Chapter 60: Drunk Customer
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 60: Drunk Customer
‘Ah, augh!’
Seo Ye-rin’s voice trembled so much that it cracked. Her face flushed bright red with embarrassment, but the audience seemed to take it well.
At least, there wasn't any major commotion.
In fact, some people were shouting about how cute she was, but even that made her feel shy.
Fortunately, Choi I-seo gave her a reassuring look from the side, allowing her to calm down and focus on finishing the song.
“Yes! That was the performance by the four students from the English Department! Everyone, a big round of applause, please!”
At the MC’s shout, the crowd cheered and clapped.
In the distance, the English Department’s pub booth was visible, and they were screaming the loudest of all.
‘I-I’m never doing that again!’
Regardless, she felt like she was going to die of embarrassment.
Just as she was starting to regret letting the seniors talk her into this, the MC walked toward her with the microphone.
“Now that we’ve seen the performance, we have to do an interview, right? Actually, there’s something I’ve wanted to ask since the moment I saw you.”
The MC stood before her with a bright smile and asked, “Which agency are you a trainee at?”
“Huh?!”
Startled by the question, Ye-rin blinked, but the MC continued with his smooth banter.
“No, really. I’ve been to many festivals, but I’ve never seen someone this beautiful. You’re even prettier than some of my celebrity colleagues!”
“Oh, a-ah, yes. Thank you.”
Ye-rin felt herself shrinking from the attention. However, the MC kept the energy up and asked with a grin, “Have you ever been scouted by an entertainment agency? Yes or no?”
“Ahaha.”
She gave an awkward laugh. She realized he wouldn't back down unless she answered, and she didn't want to make the atmosphere weird.
“Y-Yes.”
As she squeezed out the answer through her shyness, the MC shouted as if he had gotten exactly what he wanted.
“I knew it! There’s no way they’d miss a gem like this! Don’t pretend you don’t know me when we meet again later! Alright! Next person! Wow! We have another beauty right here!”
Ye-rin felt slightly dizzy, but once the performance and interview were over, she felt much more at ease.
“I heard you came here to promote your pub. And you’re the class rep?”
“Yes, I’m Choi I-seo, the freshman class representative for the English Department.”
Unlike Ye-rin, Choi I-seo exuded composure in both her gestures and speech.
When she responded with a gentle smile, the reaction from the crowd was even more explosive than it had been for Ye-rin.
“Are all the people here today going to be serving?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Man! Now even I want to go. Is there a specific menu item you’re confident in?”
“You have to try the Jeyuk. The guy making it is really talented.”
“Spicy stir-fried pork! Excellent! Any last words for the people coming to the pub?”
Taking the microphone, Choi I-seo cleared her throat with a light cough.
“Please come visit the English Department pub. But no ‘hunting,’ please. It makes things very difficult for our servers.”
Her calm voice was laced with gentleness. The polite request reached the audience in a way that felt comfortable rather than demanding.
“That’s right! No hunting! Everyone here might already be taken! How about you, Class Rep I-seo?”
The MC, clearly liking how well Choi I-seo handled the banter, pushed a bit further.
Despite looking slightly put on the spot, I-seo didn't dodge the question.
“I’m not dating anyone. But there is someone I’m interested in.”
The crowd went wild at that single sentence. Screams and cheers erupted over I-seo’s courage to speak so openly and over the mystery of who had captured the heart of such a beauty.
“Woooooow! Our I-seo really knows how to work a crowd! Alright! Shall we move on to our handsome gentlemen?”
The microphone passed to Ahn Hyun-ho and Han-gang. Hyun-ho was a bit nervous, but Han-gang answered quite skillfully, likely because he had been on this stage the previous year.
“Yes! Everyone! That was the English Department’s stage, filled with handsome men and beautiful women! Next up is…!”
Following the MC’s lead, the four of them headed down. Though their nerves had been frayed, the promotion itself was an undeniable success.
* * *
“Choi I-seo, drop dead.”
The English Department pub became hectic again the moment the four returned from the stage.
The impact of the department’s four "visuals" going out to promote was significant.
As a result, students from the Aviation Operations and Film majors—departments usually known for their good looks—were coming over to check out the competition or just to gawk.
“Choi I-seo, drop dead.”
“Seriously. Just keep your hands moving.”
Hyun-ah, who was assisting me, scolded me while slicing tofu. It was easy for her to talk since she just had to chop things.
“Four more orders of Jeyuk!”
Yoo Ah-rin poked her head into the kitchen entrance to deliver the news. When I furrowed my brows, she just grinned.
“The Jeyuk’s popularity is insane.”
“I’m telling them to change the menu tomorrow.”
“Hurry up, Chef! Everyone’s waiting!”
I almost threw a handful of pork at Yoo Ah-rin when she winked at me with all that aegyo, but I held it in.
I had already used up the portions I’d planned for today. I was currently rushing to use the ingredients I’d prepped for tomorrow, which I’d just hauled out of the TA office refrigerator.
“Choi I-seo, please just drop dead.”
Perhaps she heard me muttering like I was casting a curse.
Choi I-seo walked over from the hall with a sigh.
“I didn't think this many people would show up either.”
“Ugh, Choi I-seo.”
“I said I’m sorry. I’ll buy you something delicious during our break.”
She whispered it softly so only I could hear. I looked at her with an incredulous expression.
“What break? The customers won't stop coming.”
“Ah…”
With customers flooding in to the point where breaks were non-existent, we had no choice but to work straight through.
At my answer, I-seo looked dejected.
‘Well, it’s for the best.’
Honestly, if I were to walk around the festival alone with I-seo, wouldn't it become obvious that I was the person she was "interested" in?
Ahn Hyun-ho had already given the same answer to the same question, and he was currently stealing glances at I-seo.
“That’s a shame.”
I-seo said, staring intently at me. I had a rough idea of what kind of response she wanted.
“Yeah, it is.”
When I gave her a similar answer, she seemed to feel a bit better and trotted back to the hall.
‘…It’s complicated.’
I’d said I had no intention of being a Campus Couple, and I-seo had said she wasn't looking to date right now either.
But these occasional approaches of hers had a tendency to make me feel impulsive.
‘Come to think of it, I need to check out the Physical Therapy Department too.’
Anonymous 90.
Now that I’d found a likely suspect, I wanted to go, but it looked like that would be impossible today.
I let out a sigh and continued working under the nagging of my assistant when—
Crash!
“Kyaaaaaah!”
The heavy, blunt sound of breaking glass was followed by screams.
“You son of a bitch!”
And then came a stream of foul-mouthed swearing. Since I was closest to the kitchen exit, I rushed out to see what was happening.
Tables were overturned in a mess, and the Jeyuk I’d worked so hard to make was splattered miserably across the floor.
Standing over the mess was a male student, huffing and puffing with a soju bottle held upside down in his hand. Opposite him was another male student curled up on the ground, clutching the back of his head as if he’d been struck, and a female student who had collapsed beside him, her legs giving out.
I could tell what was going on the moment I saw them.
The guy with the bottle must have suddenly lashed out. I didn't know the reason, but he needed to be stopped.
His eyes were bloodshot and murderous as he gripped the broken soju bottle. His face was flushed deep red; he was clearly wasted and not in his right mind.
“Was this piece of shit really that good? You bitch!”
The drunkard screamed at the girl next to the fallen man.
“You start dating him right after we break up? Be honest, you were seeing him while we were together, weren't you?!”
“What the hell are you talking about, you psycho?!”
The two of them screamed back and forth. The girl was crying, but she shouted back as if she were being falsely accused.
“E-Excuse me! Just a moment!”
While everyone else was frozen, Choi I-seo, as the class rep, stepped forward.
“Shut up, you bitch! I’m talking here!”
He immediately threatened her with the broken bottle, forcing I-seo to stop in her tracks.
Perhaps it was because I-seo was being threatened.
Before I knew it, I was by her side, grabbing her hand and shoulder to pull her back.
“W-Woo-jin?”
“It’s dangerous. Get back.”
I-seo looked startled to see me suddenly appear from the kitchen. As I moved her behind me, I told her to call the police.
At any moment, he could swing that bottle at the fallen man or the girl again.
“Hey, man. Let’s calm down. You’re only going to ruin your own life like this.”
I raised both hands and approached him with a smile, trying to draw his attention.
“Who the hell are you?!”
As expected, the rage that had been directed at the couple shifted toward me.
He panted, thrusting the bottle toward me and threatening me to get lost.
“Don’t butt into our business! You want your head cracked open too?!”
The guy even picked up another soju bottle with his other hand. If he swung or threw those, it would be a disaster.
It was hard to talk to him because he was beyond reasoning.
That was when I locked eyes with Yoo Ah-rin.
She was tying her hair back with a hair tie and using a pair of scissors to snip a slit into the side of her tight black skirt.
The moment I saw that, I started shouting.
“This is why you got dumped, you piece of shit! You’re really trying to crack heads with a bottle? How embarrassing! I’m actually embarrassed for you, picking up a weapon because you’re a coward! Just cut your dick off! Or did she dump you because you don't have one to begin with?!”
“You crazy bas—!”
Just as the drunkard lost his temper and lunged at me—
Whoosh!
A gust of wind seemed to blow.
With a clean trajectory, Yoo Ah-rin’s foot swept upward and connected perfectly with the drunkard’s jaw.
Thwack!
Just like a scene from a kung fu movie, the drunkard’s head snapped back, and he collapsed sideways onto the ground.
“Phew.”
Yoo Ah-rin smoothly regained her stance. She looked down at the unconscious drunkard once, then glanced over at me.
As she flashed a boastful grin, the crowd erupted.
“Woooooah! Yoo Ah-rin, what was that?!”
“That was so cool!”
“The bottles! Make sure he lets go of the bottles first!”
Cheers broke out all around. I gave Yoo Ah-rin a thumbs-up with a benevolent smile, while thinking to myself:
‘Black skirt and black panties… that’s freaking hot.’