What Those Searches Meant

Separate from the matter of her debts, Yeon Byeori’s temperament had always been flat.

In kinder words, composure. In harsher ones, a boring person.

She treated everyone who approached her with interest like water flowing past. And those currents, as a matter of course, grew tired of her manner and drifted away on their own.

So Byeori, as a rule, neither stopped people from coming nor stopped them from going.

Seo Harang was no exception.

If there was anything a little different from the others, it was only this: that Han Jihye—who had written Harang off as someone who would leave eventually, and so had never bothered to take an interest in her junior—kept poking at her for reasons that felt nothing like Byeori’s own.

Beyond that, there was nothing.

Or so she had thought.

Unlike the many juniors and seniors who had come and gone, Seo Harang kept talking to her. Even when Byeori answered with the dullest possible reactions, Harang did not give up. She simply kept going.

So what? The second she sees this, she’ll put distance between us on her own.

It wasn’t as if no one had ever approached her the way Harang had.

Status. A softer place to stand in unit life. There had been people who kept coming close for something they wanted.

And every last one of them, the moment they caught wind of Byeori’s circumstances, had pulled back at once.

Honestly, they’re not wrong. If I were them, I wouldn’t want to get friendly with a girl like this either.

If she had at least made some money off it, maybe. But every bet had gone into the red until the debt piled up.

If it had ended there, maybe. But she was still the idiot who kept going.

Still… if I don’t even do this, I really feel like I’d lose any reason to keep living.

Nothing interested her. No matter what she looked at, no matter what she did, curiosity never stirred. While everyone else got along just fine, she alone felt trapped in a black-and-white world.

Worse still was that she had no will to paint color into that world.

And then one person walked into that black-and-white world of hers.

Harang had clung a little too hard, so Byeori had laid her own shame bare on purpose, hoping it would drive her off. She had even confessed to carrying a massive debt—and the girl had not cared in the slightest.

If anything, her attitude had changed. The sheer meddling determination to save her somehow had been… impressive.

That had sparked a little interest. Maybe she had already been too late from that moment on.

Did she always wear her hair up?

There had been a change in how she looked. Temporary, but still.

…Isn’t she standing a little close?

The distance was close. A cool, lingering scent clung to the bridge of Byeori’s nose and would not leave.

Did she always smile with her eyes this much?

Her expressions had always flipped fast, but lately it felt as if she smiled with her eyes especially often. Especially in front of Byeori.

With a face like that making an expression like that, looking away was impossible even if you wanted to.

I can’t tell what she’s thinking at all.

Separate from how quickly her face changed, Byeori could not begin to grasp the real intent behind all this nonsense.

Not knowing what Harang meant only made her fixate on the girl named Seo Harang even more.

And today’s outing had pushed that fixation to its peak.

As if she had been aiming to move as a pair with Byeori all along, Harang’s behavior had turned even more aggressive.

Is she asking me to look at her? Or wait—don’t tell me Harang is actually into that?

It was entirely possible. Maybe she had been thinking that way for a long time already.

But Byeori still could not be sure. She had heard the words I like you, yet to anyone watching it was clearly still sitting on the line of just a kind senior.

That was what she had believed.

And then.

…How to act foxlike.

What was this supposed to be?

How to catch the eye of someone you like.

What was this?

Subtly drawing attention.

Why was she searching things like this? Why leave a search history like this sitting out with no attempt to hide it?

How to show interest.

Having seen that, she could no longer simply let it slide. Everything Seo Harang had done until now was now ninety-nine percent confirmed to have come from romantic interest—well, same-sex interest, in this case? Either way, a different kind of fondness entirely.

Of course, Yeon Byeori had no idea. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠She did not know that Seo Harang had never thought in that direction at all. She did not know that these results were simply related searches that had popped up under the word foxlike flirting.

Not knowing that, all she could do was stew.

Honestly, I don’t hate it. She’s the kind of person who still comes back smiling even when I quietly push her away and say I’m not interested.

She came closer even knowing Byeori had a serious flaw. No disgust. No reluctance. If anything, she burned with the will to declare, I’ll fix this!

In truth, the game was already over. Definite affection coming from the other person had always been a catalyst that dragged other, secondary feelings along with it.

So then… everything she’s done until now?

Byeori turned the memories over. And she guessed.

Harang did all that because she likes me?

Every time Seo Harang had approached her first. Every approach up through today. All of it because she liked her.

What reason would she even have?

All Byeori had done was accept Harang when she came, smile a little, and react just enough.

…Harang’s been getting a ton of attention from the other girls this whole time.

But it had only been attention. Praise had rarely come back her way. The foundation might have been goodwill, but the focus had always been on the reactions that came out when they teased her.

To someone like that, Byeori’s own manner would have been more than enough to plant that kind of feeling.

Well—she still could not quite understand two people of the same gender holding feelings like that, but.

If Harang really means it that way… what do I do? Seriously?

She did not hate it.

So should they date? No—that was leaping much too far.

From the start, the person she was now was someone who should not be tied to anyone. Who in the world would take home a gambling addict buried in debt?

…Though Harang didn’t seem to care.

A sidelong glance.

Byeori looked at Seo Harang. Off a little ways, she was watching the scenery outside the window.

With her mouth closed and her body still, she looked like she could have been a painting all by herself.

She’s nice when she opens her mouth, too. Bright and cute.

What had she just been thinking?

Byeori quickly shook her head and shoved the thought aside. Her gaze, falling naturally, landed on Seo Harang’s phone again.

The search history she had seen earlier only tangled her thoughts further.

Seo Harang came back.

"Superhuman Yeon Byeori?"

"Hm? What?"

She had called her. The voice was pleasant to hear.

"Is anything making you uncomfortable?"

"No? Not even a little. Why?"

Harang had pointed out how different Byeori looked from a moment ago. She said she hadn’t changed, but she could feel it clearly herself.

As if deciding not to dig any deeper, Seo Harang bit into one of the financiers sitting there.

Had she not brought a fork and knife? That easygoing roughness was charming.

"Ah—hck! I’m so sorry! I started eating first!"

"It’s fine. You bought them in the first place, didn’t you?"

"Th-then, would you like a bite? The one I ate is plain, and the other is Earl Grey. I did put my mouth on this one, but…"

Seo Harang glanced at Byeori, fidgeting. She looked genuinely apologetic. She was kind.

"Superhuman Yeon Byeori, what’s your blood type, by any chance?"

"Blood type? B, but…"

"Ah, then you should be fine to eat it. I’m type B too."

What era was blood type from? Cute.

They were both girls anyway. And Harang didn’t seem to mind. This much should be all right, shouldn’t it?

With that thought, Byeori casually pointed at the plain one Seo Harang was holding.

"I should try the basic flavor first."

"Ah! Understood! Still, just in case, I’ll cut off the part I bit. There’s a disposable fork at the counter over there… huh? Come to think of it, couldn’t I have just cut it from the start…?"

That vacant look. That was cute too.

"It’s fine. I’ll just try it. We’re both girls, and same blood type, right? You don’t really mind either, Harang."

"Ah! That’s right."

Seo Harang answered at once.

You wanted this too, didn’t you, Harang? You like me. Nodding that fast over an indirect kiss… Yeah, this is probably real.

A spectacular misunderstanding, and the perception built on top of it. Now everything Seo Harang did looked loaded with intent.

"How is it?"

"It’s good."

Is she asking how the part she bit tasted? She doesn’t have to ask that fast. I’d tell her anyway. A little cute.

Inside, she was perfectly composed enough to think cute and the rest—yet her eyes would not turn toward Seo Harang.

Byeori’s gaze bored into one spot hard enough to punch through the financier, the plate, and the table beneath.

Fortunately, Seo Harang did not find it especially strange that Byeori’s eyes were not on her.

"Then how about the Earl Grey? I’ll grab a fork right away!"

"Ah, it’s fine. I just bit into the plain one anyway, didn’t I? I can eat this the same way."

She’s quietly telling me to go first, isn’t she? Because earlier I ate the one she’d already bitten.

If that were truly the case, Seo Harang’s slyness would be operating on another level entirely. A woman past twenty putting that much care into an indirect kiss!

I get ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it all now. Closing the distance on the bus, leaving those little openings in what she said—it was all that.

But there was no one to tell Yeon Byeori that those thoughts were ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a misunderstanding. Once the reins slipped, her heart began thrashing every which way without restraint.

She could not understand affection between people of the same gender.

If it’s Harang, though… she’s kind, and pretty, and lively. She could probably shine a little light even on someone dark like me.

She did not stop people from coming or going.

She wouldn’t just vanish all of a sudden, right? After getting my heart this tangled, if she backed off whenever she felt like it, I don’t think I could sit still on my end.

There would never really be anyone who wanted to come close to her.

No. No, that’s not right. Harang is different from other people. She came this close even knowing my shame.

Yeon Byeori was being completely swept away by the humanity of Seo Harang, a person who kept collapsing the common sense she had always held.

"Um…"

A low voice broke through the muttering concentration inside Byeori’s head.

When she turned her eyes that way, a man stood there scratching the back of his head, looking awkward.

"I saw you two from over there a second ago… ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠uh, sorry, but could I maybe… get your number?"

Ah. Right. She understood. If it was Seo Harang, getting hit on for a number like this was more than understandable.

Sorry. Harang likes me, though.

And this was supposed to be the same person who, mere moments ago, had said she could not understand love between women!

"I’m sorry, but I don’t think that’ll work."

"Ah… is that so?"

Even while thoroughly missing the mark, Byeori’s body was honest. She had shut down the man’s request for a number to cut off any possible situation at the root.

"Th-then, would your friend be all right with it?"

Ah. So she had been a target too?

Byeori looked at the man. In truth it meant nothing. Whatever he looked like, she had always blocked this type from the start.

"Leave."

"Ah—uh… yes. Sorry."

But today that firmness had grown even sharper. That was the butterfly effect Seo Harang had set in motion.

And neither of the two sitting here had realized it—that the phone always held in that hand had been left sitting on the table for quite a long time.