A Summer With Bitter Rivals - Chapter 20

Chapter 20: A Secret

Seeing his face, Emeline was so surprised that she couldn’t react.

When she just stood there, frozen, his smile faded a bit as he asked again, looking slightly embarrassed.

“Are you not going to let me in?”

He spoke in a rather sullen voice, his eyebrows drooping as he looked at her. His innocent green eyes lost their sparkle, making him look pitiful.

Despite never having been swayed by sympathy, seeing him like this strangely reminded her of a forlorn puppy waiting for its owner in the rain.

After a moment of bewilderment, Emeline unconsciously stepped aside. Zenon’s face brightened instantly, and he quickly slipped into the study room, closing the door behind him.

Even though she had moved aside for him, Emeline was flustered. She tried to say something sharp, but her voice came out awkwardly.

“I never said you could come in.”

“You were about to let me in anyway.”

“…No, I wasn’t.”

“Yes, you were. Emeline Delzeier, you’re not as cold as you think you are.”

Zenon smiled as he made himself comfortable in her space once again. Emeline, not sure if his words were a compliment or an insult, was left speechless and just stared at him.

“Oh.”

Suddenly, his well-shaped eyebrows furrowed. Zenon touched his lips, and from the wound that usually curved into a smile, blood began to seep.

His smile vanished completely as he touched the area around the wound and said, “I brought some medicine because it looked like it might get worse, but there wasn’t a suitable place to apply it, so this was the only place I could think of.”

Emeline was dumbfounded by his words. “There are the infirmary and empty classrooms, so why come here?”

“I don’t know. This place feels more comfortable.”

“You’re really saying that…”

“Or maybe it’s because you’re here?”

Emeline stared at him in shock. Zenon tried to smile cheerfully again but winced in pain.

“Sorry, but please don’t make me laugh. It really hurts.”

“Stop talking nonsense and just put on the medicine and leave,” Emeline spoke as if she were doing him a favor and then walked past him to return to her study seat.

Zenon followed and sat across from her. Emeline looked at him curiously.

‘Of all the empty seats, why sit there?’

The desk was a six-seater. Emeline was sitting in the center seat on the left, and across from her were three empty seats. He could have easily sat somewhere that wasn’t directly in front of her.

Emeline shot him an annoyed look, but Zenon ignored it, focusing on applying the ointment to his wound.

Then Zenon sighed and muttered to himself, “I should’ve brought a mirror.”

Unable to see clearly where he was applying the ointment, he seemed frustrated, furrowing his handsome brows. Despite her efforts to ignore him, his constant sighs grated on her nerves.

“Ugh…”

Emeline couldn’t take it anymore and put her pen down with a snap.

“Give it here.”

“Huh?”

“The ointment, give it to me. I’ll help you, so hurry up and finish and get out.”

“Really?”

“If you don’t want my help, then forget it.”

“No, I’d appreciate it,” Zenon answered cheerfully, immediately standing and moving to sit next to Emeline. His eagerness was like that of a puppy fetching a ball.

Emeline, who had only intended to reach across the table, was taken aback.

Zenon turned his chair to face her and sat quietly, watching her intently. His clear green eyes gazed at her like a pleasant breeze.

Feeling the pressure, Emeline picked up the ointment he had brought. With no tools in sight, she squeezed a small amount of ointment onto her fingertip.

As she turned back to him, their gazes met, each holding a different warmth.

Perhaps it was the heat, but Emeline felt her chest tighten a bit.

She calmly moved her hand toward the wound near his eye and said, “Close your eyes.”

“Got it.”

He obediently closed his eyes. His thick golden eyelashes lowered gently.

Even with his eyes closed, his handsome face was striking, but without his playful gaze, he appeared deeper and more serious.

Her fingertip, reaching out carefully, touched the scabbed wound beneath his eye. Zenon winced slightly, seemingly in pain.

The cool ointment spread over the scab, yet it felt as though heat was being generated from the friction.

Emeline wasn’t sure whose body temperature was higher, but her fingertips felt especially warm.

Beyond the tightly closed window, the distant cicadas buzzed like white noise.

“Emeline, aren’t you curious?”

Just then, Zenon’s voice broke the strange silence. His eyes were still closed, as if he were a painting.

Emeline had just finished applying the ointment to the wounds on his cheek and under his eye, and she withdrew her hand.

“Curious about what?”

When she asked, Zenon opened his eyes. His eyelashes lifted slowly, revealing his deep green eyes, like a lingering memory.

“Why I got hurt.”

“…Not really.”

“Most people would be curious.”

“Only people who are fooled by your attitude.”

Emeline bluntly pointed out his sly and shameless demeanor, but Zenon merely chuckled.

“What if I said it was related to you?”

At his words, Emeline, who was about to squeeze more ointment, paused and looked at him. Their eyes met briefly, and Zenon’s expression grew more serious.

Yet, with a hint of a smile still around his eyes, he spoke, “I think I know your secret.”

“…My secret?”

“Yes.”

“If you’re just going to talk nonsense—”

“You’re hiding the fact that you’re studying, right?”

“What?”

Emeline’s expression hardened instantly.

Zenon continued without giving her time to react. “You avoided going to the infirmary last time, you push yourself to study late into the night, and even in urgent situations, you don’t ask for help and try to handle everything alone…”

And those fearful eyes that had pleaded with him not to tell anyone.

Zenon, now serious, added with a thoughtful expression, “It doesn’t seem like you’re just trying to avoid embarrassment.”

“……”

“Am I wrong?”

“…Stop talking nonsense. It’s all just your speculation,” Emeline answered with a cold voice, her brow furrowed.

It was all just conjecture based on fragments of evidence. Even so, Emeline felt a deep unease, as though her secret had been completely exposed.

She never imagined that he would figure out something no one else knew. Irritated, she put down the ointment and reached for Zenon.

She tried to act indifferent, as if his words were truly baseless nonsense. Emeline’s hand moved toward his lips.

His lips, which had been smiling so much earlier, were now cracked, with blood seeping from the barely healed wound. The already reddish lips looked even redder with the pooled blood.

Just as she was about to rub the ointment on his wounded lips, Zenon grabbed her hand.

Startled by his strong grip, Emeline looked up at him.

Zenon, having stopped her, met her gaze for a moment before lowering her hand, saying, “Should I tell you my secret too? To be fair.”

“……”

“My father did this to me,” Zenon spoke as naturally as if he were breathing, and Emeline was stunned.

His hand, still holding hers, felt hot. Keeping his eyes on hers, Zenon spoke again, “He hit me for getting close to you… said I was messing around again. There are quite a few people at school who get paid by my father to keep an eye on me.”

“That’s… the reason?”

“You must be curious, right? Why I acted friendly toward you.”

“……”

“It’s because my father doesn’t like you. That’s why I approached you.”

Emeline was about to ask how that could possibly be a reason but then closed her mouth.

He had a notorious reputation for his scandalous behavior, and despite being well aware of the countless rumors about him, Zenon Trancium had no intention of correcting them.

Though mischievous, Zenon Trancium was not arrogant. He often skipped school, giving him a delinquent image, yet he was surprisingly serious underneath.

People often criticized him for tarnishing the family name.

Emeline suddenly thought that Zenon Trancium was rebelling. A rebellion that was different from hers, yet somehow similar.

Noticing that she had realized something, Zenon pulled his lips into a smile. His slightly blood-stained lips were vividly colored, and his sharp eyes shone brightly as he looked at her.

With a gentle voice, he spoke while smiling, “We refuse to follow the path others set for us. In that way, we’re quite alike, aren’t we?”