Mint Is Pure Love - Chapter 4

I must’ve been spaced out for a second, not understanding what I’d just heard. More accurately, I was preoccupied, wondering why Cha Seokyung was asking me something like that.

When I didn’t answer and just tilted my head to stare at his face, he made another urging glance toward my forehead. Only then did I reach up and touch the bandage I had cleaned and reapplied.

“…Oh, it’s nothing. My grandma threw a spoon at me yesterday…”

Was it okay to say something that personal? It kind of made it sound like I got beaten up at home.

“So, like, I told her to hurry up and die, and she got mad…”

The more I talked, the deeper I felt myself sinking into quicksand.

Normally, if nothing else, I was good with words. Especially in front of boys.

If I even smiled awkwardly or let my words trail off vaguely, boys always seemed to take it the wrong way and turn it into a confession. Ever since middle school, I’d been well acquainted with their ungrateful imaginations. That’s why once I got to high school, I never waved without a reason, not even once.

So this awkwardness right now—it was just way too sudden. I’d only known Cha Seokyung for all of three seconds, and now he was suddenly talking to me? Standing five steps away?

The scent of soap that the girls talked about hit my nose.

And his face, seen up close, was even cleaner and brighter than the version I’d imagined in my head.

Cha Seokyung’s gaze lingered on my forehead, then my face, then pulled away. Just like how he’d come over with no warning, he turned and left without a word. He picked up the bike lying on its side and rode off like nothing had happened.

I checked the time. 7:05 AM.

It was the start of a strange day—five extra minutes added to my always-consistent three-second mornings.

***

What happened after that wasn’t that Cha Seokyung and I got super close, or that we started dating like stories like this usually go.

It was just the same as ever.

At 6:59 AM, Cha Seokyung would ride past me on his bike. I would walk along, trailing behind.

I survived the boring zero period through fourth period, and then at lunch, I’d put in my earphones. I’d drink a strawberry milk instead of eating and listening to music.

By the time side A of my cassette tape was about to finish playing, the long lunch break would be over, and fifth period would begin.

Lee Hojung and her crew would, like clockwork every other day, either talk behind my back, glare at me, or scan me up and down with disgust before whispering among themselves.

During PE, I still didn’t have a partner and had to play badminton with the teacher. If I dozed off in class, there was no one to share notes with, so I gritted my teeth and stayed awake.

It was the same mundane string of days as always.

If anything had changed, it was that my thoughts had taken a new direction.

Like—Cha Seokyung saw me and Kim Eunho that day, didn’t he? Did he realize I was the girl standing at the gate? Why was he curious about my forehead?

Those kinds of questions.

But those questions didn’t last long, thanks to a new reputation Cha Seokyung had gained.

“Cha Seokyung is, like, super sweet…”

It happened during the last period, PE. I had skipped out, claiming I wasn’t feeling well, and was lying on my desk when it happened.

One of our two PE teachers had gone on sick leave, so our class had PE together with Class 2 that day.

When the students started returning, smelling like dust and gym mats, Lee Hojung came in a bit late, clearly dazzled.

“Why? What did Cha Seokyung do?”

“I mean… I was carrying the basket of shuttlecocks to the storage room, and it was kinda heavy… and he carried it for meee…”

She mimed him picking up the basket with one hand.

“He doesn’t even talk much with girls, but if you look closely, he’s actually really gentle.”

Stories about Cha Seokyung started pouring out of the girls’ mouths like urban legends. Nothing major—just little things like holding a door open, or helping someone carry something.

Those small glimpses of his personality were hard even for me to deny.

So, him asking about my forehead? That was probably just one of those moments. Just another sign of his kindness that anyone could see. Just another hidden track on the B-side of his character.

By the end of April, kids had started confessing to Cha Seokyung. First-years, second-years, even a third-year upperclassman.

Lee Hojung mocked those girls like she knew something they didn’t. She looked smug about it.

Maybe there was a reason for her confidence, but there was never any news that Cha Seokyung accepted any of the confessions.

In hallways, on the field, in stairwells during passing periods, before zero period, after homeroom, during breaks… The time and place varied.

Those who witnessed it said that Cha Seokyung never smiled or frowned or even looked annoyed. He just patiently listened to the girls stammering with blushing cheeks and trembling voices, and always responded with one word.

“Sorry.”

That was it. No matter how embarrassed the girl looked, he didn’t care. In those moments, the sweet and gentle side of Cha Seokyung was nowhere to be found.

People said it was like he was waiting for a specific someone’s confession. Someone special. And every time that rumor made the rounds, Lee Hojung could barely contain the smirk on her face.

As for me, I just found Cha Seokyung a little fascinating. How could he cut off someone’s clinging affection with just one word—“Sorry”?

I wanted to ask him how. But I knew I couldn’t, so my curiosity ended there.

Besides, around that time, I had my own problem. A huge one.

Damn, Kim Eunho suddenly came into our classroom during the last bit of lunch—holding a bouquet of roses.

“Yeonseo, I’ve been thinking… and thinking again. About what’s best for you.”

I had been quietly sitting there doing math homework. Then—bam. It felt like getting drenched in cold water in the middle of class.

Sensing this wouldn’t end with just one ridiculous line, I tried to get up quickly, but two girls who were friends with Kim Eunho dragged over chairs and sat on either side of me, holding my arms like they were comforting me.

Ahem. Kim Eunho cleared his throat. A terrible feeling crept up from the pit of my stomach. Word must’ve spread, because not only the classroom but even the hallway window was crowded with onlookers.

“Let’s not start over—let’s start new.”

Ever the aspiring celebrity, Kim Eunho made sure he had everyone’s attention, then began to sing. A song about loving and waiting, asking me to notice him someday, or something.

I don’t want to go into detail about how I felt. It was humiliation. Embarrassment. Shame. My ears were burning.

“Will you accept my heart, Ji Yeonseo?”

The bouquet was shoved into my arms.

The class erupted into applause, teasing jeers, and desk-pounding. Some shouted for me to accept it, like it was a school sports day chant.

The noise, the bouquet—it all felt like one big insult. I probably looked as red as those roses.

I’d already told him no. So many times.

How much louder do I have to say it? How much more do I have to shout and freak out for you to get it?

I felt nauseous. Dizzy.

The cheering sounded more like mockery. Every eye clung to me. Snickers and giggles.

I stood up so fast the chair toppled backward, marched to the back of the class, and dumped the bouquet into the trash. The petals fluttered around me like they were sticking to my skin. It made my stomach turn.

Silence blanketed the classroom.

The rose scent clogged my throat. The room felt suffocating with students blocking the windows and the door like we were sealed inside.

I squeezed through a gap between the boys crowding the back door and headed out. And just as I stepped out—

“Seriously, all she’s got is that face. What a b1tch.”

She always plays hard to get. So annoying. She toys with people’s feelings. She doesn’t even appreciate someone’s sincerity. She’s a heartless monster.

None of it was new to me, but one particular sharp word scraped my chest like a thorn. Something hot surged up inside me. The kind of tears you can’t fight off.

I rushed out the back door. Crying at school, at eighteen—that was the most pathetic thing I could imagine.

I wiped my eyes, stepped out into the hallway—and froze after only a few steps.

Cha Seokyung was standing there. Hands stuffed into his pockets, casting a shadow over me with that calm, detached face.

Just as I stood there, caught in his gaze, someone suddenly grabbed my wrist and pulled me around. Still clinging to his nonsense, Kim Eunho was desperately begging loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Yeonseo, I really like you! I’m serious! I’ll do anything, just say yes!”

You say you’ll do anything, but not letting go after a breakup—why can’t you do that?

I suddenly felt drained by everything.

I yanked my wrist out of his grip and hurried past him, trying hard to ignore the eyes still watching me.

I couldn’t take it anymore. Whether it was the ridiculous public proposal or Cha Seokyung’s gaze—I didn’t know.

I couldn’t breathe. I felt like I was going to die.

***

After that, for a while, the most popular label among my many disgraceful nicknames became “Complete Rejection Girl,” and the stares I got became colder than ever.

Every morning, a chocolate milk would be waiting on my desk, like some kind of grand, embarrassing display of affection, complete with a sticky note covered in cringe-worthy messages.

“….”

We dated for two months—shouldn’t he at least know I don’t like chocolate milk?

Each time the poor, innocent chocolate milk was thrown into the trash at the back of the class, my reputation dropped another few notches.

While I was crashing to rock bottom, Cha Seokyung picked up a new title too—something different from before.