Chapter 21: Confession
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 21: Confession
Monday was packed with lectures starting from 10 AM.
I was currently paying the price for the karma of clearing my Friday schedule to rest during the second semester of my freshman year.
"Ugh, I'm exhausted."
I suppose the only consolation was that I managed to protect my 1 PM lunch break.
When the lecture ended at one and I stepped outside, Choi I-seo was waiting for me.
She wasn't even sitting; she was leaning against the wall looking at her phone, wearing her department jacket—she must have kept it in one of the school's public lockers.
"What are you doing standing out here?"
It was true we’d agreed to grab lunch together, but instead of standing around like this, couldn't she have waited in an empty classroom or grabbed a coffee at a cafe?
I wondered why she was bothering to make her legs ache.
"If I go to places like that, I might run into other kids. It’s a bit awkward to turn them down if they ask to eat together."
"Is that the kind of thing 'insiders' worry about?"
It was fascinating to see her worrying about something I’d never even considered in my life.
So there were people who lived like that? Standing out in the hallway just because someone might ask them to lunch?
"Anyway, I get to pick the menu for lunch, right?"
"……Fine."
It was because of what I’d said on the bus earlier.
Because of the "I-seo was amazing in bed" comment, she was the one choosing the menu today.
I figured she’d pick something like a salad anyway, but to my surprise...
"A pork cutlet place?"
The place Choi I-seo brought me to was a pork cutlet joint—a very welcome choice, as I’d been strangely craving fried food today.
"Are you serious? You don't have to be considerate of me. I was prepared to pay the price for the 'I-seo was amazing in bed' remark."
"Ugh! You—don't say that!"
Choi I-seo’s face turned slightly red from embarrassment as she gave my shoulder another playful shove.
I wondered if she was starting to get a taste for punching me, but since it didn't really hurt, I decided to take it as a friendly gesture of skinship.
"I want to eat something filling. I have to speak clearly to Min-ji today."
"Aha."
"So you eat well, too. You can't let yourself get pushed around when we get there."
So that was why.
"I always eat my fill."
And I wasn't the type to get pushed around by anyone, either.
Seemingly relieved by my words, Choi I-seo and I stepped inside the restaurant.
Since I hadn't eaten breakfast, I ordered a menu item called the "Double Jumbo Pork Cutlet," which looked absurdly large, while Choi I-seo ordered the Cheese Pork Cutlet.
"The cheese cutlet here is actually really good."
I commented that she’d made an excellent choice and closed the menu, but I noticed Choi I-seo glancing around the room.
Was she worried about who might be here?
"Don't worry. It's 1 PM, so most people would have finished lunch and left by now."
"Huh? Oh..."
Was that not what she was worried about?
Choi I-seo continued to fidget and scan the surroundings before whispering softly so only I could hear.
"Um, did I... do anything weird while I was sleeping?"
"Huh?"
Where did that come from?
"Is this because of the 'I-Bed-A' thing?"
"……I have a bad feeling about this, but what on earth is 'I-Bed-A'?"
"I-seo was amazing in bed."
"Don't abbreviate things weirdly!"
"Well, 'amazing' is 'amazing.'"
It was a bit of a slangy way to put it, but she really was amazing.
It was fascinating how she could sleep without a single hair out of place. She didn't move toward me at all and slept in such a perfect, upright posture that I thought she could join the military.
"A-anyway. You keep teasing me about it in such a weird way... so I thought maybe I made a mistake while I was asleep."
"Ah."
I guess I’d made her self-conscious.
I nodded with a grin.
"You were definitely amazing."
"……?!"
Choi I-seo slammed her hands on the table and stood up, immediately grabbing me by the collar.
"For-forget it! Forget it! I don't know what I did, but just forget it right now!"
I didn't remember her having this kind of image, but seeing her so flustered was both funny and cute.
My head was being shaken back and forth, making me feel a bit dizzy, so I was about to tell her it was a joke.
But before I could say anything, Choi I-seo suddenly stopped moving.
"Oh?"
She let out a surprised sound.
I thought the food might have arrived, but when I turned my head in the direction she was looking...
There they were. A crowd of students from our department, including Seo Ye-rin and Ahn Hyun-ho, were pouring into the restaurant.
* * *
"Ugh, what is this!"
It was 10 AM when the suggestion came up that we should all hang out because Ahn Hyun-ho seemed to be in a bad mood.
Someone suggested grabbing drinks in the evening, but the plan evolved into having lunch together first.
Since one of the guys had been grumbling about wanting to eat with the girls from the department, the group naturally merged with the female students.
Before we knew it, there were eight of us.
Naturally, opinions on what to eat were divided, and it took a whole hour just to decide on a menu.
In the end, the lunch we intended to eat at noon was pushed to 1 PM. Exhausted, we walked into a nearby pork cutlet place, and then...
"Whoa."
"Wait, what?"
The English Literature students couldn't help but be bewildered by the bizarre sight before them.
What was the situation here?
Choi I-seo, the Department Rep, and Kim Woo-jin, the notorious voluntary loner, were eating together?
Just the two of them?
For twenty-somethings who would try to ship anyone who so much as made eye contact—a generation that only watched dating shows on TV—this was an incredibly juicy topic.
They knew they shouldn't make it obvious, but since the pair had already noticed them, the "mood makers" of the group immediately rushed over to chirp at them.
"Whoa, what's this!? Is our Rep on a date?"
"This is insane! Kim Woo-jin, you're a player? I didn't see that coming since you're always so quiet. This is huge!"
"N-no! It's not like that! You, say something too!"
Unlike the flustered Choi I-seo, Kim Woo-jin responded to them with total indifference.
"I don't have any friends, so she's just pitying me with a meal."
But the group, already fired up, continued to make a fuss.
"Hey! Is there any reason for just the two of you to eat? We can all eat together, right?"
"Exactly! Should we all sit together? Huh? How about it?"
Their teasing was borderline provocative, almost crossing the line. Choi I-seo was about to suggest they join them just to avoid any weird misunderstandings, but...
"No."
Kim Woo-jin, resting his chin on his hand, made a cold declaration. Not only Choi I-seo sitting across from him, but even Seo Ye-rin among the group, had never seen Kim Woo-jin with this kind of atmosphere.
"I don't like crowds."
"Oh, haha. Right."
"Hey, why are you being so awkward?"
"Whatever. Someone here might be the one who spread rumors about the Karaoke Incident on the Bamboo Forest and throughout the department."
Looking at them, many were faces I’d seen at the karaoke bar, so Kim Woo-jin wasn't wrong.
Especially since everyone had either kept quiet or intentionally spread rumors that favored Han-gang until Seo Ye-rin stepped up.
"……Fine, we'll go eat somewhere else."
"What a prick, seriously."
"I try to be friendly, but honestly..."
As the grumbling students moved to other tables, only Ahn Hyun-ho and Seo Ye-rin remained.
Unexpectedly, Ahn Hyun-ho was the first to speak to us.
To Choi I-seo, specifically.
"I-seo, are you dating him?"
"Huh?"
"You two took the school bus together this morning, too. I take that bus every day, and you guys are never on it, but you were today."
At those words, Seo Ye-rin, who was standing behind him, actually flinched.
"It's not like that."
Choi I-seo gave an awkward laugh.
It was obvious she was speaking with as much restraint as possible because she didn't want things to become awkward between the Rep and the Vice Rep.
'What a mess.'
Ahn Hyun-ho wasn't just blindly confessing; he was testing the waters to see if Choi I-seo had feelings for him.
Even if she didn't, it didn't look like Ahn Hyun-ho was going to give up on her.
'It would be so much easier if she just said it bluntly.'
Feeling frustrated, Kim Woo-jin scratched his chin and let out a sigh.
Of course, he understood.
They were only freshmen, and they’d have to work together at various school events in the future. Choi I-seo didn't want things to be uncomfortable.
He knew that "Anonymous 287" was Choi I-seo, but if things kept being left vague like this, Ahn Hyun-ho’s wariness toward Kim Woo-jin would only continue.
Right then.
Having reached a pretty decent solution in an instant, Kim Woo-jin spoke up calmly.
"I confessed to her and got dumped."
"……?!"
Choi I-seo’s eyes went wide as she whipped her head toward Kim Woo-jin. Ahn Hyun-ho and Seo Ye-rin’s gazes were also fixed on him.
It was a sudden bombshell.
Kim Woo-jin crossed his arms and looked at Ahn Hyun-ho and Choi I-seo in turn.
"But Choi I-seo said she has absolutely no intention of dating anyone. She said she has to get a scholarship, and she doesn't have time for romance because of school events since she's the Rep."
"……."
"I argued about why she’s so busy, but considering the recent call-out incident and all, being the Rep must be pretty demanding."
Everyone was in such shock they couldn't even speak properly. They never expected such words to come out of Kim Woo-jin’s mouth.
Thanks to that, Kim Woo-jin was able to continue quietly.
"I told her there’s no such thing as 'never,' but she said she won't even think about that stuff until at least sophomore year. She’s not going to have any interest in dating during her freshman year."
"Ah..."
"She said there are already three guys besides me who confessed and got rejected."
Kim Woo-jin shut his mouth, signaling he was done.
"I-I see."
Ahn Hyun-ho also seemed to have lost his words, his mouth hanging open blankly before he finally trudged back to where his friends were.
"……."
Finally, Seo Ye-rin, who had been quiet until now, glared at Kim Woo-jin for some reason before following the others.
"Whew."
Once the two had left, Kim Woo-jin looked at Choi I-seo, who was staring at him with her jaw dropped, and muttered with a victorious smile.
"I should have been an actor."
"Ha!"
Choi I-seo looked like she was about to say something out of sheer disbelief, but the words got stuck in her throat.
Thanks to this, Ahn Hyun-ho’s advances toward her would likely cool down significantly, and he wouldn't be jealous of Kim Woo-jin, who had already been "dumped."
"Woo-jin's resonance form is insane. He repelled a living confession with a dead one."
"Sigh, I have no words."
Choi I-seo could only let out a hollow laugh now. How on earth could this guy do something like this so casually?
Even if it was a lie, she had to admire the sheer audacity and mental strength it took to openly tell people he’d been dumped.
She knew that even if she felt sorry or grateful, Kim Woo-jin would just brush it off as if it were nothing.
Because she was grateful but also found him impressive...
Choi I-seo decided to match his pace and brush it off lightly as well.
"By the way, the number of confessions isn't three. It's four."
As Choi I-seo said that with a smile, Kim Woo-jin looked at her with the most surprised expression he’d shown all day and muttered.
"……Choi I-seo's form is insane."