I was walking to the university, and Sana’s message managed to slow me down a little, just enough to miss the green light at the crosswalk. I sighed, shook my head, and decided to reply while waiting for the red light to turn green again.

I quickly typed my reply, and by then, I had already crossed the street. The entrance to the university was just a few steps away, but before I could get inside, I managed to bump into him, causing me to fall to the ground, while the hot coffee in his hand spilled, burning my thigh.

He was everywhere. On the train, at home when I was trying to sleep, in my dreams, and now here. He was making me so nervous.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t see you!” He panicked, throwing the cup aside and rummaging through his bag for tissues to blot the hot liquid.

“It’s okay, I wasn’t paying attention either,” I laughed through the pain as I noticed his hand holding a bunch of tissues, dabbing at the spill on my pants.

“I think it’s best we go to the nurse. The coffee wasn’t that hot, but it’s still important to treat the burn, or you’ll get a scar!” he said quickly, lifting me from the ground and wrapping my arm around his shoulder as we made our way toward the nurse’s office.  

By the time I pulled my phone out of my pocket with my free hand, I was already sitting on the bed in the nurse’s office.

I quickly replied and set the phone aside, taking a deep breath. The guy who accompanied me was pacing the room, looking for something in particular.

“The nurse doesn’t come in until 10, so I’ll have to apply the cream and bandage you. I don’t want it to blister because it will hurt even more,” he said, locking the door behind him and pulling a chair closer to the bed, sitting down in front of me.

“Take off your pants. Let me see,” he whispered. For a moment, I froze. If I’m being honest, sometimes that happens to me. My existence forgets that I exist, and my brain stops functioning.

“Hey, are you okay? I know it’s awkward, but we have to take care of the burn,” he waved his hand in front of my face, bringing me back to reality. I blinked a few times, then stood up, unbuckled my belt, and slid my pants down to my knees, sitting back down.

“Sorry, it’s just… the pain,” I mumbled, looking down at my thigh, which was slightly red. But that wasn’t what shocked me. The fact that I had a scar on my thigh left me stunned. I had never noticed it before.

Usually, I don’t pay attention to my appearance. After the accident, I was left with many scars that I don’t want to look at, so I just pretend they’re not there. This wasn’t a scar from the accident, though, as it clearly looked like a burn.

I placed my hand over it, trying to make sense of the situation, but I couldn’t.

“Looks like I’m not the first one to spill something on you!” the guy in front of me commented, making me laugh.

“To be honest, I didn’t even know I had it,” I smiled awkwardly, but he seemed to take my response in stride.

He grabbed the tube of ointment, squeezed a small amount onto his finger, and began to gently massage it onto the red area.

“It’ll heal quickly, don’t worry. I’ll be more careful from now on. I’ll even take responsibility and look after the burn until it’s completely healed!”

“It’s okay, really. Thanks anyway,” I laughed, and as soon as the cream absorbed into my skin, I stood up and pulled up my pants, fastening the belt securely.

“By the way, my name’s Keith,” I looked at the man after making sure I looked decent, but he didn’t reply immediately.

There was a moment of silence as he held his gaze on me.

“Jaesung. My name is Jaesung Lee,” he said slowly but uncertainly, as he closed the tube of cream and set it aside.

For some reason, the name didn’t sit right with me. It just didn’t seem to suit him. But who was I to judge his parents?

“It doesn’t suit you,” I commented, and he laughed.

“I agree. That’s why it took me a while to respond. I figured you’d find it as unfitting as everyone else does,” he said, and I shook my head.

“Don’t worry about what others think. Thanks for taking care of me, Jaesung,” I smiled, grabbing my phone and unlocking the door.

"I'll see you around” he said, and just before leaving, I nodded my head.

I leaned against the wooden door, staring at one spot for a moment. Why did it feel like he was flirting with me? He hadn’t said anything, and yet… it felt strange. You know how they say there’s this phenomenon where your brain might forget, but your body never does? His touch didn’t scare me, didn’t make me uncomfortable; on the contrary, it felt familiar. I was used to the warmth that radiated from him.

I glanced at my watch, and the time snapped me out of this daze. I quickly ran toward the lecture room. Luckily, I made it just 5 minutes after the lecture had started. As I entered, I didn’t say a word… because… if you read chapter one and two, you’d understand what kind of person this lecturer, pretending to be a human, was. I found my seat next to Sana, who had kindly saved it for me with her handbag.

“Where were you?” she asked, and I pointed to the coffee stain on my pants.

“I ran into—” I paused for a moment, not wanting to mention him. Somehow, I just wanted to keep that moment to myself, a part of my book that no one else would know about.

“I ran into a pole on my way here, too busy reading your messages. Luckily, I quickly found my way to the nurse’s office to take care of it. It’s not serious, just a slight burn,” I smiled, and Sana giggled.

“I’m sorry I had to share such top-secret information with you, Mr. Keith. I know your curiosity knows no bounds, but please be more careful next time,” she joked, and I nodded with a smile, turning my attention to the textbooks on the desk.

“Are you worried?” I felt her gentle hand on my shoulder.

“A little. I don’t know what to expect.”

“It’ll be fine. Just focus on the lecture for now. After that, we’ll go to the park and open it together.” She stroked my back, filling me with confidence.

The lecture soon ended, and before I knew it, so had all the others. Unfortunately, we left the university building without me seeing him again.