My Unrequited Love Is an Absolute Secret - Chapter 11

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 11

Harry had never backed away from competitions that offered prizes.
There was no reason to refuse when she could win something simply by singing or dancing for a few moments.
Especially since meeting a YouTuber who gave away gifts for solving surprise quizzes or participating in interviews had long been her dream.
Though such fortune had never come her way until now.
Jessie was similar in this regard, so the two of them would often participate together whenever small competitions were held at school or the Shopping Mall.
If Jessie had been here now, they would have enthusiastically joined forces without hesitation.
‘I wonder what Aemerus would think….’
From what I remembered, Aemerus didn’t particularly enjoy being the center of attention.
The only time he ever stood before the entire student body was during hockey matches, so it was reasonable to think that way.
‘Would it be okay to ask him to participate with me?’
I glanced sideways at him, observing him carefully.
Sensing my gaze, Aemerus tilted his chin and asked.
“Do you want to?”
The question sounded oddly phrased, but I didn’t mind.
Aemerus was the type who would flee the moment he heard a competition was starting. Yet I detected a glimmer of hope in him.
“Yeah. Is that okay?”
“No reason it wouldn’t be.”
His unexpectedly cool acceptance surprised not only me but Ben as well.
Ben’s expression suggested he hadn’t actually expected Aemerus to agree when he’d suggested participating.
“Great thinking, really great!”
He wouldn’t act this way even toward a child taking their first steps.
After Ben left, having finished his rather enthusiastic cheering.
I caught sight of Aemerus trying desperately to hide his flushed face with his hand, and I laughed quietly to myself.
“Are you really sure about this?”
“About what?”
My question received a somewhat curt reply.
But Aemerus wasn’t angry—he was simply embarrassed.
I understood that well enough, so I shrugged my shoulders.
“When I enter competitions like this, I absolutely have to come in first. Otherwise, I’ll be so frustrated I won’t be able to sleep tonight.”
Aemerus let out a small laugh as he listened to me.
“I know.”
“You know?”
Did he learn about my competitive spirit from Jessie?
I tilted my head in confusion for a moment, but then forgot about it.
What mattered now was whether I would win the competition or not.
“Anyway, since you’ve already agreed to participate, don’t back out—you have to really give it your all.”
“Yeah.”
Though Aemerus answered without hesitation, I couldn’t entirely shake my unease about him.
I hadn’t yet realized that what I should truly be worried about wasn’t him, but the prize hanging over this dubious competition.

***

As the atmosphere in the Country Music Club grew ripe with anticipation, the long-awaited competition finally began.
When the participants were called to take the stage, I moved up alongside Aemerus.
“We have many participants today! Starting from the far left, please introduce yourselves one by one.”
Ben, who was hosting and organizing the competition, conducted brief interviews with the participants.
In the meantime, I scanned my competitors from the corner of my eye.
Including us, there were seven couples in total.
‘We’re the youngest here.’
Whether it was due to the nature of the country music genre or not, Aemerus and I were the only teenagers in this place.
Whether that would work to our advantage or disadvantage remained to be seen.
‘We’ll just have to find out.’
Since I’d come this far, I wanted to leave with something tangible in hand.
I looked at Aemerus, steeling my resolve.
He stood with his hands casually clasped behind his back, gazing absently into space with an indifferent expression, but he felt my gaze and turned to look at me.
‘Let’s do well.’
When I conveyed it silently with my lips, he let out a soft laugh and gave a slight nod.
‘Can I really trust this guy?’
This was my first time competing in a contest with a man other than Jessie, so I couldn’t help but feel anxious.
Especially since I’d never seen Aemerus dance before.
‘It’ll work out somehow.’
Not every man in the world could be like Jessie.
So even if we didn’t win the competition today, I told myself not to be too discouraged.
Before I knew it, it was our turn for the interview.
Perhaps to ensure fairness in judging, Ben treated Aemerus as if he were meeting him for the first time today.
“Our next participants are a very adorable couple.”
At Ben’s introduction, I raised my hand to correct the record.
“I’m sorry, but we’re not a couple—we’re just friends.”
I hadn’t meant it as a joke, but for some reason, the audience burst into laughter.
Because of the country music genre, the club’s visitors tended to be older, and to their eyes, Aemerus and I, being teenagers, simply looked very young.
“Oh my, how cute.”
“My husband and I were like that once too.”
“My ex-girlfriend cheated on some guy who insisted they were just friends, and they broke up.”
Excuse me, sir, but that doesn’t seem like a story you should be laughing about while telling it.
I shook my head internally.
“Ask the boy what he thinks too!”
Ben didn’t let the mischievous question thrown his way slip past unnoticed.
“Let’s hear it then. Do you only think of the girl beside you as a friend?”
Harry was inwardly shocked by such a blunt question.
‘Grown adults, teasing someone younger than themselves!’
They called this a dance competition, but when exactly were they supposed to dance?
As Harry felt her soul departing in real time, Aemerus answered with perfect nonchalance.
“For now.”
The ripple effect of those two words was tremendous.
“So it could change later, right?”
Those who glimpsed the possibility of friendship blossoming into love instantly transformed into audience members of a dating show, pounding the table frantically.
“Confess like a real man!”
“The girl doesn’t seem entirely uninterested either?”
There were limits to how much people could twist words to suit their narrative.
Unable to bear it any longer, Harry jabbed Aemerus in the ribs with her elbow.
“Why don’t you clarify properly? People are getting the wrong idea.”
“You said you wanted to win today.”
“What does that have to do with—”
“Look.”
Aemerus gestured toward the audience with his chin.
Even those who had been standing apart, sipping their drinks as if uninterested in the competition, were now watching them with eyes full of intrigue.
‘Could the judging be based on audience approval?’
Her suspicion was correct.
“As always, the winner will be decided by your applause and cheers. How’s that—fair, right?”
After finishing his explanation, Ben gestured to a waiting staff member.
As if on cue, an upbeat country song began to play.
“Let’s see which couple the goddess of fortune smiles upon!”
The competition officially began.
Harry started by moving lightly to the rhythm, gauging Aemerus’s dancing ability.
He didn’t seem completely uncoordinated; he followed her movements quite well.
‘Maybe being good at sports helps.’
Fortunately, Aemerus was far from the worst dance partner she could have had.
As Harry confidently took the lead in dancing, the first couple was eliminated.
“Did you two come here to do the waltz? This isn’t that kind of place. Please step down.”
With Ben’s playful voice, the eliminated dancers descended from the stage.
The audience generously applauded the eliminated couple.
They would have to keep dancing until only the final two couples remained, which felt less like dancing and more like a test of endurance.
‘Will Aemerus be okay?’
This was probably his first dance competition, and she worried whether such a grueling trial was too harsh for a beginner.
“What?”
Sensing her gaze, Aemerus tilted his head and asked.
The loud music forced us to draw close to each other just to have a conversation.
“It’s nothing.”
Seeing Aemerus’s perfectly fine face, I realized I’d been worrying for no reason.
While I danced without a care in the world, the eliminations continued.
A couple eliminated for repeatedly performing the same movements.
A couple who got into a fight over tension between the pairs and were all escorted out together.
A couple who withdrew voluntarily as their stamina gave out.
In the end, only two couples remained.
“Now, for the finals!”
While the new music was being prepared, both couples caught their breath for a moment.
“We’re almost there, Aemerus.”
Aemerus laughed watching me burn with final determination.
Suddenly, I found myself thinking how pleasant his face looked as he wiped the sweat from his brow and smiled.
‘Have I lost my mind?’
I was startled and furrowed my brow.
This was some kind of ‘suspension bridge effect’.
Like how your heart races crossing a swaying bridge, but you mistake it for falling in love.
My heart was racing from dancing consecutively, but I was mistaking it for being because of Aemerus.
‘I like Jessie. Sure, I was angry with him today, but that doesn’t mean I’d fall for his friend.’
I pressed my fist firmly against my chest.
As if doing so would calm my racing heart.
“Are you okay?”
Aemerus thought I was struggling and expressed his concern for me.
“I’m fine. Let’s win this!”
When I showed my clenched fist, he shook his head as if to say there was nothing he could do about me.
Then the final competition song began to play.
“For the finale, we’ll keep it classic with Willie Nelson’s ‘On the Road Again’.”
The audience’s reaction was enthusiastic.
As a Korean, I wasn’t familiar with it, but it seemed to be a very famous song among Americans.
Seeing the confident faces of our opponents, who seemed to sense victory, my heart grew anxious.
The championship was within reach—I couldn’t fail now.
I urgently grabbed Aemerus.
“Aemerus, hold me.”
“What?”
“Lift me up!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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