Chapter 260: Party?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 260: Party?
In the end, Bong-geun decided to pack the food for us separately when we left.
Even as he huffed and puffed in annoyance, he told us he’d put the leftovers in a container even bigger than a LocknLock.
When I told him that would look like food waste and asked him to make a fresh batch instead, he snapped at me one more time before agreeing.
“I feel like he used to have a better personality back in the day.”
They say people change as they grow up, but I wondered if having too much money had just made him more prone to anger.
“……”
“From where I’m sitting, the fact that he didn't hit you makes him look like a saint.”
Choi Jin-ah, sitting next to me, fell silent out of embarrassment, while Seo Ye-rin continued to argue with a fork still in her mouth.
Actually, I also thought I had been pretty shameless, so I cleared my throat and sheepishly took my seat.
I tried to finish what I was eating, but Choi Jin-ah, sipping wine beside me, was distracting.
Since she was the one who invited me, I figured she had something to say.
Strangely, however, the eyes of those around us were gravitating toward our table.
Especially the men.
Because of Seo Ye-rin’s radiant beauty, men’s eyes had been drifting this way from the start.
But since I was clearly her partner, they hadn't been able to stare at her openly.
However, things changed once Choi Jin-ah arrived.
It was as if they acted like looking at this table was a right they’d been granted all along.
If they were just looking at Choi Jin-ah, I would have let it slide.
These bastards are sneakily looking at Seo Ye-rin too.
Using the excuse of looking at Choi Jin-ah, they naturally glanced at Seo Ye-rin as well. It was a small mercy that everyone here had enough pride not to pull out their phones and start filming.
“What are those guys acting so cocky for?”
“Woo-jin, watch your language. That’s lewd.”
Huh?
I reflexively looked at Seo Ye-rin, and Choi Jin-ah tilted her head in confusion, wondering what she meant.
It seemed Seo Ye-rin hadn't been able to resist the temptation of the wine while I was talking to Bong-geun.
Perhaps because of that, her face was flushed red as she covered her mouth with both hands and giggled.
“Why are they so… cock-y? Teeheehee!”
“……Was she always like this?”
Choi Jin-ah was taken aback, seeing this side of Seo Ye-rin for the first time.
I also felt a sudden surge of tension and hurriedly grabbed Seo Ye-rin’s shoulders.
“Hey, hey. You have a high tolerance. What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”
Genuinely flustered, I glanced at her glass.
Taking a cautious sip, the characteristically bitter sting of a strong liquor wrapped around my tongue along with its aroma.
It was an addictive bitterness, but.
The kind of alcohol that would be dangerous if you drank too much due to its high proof.
Fortunately, she hadn't drunk much, so it wasn't dangerous. It seemed she had just let her guard down after being tense.
“Why the hell is there alcohol like this here…?”
I wondered why they were serving such strong, expensive liquor at a reunion.
“It’s a tactic a lot of guys use these days,” Choi Jin-ah explained with a dark expression.
“Intentionally feeding people expensive, strong liquor. Getting them drunk so they can do whatever they want… It’s how the scummier guys around here operate.”
I had said I wouldn't drink wine, so the fact that it was here meant one of the staff members had placed it there intentionally.
“They probably ordered a staff member to do it while they stayed in the background.”
“Sigh. Ye-rin, snap out of it. Are you okay?”
“Ugh… Sorry. I was just curious what expensive alcohol tasted like.”
But since it had a strange addictiveness and went down smoothly, she must have kept drinking.
It wasn't Seo Ye-rin’s fault.
If she had known it was an intentional bait in the first place, she wouldn't have even looked at it.
“I should go get something to help you sober up. Is there anything you want?”
“Ice cream?”
“Got it. Stay right here. If some creep approaches you, scream immediately.”
I got up to fetch some ice cream just as intense EDM began blasting from the speakers.
Loud, thumping songs played alongside flashy lights, signaling the start of the shipboard party.
Frowning deeply, I was about to head back to the table with the ice cream when—
“What’s this? Are people allowed to come in wearing clothes like that?”
“Kyahaha! He’s hilarious.”
Two women walked in, linking arms.
Their words and gestures seemed somewhat frivolous, but almost everything they were wearing was luxury goods worth millions of won.
Tsk.
Most girls like this have a symbiotic relationship with the sons of chaebol families.
Like a crocodile and a plover bird, I suppose.
The women get luxury goods, and the men get a living masturbation tool that doubles as a girlfriend.
They were probably someone’s partners for the reunion.
“Aren't people like this the real rich ones?”
“That ‘I don’t need to dress up’ vibe? It actually makes him look more confident.”
The chirping voices of the two women on either side of me were getting on my nerves.
The stench of stale cigarettes every time they spoke made me want to shove the ice cream I’d scooped into their mouths.
I forced my hands free and politely rejected them.
“Get lost.”
Knowing full well they hadn't approached me because they smelled money, I headed straight for the table.
I knew it.
There were already guys approaching Seo Ye-rin and Choi Jin-ah.
They were probably the partners of the women who had just stopped me.
One of them was even sitting in the chair I had been using.
“No, I’m asking why you’re hanging out with a guy like that. If you come with us, we’ll show you a much better time.”
“Jin-ah, who is he? Why did you bring someone like that to the reunion?”
“Did one of our classmates’ families go bankrupt or something?”
“Maybe he’s here to sell insurance?”
Because of my shabby attire, it seemed the two women I was with looked like easy targets.
Great I-seo!
One must dress appropriately for the occasion.
Choi I-seo’s advice was proving right yet again.
Is it you again, Great I-seo?
I’ll give you a kiss when I get back.
Tsk, I did dress a bit too casually.
It was just simple exercise clothes, and not even a normal brand of sportswear, but a knockoff.
They must have thought I was some beggar who came here trying to make something happen using my elementary school connections.
Arriving at the table, I placed the ice cream in front of Seo Ye-rin and scowled.
“That’s my seat. Get lost. And don't hit on my woman. Where’s your common decency?”
I immediately grabbed the guy’s shoulder and pulled him out of the chair.
At that, Seo Ye-rin, who had been pretending to zip her lips, immediately opened her mouth wide.
“Was I allowed to curse?! You reek of cigarettes, so please stop talking toward me! Your breath smells worse than my dad’s!”
Seo Ye-rin shook her head, holding her nose as if she couldn't stand it.
The guy, who had been caught off guard by her bluntness, stood there dazed for a moment before the veins in his neck began to bulge.
“This bitch is acting all high and mighty! And you, you son of a bitch! Do you have any idea who I am?! How dare you crawl in here looking like a local hobo! Is James not managing the guest list properly anymore?!”
As he started screaming at the top of his lungs, eyes began to gather on us.
Fortunately, the DJ was humming and breaking the beats, so only those nearby noticed the commotion.
“Sigh. Ha In-ho, stop it.”
Since Choi Jin-ah knew him, he must be a classmate.
But the guy didn't back down.
“You too, Choi Jin-ah! How long are you going to keep acting so aloof? The rumors are all over the place. That you came here to hook a guy!”
“……”
“If you’re here to find a meal ticket, you should be crawling between our legs or shaking your ass to flatter us! Damn, how can a woman be so clueless?”
“Oh, come on.”
The verbal abuse showed no signs of stopping.
It was getting annoying having him bark right behind where I was sitting.
“If you want to talk, go do it elsewhere. Why are you throwing a fit here?”
When I snapped at him, he turned his target toward me.
“And who are you? Why the hell are you dressed like that here? You probably thought this was just a normal reunion. This isn't just a reunion; it’s a private social club! A place where people at the top don't have to struggle to find others of their own status!”
I feel like I’ve experienced this a few times before.
While it was true that dressing casually was a mistake.
I felt like being looked down upon like this happened far too often.
Like that time I was ignored by the actors at Gold One.
Do I really look that cheap?
“In-ho, this is our classmate, Kim Woo-jin.”
Choi Jin-ah, who had been sighing with her hand on her forehead, introduced me.
“Kim Woo-jin? Who’s that! Who the hell is Kim Woo-jin—!”
Ha In-ho, who had been shouting and pointing a finger at me, froze.
The voices of his friends whispering behind him could be heard clearly.
“Kim Woo-jin? Is it really Kim Woo-jin?”
“He came here?”
“Didn't they say the eldest son there is the successor?”
My family is fairly well-known, I suppose. To think I’d feel how hard my father worked in a place like this.
This unfilial son doesn't cry; he just accepts it and moves on.
“Kim… Woo-jin? You actually… attended?”
“Yeah, I’m here. And who did you say you were?”
I remembered his name, but I asked sarcastically anyway.
I could see Senior Ju-hee approaching, ready to rush over if the guy tried anything stupid.
“What was your name again?”
I was able to take an even stronger stance.
“Ahem, Woo-jin, do you remember me? We used to go buy ramen together all the time back then.”
“Me? With you?”
Ha In-ho suddenly took a humble tone.
More importantly, why does everyone act like we were close and claim something happened between us in the past?
“Back then, you asked me to play baseball, and I got hit in the face by a ball you hit.”
“……Why are these the only kinds of stories I have from elementary school?”
First Choi Jin-ah, then Bong-geun.
Hearing their stories, it seemed I had been a total scammer and a jerk since I was a kid. It felt like I’d only lose out if I heard more stories from the others.
“Just go. You’re annoying.”
I gave them a chance to get lost with a wave of my hand, and they quietly disappeared.
Seeing them join up with the women who had hit on me earlier, it seemed they had indeed been pestering us as part of a plan.
“Even rich kids aren't that different. Their pick-up tactics are so outdated.”
Perhaps because she’d eaten the ice cream, Seo Ye-rin muttered indifferently, having mostly sobered up.
“Really?”
“Yeah. Just looking at him, I bet his junk isn't even a quarter of yours, Woo-jin.”
It was an insult with zero logical basis, but I just laughed and accepted it.
It didn't feel particularly bad.
While the atmosphere between Seo Ye-rin and me was lightening up, Choi Jin-ah’s expression was quite grim.
It was likely because of what that guy had said earlier.
No wonder.
Since such rumors were going around, people must have been constantly staring at Choi Jin-ah.
Waiting for a chance to hit on her.
“Some strange rumors are going around.”
I tried to brush it off as nothing, but she avoided my gaze and replied with a bitter smile.
“They aren't rumors.”
“……”
“My father… he’s the one spreading those rumors because he thinks I’m too passive.”
I didn't know how to respond.
I was momentarily speechless, but at the same time, I felt like I understood a little bit why Choi Jin-ah had invited me here.