Became an Observer in Love Company

The art room was filled with the distinctive smell of paint.

Various art tools and magical ingredients were scattered messily on the long tables, and the students were creating their works in their own ways.

As usual, I sat in my habitual corner by the window.

It was a good spot to observe everything without drawing attention to myself.

As always, all I had to do was quietly do my part. There was no need for interaction with others in the process.

It wasn’t the kind of thing I could ask for anyway.

However, this time, I heard familiar footsteps following me from behind.

Taptap, taptap.

I deliberately slowed down my pace, and I could hear the sound of someone stopping behind me.

When I started walking again, the footsteps followed once more.

“What? Why are you following me?”

It was Lee Jian, as expected.

“I wanted to sit with you. People usually sit with their close friends for this kind of thing.”

I naturally glanced down at her hands. As expected, there were no art supplies in sight.

“Where’s your supplies?”

“Um… my brushes decided they wanted to explore a more diverse world and left.”

“Your brushes? On their own? With legs?”

Seeing her glance away slightly, I sighed.

“So are you asking to borrow something?”

“Why not you? Aren’t there other people?”

“You always carry extras of this stuff, right?”

There was nothing I could do about that.

It was too troublesome to borrow from others, so it was better to just carry more.

“Here.”

I took out a brush and handed it to her.

“Hehe. Thanks. I knew I could count on you.”

Patpat. The familiar sensation of her tapping my shoulder.

In the end, I ended up sitting at the same table with her.

Not long after, Yoon Jihoo also naturally approached.

“Can I sit here too?”

“Of course you can. Why even ask? Just sit.”

Lee Jian said to Yoon Jihoo.

“I thought it felt like I shouldn’t intrude.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Exactly.”

We tilted our heads, then Yoon Jihoo burst into laughter.

“Why is he like that?”

“He’s always been a little strange.”

That’s how the three of us came to sit at the same table.

During the class, Lee Jian and Yoon Jihoo naturally started chatting.

“Ah, this color combination is so difficult. What should I do?”

“Just go with your instincts.”

“That’s even harder!”

While they chatted noisily beside me, I quietly put down my brush.

At that moment, my wrist was grabbed.

“Where are you going?”

It was Lee Jian.

Even though I thought she was chatting with Yoon Jihoo, how did she know?

It was strange. Being next to Lee Jian made me feel like an ordinary person.

The faint presence that made me feel like a ghost, the role of being just an observer, all seemed unimportant.

She made me feel as if I had always belonged here.

“…I’m just going to get some materials.”

“And why are you taking the painting you were working on?”

“Accident.”

“Tsk tsk, stay focused.”

“But you’re the one who forgot your supplies.”

“Point taken.”

In the end, I went to get the materials, leaving the painting I had been holding.

By now, she should have noticed.

The opportunity I created for her and Yoon Jihoo to be alone.

But Lee Jian seemed oblivious to my intentions.

After roughly gathering what I needed, I returned to my original seat.

Lee Jian and Yoon Jihoo sitting together, chatting and laughing.

They seemed to go well together and created an atmosphere difficult to break into.

“Are you two really not dating?”

“They do match well.”

I unconsciously nodded at the comments I heard around me.

‘What do you mean by difficult to break into?’

The words Yoon Jihoo had spoken sounded like deception.

For a moment, I just stood there watching them.

Even with no fixed viewpoint and no system messages appearing,

I couldn’t move.

It felt like small fragments were falling off my heart.

So I just stood there and watched silently.

Though I stayed there for quite a while, no one seemed to notice me.

The people passing by, the classroom hum with conversations.

I felt like an island drifting alone.

“Hey, what are you doing?”

I snapped out of it at the gentle push against my forehead.

“Eh? Eh?!”

“Were you napping? This is the first time I’ve seen someone sleep standing up.”

Lee Jian looked at me with curiosity.

She tilted her head backward, observing me closely with her chin propped up.

Her enigmatic eyes, a mix of pink and purple hues, focused on me.

They were the first eyes I ever locked gazes with.

I had never gazed so closely and for so long at someone’s eyes before.

And within those eyes, I was reflected.

Ripple-like, swaying, yet clear in part.

“Snap out of it. I’m going to get the night glow pastel—just need this and my piece will be complete.”

She said with a giggle.

“You still have a long way to go. Work hard.”

Puck, puck. She lightly tapped my shoulder and left to fetch the materials.

A faint ripple spread from where she had tapped my shoulder, like the ink spreading across the paper, a quietly diffusing color.

A drop of inexplicable emotion fell into my heart.

I quietly returned to my seat.

“Are you really not telling this to anyone else?”

Yoon Jihoo broke the silence while diligently working on his painting, lowering his voice.

“Trust me a little. Anyway, the only people I talk to are you and Lee Jian.”

“The one I should least tell is exactly that person. He’d laugh his head off.”

‘That’s not the issue.’

Had I not noticed his childhood friend’s emotions despite knowing him for so long?

“I won’t tell. Even if you ask me to, these lips won’t say it. Not even if you threaten me.”

I didn’t have the courage to see Lee Jian’s face when I said that.

And I wasn’t sure if the system would allow such an interference.

“Huh? Why go so far….”

He quietly turned his head.

At the edges of his gaze, Lee Jian was visible.

She was chatting with someone at the materials table.

“Uh? You wanted this too?”

“No, I can use something else.”

“Really? Thank you!”

That’s how the materials left her hands.

She picked out a different one and returned.

“Did you bring the night glow pastel? Isn’t that star powder?”

“It’s fine. It doesn’t matter what I use, because a true artist doesn’t blame the tools.”

She casually sat down and continued her painting.

After the works were completed, the art teacher started to evaluate each table.

“Lee Jian, your color combination is good, but the finishing is slightly lacking.”

“A little, right?”

Lee Jian said as if she had already known it.

“This part, right? It would have been better if you used materials that could add deeper layers here. Something like the night glow pastel should have been ideal.”

It was exactly the material Lee Jian had given up.

I turned to look at her.

Lee Jian was smiling as if it wasn’t a big deal.

But, I could feel it.

She was upset.

She had always been like that.

Not conceding out of will, but merely naturally.

It was as if conceding had become her habit.

I said nothing.

But, it bothered me. Just… a little.

*

The cafeteria was, as always, bustling with students. I picked up a plate full of food and naturally looked for a seat.

And as always, the three of us.

We sat together at the same table without even needing words.

When did this start?

I tried to recall, but nothing specific came to mind.

It just somehow evolved this way.

“Ah, I’m hungry!”

Lee Jian was the first to pick up her utensils.

Yoon Jihoo also silently began to eat.

I quietly picked up my utensils and stared at the dishes in front of me.

One of today’s dishes was something Lee Jian had once said she loved—steamed egg.

I instinctively lifted my spoon and scooped some onto her plate.

“Huh?”

A surprised gaze met mine.

“What? Why are you giving it to me?”

“I don’t like eggs.”

“You’re picky. You’re still a kid.”

She smiled, finding amusement in this new teasing material.

“Uzzuuzzuuzzu.”

She made an odd sound while patting my head.

“By the way, I didn’t use this spoon at all. I scooped it with a new one.”

Ignoring my words, Lee Jian replied with her mouth full of steamed egg.

“Oh, really?”

As if it didn’t matter much to her.

Yoon Jihoo watched the scene and smirked.

“You two seem pretty close. When did you get this friendly?”

“Am I acting shy? Kehekeh.”

Lee Jian said with her mouth full of rice, then tapped her chest as if she might choke.

“Swallow before you talk.”

I raised her chin, forcing her mouth closed.

“Alright, alright. Chew chew.”

She gulped the food down and spoke.

“What’s with the closeness? Can’t you see that I’m just pondering on how to tease you?”

Despite that, she continued to eat, casually holding her utensils in one hand while glaring at me with wide eyes.

“You do seem close.”

…

…

…

“I’m leaving first.”

“Already?”

“I’m done.”

As I tried to get up, Lee Jian put down her plate and looked up at me.

“Wait for me and we can go together.”

“Nah, it’s annoying.”

“Hey!”

As she protested, I casually waved and left my seat.

I could see Lee Jian hurriedly eat. She even tapped her chest as if she might choke again.

“Hey, eat slower!”

“I don’t want to lose.”

“Are you still in elementary school? Having eating competitions.”

I could hear the conversation between Lee Jian and Yoon Jihoo as I left.

As I stepped out of the cafeteria, I headed towards the vending machine nearby.

I inserted some coins into the slot.

Click.

The drink fell down from the vending machine.

I picked it up and, while passing by the cafeteria again, casually extended my hand.

I placed the drink next to Lee Jian’s plate, near her utensils, and then moved on.

“What’s this?”

“One for one.”

It was that barley drink.

Yoon Jihoo’s gaze landed on my hand.

“You didn’t get one for me. You said it’s one for one from the vending machine.”

“…From the vending machine.”

Yoon Jihoo looked at me as if I were ridiculous.

“Cheap guy.”

After saying that, I quietly left, leaving Yoon Jihoo and Lee Jian alone.

Who exactly is being cheap? Isn’t the real cheapskate someone else?

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