Episode 58
When Eugene saw me standing up from my seat, he opened his wrinkles in his forehead and stared at me as if he was surprised.
Then he snorted and lowered his head down.
Even so, I was embarrassed because he had never laughed at me so openly as this time, so I was excited, pointed it out, and screamed.
âHey, what are you doing? I said Iâd give you the best I can, but is that funny? Huh?â
âNo, I didnât laugh at you.â
But Eugeneâs lips were still raised.
âThen what? Why are you snorting?â
âNo, I mean, I didnât laugh at you.â
Eugene waved and looked up at me with his two blue eyes.
âYou were worried about a lot of people coming until now, but Iâm grateful for saying that in front of me.â
At that moment, Iâm going to say something. But, I shut my mouth again.
Grateful?
That guy, to me?
âHey, but itâs already eleven oâclock. We have to practice tomorrow, so shouldnât we go now?â
Eugene said, taking his watch out of his pocket.
âHuh? Uh yeahâ¦.â
âLetâs clear the chairs and go. You have to take care of your physical strength.â
With no way of responding to the word âgratefulâ, which appeared unexpectedly, Eugene finished preparing to go out with the chair tidy.
When I left, the moon was floating and the surroundings were quiet.
It felt as if I and Eugene were the only living creatures in that vast space.
âBut what are you going to do with your outfit? Have you decided anything?â
When I asked Eugene, who walked silently, he looked back at me and replied.
âI havenât thought about it yet. Why?â
âBecause weâre going to be on stage. You shouldnât wear things that donât look good on you.â
âWellâ¦â¦I donât think you or I will end up wearing something so weird, but letâs talk about it before the show.â
As he said so, Eugene lowered his head and began to walk forward.
âDo you have something in mind?â
ââ¦â¦ Iâm fine these days.â
âReally? If you hide it on purpose or something, I wonât let it go.â
Even though half of his face looked dark because it was night, I could tell at a glance that he was frowning.
âNo. You saw it. I used the blue flame magic often during practice. But Iâve been fine these days.â
âItâs when it appears, but Iâm asking in case thereâs another problem.â
In the end, I stopped walking and talked to Eugene.
âYouâre weird today.â
Then he also stopped and answered back.
âWhat?â
âAnd the jacket, too, you, somehow veryâ¦â¦ attentive.â
âHa, does that mean I donât usually?â
âWell, youâre not the type to hear that youâre being attentive, are you?â
âYou reallyâ¦..â
Eugene was furious when he heard me, but thatâs where it was over. I knew. Now heâs no longer seriously picking a fight with me.
âWell, thanks for your attention. In many ways.â
âDonât slip away by saying so.â
Thatâs how Eugene glared at me.
âThe day your eyes got weird, they looked pretty serious. Thereâs nothing good about that happening many times. Donât hold it to yourself and tell someone else.â
There was no irritation in Eugeneâs voice bringing up the words.
After all, it seemed like he was genuinely worried.
ââ¦okay.â
âYes. Itâs alright if you knew.â
And for another time there was silence.
All I could hear was the sound of me and Eugeneâs footsteps, and the sound of the wind brushing against the leaves.
âHey, Spade.â
âYeah.â
âThese daysâ¦â¦you told me that I was more careful than usual.â
âUh. I felt that way. Why?â
To my question, Eugene turned his head and looked down at me, and asked in a low voice.
âYou, do you think you know why I do this?â
At the very moment, his blue eyes glistened like stars on the day.
I felt that my eyes were blue at the time of the hour, so I felt like I was going to get sucked into it for a while.
His bright blue eyes were like the blue sapphire and like the eyes of a wolf crying in the snow.
Come to think of it now, I think it was then that I felt strange.
At that time, I took his words without a hitch.
âWell, I donât know, because weâre a little less fighting than in the old days?â
Eugene shook his head slightly at my words.
âThatâs not wrong, but itâs not the perfect answer.â
âIs that an answer?â
âYeah.â
The remark made me think more and then open my mouth.
âBecause itâs a performance soon, do you have to take care ofâ¦..â
âNo.â
âBecause youâre in a good mood today?â
âI wasnât in a bad mood, but no.â
After agonizing over the answer, I soon turned my head towards Eugene.
This enigmatic strange question was also a problem, but it made me wonder if it was much more original than that.
âBut why are you asking me that?â
In my words, Eugene looked at me with his eyes squinted.
To be honest, I couldnât tell what kind of emotion the expression represented in his face.
â⦠you really donât know?â
âYeah.â
Eugene turned his head to my monotonous answer.
And soon a voice was heard from the silver head, which seemed to be softly shining in white under the moonlight.
âOkay, I understand.â
The more I heard it, the vaguer it was.
âWhat, why did you ask?â
âYou donât have to know.â
âWhatâs that? Tell me.â
But Eugene remained tight-lipped and did not answer.
âYouâre a bad-tempered bastard.â¦â¦.â
I grumbled my arms inside, but Eugene still didnât answer.
In the meantime, I arrived at the dormitory.
Today, I felt as if I walked slower than usual and had more conversations with Eugene than before.
âGood night, see you tomorrow.â
It was the moment when he was about to make a brief greeting and enter the womenâs dormitory, which was not unusual.
We always would greet each other around here, and return to each otherâs dorms without any further conversation.
But that day was a little different.
âWait, Spade.â
Suddenly, at the voice calling me back from behind, I looked back casually.
Standing at the foot of the stairs, Eugene was calling me, slightly wide-eyed, glowing blue.
âWhy?â
âJust one thing before I go back, I want to talk to you.â
It was a big deal.
âIâve always been the one who never looked back after saying hello.â
âWhat is it?â
I turned around and asked him again, but he didnât open his mouth immediately.
He bit his lips tightly for a while, and only after a deep breath, he opened his mouth.
âDo you have a partner for the ball?â
He was probably going to ask if I would dance at the ball right after the performance.
It would have been difficult to skip the ball if there was anyone who asked me to dance with him even if I wanted to rest a little after the performance.
âOh, thatâs why he wants to ask me what Iâd do.â
I donât know who you are, but thatâs great, applying for Eugeneâs partner.
âWell, heâs pretty good-looking. He would have been very popular if he had a good personality.â
As expected, his face was the best. If heâs been asked for a partner,
âWell, someone did come in, but in conclusion⦠Iâm not sure if Iâll accept it.â
It was right. Cassius has applied for a partner twice, but I havenât given him the answer that he can dance with me.
Not only am I not good at dancing, but I also wondered if I could dance properly after the performance, and I talked with Erica to watch the people dance together.
âI was supposed to hang out with Cassius after the dance, but Iâm not going to dance, so Iâm not sure I can say I accepted his partner request, right?â
âNot sure?â
âYeah.â
Eugene stood still, with his head down and fists in both hands.
âMaybe, if you donât partner with himâ¦.â
âHuh?â
It was a low whisper, but I could hear it.
âWhat if I donât donât partner with him?â
Why are you saying that all of a sudden?
When he frowned at the question passing through his head, Eugene suddenly raised his head and looked straight at me and said in a slightly cracked voice.
âWell, can you be my partner?â
âââââ