Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Seo Jae-kyeom's Rejection
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“No, I like you too. As a friend.”
“……”
“But us dating… you think it’s not right too, don’t you, Da-hye?”
“Ah.”
Hearing that line brings it all back.
How could I have forgotten this?
And right after this comes…
“You’ve seen the girls I’ve dated up close all this time, haven’t you? Didn’t you feel anything watching them? Why would you confess to me? You and them… no, I won’t go that far.”
Yeah. This is the line.
The one that trampled my self-esteem and dragged me into a swamp of depression.
I scanned the boy standing in front of me.
Tall build, soft hair, smooth features that screamed future college nickname like ‘XX University’s Three Great Kings’ or some nonsense like that. Topped off with an expression that said annoyed but holding back.
“…Seo Jae-kyeom.”
“Yeah.”
He nodded at my call.
Right, Seo Jae-kyeom.
The king of popularity at our school until idol trainee Jeong Eun-seong transferred in.
Even after that, he didn’t lose ground and split the girls’ affections with him.
My first love.
‘My mom used to work as a housekeeper at Seo Jae-kyeom’s house back then.’
Whenever I ran errands there, dazzling Seo Jae-kyeom was always around.
A handsome boy my age living in a spacious, spotless house that put ours to shame.
Living just with his mom in the biggest house in the best neighborhood around.
Rumors swirled that he was the illegitimate son of some corporate bigwig.
And I was one of the few who knew it was true.
‘Oh, Kang Da-hye. Hi.’
‘Kang Da-hye. Here again.’
Even though knowing my secret should’ve made things awkward for him, Seo Jae-kyeom never let it show.
He’d greet me casually at school, offer to walk me home if I was late. He never actually did, but at least he offered.
‘Seo Jae-kyeom, you dating Kang Da-hye?’
‘Don’t talk shit.’
It was the perfect setup for me to delude myself.
But reality isn’t a drama, and I’m no protagonist.
It really was just a delusion.
“Seo Jae-kyeom for real……”
I peered curiously at Seo Jae-kyeom’s face, the first time seeing it since senior year.
Like with so many other friends, contact with him cut off right after graduation.
The one-sided outreach I’d been clinging to alone snapped completely when I, having bombed the CSAT, hid away in shame from my friends.
Seo Jae-kyeom never once came looking for me.
“Seo Jae-kyeom. When did I confess to you?”
“Dunno? Don’t remember the details.”
His nonchalant reply to my question.
You could tell from this alone that he had zero feelings for me.
It’s March now.
Early March.
School’s been open less than a week.
Q. Don’t people usually confess on Valentine’s Day, year-end festivals, graduation trips—special occasions like that?
If you’re gonna get rejected, why confess to a guy at the same school right at the start of the semester? Especially when you’re in the same class at this point.
A. Nope.
I confessed at the end of the school year too.
Last December. And the answer’s only coming now.
‘Huh? You? Me?’
‘Jae-kyeom! Hurry up! Get there late and no seats!’
‘Ah. Gotta head out now. I’ll hit you up later?’
Then radio silence through the entire winter break.
Seo Jae-kyeom skipped the year-end ceremony, saying he was going overseas.
I clutched my phone, agonizing over whether to message first, my insides boiling until March. Checking his Facebook a dozen times a day—pics of him surfing at Manly Beach.
No reply is a reply, as the saying goes.
But just in case. Clinging to that sliver of hope.
(For the record, my birthday’s in February. Not a peep from Seo Jae-kyeom that day either.)
Then school starts, we end up in the same class, he sees me and goes ‘Ah,’ like he just remembered.
And today, he finally gives his answer.
Pre-regression me went through this, got hurt, bawled my eyes out.
But the current me?
“Da-hye, you’re smart. You get it without me spelling it out, right? I’ll just pretend I didn’t hear what you said that day. You too……”
“Yeah, sure.”
I raised a hand to cut off Seo Jae-kyeom.
“I get what you mean. Pretend it never happened? Works for me.”
Eleven years ago, it might’ve been the heartbreaking one-sided crush that kept me up nights. But at twenty-nine now? It’s just laughable.
‘Damn, Kang Da-hye, you sniff out handsome guys like a ghost.’
Even so, how did I ever think confessing was a good idea?
No other cute guys around? Then why not just like no one?
One step back, and it would’ve been obvious.
Who Seo Jae-kyeom actually had his heart set on.
‘Whatever. Won’t see each other after graduation anyway.’
I’ve got way more important things than Seo Jae-kyeom.
I dusted off the uniform caked in faint dust and looked up at him.
My direct stare made Seo Jae-kyeom squint just a bit.
“Kang Da-hye?”
“Sorry for crossing the line. Won’t happen again.”
“Uh……”
“Heading in first.”
“O…kay.”
“Yeah.”
“……”
“……”
“……”
“Oh, but Seo Jae-kyeom.”
“Yeah?”
“If ‘how could you confess after seeing all the girls I dated’ isn’t harsh by your standards, then what the hell is?”
I didn’t wait for a reply and headed back to the classroom alone.
Forgot which homeroom I was in, wandered a bit, spotted classmates’ faces, and finally found it.
“My locker… ah, here it is.”
It’s locked, but I can’t remember the combo.
Just smash it.
Crack!
“Gasp.”
“Crazy.”
The class gasped in shock at me slamming the broom down to rip off the lock.
“Da-hye, what’s wrong? You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. Feeling awesome right now.”
I pulled out every textbook from the locker. Hugged the armful and turned around.
I asked the girl whose eyes I happened to meet.
“Friend.”
“Uh, yeah?”
“Mind telling me where my seat is?”
I didn’t sleep last night, so my memory’s fuzzy. She pointed somewhere without suspicion.
Third row of the second section.
“Thanks.”
I sat down and stacked the textbooks from the locker on my desk.
Deep breath. Then I started flipping through them one by one.
-Korean.
Korean’s fine. I didn’t forget how to speak it. Just need to practice problems again. Pass.
-English.
I’m a TOEIC perfect-scorer, so good. Pass.
-Korean History.
I know the rough flow, but details are fuzzy. On hold for now.
-Math.
Huh? What’s this symbol? How do you solve this?
-Others are optional, but for Korea University hopefuls like me, second foreign language = French is mandatory.
All the French I remember is Joan of Arc, Napoleon, and Zola????????
Wait, hold up. But math… this subject that was still mostly called the ‘math section’ back then… I don’t remember a single thing…?
“I’m screwed……”
Fucked.
That’s the conclusion I could reach without a second thought.
I’m fucked.
“Wow, insane. I don’t remember shit.”
Not even the quadratic formula.
How long until the CSAT?
One year and seven months? Eight?
But it’s not just the CSAT. School grades matter too.
Study the forgotten stuff while cramming the new…?
Drip, drip.
“Gasp, Da-hye! Why are you crying?!”
“Huh? Kang Da-hye’s crying?”
“Kang Da-hye’s crying.”
“Why?”
“No idea.”
“Da-hye, you okay?”
“…What’s going on?”
“Jae-kyeom, Da-hye’s crying!”
“…She’s crying?”
Right then, Seo Jae-kyeom was walking into the classroom when he heard ‘Kang Da-hye’s crying’ and looked my way.
Seeing tears streaming down my face, he frowned slightly… and sighed.
Like he’d expected as much.
He must find me a real pain.
‘I’m not crying because of you, okay?’ I wanted to say, but he’d just hear it as an excuse anyway…
God, embarrassing.
“Gonna hit the bathroom real quick.”
I grabbed my phone and bolted out of the classroom.
Leaned back against the hallway wall and took a deep breath.
“I’m fine.”
Plenty of time left.
I traveled back in time, got a second chance most people couldn’t dream of—am I gonna whine about it?
“No whining allowed. These are tears of joy.”
I wiped them away with the back of my hand and fiddled with my smartphone in the other.
Being an eleven-year-old model, it’s definitely heavier, thicker, and slower.
Let’s see.
What apps was I using back then?
“Music app’s the same even eleven years ago. …What’s this, unrequited love playlist?”
[Kang Da-hye's Unrequited Love Playlist] - Should’ve been friends at least - If only it was me… the one you love… if only it was me… - Always one step behind… I was there…☆ - Wanna say it… I love you… but can’t say a word… I hate myself… - Even by chance would be nice… to run into you… just to look at you one more time… - Friend’s confession…☆★☆ - You really… must find me comfortable… - One-sided loveㅠ - What do I do~~~ still so clumsy~~~ Memo: Eating with you once is that hard…? Driving me crazy, stars… I want him. Jae.
“Uwaaak!”
What the hell is this!
I flung the phone I was holding.
The smartphone rolled, screen still lit, and came to a stop at someone’s feet.
“Uh…”
Someone slowly bent down and picked up my brightly lit black history.