Guitar Club (1)
"So sleepy……."
A tedious Monday morning. The air felt especially chilly, probably because the nights had turned quite cold. I dragged my heavy, waterlogged-cotton body up the hill toward the lecture hall. My condition today was the worst.
Mondays were always like this, but today felt particularly awful. The reason was simple: sleep deprivation.
I must've gotten at least three hours……
Last night, my life counter had suddenly extended without any warning. I'd stayed up pondering why that happened, and before I knew it, bedtime had flown by.
I usually tried not to doze off during class, but today seemed unavoidable. The problem was note-taking.
The professor didn't care if we slept or not, so nodding off wasn't an issue in itself…… but I knew he pulled exam questions from lecture notes, tweaking them slightly.
In other words, missing notes meant potentially missing exam problems. In this life, I'd set my sights on studying hard, so I wanted to score well if possible.
What to do.
Of course, I could just borrow notes from a classmate in the same lecture. Out of my close classmates, two were taking it: one was too busy partying to focus on class, and the other was Kim Seo-yeon.
She was the type to pay attention, so normally I'd ask her right away. But how could I say, 'I'm gonna sleep through class and skip notes, so lend me yours'? in this situation?
Future exams versus current fatigue—a real-time dilemma where neither side clearly won out.
That's when someone tapped me from behind.
"Jun-woo. Hey."
"Oh? Hey."
Kim Seo-yeon, in her usual gray hoodie and jeans, waved lightly in greeting.
"What? Why're you staring like an idiot."
"Nah, nothing. Just……."
How boring. She muttered that and spun away.
Her steps seemed a bit quick. Following her up the stairs, her back looked slightly stiff—head down, gaze fixed on the floor.
As I trailed after her, I thought about last night. We'd watched that musical together. I'd figured it was a failure from her reaction, but seeing her today, it seemed otherwise.
There was some effect. Sure, she was still a bit prickly, and her fast pace suggested she wasn't fully over it, but at least she wasn't ignoring me anymore.
Good thing.
One major worry off my plate. I let out a silent sigh of relief.
"Jun-woo, no cookies today?"
As we reached the lecture hall, my slouched classmate spotted me and his eyes lit up. I'd given him the cookies I couldn't give Seo-yeon last time, and he'd gone wild for them.
The fatigue recovery effect is addictive once you taste it.
That hook was almost like cigarettes—feels good when you have it, not intensely withdrawal-y without, but constantly on your mind.
Having smoked in my past life, I knew the feeling well.
Anyway, since we'd sat together last time, I pulled a cookie from my bag.
"Here……."
Thwack.
Lightning-fast grab—before I could blink, the cookie was in Kim Seo-yeon's hand.
My classmate blinked at his empty hand, then turned to her with demanding eyes.
She just shrugged nonchalantly under his glare.
"I didn't get any last week."
"That's not how it works!"
He protested immediately, but it didn't faze her iron-faced expression.
Then her eyes turned back to me, burning with intense desire—like a puppy begging for food.
I shook my head at that fervor and pulled out another cookie.
Thwack.
"Can I take this week's too?"
"Kim Seo-yeon, you—."
"Hey, both of you calm down. Min-ho, yours is here."
The mood was heating up, so I jumped in, handing him another cookie firmly.
Staring him down, I added, "No more of this next time, or I won't bring any."
"……Got it. Thanks for the cookie."
"Kim Seo-yeon, you too."
"……Yeah. Sorry."
They weren't kids I'd been entrusted to babysit with cookies.
I was a bit annoyed, but hey, good things were good. Especially since these were fatigue-recovery cookies—not your average ones. On a tiring Monday, it was understandable if eyes went a little googly.
Especially for Min-ho, tasting a functional cookie for the first time last week.
Still……
"What? Something on my face?"
"Nah, just glanced out the window."
Kim Seo-yeon. Her reaction was suspicious.
She liked cookies, sure, but she'd had them multiple times—not enough to snatch from others, let alone from someone she wasn't close to like Min-ho.
Why the sudden behavior?
Some lingering resentment, huh.
Little revenge play to put me in a spot? Considering what I'd done to her, it was fair enough.
If this cleared her mood, even better for me. After all, I was the one on shakier ground in our dynamic.
That said, a favor was a favor.
I leaned in and whispered, "Seo-yeon, in exchange for two cookies today, can I see your notes later? I'm so sleepy, gonna crash."
"……Sure. I'll show you. Sleep easy, don't worry."
"Thanks."
One last worry solved. I entrusted my back to her and slumped over the desk.
Pillow arms down, the cold desk touch hit with crashing sleepiness, weighing heavy on my eyelids.
"This the place?"
The liberal arts campus club building. Musty old hallway smell mixed with faint, unidentified instrument sounds leaking from closed doors.
Doors plastered with faded posters. I stopped at one with an acoustic guitar sign.
"This should be it?"
I double-checked the address from the message.
Too busy adjusting to school life in the first semester, I hadn't even considered clubs. Now that I was settled and resolved to enjoy university more, I'd decided to join one.
Perfect timing—second semester recruitment period.
While pondering options, I saw a post on All Day Time about the central acoustic guitar club recruitment and filled out the Google Form right away.
Acoustic guitar—the one instrument I'd touched in my past life.
Sure, early on my fingers hurt from endless chords, and no time to continue, so I quit…… but compared to others, I was familiar.
With modest expectations, I opened the door. A wave of old wood smell filled the cramped room.
And on the sofa sat an unexpected person.
"Hi…… Huh? Lee Soo-min?"
"Lee Jun-woo?"
She, strumming her guitar, looked up in surprise.
I was shocked too. Nothing in the original novel mentioned her in the guitar club.
I knew she played guitar, but thought it was band club, not this.
"What're you doing here?"
"I'm a member here. You?"
"Here for the interview."
"Ah…… You're the one who said they were coming."
She nodded slightly, as if recalling, set down her guitar, and grabbed one from the corner, handing it to me.
"Give it a try."
"Suddenly? Okay."
Caught off-guard briefly, I remembered checking 'basics' on the form.
Makes sense for skill check.
"Alright, here goes."
I sat on a nearby chair, guitar on lap, plucked the thick 6th string with my thumb.
Zing—dull resonance through the body to my thigh. Sound seemed in tune enough; no retuning needed.
♩ ♪ ♩ ♪
Confirmed, deep breath, and started playing. Basic repeating rhythm, fingers shifting chords from memory.
Fingers ached quick from disuse. Steel strings felt foreign yet familiar. No calluses yet—notes buzzed midway a few times.
Soo-min watched silently.
The evaluative vibe made me self-conscious.
Ting!
"Ugh—!"
Too aware of her gaze? Note squeaked; I stopped.
Fingers stung immediately. No point continuing; I quit.
"……."
Awkward silence settled in the small room. She tapped the table thoughtfully, eyeing me.
Tension built. Finally, she said flatly,
"Exactly basics."
"Basics, yeah."
"Like, really basics."
"……."
True, but it stung.
Lee Soo-min Playing Guitar (Image)
