Mikyung nervously watched Haknyeon nervously, trying to read his reactions. Telling him that this playground was super important to her childhood would reveal that this was the neighborhood she'd grown up in, though honestly, he'd probably already figured that out.
At the back of her mind, she kept worriedly asking herself one question.
Would he still be friends with her, knowing she was poor?
She scolded herself, telling herself that she was being ridiculous. But still, all of his other friends were rich. Practically everyone in the whole school was rich. Maybe he wouldn't like her anymore.
But as she watched his expression, all she saw was a child-like sort of wonder.
"This is so nice," he said, stepping into the playground. "The pictures you take here will be beautiful," he gushed, grinning at her. "Especially with the snow everywhere. Wow, this is the perfect place to take pictures. Why'd you choose here?" he asked curiously, leading the way to the swing area. He brushed the snow off of the swing before sitting down on it.
She started to answer but noticed the way he folded and unfolded his fingers, as though they hurt. She looked down at her own hands, which were still wearing his mittens, and felt a surge of guilt.
"Wait!" she said quickly, running up to him just as he started to swing. He quickly tried to stop the swing but they ended up crashing into each other anyway, and she fell forward into his arms.
"Sorry," she mumbled, holding onto his arms and steadying herself. "I just wanted to give these back to you," she explained, taking off the mittens and holding them out to him.
"But then your hands will be cold, and you'll be taking pictures," he said, pushing her hands away gently. "I'll just put my hands in my pockets," he said, starting to do just that.
Mikyung shook her head, grabbing one of his hands and putting the mittens in his palm. "Your hands are freezing," she insisted. "Take them back. And swing, I'll take some pictures of you!" she called as she ran a few paces away, looking at him through the camera lens.
He gave her a bright smile, putting his hands into the mittens and starting to swing, smiling for his pictures.
Needless to say, they turned out perfect.
