Main Male Lead Disqualified

“Hey, Lee Jeong-hwan!”

Dong-hyuk waved his hand frantically in front of Jeong-hwan’s face. Only then did Jeong-hwan snap out of it and look at him.

“Class is about to start. Let’s go!”

“Ah, yeah.”

“What in the hell were you thinking about so hard that you zoned out?”

Dong-hyuk looked at him suspiciously.

“Nothing, just… useless thoughts.”

Jeong-hwan answered nonchalantly but his mind was actually in chaos.

‘Telling me to practice on him? And what did he mean by saying he’d teach me?’

Jeong-hwan frowned as Hanbin’s face popped into his head.

“…He couldn’t possibly mean it in a romantic way, right?”

What he was thinking slipped out of his mouth in a murmur, and Dong-hyuk, right next to him, heard it.

“What? Lee Jeong-hwan, are you dating someone?”

Jeong-hwan shoved Dong-hyuk, who lunged at him with shining eyes.He was already regretting the headache he’d just created for himself.

“No.”

“Then did someone confess to you?”

Jeong-hwan flinched at the word “confession.”

‘No way… was this his intention when he made that offer?’

Jeong-hwan smiled as a sudden thought crossed his mind.

‘God, what a typical delusion from someone who’s never dated before.’

Of course, Jeong-hwan had never dated anyone up to now, but it had always been by choice. He didn’t think of himself as one of those people typically labeled “forever single.”

“It could be, but probably not.”

“What kind of answer is that? If It’s yes, it’s yes or if it’s no, it’s no. And didn’t you say you’re not even interested in dating?!”

Dong-hyuk looked like he was dying of jealousy. Jeong-hwan tried to mess with him, shrugged, and said,

“Confessions happen even when I am not looking.”

Dong-hyuk twisted his face in exaggerated frustration.

“Oh wow, so you’re just not turning people down? Shouldn’t you, not give them false hope or something?”

It wasn’t like Jeong-hwan  had stolen the person Donghyuk had a crush on,

but Donghyuk still looked deeply upset.

“Do I look like the kind of person who’d lead someone on?”

“Well, no. Anyone who confesses to you probably has nerves of steel.”

As they reached the classroom for their next class, Dong-hyuk suddenly blocked the doorway and asked,

“So who is it?”

Jeong-hwan shoved his face away with his palm.

“What are you talking about?”

“Who’s the person who sort-of confessed to you?”

Even though his head had been pushed sideways, Dong-hyuk strained his neck to keep asking. His determination to find out was obvious.

“I told you, no one confessed to me.”

Jeong-hwan ducked under Dong-hyuk’s arm and entered the classroom. By the time Dong-hyuk tried to grab him again, Jeong-hwan was already seated.

“You’ve been acting suspicious lately. It makes me want to dig more.”

Dong-hyuk muttered as he sat beside him.

Sigh.

In the middle of class, Jeong-hwan let out a deep sigh and hung his head.

‘I talked a lot about handling it, and then did nothing.’

There were only ten minutes left of class, but Jeong-hwan’s head was filled with nothing but Hanbin.

‘From his point of view, I probably looked ridiculous.’

At first, Jeong-hwan had considered blurting out some cheesy line or move, just to try something. But he had no clue what to say or how to act.

‘Why do I keep getting so conscious of him?’

And the idea that Hanbin might be watching only made it more awkward.

‘I just need to fill up that 100% and quit.’

Jeong-hwan rested his head on the desk, making up his mind.

***

“You’re the one who said you wanted to learn, so I hope you’re ready.”

Hanbin’s face looked like he’d made up his mind and Jeong-hwan took a step back.

“How exactly are you planning to teach me?”

This was suspicious. Hanbin, who used to say he didn’t want to go home with him because it felt like being watched, was now waiting for him first.

“You should tell me that first.”

“Is it that important?”

“Yes.”

And then Hanbin brought him to his own house.

“Why do we have to do this at your house? That’s the most important part.”

“That is the whole point. If not at home, then where?”

Hanbin assumed Jeong-hwan was getting flustered now that it was actually happening.

“Stop stalling and just come in.”

Hanbin grabbed Jeong-hwan’s wrist and pulled him into the house.

‘He’s even bringing me into his room?’

Jeong-hwan was startled by how naturally Hanbin brought him into the room he’d told him never to enter before. Hanbin tugged his arm again as he hesitated at the threshold.

“I’m going to teach you properly today.”

Hanbin sat Jeong-hwan down on the bed. Jeong-hwan went along with it, but a strange, irreversible feeling crept over him.

“Close your eyes.”

“…Why would I do that?”

Jeong-hwan, no matter how much he thought about it, felt that this wasn’t right,

so he try to get up.

“I don’t think I’m okay with this.”

“All I said was close your eyes! “What is all the fuss about?”

Hanbin looked genuinely confused as he held Jeong-hwan back.

“…Am I not supposed to keep my eyes open?”

“Just trust me and close them. Just once.”

Jeong-hwan debated whether to shove Hanbin aside and leave but eventually gave in and sat back down.

‘Maybe I’m just overthinking this. And if he tries anything weird, I’m stronger anyway…’

Jeong-hwan realized he might be imagining things too wildly.

‘I mean, no one would use skinship to teach romance, right?’

Logically, that made sense. But still, he couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling. When he tried to slightly peek through his eyelashes, Hanbin shouted.

“Wait! Don’t open them yet!”

Jeong-hwan instinctively obeyed without realizing it.

‘Feels like someone sat down next to me…’

As he was sitting on the bed, he felt weight shift next to him.

‘No way…’

Jeong-hwan tensed up, thinking Hanbin had just sat next to him.

‘He told me to close my eyes, and now he’s sitting next to me?’

Not knowing Hanbin’s intention, Jeong-hwan’s expression grew even more serious.

‘Why am I having all these crazy thoughts…’

Jeong-hwan about to open his eyes and the scene of Hanbin leaning in to kiss his cheek flashed through his mind.

“You can open your eyes now.”

At Hanbin’s voice, Jeong-hwan bit his lower lip and leaned his face back as he opened his eyes.

“…What is all this?”

Thankfully, there was no horrifying sight of Hanbin puckering up in front of him. What was sitting beside him were not Hanbin, but a stack of Hanbin’s comic books.

“Of course, you’re going to read all of these today.”

Jeong-hwan stared blankly at the towering pile of manga, then turned to find Hanbin standing confidently by the door.

“Then what are you doing over there?”

“I’m blocking the door so you don’t run away from reading.”

Jeong-hwan put a hand to his forehead. Only now did he realize just how unnecessary all his worrying had been.

‘No way would that happen, and I spent the whole day stressing over it…’

Hanbin hadn’t meant to tease him, but Jeong-hwan felt ashamed that he’d imagined something like that.

“Well, thanks. I’m leaving now.”

“Leave? No way!”

Hanbin stood guard like a goalkeeper at the door. He looked dead set on not moving even if dirt goes into his eyes. Jeong-hwan laughed in disbelief.

“Dude, if I use my strength, you’ll be down in one second.”

“There’s a clear size difference. Don’t be mean.”

If Jeong-hwan actually pushed him, Hanbin wouldn’t last a minute.

“Don’t you miss feeling refreshed in the morning? Huh?”

Hanbin chose persuasion over force. Judging by Jeong-hwan’s twitching eyebrow, it was working.

“I’m not even the one who needs this! I’m doing this out of kindness for you! You want to go to college, right Jeong-hwan?!”

“…God, fine.”

Jeong-hwan clenched his fist, then plopped back onto the bed.

“So where do I start?”

When Jeong-hwan finally swallowed his pride and picked up a comic, a smile spread across Hanbin’s face.

“Ah! Just start from the top.”

Hanbin sat beside Jeong-hwan, with a pile of books between them.

“You’re a beginner, so short stories are probably better than long ones.”

“You’re so hyped.”

“It’s nice to have a friend who shares your hobby.”

Hanbin shrugged. Jeong-hwan stared at him as he carefully picked through the books.

‘Friend…’

Jeong-hwan fiddled with his ear, feeling oddly flustered.

“So I just have to read it, remember anything good, and copy it later? Easy enough.”

He dove straight in. Hanbin, a little anxious, watched him nervously.

“B-be gentle with it!”

“I’m not some savage.”

Still, Hanbin looked skeptical. He’d expected Jeong-hwan to scoff at the idea, but instead, he was reading with serious focus.

‘He’s more into it than I thought…’

Hanbin realized he’d been worrying for nothing. Jeong-hwan even leaned against the wall to get more comfortable on the bed.

‘Maybe I’ll reread one too.’

Actually, Hanbin had read more romance comics through webtoons than print, but he’d collected only the very best ones. Even so, his shelf was packed with volumes.

‘Still good even after all this time.’

It was a story that made his heart flutter no matter how often he reread it. Before he knew it, he’d finished a volume.

“Pretty fun, right?”

Excited, Hanbin turned to Jeong-hwan only to find him sleeping with the book over his face.

“I knew about this, it was too quiet.”

Hanbin regretted ever trusting him.

“Hey! What if you drool on the book?!”

He rushed over to rescue it, but thankfully, Jeong-hwan was sleeping with his lips tightly sealed.

As he pulled the book away, Hanbin paused at the sight of Jeong-hwan’s face.

‘His face really is something else…’

He remembered the first time he’d seen Jeong-hwan. Even then, he thought Jeong-hwan looked like he’d stepped out of a comic book. Although he hated to admit it, Jeong-hwan looked more handsome from close.

“…Why are you staring at me like that?”

Jeong-hwan opened his eyes. He must have sensed Hanbin staring, with a mischievous glint, he grinned and said,

“Did I make your heart flutter?”

Jeong-hwan expected Hanbin to smack him or get flustered and deny it.

Instead, Hanbin kept his gaze fixed and nodded.