Chapter 167: Delusion?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 167: Delusion?
Kim Woo-jin probably had no idea how much effort Min Ju-hee had put into dressing up so femininely.
“Hmm, I think this one would look better on you.”
Before her lunch with Kim Woo-jin, Min Ju-hee was in her room picking out clothes with Seo Ye-rin.
“R-really?”
Ju-hee had never really dressed up like this before. That was why she had asked Seo Ye-rin—the prettiest person she knew—for help. Of course, she kept the fact that she was meeting Kim Woo-jin a secret.
‘Ugh, my conscience is pricking me a bit.’
“Senior, you really pull this off! You should stop wearing that Dragon Padded Jacket and start wearing bright clothes like this. You’d look so much prettier!”
“Ahem, well...”
She was only dressing up because of an unintentional appointment with Kim Woo-jin. She didn’t necessarily want to show this girlish side of herself to everyone else.
“Oho, I see. There’s someone special you want to show this to, isn’t there?”
“……”
Ju-hee kept her mouth shut, having nothing to say. Humming a tune and remarking that even Senior Ju-hee had a side like this, Seo Ye-rin began styling Ju-hee’s hair.
Ju-hee was slightly surprised by how skillful Ye-rin’s hands were.
“Ye-rin, you’re actually really good at this.”
“Huh?”
“No, I just thought that since you’re pretty even without doing anything, you wouldn’t have much interest in dressing up or things like this.”
“Ah.”
As she straightened Ju-hee’s hair with a flat iron, Seo Ye-rin revealed the truth without much hesitation.
“You’re right. I didn’t really have much interest in it before.”
After all, why bother dressing up when everyone called her pretty even when she did nothing?
“But once there was someone I wanted to look good for, I just naturally started learning.”
“……”
Ju-hee bit her lip. If she didn’t, she felt like she might blurt out an apology. It felt like things would go south if she revealed that the person she was about to meet was actually Kim Woo-jin.
“There, all done!”
The clothes were changed, and the hair and makeup were finished.
“Ta-da!”
When Ju-hee saw herself in the full-length mirror, she was flaunting a level of innocent femininity that surprised even her.
“With this, whoever Ju-hee Senior is meeting is going to fall head over heels!”
“……Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it! You better win! I should probably give this jerk a call too; he hasn’t been in touch much lately.”
* * *
“Ahem.”
Inside the restaurant, people were chatting busily while cutting into their steaks. Since it was an expensive place, it was only natural for everyone to be in a good mood.
On the contrary...
Silence reigned at our table.
‘What is going on?’
Senior Ju-hee had dressed up. And she looked incredibly pretty. To be honest, I didn’t even recognize her at first.
The important thing was that she seemed embarrassed, focusing entirely on her food. I tried to reach the most likely conclusion through a bit of rational deduction.
“By any chance...”
“Y-yes?! What is it?”
“Are you meeting your boyfriend after lunch?”
“……”
Wow.
The atmosphere turned so murderous I felt like she would’ve swung a bat at me if she’d had one nearby. Fearing that something might actually get broken if I said more, I stuffed another piece of meat into my mouth.
I thought I was reading the room, but was I wrong? Senior Ju-hee had said she wasn’t interested in dating, but a person’s heart is like a reed in the wind, isn’t it? You might not want to date yesterday, but you might want to today.
‘Whatever.’
Prying further wouldn’t look good, and the mood was already sour. I gathered my courage once more to speak to Senior Ju-hee, who was chewing her meat with a terrifying grinding sound, clearly in a foul mood.
“Senior, I’m really grateful for what happened.”
“……”
“If you hadn’t helped me, I would’ve been in big trouble with President Hwang.”
If Senior Ju-hee hadn’t made that dramatic entrance, I probably would’ve been beaten to a pulp by the crazed President Hwang. When I expressed my sincere gratitude, Senior Ju-hee, with her fork still in her mouth, pondered for a moment.
“Then.”
She put forward another request.
“Shall we go see a movie after this?”
“A movie?”
I wondered what movie she’d want to see so out of the blue, but then I remembered.
‘Ah, come to think of it.’
I’d seen a trailer for a new movie made by a director famous for martial arts and action. She probably wanted to see that.
“Sure, of course. Let’s go right after we finish eating.”
When I nodded with a bright smile, the corners of Senior Ju-hee’s lips lifted slightly, and her pace of eating steak quickened.
And so, after lunch, we headed to the cinema together. Since we had just eaten, we decided to just buy drinks and went to the kiosk to book the tickets.
“……You want to see that?”
“Huh? Isn’t this what you wanted to see?”
When I selected the work of the director famous for action, Senior Ju-hee frowned and shook her head.
“It’s not that I had something specific in mind, but...”
Even so, she let out a vague, bitter sigh, as if my choice didn’t quite sit right with her.
“Isn’t this exactly the kind of style you like, Senior?”
“It is, but... I want to see something different today.”
“Something different? Like what?”
While I was looking through the movies playing on the kiosk, her hand reached out and pointed to one.
“This looks okay.”
“……Are you serious?”
It was a movie that looked like a slow-paced melodrama just from the poster.
“It’s not even a romantic comedy; it looks like a straight-up romance flick.”
“Yeah, I want to see this today.”
“Well... if that’s what you want, Senior.”
In the end, we bought tickets for the romance movie and entered the theater. Senior Ju-hee seemed quite excited about the movie, fidgeting with her hands. She glanced at me and called out.
“U-Woo-jin?”
“Yes?”
“Could you massage my hands?”
“Your hands?”
“They’re a bit stiff.”
Well, she did swing that bat a lot, so they probably were stiff.
“I actually learned hand massage from Neutube.”
As I pressed down on Senior Ju-hee’s palms, she let out a slight shiver and a satisfied smile, seemingly finding it refreshing.
‘Come to think of it.’
I gave Yoo Ah-rin the same kind of massage when we went to the movies before.
‘I wonder what Yoo Ah-rin is doing now. I hope things went well with Yun-ji.’
Hoping their conversation went smoothly, I began to focus on the movie as the advertisements ended.
* * *
“Gah?!”
I snapped awake from my nap. The ending credits were already rolling. Had I even watched thirty minutes of it? It was a boring plot to begin with, and since it wasn’t my taste, I naturally fell asleep.
Thinking I had been incredibly rude to Senior Ju-hee, I glanced sideways. Like me, Senior Ju-hee had fallen fast asleep. She was leaning on my shoulder, breathing softly; she must have found it just as boring as I did.
“Senior, wake up.”
“Mmm?”
“Senior, the movie’s over. We should go.”
“It’s over? Yawn!”
She yawned and looked around, and seeing that no one but us was left, she turned her head in embarrassment.
“L-let’s go, quickly.”
With that, she practically fled the theater. Since she was the one who insisted on seeing it only to fall asleep, her embarrassment seemed doubled.
“I’m going to use the restroom for a moment.”
Since I had also slept, I went to the restroom to check my hair and clothes. Usually, restrooms are crowded after a movie, but seeing it empty, we must have woken up quite late.
‘I wonder if she wants to stay for dinner?’
As I was tidying my hair and thinking, my phone rang. It was Yoo Ah-rin. Curious to know if her talk with Oh Yun-ji went well, I answered immediately.
— Where are you, you jerk?
“Why are you cursing as soon as I pick up?”
— I’m in the middle of obsessing, so just tell me. Where are you?
I never know what to say when she talks like that.
“I’m out. Just watched a movie.”
— With who?
“Senior Ju-hee.”
If it had been any other girl, I might have hesitated to tell her. But Senior Ju-hee was an exception, wasn’t she? When I said that, Yoo Ah-rin let out a deep sigh of annoyance.
— Weren’t you just supposed to have lunch with her? You even watched a movie?
“How did you know I was having lunch with her?”
— Yun-ji told me.
“Did the talk with Yun-ji go well?”
— Does that even matter right now?
What a temper.
— More importantly, Senior Ju-hee dressed up today, didn’t she?
“How did you know?”
— Because the person who helped her dress up is right next to me.
— Kim Woo-jiiin! Why aren’t you picking up my calls?!
“Seo Ye-rin! I told you not to send those weird photos! If someone else had seen them when my phone was taken away, I’d be dead!”
When I got my phone back, I was terrified because Seo Ye-rin had sent so many photos because I hadn’t replied.
— Ugh, I’m on the phone. Anyway, you’ve got some nerve, don’t you? Going on a date with Senior Ju-hee?
“What date?”
How was being with Senior Ju-hee a date? It was just hanging out. It felt more like hanging out with a boss than a friend. When I answered like that, Yoo Ah-rin let out another heavy sigh.
— You idiot. A senior who never dresses up wore a dress, did her hair, and even put on makeup?
“……”
— She probably didn’t even smoke, right? What movie did you watch?
“I don’t even remember the title, but it was a romance.”
— See? Ugh, Kim Woo-jin. Why on earth do people like a guy like you?
“Why are you asking me that?”
— If you drink wine today, you’re dead. Ye-rin, you say something too.
“……”
— If you stay out tonight, I’ll take your balls and—!
The threat was so gruesome I decided to pretend I didn’t hear the rest. Even Yoo Ah-rin seemed startled and hurriedly snatched the phone back.
— Anyway. You watch yourself. Don’t play with our hearts when we’re being considerate because we know you’re confused and haven’t made up your mind yet.
— If you keep swinging your d*ck around like—!
Click.
The call cut off just like that. I stared blankly at my phone, feeling like I’d been hit in the back of the head.
Senior Ju-hee likes me?
Then, memories of that time at Gold One came flooding back. Senior Ju-hee, suddenly in my arms. It wasn’t a dream, but it was an incident that had passed by like one.
“……”
As I stepped out of the restroom, my mouth was set in a firm line. Senior Ju-hee, who must have also visited the restroom, was waiting for me, looking neat again.
“It’s a bit awkward to go back to the dormitory now, so should we grab dinner before heading in?”
She delivered the line to move on to the next thing as naturally as if she’d practiced it.
I should have kept my mouth shut.
“Is this a date?”
In the end, unable to contain my curiosity, I asked her point-blank. She looked flustered, clearly not expecting me to be so direct. Since I’d already said it, I decided to just go all the way.
“Senior, do you like me?”
“Wh-huh?!”
With a strange exclamation, her face turned beet red, and she took a step back. I stepped forward as if chasing her and continued my questions.
“Why did you dress up today?”
“Ah, well...”
“Why did you ask to see a romance movie?”
“Th-that!”
“And that line about having dinner—did you practice it in the restroom just now?”
“W-wait a minute!”
“And last time.”
Grab.
Before I knew it, I had grabbed both of Senior Ju-hee’s shoulders and locked eyes with her. Did she really beat up gangsters with a baseball bat with a body that felt like it would fit perfectly in my arms? It was hard to believe.
“At Gold One, why were you hugging me?”
“……!”
Pop!
I heard something explode. Usually, in anime, steam comes out of the head when emotions explode like this. But it wasn’t that.
“Gah!”
It was the sound of my head exploding from Senior Ju-hee’s uppercut. I felt my body lift off the ground slightly.
I had just experienced firsthand how she had demolished those gangsters, so I decided not to question it anymore.
“Ugh, that hurts like hell.”
As I rubbed my jaw and looked at her, she was taking deep breaths, forcing her emotions back under control. Now, a question arose.
“S-Senior. But there’s no real reason for you to like me.”
There wasn’t much of a reason, was there? Of course, sometimes you just grow to like someone naturally over time. But this was Senior Ju-hee. Would the great Captain Ju lose her heart to someone over something like that? She was someone who had rejected the very idea of dating in the first place. So I thought there must be some kind of trigger.
“W-well, you see...”
Braving her embarrassment, Senior Ju-hee began to explain.
“At Gold One... you... with Ye-rin and Ah-rin... had s-s-s-sex.”
Her stuttering was cute, but...
“S-so you saw that.”
Even as I tried to act calm, I felt sweat beads forming on my forehead. My brain was screaming that she’d seen something she absolutely shouldn’t have, but since she wasn’t finished, I pretended to be as unfazed as possible and listened.
“After I saw that, I just... started getting interested...”
“……Pardon?”
Did I hear that right?
“I mean, after that, I just strangely started becoming interested in you.”
Hmm.
On the contrary, my mind felt like it was clearing up. It was like the refreshing feeling of finally solving a difficult math problem.
“To summarize briefly.”
I clenched my fist and neatly summed up the situation.
“You’re just horny and mistaking lust for lo—Oof?!”
Senior Ju-hee’s fist buried itself into my solar plexus, cutting my words short.