Falling For The Park Brothers' Sister ⚊ Nishimura Riki

Chapter Forty Five

Heeseung's point of view

I’ve always been good at reading people. It’s a skill I’ve honed over the years, especially on the basketball court where I need to figure out my opponents and teammates alike. That’s why it didn’t take me long to notice something off about Sunghoon.

We’d been practicing together on the same team for weeks, but no matter how often I tried to get closer to him, he always kept me at arm’s length.

During practice, he was friendly enough—polite, even. We’d pass the ball back and forth, communicate well during drills, but that was the extent of it.

Every time I tried to hang out with him outside of practice, he had an excuse ready.

“Sorry, man. I’m on a date with Sunoo tonight.”

“Can’t make it, Heeseung. I promised Jay we’d go shopping.”

It was always something. Always an alibi. The guy was slippery, and no matter how casual or friendly I tried to make it, he dodged every invitation like he had something to hide.

I wasn’t stupid. It didn’t take long for me to realize something was off. The way he never wanted to talk about his siblings—especially Jay or Jiyoo—made me start thinking maybe he knew something.

The more I asked about them, the more he shut down. He’d either change the subject or suddenly remember he had somewhere else to be.

I couldn’t figure out if Sunghoon didn’t like me or if he had already pieced together what I was trying to figure out myself.

Did he know about the connection between Jiwoo and his family? Or was he just keeping his distance for some other reason?

Either way, it was frustrating.

One afternoon after practice, I found myself in the locker room, pulling off my shoes while my mind raced with thoughts about how to get through to Sunghoon.

That’s when Jake walked in, looking as carefree as ever. He’d been our teammate for a while now, and I knew if anyone could give me some insight into Sunghoon, it might be him.

“Hey, Jake,” I said, trying to sound casual. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure, man. What’s up?”

I hesitated for a moment before asking, “Have you noticed anything weird about Sunghoon lately? Like, does he seem kind of... distant to you?”

Jake paused, considering my question as he stuffed his shoes into his bag. “Hmm, I don’t know. Sunghoon’s always been a bit private, I guess. He keeps to himself when he’s not on the court. But I don’t think it’s anything personal. The Park siblings are all kind of like that, y’know?”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed,” I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck. “It just seems like he’s avoiding me.”

Jake shrugged. “Could be. Or maybe he’s just busy with his own stuff. I mean, he’s got a lot going on with his brothers and Jiyoo, right? They’re a close family, from what I’ve heard.”

That was the thing. Sunghoon seemed fine with everyone else—polite, courteous, even engaging during practice. But with me? It was like he had a wall up.