Chapter 10: The (Love) Counseling Club (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 10: The (Love) Counseling Club (1)
*
“By the way, why did you reach out yesterday?”
It was after school. The question suddenly came to mind, so I turned to Shin A-young.
“...Huh?”
“I mean, you wouldn't have contacted me for no reason.”
“Well...”
Shin A-young scanned the room to see if anyone was listening.
The only person nearby was Lee Sol, who was currently dozing off. Everyone else was busy packing their bags to head home, paying us no mind.
Shin A-young covered her mouth with the back of her hand and whispered.
“...I was just wondering if you wanted to play a game?”
“A game?”
“Yeah. Duo queue in LoL. My laptop is a bit slow, but it works.”
Didn't we just part ways after hanging out at the PC cafe? At this point, she might actually be addicted to the game.
“Or are you free today?”
Shin A-young’s eyes held a flicker of anticipation. Unfortunately, today was a Counseling Club day.
“I don't think I can. I have club activities.”
I didn't know when the counseling session would end. Besides, I couldn't exactly ask her to just wait around for me.
“...Really? Well, nothing can be done then.”
“Don't you have club today too?”
While club schedules varied, most of them overlapped. As if confirming my guess, Shin A-young nodded.
“I do, but... I was planning on finishing up early and leaving.”
— “I don't want to go at all... but I can't just blow it off.”
I heard she was in the Drama Club. Until recently, she had attended without a word of complaint, but she’d been acting like this for the past few days.
Something was definitely up. I just didn't know what. No matter how much I could read thoughts, I had no way of knowing things she wasn't actively thinking about.
...Instead, other thoughts were leaking through.
— “Sigh. I want to play LoL, but I have no one to play with...”
Shin A-young’s Mini-Me flopped down on the desk and started rolling around. She looked perfectly fine on the outside, though.
“...What?”
“Nothing.”
Shin A-young gave me a puzzled look at my stare. She looked so normal.
— “Sigh.”
But her inner self wasn't. The Mini-Me let out a long sigh and kept rolling.
— “Sigh, sigh.”
...That was getting really distracting.
“......”
She probably had plenty of people to play with. There were more than a few guys who would come running the moment she called. It was just that none of them approached her with the sole intention of playing the game.
Everyone had a hidden motive. Shin A-young likely felt that too. That was probably why she was asking me—because I just wanted to play the game.
— “Sigh, sigh, sigh.”
Watching Mini-Me Shin A-young sigh made me want to sigh too. Good grief.
“If you’re free after I’m done, we can go.”
— “...!”
At those words, Shin A-young’s Mini-Me bolted upright.
“I’ll finish up and be back soon, so you’d better wait!”
With that, Shin A-young vanished instantly. She cut the conversation short as if to prevent me from taking it back.
“......”
I watched her go, then turned around. I was standing in front of Lee Sol, who was slumped over her desk.
“Hey, let’s go. Time to wake up.”
I repeatedly poked Lee Sol’s cheek. Her bouncy skin immediately sprang back to its original shape. Ji Nuri had said this was the best way to wake her up.
“Hwaaaaam...”
Lee Sol stretched with slow, sluggish movements. Wow, it actually worked. She slowly blinked her eyes open, looking completely dazed with sleep.
“...That’s really bizarre.”
Lee Sol looked at me and said something nonsensical.
“What is?”
“I mean, the fact that Shin A-young is so close to you.”
I thought she was sleeping. Apparently, she had heard our entire conversation while she was dozing. I really couldn't let my guard down around her.
“What’s wrong with being close?”
“It’s just that I’ve never seen her be this friendly with a guy friend before.”
“...Don't a lot of people besides me get along with her?”
“That’s because other kids approach her first. But she’s the one starting conversations with you.”
Lee Sol rested her chin on her hand and looked at me. Her gaze was lethargic, but there was a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
— “...Does she have a thing for plain guys?”
I doubt it.
I silently denied her inner thought. She probably just needed a gaming buddy.
*
“We’re here.”
“Oh, you’re here?”
When I opened the club room door, I saw the Club President and Senior Min-ji moving busily. They were wiping desks and sweeping the floor. It was a much more thorough cleaning than usual.
“Is something going on?”
“We got our first counseling requests of the year. Two of them came in today.”
The Club President handed me two white envelopes. The words Counseling Request Form were written on the covers.
“I thought it would be soon, but this is quite early.”
I’d heard that the first requests usually didn't come in until after April. Compared to previous years, this was several weeks ahead of schedule. Had word of mouth spread among the students?
...Hm? This.
I looked at the numbers written on the envelopes and spoke to the Club President.
“They’re both Level 2?”
“...What are the levels?” Lee Sol asked with a blank expression.
Come to think of it...
“I haven't explained it to you yet.”
Since the first counseling session started so quickly, there hadn't been a chance to explain the system.
“Counseling has a strong professional element to it, after all.”
Senior Min-ji took over the explanation for me.
Scribble, scribble—
She neatly wrote on the whiteboard.
“Ta-da— like this.”
Level 1: Light counseling.
Level 2: Heavy counseling.
Level 3: Professional counseling.
“We created these to distinguish whether it’s something for the school nurse to handle or if we can do it ourselves.”
“Basically, you just need to know that we can only handle up to Level 2.”
Usually, we take on light counseling or topics that students find burdensome to discuss with a teacher. Of course, there are cases where the client specifically asks for the teacher... but these request forms came straight to us.
In other words, it meant they wanted us to handle it because they felt uncomfortable talking to a teacher.
“What kind of cases are they?”
“It’s spring. It’s always the same around this time.”
Then it must be love counseling. To be fair, the club did make quite a name for itself with love counseling last year.
“Since it’s the first one, you two try handling it. Sol, you just stay by their side and observe.”
The Club President intended to leave this task to us. Well, there was no better time than now. Since we had a new member like Lee Sol, it was best for her to learn by doing.
“Let’s start by signing the pledge forms.”
Two sheets of paper were printed out. It was a pledge form stating that we would not disclose the contents of the counseling to anyone. It was fundamentally impossible to open the request forms without signing this.
“Finished?”
“Here.”
I checked if Lee Sol had filled out the pledge form correctly. She was surprisingly good at things like this. Now that the pledges were signed, I pulled the request forms out of the envelopes. I wanted to check the profiles before the clients arrived.
“Let’s see...”
...Huh?
———
Applicant: Kang Han-sol.
Class: Grade 11, Class 3.
Club: Band Club.
———
As soon as I read it, I felt a strong sense of déjà vu. I’d definitely seen this name somewhere. The memory was faint.
“Seung-ho, the client will be here soon.”
“Ah, yes.”
I checked the time at the Club President’s words and realized it was already time. Let’s get ready for the session first.
Knock, knock—
“Yes, come in.”
Slide—
A fairly large guy walked through the door. His name tag was blue; he was a sophomore like me. He looked around restlessly. Most people who entered the counseling room reacted like that. It wasn't like counseling was a common experience for them.
...But.
‘That’s him.’
The male student Ji Nuri had seen and avoided this morning. It felt like I’d gotten involved in something much more troublesome than I’d expected.
“Have a seat wherever you’re comfortable. Do you want something to drink?”
I suppressed my surprise and greeted him with as natural an expression as possible.
“No, I’m fine.”
The client, Kang Han-sol, seemed more interested in finishing the session quickly than having a snack. Since I felt the same way, I got straight to the point as he wished.
“First, could you tell us exactly what’s going on?”
I asked him the question according to the manual. I already knew what was happening because I’d read Ji Nuri’s thoughts... but to the others, I had to act like I didn't know.
“Sigh...”
He opened his mouth after a brief silence.
“Well... there’s someone I like in the same club, and I confessed to her recently.”
Right, this guy had made a move on Ji Nuri. That was one of the reasons she’d been avoiding him since this morning.
“To get straight to the point... I got rejected immediately.”
“......Oho.”
Lee Sol let out a small exclamation. She was already munching on a snack she’d grabbed from somewhere, having become an audience member listening to a romance story. When I glared at her, Lee Sol glanced at me guiltily.
“...Is this not how I’m supposed to do it?”
“......”
When I didn't say anything, Lee Sol covered her mouth with her hand.
“Got it. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
I turned back to the client.
“...Please continue.”
“Uh... right.”
He seemed a bit taken aback but continued speaking.
“Actually, getting rejected is fine since I don't plan on giving up yet, but...”
He hasn't given up.
“The problem is, she said she’s quitting the club now.”
I didn't know that part. The situation was becoming a total mess. Lee Sol’s eyebrows shot up when she heard that.
“...She’s got a real fiery personality.”
I lightly pinched Lee Sol’s arm.
“Ow...! Okay, okay, I really won't say anything...!”
...Did I recruit her for nothing? Ji Nuri’s concerns flashed through my mind again.
“Ahem, shall we continue?”
“...Yeah.”
Kang Han-sol was also impressive; he stubbornly kept talking even in this situation.
“......Anyway. I want to stop her from leaving the club no matter what. I came here to see if there’s any good way to do that.”
I didn't know about that. It wasn't a problem that could be solved simply by holding onto Ji Nuri. This was a much more complicated issue than Kang Han-sol realized.
......
About ten minutes after Kang Han-sol left, the second client arrived in secret.
Kim Sujin, a sophomore from the Band Club.
“There’s someone I like in the same club... but I think he likes someone else.”
She looked at us with a desperate gaze.
“Is there any way to help?”
Kang Han-sol, who likes Ji Nuri.
Kim Sujin, who likes Kang Han-sol.
Ji Nuri, who wants to quit the club because she can't stand it.
...This was why I said it was complicated.
“......”
“......”
My gaze and Lee Sol’s met for a few seconds.
“......Is this by any chance...”
I remained silent at Lee Sol’s suspicion. She sure was quick on the uptake.
“......”
Did that silence serve as an answer? A faint smile played on Lee Sol’s lips. She whispered in a voice only I could hear.
“The Counseling Club is actually a blast.”