It's Fine If It's You (1)
I stood in front of the lecture hall door, whispering with Chae-ryeong.
“You’re saying this is your first major class since the day we told everyone we’re dating?”
“Yeah… so honestly, I’m kind of nervous now that I’m hearing it from you. You said the whole department knows, right…”
We were both hesitating, feet refusing to move even though we were supposed to go inside. After all, a department couple was bound to draw attention no matter what. I had a free period, and Chae-ryeong had only taken liberal arts classes until yesterday, so she’d barely interacted with our major. Stepping into this den crawling with our department classmates felt pretty terrifying for both of us.
I asked her, “Wouldn’t it draw even more attention if we walk in together?”
“But if we go in separately, that would look even weirder. Everyone already knows we’re dating.”
“Ugh, whatever. How long are we going to stand here? We decided to make it public at school anyway. Are you not ready?”
“Of course I’m ready. This is all for YouTube.”
“Then let’s go. Now.”
“……Okay.”
After exchanging determined looks, we finally opened the lecture hall door. Better to take the hit quickly. If we were going to be in the spotlight anyway, we might as well get it over with and get used to it fast.
“……”
The moment we stepped inside, the girls who had been chatting before class all turned their eyes on us at once. I could practically feel the topic of their conversation shift to us.
“Hey, look at them…”
“It’s Chae-ryeong and Taeo…”
Envious glances, curious stares—every kind of look brushed over us. Every time I caught our names slipping through the whispers, my body would flinch. The one silver lining was that this class was split into two sections, so we wouldn’t be in the same room as Seo Ye-ji.
The attention was stronger than I’d expected. I leaned over and whispered to Chae-ryeong beside me.
“……This is way more interest than I bargained for.”
“……No kidding. Ahaha.”
It felt like we’d become celebrities. We shuffled awkwardly under all the unfamiliar eyes and claimed seats in the farthest corner possible. At least that way, anyone arriving late wouldn’t spot us right away.
If it had just been me, I probably wouldn’t have gotten this much attention. Even if she acted a bit distant, Chae-ryeong was already close with most of the department. She had the kind of face that drew eyes even when she was doing nothing, and she was so bright and energetic. So of course everyone would pay attention when news broke that someone like her was dating.
“Look at them. They’re dying to come over here. They look like they’re itching.”
“Ugh… yeah. Explaining everything is going to be such a pain… I should’ve stayed quiet like you. I got too excited and ended up chatting with everyone…”
“This is exactly why popular kids are the worst. Tsk tsk.”
Several girls were staring our way with “I’m so curious, I’m dying to know” practically written across their faces. Chae-ryeong gave them an awkward smile and waved. The moment she did, the girls who had been eyeing her like prey broke into bright grins.
Chae-ryeong turned only her eyes toward me, face frozen in terror.
“…Why does everyone’s smile look so scary today?”
“This is what you get for being so friendly. Anyway, break time is going to be fun.”
“Hey! Don’t just watch from the sidelines—help me out! How am I supposed to handle all of them by myself…”
“Hmm, you know, I suddenly feel like grabbing a drink from the café during break. I didn’t sleep much last night, so I could really use an iced Americano. Yep.”
“You jerk. I’m going to tie your legs to the desk so you can’t run away.”
Thankfully, the uncomfortable stares didn’t last long. The professor soon entered to start class.
After a light greeting with the students, the professor dropped the one sentence everyone hated to hear.
“Midterms are coming up soon, aren’t they?”
“……”
“Why are all your faces like that? You look like you’re about to die.”
Is that supposed to be funny, Professor?
Since it was our first exam since starting college, there was a certain level of tension in the air.
“Anyway, as I mentioned before, instead of a written test for the Basics of Video Production course, you’ll be creating one short film as your midterm project according to the curriculum.”
“……”
“You remember the groups we formed last time, right? Starting today, you’ll begin production based on the theory we’ve covered so far.”
The professor projected the group list on the screen and continued the explanation.
“The film should be a short under ten minutes. Theme, subject matter, and genre are completely free. Since you’re freshmen, we won’t require you to use the school’s rental equipment.”
“So we’re shooting with our phones?”
“Yes. The latest models these days are actually quite good for filming. A simple lavalier mic, tripod, or gimbal should be enough.”
“What if we have our own cameras, Professor?”
“That’s fine too. Students with DSLRs or mirrorless cameras may use them. However, we won’t factor the overall video quality into the evaluation, since most of you won’t have access to professional gear.”
It was a pretty reasonable approach. Using accessible smartphones for the project helped freshmen who couldn’t afford expensive equipment or didn’t know how to operate it. Especially iPhones—their filming quality was actually good enough that people submitted festival entries shot entirely on them.
Our group was Group 3. While the Q&A continued at a moderate pace, I scanned the members I’d seen last time.
“……Still, I’m glad you and Yoon Gang-hu are in my group. I barely know the other two.”
“Really? Ha-min and Ga-ram are both nice. I don’t think we’ll have any problems during the group project.”
“This is exactly when it pays off that you’re so popular, huh?”
“Weren’t you just complaining about popular kids a minute ago?”
“Me? When?”
“Shameless.”
I played dumb, stood up, and headed toward the seats assigned to Group 3. Since we were the farthest away, we arrived last. Yoon Gang-hu was already there playing on his phone, while the other two girls were chatting away. But the moment we sat down, all eyes naturally locked onto us.
…Man, this is insanely uncomfortable. Looks like acting really isn’t for me.
“You’re here? The legendary lucky bastard who claimed the department goddess. Yoon Taeo?”
“Shut up and go play your otaku gacha mobile game.”
I immediately countered Yoon Gang-hu’s provocation with a verbal punch. Meanwhile, the girls who had just lightly greeted Chae-ryeong bombarded her with questions.
“Chae-ryeong~?”
“Yoo Chae-ryeong!”
“Yeah? What’s up?”
“Is it true you’re dating Taeo? The rumor spread like wildfire through the department!”
“Ah… yeah… it’s true… it just kind of happened… hehe.”
When Chae-ryeong gave an embarrassed little laugh, the girls squealed with delight. Even the looks directed at me were filled with warmth, which only made me more uncomfortable. I turned my head and pretended to talk to Gang-hu.
“Actually, Chae-ryeong, I always thought you two looked good together, even back when you were just always hanging out.”
“Oh… really? Thanks, Ga-ram.”
“Hehe. Me too, me too. I always thought that. These two insanely attractive people dating? It’d look so perfect~”
“Ha-min, thank you, but I’m way too embarrassed right now… can we please stop… and talk about the movie instead?”
The more Chae-ryeong blushed and squirmed, the more excited the girls got. They were losing their minds over how cute she was. I snuck a glance and had to admit—she really was adorable.
“Yeah, I’d love to keep talking, but sadly we do have to work on the midterm. Right.”
Chae-ryeong shuddered at their lingering, reluctant stares. Still, everyone showed decent self-control, so we were able to smoothly move on to discussing the film.
Ga-ram looked around at the group first and asked for opinions.
“Does anyone already have a scenario in mind? Or at least a direction you’d like the film to take?”
“……Hmm.”
“Everything else can be handled by assigning roles, but the scenario is the most important part. We should aim for something everyone’s happy with.”
From what I could tell, Ga-ram seemed to have a very proactive, leader-like personality. She looked like the type who would naturally take charge no matter which group she was in. Knowing that conflicting opinions were the biggest risk in group projects, she emphasized the most critical part.
Ha-min raised her hand beside her.
“I have an opinion.”
“What is it?”
“I’d really like the genre to be romance, if that’s okay with everyone. What do you guys think?”
She seemed like a typical girl who really enjoyed romance. Ga-ram gave a satisfied smile at Ha-min’s suggestion. Looked like that one would pass easily.
I turned to look at Yoo Chae-ryeong. Not that I needed to—she was the biggest romance addict on the planet. She was the one who suggested turning our vlog into a couple vlog, after all.
“Romance? I’m totally in. I love romance, Ha-min.”
Of course. Like a cat refusing fish. The moment romance came up, Chae-ryeong broke into a huge grin. The three girls seemed to be in perfect agreement, and naturally, all eyes turned to us.
“I’m fine with it too. I watch a lot of romance movies.”
“Really? That’s surprising. You look like the type who only watches action movies with macho guys.”
“Hey, don’t judge people by their appearance, Hwang Ga-ram. I’m actually a very emotional person.”
They must have been somewhat close, because Ga-ram and Yoon Gang-hu traded jokes as they aligned their opinions. I already knew Gang-hu liked romance. He’d pestered me countless times to go watch romance movies with him, and it had always annoyed me.
“Well, we’ve come this far. What else are we going to do? Let’s go with romance.”
I didn’t have any strong preferences, and suggesting anything else seemed pointless, so I nodded. Thanks to Chae-ryeong, I actually knew quite a bit about romance films anyway.
“Okay. Genre’s decided then. Should we brainstorm the scenario together? Or should we assign roles first?”
“Sure.”
“The most important thing is obviously the actors… right…?”
“Probably.”
When Ga-ram spoke, Yoon Gang-hu nodded in agreement and looked around at the group. He had the expression of someone carefully considering who would suit which role. Ha-min, who had been quiet, smiled brightly and spoke as if it were obvious.
“If the genre is romance, aren’t the actors already decided?”
“That’s true. If it were action or noir, Yoon Gang-hu would be perfect, but for romance…”
The two of them exchanged knowing looks and laughed. Chae-ryeong and I, who had no idea who they were talking about, looked at each other and asked at the same time.
“Who?”
When Chae-ryeong asked curiously, the two answered with perfectly straight faces.
“Come on… Chae-ryeong… you know exactly what we mean. It’s obvious. Who in this group could possibly act in a romance?”
And naturally, the three of them—excluding us—turned their gazes straight at Chae-ryeong and me.
“Wait… me and Yoon Taeo?”
At Chae-ryeong’s question, all three nodded as if to say, “What kind of question is that?”
……So even here, I have to do a couple act with her?