’

 

The words that followed made Jin’s gaze turn cold. Her pride was hurt by being treated like a nerd who didn’t even know how to throw a party—even if that were true—and the idea of filling his own interests by dragging in an unrelated Joey was beyond absurd.

 

The fundamental question, ‘What is wrong with this guy?’ floated to her mind. The favorable feelings she had unknowingly developed for him through various events receded like the ebbing tide.

 

Simultaneously, the gratitude for letting her know about the day she had been completely ignorant of washed away with it.

 

‘Jin, Jin?’

 

So, instead of answering Jonathan’s proposal, Jin whipped around and walked away. Jonathan called Jin’s name desperately from behind, but he didn’t hear a single syllable from Jin until the very end. The thoughtless boy scratched his head with a bewildered face.

 

Today, just like that day, was a day where excitement surged through the air like water. The difference was that today, it wasn’t anticipation for Prom, but rather the bittersweetness of those going out into society after finishing four years of schooling and the excitement of the underclassmen facing a new year that made the school rowdy.

 

“Happy Graduation!”

 

The last day at Crawford High School had arrived.