Chapter 46
Before I knew it, the two hours had flown by, and the movie ended.
The screen rolled through the credits, replaying the film’s most memorable scenes one by one.
"…Sniff."
It was a good movie.
Set in the , it told the love story of a reserved man who left his rural home to attend university and the daughter of the boarding house where he stayed.
It might have been a familiar premise, but that only made the film’s brilliance stand out more. At first, I hadn’t been able to focus, but before I realized it, I’d been completely drawn in—enough to cry like this.
I wiped the corners of my eyes with my handkerchief and looked back at the screen. The final climactic scene was playing—the moment the male lead and the heroine embraced.
…This kind of thing… is really nice.
Lately, whenever I watched romance stories, that’s what I found myself thinking. Over the past week or two, I’d started seeking them out more and more.
…But until recently, that hadn’t been the case.
Shin was an omnivore when it came to media—books, movies, dramas—he enjoyed everything from romance to war stories to horror.
So over these past four months, I’d watched all kinds of genres with him. With books, it was one thing, but for dramas and movies, we naturally ended up sitting together in the same room. I didn’t have strong preferences either, so I’d always enjoyed them alongside him.
…But until now, I’d never really understood romance stories.
It wasn’t that I found them boring—just that I wouldn’t call them particularly gripping, either. At the very least, I’d never gone out of my way to watch them.
The reason, I’d realized after some thought… was that I couldn’t easily project myself onto the characters.
I used to be male, and now I’m female. So I never knew whether I should empathize with the man or the woman in the story. For example, in scenes where a girl got angry at a clueless guy, I’d be torn—should I sympathize with the guy, suddenly being yelled at, or the girl, frustrated that he never noticed her feelings?
Because I could kinda understand both sides, I ended up stuck in the middle, never fully connecting.
…At least, that’s how it used to be.
Now, it was different. I’d unconsciously settled on whose perspective to embrace. I hadn’t made a conscious decision—it just happened.
This movie was the same. Without thinking, I’d found myself drawn into the heroine’s emotions.
Her heartache reached me, her loneliness when her feelings went unnoticed hurt, and when they were finally reciprocated, I cried along with her out of sheer joy.
"……"
…Now that I thought about it, there might’ve been another reason I’d gotten so absorbed—enough to cry.
Because so much of the heroine’s emotions overlapped with my own. The way she felt about the male lead… was the same way I felt about Shin.
…When I closed my eyes, the image of the two embracing flickered behind my eyelids. I wish I could be like that with Shin, I caught myself thinking.
"…Hm?"
Just then, I noticed Shin glancing at me. Our eyes met.
My eyes were probably still red from crying.
Having him see me like this was a little embarrassing… but at the same time, it made me happy that he was looking at me.
"Hehe."
Before I knew it, my lips curled into a smile.
The person I loved was right here, so close to me.
That alone made me unbearably happy.
Today, I’d mustered the courage to sit closer to Shin than usual—close enough that if I leaned just a little, I might be able to rest against his arm. If I did, I knew I’d feel even happier.
…But I was too embarrassed to actually do it.
For a brief moment, I resented my own cowardice.
"…Hehe."
I gazed at Shin from just beside him.
…Yeah. I really do love him.
My chest felt warm, full, right.
I’d realized it over and over since that trip—but loving someone truly was the happiest thing in the world.
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