After getting off the gondola, the two of them entered the restaurant and polished off kimchi stew, pork cutlet, a bulgogi rice bowl, and two hamburgers in no time.
When Seonwoo was with other students, he never felt comfortable taking his time to eat. He usually settled for a quick meal and made up the difference with a chocolate bar. But with Hyeonchae, he could finally relax and eat until he was full.
Hyeonchae also seemed to have worked up quite an appetite after hours of lessons, eating even more heartily than usual.
"I'll go return the trays. Wait here for a second."
"I'll do it. You were the one who carried everything over."
"You're still not used to walking in ski boots."
"...You're making fun of me."
After placing the trays in the return area, Seonwoo naturally headed toward the smoking area outside.
Then he heard a loud clattering behind him, rapidly drawing closer.
Feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, he turned around.
Sure enough, Hyeonchae had hurried after him and grabbed his arm.
"Let's go together."
"There are a lot of people smoking outside. Just wait inside. I'll only be a minute."
"But you need a light, Senior."
It was always like this.
His excuses were so flimsy and almost laughably transparent that refusing him wouldn't have seemed strange at all.
Would things have been different if Hyeonchae had been calculating enough to come up with believable lies?
A lighter was, as always, sitting in Seonwoo's pocket.
Even so, he nodded again.
"All right, then."
* * *
After warming themselves indoors, going back outside made their bodies feel light again, almost as though it were their first run of the day.
As expected, Hyeonchae picked up every new technique with ease.
"You're putting too much strength into your legs. Try lifting your inside leg just a little when you turn."
"Like this?"
"Yeah. Don't lift it too high—just enough for it to brush lightly. That's all you'll need to feel it. Then keep your skis parallel."
"I'll try."
"I'll demonstrate first, then follow me through the turns. We're practicing turning, so don't use the entire width of the slope. Keep your eyes looking farther ahead."
After explaining the corrections, Seonwoo set off first, skiing slowly to demonstrate the proper form.
About thirty meters down the slope, he gestured for Hyeonchae to try.
Hyeonchae didn't move immediately.
Knowing he was replaying the instructions in his head, Seonwoo simply waited.
A moment later, Hyeonchae began carving his way down.
Sure enough, he'd perfectly corrected the exact point Seonwoo had just mentioned.
A proud smile spread across Seonwoo's face.
Teaching Eun Hyeonchae was genuinely satisfying.
He listened well, absorbed everything he was taught, had excellent strength and body control, and looked fantastic in every stance.
Of course, there were still plenty of rough edges if you looked closely, but for someone who'd only been learning for a single day, he was incredible.
"His physical ability is seriously unfair..."
As Seonwoo watched Hyeonchae while mentally organizing the next things he wanted to correct, his eyes drifted uphill.
A skier was charging down at tremendous speed.
Seonwoo frowned.
The skier obviously had skill, but that kind of speed had no place on an easy-to-intermediate slope.
Hopefully nothing would happen.
Still, just in case the skier collided with Hyeonchae, Seonwoo tightened his grip on his poles, ready to rush over.
The skier passed Hyeonchae...
Shhhh—
The skier executed a perfect hockey stop right in front of him.
A massive spray of snow exploded into the air.
It was aimed squarely at Seonwoo.
People riding the chairlift overhead and snowboarders resting nearby all let out startled exclamations.
Instantly buried in snow, Seonwoo irritably shook his head.
There was so much snow it was obvious the skier had intentionally carried it in on his skis.
One hundred percent deliberate.
"What exactly are you doing... hyung?"
Looking up in annoyance, Seonwoo saw Doyoon lowering his goggles with a grin.
Letting out a helpless laugh, Seonwoo ran a hand through his snow-covered hair.
"So it was you. You scared me."
"Long time no see, Seonwoo."
"You too... Did you get home all right that day?"
"Isn't it a little late to ask that? You have my number."
Laughing awkwardly, Seonwoo changed the subject, nodding toward Doyoon's brightly patterned ski outfit.
"I didn't recognize you with different clothes on. I almost bought that brand myself, but figured it wouldn't suit me. It looks good on you, though. Been skiing here?"
"This place is too boring. I spotted you while I was riding the lift, so I came over. On a date?"
"Unfortunately, I'm teaching."
"Hmm. Didn't look like that from where I was standing."
Narrowing his eyes, Doyoon looked toward Hyeonchae skiing down the slope.
"Senior! Are you okay?"
Apparently startled, Hyeonchae's posture had completely fallen apart.
He stopped beside Seonwoo, immediately dropped his poles, grabbed Seonwoo's arm, and looked him over from head to toe.
"I thought he hit you. You're not hurt, are you?"
"No. It's just someone I know playing a prank."
"What kind of prank..."
His face visibly darkened as he glared at Doyoon.
Seonwoo caught his hand and gently lowered it, shaking his head.
"I kind of... did something wrong before."
"That's right. There wasn't any water around, so I had to settle for throwing snow."
Doyoon laughed as he played along, but Hyeonchae's expression didn't soften.
After studying Hyeonchae for a moment, Seonwoo turned back to Doyoon.
"As you can see, I'm in the middle of a lesson. Let's catch up another time. If our schedules line up, we should grab a meal."
"Sure. Buy me one at the hotel lounge. I'll get out of your way."
With a playful wink, Doyoon lowered his goggles again and leisurely skied downhill.
Seonwoo hadn't expected someone like Doyoon to simply let things slide...
Chuckling to himself, he turned back toward Hyeonchae.
The sharp look from a moment ago had vanished.
Instead, Hyeonchae looked gloomy.
"...That was the person you were with before, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. How did you know? Don't tell me you followed me from the bar that day?"
"...I didn't go inside."
Right.
No wonder Hyeonchae had contacted him at exactly that moment.
Only now did the whole sequence of events make sense.
Bending down, Seonwoo picked up Hyeonchae's poles.
"So you saw everything. I ditched him right in front of his face because I ran off after getting your call. Today's bucket of snow was payback."
His lips, even redder from the cold, twitched slightly before he looked up through eyelashes dampened by melting snow.
"...I'm sorry... but I don't regret it."
"Pfft... What kind of apology is that?"
Laughing in disbelief, Seonwoo brushed the snow from Hyeonchae's hair.
Then, hoping to lighten the mood, he looked downhill and pointed toward the advanced course branching off to the right.
"How about we try that one this time?"
Hyeonchae stared silently at the run.
Seeing the troubled look in his eyes, Seonwoo was just about to tell him he was joking—
"I'll go first this time."
The moment the short sentence left his mouth, Hyeonchae took off before Seonwoo could stop him.
"Wait, Hyeonchae!!"
Seonwoo hurried after him, shouting.
Whether he couldn't hear him or simply ignored him, Hyeonchae never slowed down.
Accelerating, Seonwoo overtook him and stopped farther downhill directly in his path, waving both arms frantically.
But the steeper gradient was nothing like the previous slope.
Unable to reduce his speed, Hyeonchae continued straight ahead until one ski caught on a mogul.
He tumbled forward and rolled down the slope.
"Eun Hyeonchae!!"
Startled, Seonwoo climbed back uphill without even removing his skis.
Fortunately, Hyeonchae didn't seem injured.
Still lying on the snow, he wriggled around for a moment before quickly sitting up and untangling his crossed skis.
Just as he started to stand, he looked around, apparently searching for one of his poles.
Seonwoo picked it up farther down the slope and climbed the rest of the way back up.
"Eun Hyeonchae, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine. Thank you..."
"How could you just take off like that?!"
Hyeonchae flinched at Seonwoo's shout.
He looked up at him silently.
His eyelashes trembled uneasily above blinking eyes, as though cautiously gauging Seonwoo's mood.
"I thought you were telling me to go."
"Haah... I didn't actually mean it...!"
Seonwoo rubbed his face with complicated emotions.
If anyone was at fault here...
It was him.
Now that he'd confirmed Hyeonchae wasn't hurt, the panic faded, replaced by guilt and regret.
"I was joking. It's your first day. Why would I send you onto an advanced course? ...I'm sorry."
He reached out and helped Hyeonchae to his feet.
Brushing the snow off him, Seonwoo grumbled despite feeling guilty.
"You're scared of everything, so how could you rush in without even thinking? What if you'd gotten hurt? Weren't you scared at all?"
"Because you told me to."
There wasn't a trace of accusation in his voice.
He simply stated it as though it were the most obvious fact in the world, as if no further explanation were necessary.
Faced with the blind devotion reflected in those eyes, Seonwoo found himself speechless.
His lips parted before he even realized he'd spoken.
"...What are you... Do you really do everything I tell you?"
Without the slightest hesitation, Eun Hyeonchae nodded.