In the Classroom Corner
In the corner of the classroom, Ma Yeonseo sat alone, quietly fiddling with her phone.
“……”
She was already feeling a profound disgust toward school life.
The semester had barely passed the one-month mark, but there was no sign of things improving—and she wasn't hoping for any.
Just attending school felt like a massive waste of time.
It was especially true without Kang Yuchan by her side, where he belonged.
What’s he doing right now, I wonder.
Lately, her mind had been filled with thoughts of Kang Yuchan.
She’d spent most of her days like that for years already, but ever since transferring schools, it had gotten even worse.
She knew it was a serious condition, yet she couldn’t hold back.
Her love was something hard to contain.
…I hope no one’s dared to mess with him while I’m not there.
Above all, she was deeply worried that someone might make a move on him in her absence.
It felt like tossing a naked lamb into a jungle teeming with starving beasts.
If only he were a bit shorter, less handsome, with a rotten personality—that would’ve been ideal.
Better yet, if he were so antisocial he couldn’t even talk to others.
But unfortunately, Kang Yuchan wasn’t that kind of guy.
…I’m so anxious…
Unable to bear the unease any longer, Ma Yeonseo bit her lip and opened a hidden app on her phone.
The screen that appeared had a photo of a woman as its background—none other than Ma Yeonseo herself.
She’d secretly installed a surveillance app on Kang Yuchan’s phone, the one she’d gifted him, just in case.
Because I’m his girlfriend.
Shielded by their relationship, she manipulated the phone as if it were her own, swiftly scanning the logs.
Contacts, messages, app usage times, internet history, even video watch records.
So he watched this behind my back?
Fortunately, aside from a YouTuber’s lookbook he’d viewed the night before, nothing stood out.
That much was forgivable as his girlfriend—she could find it cute, even.
…I miss Yuchan…
And so, once again, Ma Yeonseo quelled her boiling anxiety in her own way.
For now, this method still worked.
But if it got worse… even she couldn’t predict what she might do.
“Here. Volume 1.”
Han Yeoryeon handed me the book she’d promised to finish reading, without me even needing to ask.
I had to praise her for that—except it was drawing everyone’s attention.
Whispers. Whispers.
The students gathered in the classroom shot us subtle glances and stares.
The school’s most popular girl talking to the class loner? Of course it looked intriguing.
I wasn’t thrilled about the spotlight.
“…Thanks.”
We weren’t close enough to chat endlessly, so I figured I’d wrap it up politely.
“Do you like that author, by any chance?”
But Han Yeoryeon fired off a question first.
She might be more sociable than she seemed.
“…Been a fan for a while.”
I’d gotten the book, so no reason to be cold. I answered honestly, and she naturally kept the conversation going.
“I see. It was my first time, but it was so fun.”
“It is.”
“Any other recommendations from her? I wanna read more after this one.”
“What genres do you like?”
“Hmm… Anything not too hard.”
“How about romance?”
“Ah! I love romance!”
She showed genuine interest, clearly no stranger to the library.
And since it was about my favorite author, the words flowed easily.
“Then try Management Tower. It’s my top pick.”
“Management Tower… Management Tower…”
She seemed truly hooked, pulling out her phone to note it down.
She’s got good taste.
This girl had some surprisingly admirable sides.
After borrowing the book from Han Yeoryeon, we started chatting occasionally.
Just about books, though.
For someone like me who barely spoke all day, it was a pretty big deal.
“I stayed up all night reading it yesterday! It was so good.”
“You finished all that?”
“Yeah! It was so exciting, I couldn’t stop midway.”
“That’s why you were so sleepy earlier.”
“Eek! You saw?”
“Your head was bobbing right in front of me.”
I teased, nodding my head, and she laughed sheepishly, hehe.
Han Yeoryeon was much kinder and brighter than I’d thought.
Calm by nature, but she lit up quick on topics she liked.
Our tastes aligned pretty well, and she was straightforward—no pretenses—so talking felt easy.
But the friendlier I got with her, the more uneasy I felt deep down.
It was because of my promise to Ma Yeonseo.
—Any girls talking to you?
—Tell me if anyone does.
—I’d prefer if you didn’t make friends at all. I won’t either.
She didn’t ask as much now that things had settled, but at the start of the semester, it was two or three times a day.
I’d always reassured her not to worry.
But now the situation was tricky.
Han Yeoryeon was a girl, plain and simple.
We weren’t exactly close, but she was still a girl.
To keep my promise, even these casual chats needed reporting.
But…
I hadn’t told Ma Yeonseo about Han Yeoryeon yet.
How do I even bring this up?
It was honestly tough.
If I told her straight, I knew exactly how she’d react.
She’d calmed down lately, but mess this up, and who knows?
I could be dealing with it for the next three years.
Can’t hide it forever, either…
I couldn’t keep silent indefinitely.
This is tricky.
Caught in this untimely dilemma, I racked my brain day after day.
Then, one day, something solidified my resolve.
We were lying side by side on Ma Yeonseo’s couch, watching TV as usual.
“Yuchan.”
“Yeah?”
Ma Yeonseo, fiddling with her phone in my arms, asked softly.
“This her?”
“Huh?”
I glanced at the phone she shoved my way, no big thoughts.
An SNS account was open—a woman’s.
“Hmm…?”
Looking closer, it was Kim Chabin, my old middle school junior.
“Yeah, that’s her. How’d you find it?”
“She liked one of your old posts.”
“…For real?”
I’d made an SNS during my friend-making phase and abandoned it.
No way, really?
Checking my phone in a panic, there it was—a like on an ancient post.
How the hell did she spot that?
Chills ran down my spine as I stared blankly at Ma Yeonseo.
She glanced back with the most nonchalant face and murmured,
“It’s an account you don’t use anyway. Wanna just delete it?”
“…Huh? My account?”
“The photos are all backed up in the cloud. So it’s fine to delete, right?”
It looked like she was asking my opinion, but…
With my street smarts, I knew this was basically an order.
“Uh… I don’t really know how to delete it…”
“I’ll show you. Go to settings.”
“…O-okay…”
In the end, under her “help”—which was really surveillance—I started deleting the account.
And then…
[Really delete?]
I pressed the delete button hard, thinking to myself,
Never gonna tell her. Not ever.
For the time being, keep Han Yeoryeon a total secret.
Time flew by relentlessly, bringing the first midterm exams.
Waiting for the end-of-day bell, I was locked in a staring contest with the gift con from Ma Yeonseo.
“Hmm…”
I thought I’d grown numb to gifts after all this time.
But this one felt different.
A 100,000-won gift card.
Isn’t this basically cash…?
I’d offhandedly mentioned wanting a book but being short on allowance.
Boom—morning gift con, with a message: Can’t match your school schedule, so buy what you want.
Tsk. Can’t not use it…
Ever since accepting her first gift, I couldn’t refuse anymore.
Every polite no triggered her endless nagging—no escape.
And after pricier stuff? How do you turn down a “cheap” gift card?
That’s why they say get the first button right.
…Maybe exchange it for something pricier?
I’d been scrimping my allowance to buy her Vitamin C as payback.
It was tight going, with how fast she burned through it.
“Sigh…”
Sighing over my secret woes, I decided to at least buy snacks with the rest and searched for the bookstore route.
Bus is fastest.
End-of-day bell rang; I rushed for the gate.
“Ow, teacher! Keep this up, I’m calling the cops!”
“I just came to see my kid—why you picking on me…!”
Murmurs. Murmurs.
A commotion outside the gate.
“This is a school! Kids go here! Ain’t you ashamed?!”
“Ashamed of what! What!”
Some drunk had shown up; security was blocking him.
A midday boozehound causing a scene—classic loser.
Wonder whose dad…
I slipped past the noise, aiming for the bus, ignoring it.
“Hey! There she is!”
Then—
“Ya!!”
A student’s name pierced my ears, grabbing my ankle.
“Han Yeoryeon!!”
I’d heard it somewhere before.