My Unrequited Love Is an Absolute Secret - Chapter 16

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

Chapter 16

I realized belatedly how reckless my question had been.
No matter how close two people were, it was the kind of inquiry that could cross a line.
And to compare Jessie with Aemerus, of all people?
Aemerus was an active professional athlete.
‘Have I lost my mind, Harry?’
Jessie laughed at me as I stammered in embarrassment.
He had no idea that I’d unconsciously compared him to Aemerus.
“I don’t train as much as I used to, so my muscles have atrophied. The Agency also prefers a leaner physique.”
“I see…”
“Why? Don’t you like this body?”
“No. I was just worried about you.”
I shook my head.
In the first place, I had no right to evaluate Jessie like this, critiquing one aspect after another.
Yet Jessie stared at me with narrowed eyes.
“So you really don’t like it.”
“What?”
“Otherwise, there’s no way you’d go to a Hockey Team match. I alone wouldn’t satisfy you.”
“That’s not—Aemerus was the one who—”
“Ah, so Aemerus is your type?”
“Are you going to keep teasing me?”
My face flushed as I struck his forearm.
Yet he found it so amusing that he clutched his stomach, laughing outright.
“While we’re on the subject, tell me about that night. How was your date with Aemerus?”
“It wasn’t a date, and you know that better than anyone.”
And it was his fault, wasn’t it?
Come to think of it, Jessie was the one who sent Aemerus.
I glared at him with all my might.
Of course, he brushed it off without concern as usual.
“Which Country Music Club did Aemerus take you to? I’ve never seen it before.”
“It’s a place his uncle runs. The two of them look so alike. Especially their hair.”
As I recalled Aemerus and Ben standing side by side with their striking resemblance, a faint smile bloomed on my lips.
Jessie’s gaze lingered on my smile for a moment.
“They both have black, curly hair. Does Aemerus’s father have the same? Have you met him?”
When Aemerus introduced me to Ben, I’d thought to myself that I could recognize Aemerus’s father even if I passed him on the street.
I was asking to confirm whether my observation was correct, but for some reason, the amusement drained from Jessie’s expression.
“Mr. Huntington. Of course I’ve met him.”
Had something unfortunate happened between Aemerus and his father?
But what could possibly cause a conflict between a friend’s father and someone like Jessie?
Unlike other rough boys, Jessie wasn’t the type to cause trouble.
If anything, he was a model student beloved by all the teachers. That’s how he managed early graduation.
Without realizing it, I found myself staring anxiously at Jessie’s lips.
‘I want to believe Mr. Huntington isn’t a bad person.’
I’ve come to understand that Aemerus is actually a decent guy.
But if Mr. Huntington had treated Jessie harshly, I couldn’t remain friends with Aemerus any longer.
That was my definition of friendship and loyalty.
“You were right—he had the same dark, curly hair as Aemerus. And he kindly offered to sponsor me financially. I suppose Aemerus must have told him about my situation.”
“…Is that so?”
My honest thought was, ‘That’s all?’
But on the other hand, I understood perfectly why Jessie felt uncomfortable around Mr. Huntington.
Jessie was an incredibly proud man.
Until his father’s cancer diagnosis, he had lived a perfectly middle-class life in Brooklyn Heights, with its sturdy brown brick buildings.
Harmonious parents, a wallet that had never shown its bottom, and the honor of being captain of the school’s Hockey Team.
But overnight, he had become someone who needed to rely on another person’s pity and sympathy…
‘At least Mr. Huntington isn’t a bad person—I’m truly relieved about that.’
He had simply wanted to help his son’s friend.
At that realization, I felt genuinely reassured.
Though I didn’t understand why I felt so relieved.
“I decided then. I had to earn money. A lot of it.”
“Jessie…”
Sensing the somber mood, Jessie smiled wryly and continued.
“I can’t spend my whole life as a model, can I? I need to earn as much as I can while this face still has value.”
“What about trying acting? Plenty of models have become successful actors.”
“Ha, I don’t know.”
Jessie’s response was somewhat skeptical.
It seemed he hadn’t become a model out of desire, but rather out of necessity—he needed money immediately.
“I have no lingering attachments to the entertainment industry. Once I’ve saved enough to buy back the house we used to live in, I’m quitting.”
“I see…”
“By then, my father should be doing better too. We’ll go on a trip together. We were supposed to go on a high school graduation trip, but you couldn’t because of me.”
“A trip?”
“Yeah. And after we get back from the trip, we’ll sell chapsae bread together at your parents’ Restaurant.”
“What kind of plan is that?”
Even as I scoffed at the absurdity, I felt genuinely happy inside.
The fact that I was included in the future he dreamed of was incredibly sweet.
Jessie glanced at me and lamented playfully.
“Ah, but by then you won’t even look at me. You’ll be in college, surrounded by guys who are far more handsome and intelligent than me.”
I stared at him as if he had just claimed the earth was flat.
“Do I really need to hear it straight from your mouth that there’s no man more handsome than you?”
For a moment, Aemerus’s face flashed across my mind, but I pushed it away.
Right now, comforting Jessie was the priority.
There was no need to bring up Aemerus’s name.
And my judgment proved correct.
“Exactly.”
I could tell by the way Jessie chewed over my words and laughed vacantly.
“You still plan to go see the Hockey Team game on Friday, right? Saying there’s no man more handsome than me in the world.”
As the conversation circled back to the Hockey Team game yet again, I felt my patience wearing thin.
‘Why did I have to bring up the Boy Aquarium in the first place…’
I shouldn’t have mentioned it at all.
I was closing my eyes in regret when—
“You won’t even say you’re not going, not even as a joke.”
Jessie’s voice carried a note of hurt as he poked my cheek.
“I already promised Aemerus. I can’t just cancel now.”
“…I understand.”
“You’re not mad, are you?”
Ugh, I hated how I was groveling before Jessie like this.
But what could I do? The one who loves more is always the weaker one.
“How could I ever be mad at you?”
Especially when Jessie was being so tender.
I had no choice but to be swept along by him.
“Looks like the sun’s about to set.”
“Should we start packing up?”
“Yeah.”
Central Park was wonderful in every way, except for one thing.
Once night fell, the safety wasn’t guaranteed, so we couldn’t roam freely.
We hurriedly packed away the bento boxes and picnic blanket without even time to savor the sunset.
“It feels like a waste to head straight home. Want to grab some coffee?”
“Sure. Let’s hit the drive-through.”
When you order from a drive-through, you don’t have to pay extra tips to the employees.
Of course, there are cases where tips are requested, but that’s the general rule.
“Liri, I can easily buy you coffee. I’m making money now, remember?”
Jessie spoke with his brow furrowed.
He’d clearly figured out why I suggested the drive-through.
“I know you’re making money. I just don’t feel like walking. I think I wore my clothes too thin today.”
I laughed, pointing to the cardigan I was wearing.
At first glance, the weave was loose enough that it clearly wouldn’t block the wind properly.
Jessie stared at the cardigan for a moment, then let out a small sigh.
He would have gladly given me his jacket, but unfortunately, he’d only worn a single sweatshirt today, making it impossible.
“Why are you wearing such thin clothes?”
“Tell me about it.”
“Let’s get to the car quickly.”
Jessie, quickening his pace, suddenly grasped my right hand.
“…!”
At the sudden contact, my hair stood on end and a tingling current coursed through my entire body.
“W-why my hand?”
When I asked in startled surprise, he shrugged and smiled.
“You said you were cold.”
“Huh?”
“Isn’t it less cold this way?”
“Um….”
He was right. I was no longer cold.
The problem was that I couldn’t feel anything else either.
All I could sense was the warm touch of our intertwined hands and the frantic pounding of my own heart.
‘What do I do? I feel like I’m going to be exposed.’
Anxious that he might feel my racing heartbeat, I couldn’t bring myself to lift my head.
I was truly grateful that dusk was settling in.
I could blame my flushed face entirely on the sunset.
‘I like Jessie.’
This moment, walking hand in hand with him, filled me with such happiness.
Yet it was a fragile happiness, like a soap bubble that would shatter the instant he discovered my feelings.
So Harry swallowed an unspoken confession that could never leave her lips.
‘This is enough. I won’t ask for anything more.’
Having barely composed myself, I offered Jessie a smile as if nothing had happened.

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