The Hesitant Meeting in the Girls' Bathroom
The soft, steady drip of water echoed from the sink.
In this vast, spotless restroom, just the two of them were present.
For a brief moment, Jin Soyeon and Yu Seolhyeon met each other's eyes.
Then Yu Seolhyeon smiled gently.
That smile carried an inexplicable unease.
Jin Soyeon frowned slightly, her eyebrows drawing together.
Suddenly, Yu Seolhyeon began walking slowly.
*Tap. Tap. Tap.*
Her footsteps rang out softly.
Before long, she approached the sink with deliberate steps and stopped right in front of it.
When Jin Soyeon glanced sideways, all that was visible was Yu Seolhyeon's profile.
Without a word, Yu Seolhyeon opened her lipstick tube.
She applied it casually in the mirror, as if deliberately ignoring her.
“Yu Seolhyeon.”
With the faucet still running, Jin Soyeon raised her voice.
“What are you doing here at this hour?”
“Huh? Ah, just…”
Yu Seolhyeon answered in a light, casual tone, as if it were nothing.
“I wanted to put on some lipstick. And…”
From her plump lips, Yu Seolhyeon pulled the lipstick away, then turned her head slightly to glance at Jin Soyeon with a faint smile.
“…There’s something I wanted to ask you. There aren’t many chances for us to talk alone like this.”
“….”
Jin Soyeon chewed on her words for a moment.
She, too, had something on her mind.
So Jin Soyeon slowly opened her mouth.
“That’s good. I had a few questions of my own.”
“Really? Then you can go first.”
As she capped the lipstick tube, Yu Seolhyeon spoke up readily.
Jin Soyeon decided to raise the topic.
“You know…”
“Yeah?”
“Why did you take Jinhyuk into the dungeon? It’s dangerous.”
“Huh?”
Yu Seolhyeon blinked rapidly.
Dangerously…
She thought about Jin Soyeon’s words for a moment.
If one considered Jinhyuk’s hidden abilities, it didn’t seem particularly dangerous.
“But why?”
“Lacking any supernatural ability and having a messy combat evaluation, Jinhyuk being useful? He’s only good for a bit of brains, that’s all. What help could he be in a dungeon?”
“….”
Yu Seolhyeon fell silent for a while.
What was this?
Was Jin Soyeon testing her?
If not, then…
“Really? I thought he was pretty useful. Personally, he’s helped me a lot.”
“There are plenty of veteran heroes around. What could Jinhyuk possibly add when he’s just another body?”
Jin Soyeon’s expression mixed worry with complaint as she spoke bluntly.
Watching her quietly, Yu Seolhyeon soon tapped her lips with her index finger as if pondering something.
It looked exactly like the frustration of someone who had dragged a weak childhood friend into a dangerous place.
In the blink of an eye, Yu Seolhyeon seemed to have noticed something and spoke up.
“You don’t know anything, do you?”
“Suddenly what are you saying?”
“About Jinhyuk.”
“What about him?”
Yu Seolhyeon’s eyebrows twitched slightly.
She hadn’t expected Jin Soyeon to have no idea about the things he was hiding.
After all, they were childhood friends who had known each other for over ten years. Until recently, they had even been dating.
Over such a long time, Jin Soyeon should have noticed at least some of what he was hiding.
‘Was she hiding everything from Jin Soyeon, too?’
Instead of approaching him furtively to ask about the things he was hiding, she had received a disappointing result.
It was surprising that Jin Soyeon, her childhood friend, knew so little.
For Jinhyuk, who had lost his family, Jin Soyeon was the longest connection.
Even though he had revealed his future-sight ability, Yu Seolhyeon thought.
“Fuu, you really don’t know. Good.”
“Since when have I been saying weird things? What don’t I know?”
What was this?
Was there something she didn’t know?
Jin Soyeon felt a strange, unpleasant feeling rise from the depths of her heart.
It was as if the two of them were sharing a secret that Jin Soyeon didn’t know.
It felt almost like she was deliberately flaunting her relationship with Jinhyuk.
‘I know things you don’t.’
“I wanted to tell you, but I promised not to say anything to anyone else.”
Of course, Jin Soyeon knew that even the closest friends keep some secrets.
That was true for childhood friends as well.
But it was strange that she hadn’t said a word to Yu Seolhyeon about something she could share with her.
If Yu Seolhyeon had really had some ability that could help in dungeon exploration, why hadn’t she said anything to Jin Soyeon?
Knowing full well that Jin Soyeon would worry.
It was just some empty excuse about dungeon entry forms or something meaningless.
Even after they left the dungeon, Jin Soyeon had asked many things, but Jinhyuk had only given vague, uninterested replies.
- People went missing in the dungeon, Yu Seolhyeon asked for help, and after checking the materials, I decided to join because I thought I could help.
- I was brought along because they praised my tactical ability during the training evaluation. In dungeon exploration, that kind of thing is more important than raw strength.
Just vague answers.
She had wanted to dig deeper, but since Jinhyuk seemed hesitant, she hadn’t pressed.
“If you’re that curious, why not ask Jinhyuk directly?”
“….”
“Then it’s getting late. I should go. I can talk to you later.”
“….”
In the end, Yu Seolhyeon nodded alone and ended the conversation.
Since the thing Jin Soyeon had been curious about, she knew nothing about it, further talk was almost a waste of time.
Yu Seolhyeon slowly turned and headed toward the door of the restroom.
Just then.
“You… I don’t like you, right?”
Jin Soyeon’s low voice caught Yu Seolhyeon’s ankle.
“….”
Yu Seolhyeon stopped for a moment, then turned her head back.
Their eyes met.
Jin Soyeon’s gaze was burning with negative emotions.
It was clear she disliked Yu Seolhyeon.
Then what about Yu Seolhyeon?
‘I don’t like her, huh.’
Honestly speaking, it wasn’t that bad.
The fact that Lee Siwoo had only paid attention to Jin Soyeon and made her pride sting a little, but now it didn’t bother her.
Even if she said she didn’t like her, it was closer to ‘dislike’ than anything else.
Yu Seolhyeon soon tried to smile.
“That’s sudden.”
She tried to play it off with a joke.
“Were you worried that our classmates were spreading bad rumors about me? I’m sorry. I couldn’t control them properly.”
She hadn’t just failed to control them; she had secretly encouraged it.
However, she had also promised Jinhyuk not to bother Jin Soyeon anymore, and no matter how much she poked at her, Jinhyuk would probably get annoyed.
So she had decided to change her mind.
Since Jinhyuk, with his future-sight ability, would be very helpful in the future, there was no reason to bother his childhood friend, Jin Soyeon.
But.
“I’ve heard some old rumors about you.”
“Huh?”
“About how you seduced a girl’s boyfriend in junior high because you didn’t get along. Quite a few couples ended up broken up because of it.”
“Ah, well…”
Yu Seolhyeon nodded.
She could have denied it, but she simply accepted it.
There was no need to lie, and she didn’t want to.
“The girls started spreading the malicious rumors first.”
Of course, if one was going to start a fight, it was only polite to accept it.
“So I just smiled at the girls’ boyfriends a few times. There was one girl who dumped her boyfriend and confessed to me. I was shocked too.”
That was why Yu Seolhyeon had said she had just countered it, but to Jin Soyeon, it was nothing more than an excuse.
No matter how one looked at it, she hadn’t deliberately ruined anyone’s human relationships.
Then…
“You approached Jinhyuk for that reason too? Because I, who bumped into you on the first day, didn’t please you?”
“Maybe?”
“Yu Seolhyeon.”
“Hm?”
“You. If you don’t like me, just mess with me. Don’t touch anyone else.”
Jin Soyeon glared at Yu Seolhyeon with sharp, bird-of-prey eyes, her eyebrows sharply furrowed.
A faint hostility could even be felt.
Jin Soyeon, who had always smiled and played nicely with the boys, looked this stern only when it was related to Jinhyuk.
It was as if a mother bird was protecting its chick.
Watching that scene, Yu Seolhyeon felt a small sense of admiration in her heart.
No matter how close they were, after living as lovers and breaking up, they seemed to care about each other so much.
Jinhyuk had even set the absurd condition of ‘not messing with Soyeon’ as the price for helping with dungeon exploration.
If she had asked for more share of the item distribution rights in the dungeon, she could have gained more.
It must have meant they cared about each other that much.
That protectiveness was something Yu Seolhyeon had only ever seen once.
‘…’
Suddenly, her mother came to mind.
The mother who had loved her the most, almost alone.
The family had disliked Yu Seolhyeon very much, but her mother had hugged her until the end.
But after her mother passed away, Yu Seolhyeon…
‘…Why is my mother’s thought suddenly coming back.’
Yu Seolhyeon shook her head to snap out of it.
What had she felt in the relationship of the two people trying to protect each other that made her suddenly think of her mother?
For some reason, or maybe not, Yu Seolhyeon felt her mood rapidly deteriorate.
So she decided to speak.
To wash away this unknown unpleasant feeling.
“You seem to be misunderstanding something. It’s not like that, Soyeon.”
“What?”
“I didn’t approach Jinhyuk with bad intentions….”
Even if I didn’t go as far as to harass him, since we had made a promise, a little playful prank would be fine.
After all, I wasn’t going to lie.
“…Personally, I’m a bit interested in Jinhyuk.”
Interested.
Yes. Interested.
Personally, she was very interested in Jinhyuk’s abilities and the things he was hiding.
She was curious about what he was hiding, and what goals he had.
But Jin Soyeon, how would you take my words right now?
It might not be a misunderstanding? Right?
“Interested? You?”
“Yeah.”
Since it wasn’t a lie, Yu Seolhyeon smiled and nodded slightly.
Jin Soyeon’s eyes widened in bewilderment.
Was Yu Seolhyeon interested in Jinhyuk?
She had thought it was possible, but hearing it directly, she couldn’t easily settle the strange feeling.
What could a rich girl like Yu Seolhyeon possibly lack that made her interested in Jinhyuk?
They had lived completely different lives.
“No, why are you interested in Jinhyuk?”
“Huh? What about Jinhyuk?”
Yu Seolhyeon shrugged and played it off.
“Jinhyuk isn’t that bad. A Union student, smart, and his face… it’s a little disappointing.”
“No, even so, there’s a level to things. What’s lacking with you from the Gaonnuri Clan….”
Ability, family, looks, wealth, environment they had lived through—there was a huge difference.
It was hard to believe, but she thought it was just Yu Seolhyeon’s playful lie.
But that she was actually somewhat interested was undeniable.
“But Soyeon, why are you so bothered? We already broke up, right?”
“It’s because we’re friends. If I got involved with you, there’d be nothing good for Jinhyuk. You’re not good with men.”
“Ah, really?”
Yu Seolhyeon chuckled.
Ah, this was bad. Jin Soyeon’s reaction was pretty entertaining.
You’re not being too obvious, Soyeon? Then her old personality might come out.
But she couldn’t let that happen. There was a promise.
So she decided to stay as gentle as possible.
“If men are bad… isn’t that your problem, not mine?”
“Huh?”
At those words, Jin Soyeon frowned.
What was I? She was saying something that didn’t make sense.
“You’re active, good with both genders, and sociable. You’ve been popular with the opposite sex since before, right?”
“So what.”
“No, just…”
She smiled faintly.
“A girl with many male friends seems to have a hard time as a boyfriend.”
She was looking at Jin Soyeon with a subtle, knowing gaze.
“Imagine a pretty face surrounded by male friends, hanging out together. From the boyfriend’s perspective, it would be pretty annoying, right?”
“What are you getting at?”
“Just… if I were in Jinhyuk’s position, I might feel a bit uncomfortable?”
“You don’t know anything.”
Yu Seolhyeon, who knew nothing about Jinhyuk and Jin Soyeon, was spouting nonsense.
After all, they weren’t the kind of couple that shared sweet love.
After all, their relationship had been fake.
“Didn’t Jinhyuk say he wanted to break up first?”
Yu Seolhyeon’s sudden, unexpected words struck like lightning.
Jin Soyeon’s shoulder flinched at the sudden blow.
“How do you know that?”
“Ah, really? I thought so.”
“You…”
“Soyeon, Jin Soyeon.”
Yu Seolhyeon stepped closer.
Jin Soyeon unconsciously took a step back.
“I heard that after being together for a long time, you broke up smoothly because you could no longer see each other as the opposite sex.”
Yu Seolhyeon just smiled.
“Really?”
“Really?”
“Then, well, there must have been some other reason?”
*Chuckle.* “No, no. I said something unnecessary. Sorry.”
Yu Seolhyeon brushed her hair aside and turned her body toward the sink.
“I thought you broke up because you got tired of me constantly hanging out with other men. With your looks, it was natural you wouldn’t feel like the opposite sex after so long, right?”
“…That’s not possible.”
“Yes. You broke up smoothly, didn’t you? Right, Soyeon?”
“….”
“Then, shall we head back to class? It’s really getting late now.”
Jin Soyeon couldn’t stop Yu Seolhyeon from leaving.
She just watched her back for a moment.
***
“What’s up? Why are you so late? But your luck is good. The homeroom teacher hasn’t come yet. You must have something to do.”
“….”
“Soyeon?”
“….”
Jin Soyeon, who had gone to the bathroom, sat quietly beside me and closed her mouth tightly.
“What’s wrong? Are you still mad?”
“I’m not mad.”
Jin Soyeon denied it with a deliberate tone and let out a deep sigh.
“Jinhyuk, you.”
“Hm?”
“Why did you say you wanted to break up?”
“That? Didn’t I tell you before? I just wanted to have a real relationship once.”
“Yeah…?”
Jin Soyeon showed a complicated expression.
“Why are you suddenly asking that?”
“Just… it came to mind.”
She muttered quietly.
“Just came to mind. Don’t worry about it.”
After that.
Jin Soyeon maintained silence until the homeroom teacher arrived.
She kept her head down, as if she had something on her mind.