Chapter 215: Yesterday's Best Friend, Today's... (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 215: Yesterday's Best Friend, Today's... (2)
The thought of her meeting Kim Do-jin made me remember something I’d completely forgotten.
I had promised to go to an art museum with my younger brother this Saturday.
Seeing the cold expression on Kim Jeong-hun's face, Kim Eun-bi started to panic.
“S-Sorry. I was so out of it, I must have forgotten. Hmph… what should I do?”
Deep confusion was visible in her helpless expression.
Her prior engagement with him, and her promise to Kim Do-jin.
Seeing her face, which seemed to be debating which one to choose, Kim Jeong-hun clenched his fists.
Flames of anger surged within him.
Kim Do-jin. That arrogant, annoying bastard kept getting on his nerves.
He wanted to grab the flustered Kim Eun-bi by the shoulders, shake her, and demand an answer.
Who was she going to meet this Saturday—him or Kim Do-jin?
“…It’s okay. You can forget things sometimes.”
But he couldn’t bring himself to ask.
Because if he did, and Kim Eun-bi chose her promise to Kim Do-jin over him, he felt like he would actually lose his mind.
Kim Jeong-hun forced a smile and spoke as if he were being considerate of her feelings.
“We can go to the art museum next week, so go have fun with Do-jin this Saturday.”
“R-Really…? Is that okay?”
“But you have to promise to go to the museum with me next Saturday, okay?”
“Yay!”
Kim Eun-bi let out a cheer of joy, hugged Kim Jeong-hun, and jumped up and down on the bed.
“Uh-huh! I’ll definitely go to the museum with you next week. I promise!”
His sister's embrace was as warm as ever.
But Kim Jeong-hun's face was colder than it had ever been.
* * *
Winter, with its cheat-code-like simplicity of just throwing on a decent coat over some pants and a shirt to look sharp, was gone. Spring had fully arrived.
Thanks to that, the time I spent in front of the mirror grew longer.
“Just getting dressed is a chore.”
After much deliberation, I got dressed and checked my final appearance in the mirror.
I put on a pair of ripped jeans and a black leather jacket, then styled my bangs to show a bit of my forehead.
“This should be similar enough, right?”
There was only one reason I’d pulled out a leather jacket I never usually glanced at.
It was to create a look as similar as possible to Ryujin’s, who often wore leather.
This way, I could get under both of their skins.
“If I leave now, I should be on time.”
After checking the time, I grabbed only my wallet and phone and left the house.
I decided to leave the car. There was a high chance I’d be drinking today.
I went out to the main road, hailed a cab, and arrived in Apgujeong.
I entered the address she'd sent me earlier into my phone to find my way.
And so I arrived at the restaurant, ‘JJ’.
Perhaps because of its overall casual atmosphere and the fact that every table was in a private room, most of the people entering were young couples.
As I stepped inside, a staff member who had been waiting approached me.
“Do you have a reservation?”
“Kim Eun-bi.”
“Confirmed. I'll show you to your table.”
I followed the staff member up to the third floor.
The room was on the left, at the very end of a long hallway.
“Please enjoy your time.”
Slide.
When I opened the door and went in, I saw two people sitting across from each other at a table.
The room was filled with an awkward atmosphere that made the term ‘best friends’ seem meaningless.
“Ah, Do-jin!”
Both of their faces lit up in response to the sound of the door opening.
“Hello, you two.”
“Uhm… H-Hi, it’s been a while.”
“…Hey.”
Kim Eun-bi greeted me shyly with a blush, while Ryujin greeted me nonchalantly, trying to suppress the twitching at the corners of her mouth.
“How have you both been?”
“Yep! I've been great, hehe.”
“I've been... okay.”
Two completely opposite reactions came from either side of me.
One was impossibly cute, and the other sparked a desire to challenge her.
Let's see how long you can keep up that indifferent expression.
“You must be hungry, right? I ordered a lot of food!”
Kim Eun-bi spread her arms wide to show how much food she'd ordered.
My eyes traveled up and down, taking in her outfit.
A bright one-piece dress, perfect for spring, made her face stand out even more.
“You look great today.”
“Hehe… D-Does it suit me?”
“It looks amazing on you.”
“Thanks. You too, Do-jin…”
Kim Eun-bi's face stiffened slightly as she took in my outfit.
“Y-You look cool, yeah…”
Her tone had a slightly bitter taste to it.
Just as I'd expected, Ryujin had also come today decked out in leather.
Although the styles of our leather jackets were very different, the fact that we were wearing the same material made our outfits look quite similar.
As if we were a couple who had coordinated our clothes.
Not missing the opportunity, I turned my head and spoke to Ryujin.
“You’re in leather again today, Ryujin?”
“…I like it.”
“I see.”
I said it as if I didn't already know, then followed up with words that would make both of their hearts sink.
“Anyone who saw us would think we're a couple.”
“…Not at all.”
Her immediate reply was filled with obvious panic.
She was so flustered that she kept glancing at Kim Eun-bi, who was sitting across from her.
“Why are you overreacting? I was just kidding.”
“B-Because you're saying weird things…!”
You're the one being weird.
There's a reason they say a strong denial is an affirmation.
Reacting more intensely than necessary only invites suspicion.
“You two seem really close…”
As Kim Eun-bi, who had been listening quietly to our conversation, said this with a sullen look, Ryujin waved her hands dismissively.
“We've only met two or three times! What do you mean, close…?!”
Denying it was useless.
Kim Eun-bi already knew that she and I had even kissed.
She was probably getting anxious, replaying that memory in her head.
If things kept going like this, the mood would tilt to one side, so it was time to pay attention to the other side again.
“That's right, Eun-bi. I actually feel a little more comfortable with you than with Ryujin. Maybe because you're my friend's sister?”
“R-Really…?”
Her mood brightened instantly at my words.
At the same time, a sharp glare from Ryujin clawed at my back.
Well, well.
So it was okay for her to deny it, but not for me?
“I'm going to the restroom.”
Ryujin stood up and headed out.
What, was she sulking?
* * *
Having fled to the restroom, Ryujin regretted coming here again and again.
I knew I shouldn't have come.
That line about how she’d regret it if she didn’t come—it was such an obvious, shallow trick, wasn't it?
No… that's not it.
Yes, it was obvious.
The only regret she could have had from not coming was Kim Eun-bi and Kim Do-jin getting closer.
Coming here had been her own choice.
Kim Do-jin had merely thrown her an excuse to act on that choice.
“Haa… what's wrong with me, really.”
She could feel it with every passing moment.
Her relationship with her one and only best friend was slowly falling apart.
A person who made her feel perfectly comfortable and secure just by being with her.
To Ryujin, Kim Eun-bi was that kind of person.
But a moment ago, it had been different.
Until Kim Do-jin arrived, sitting across from Kim Eun-bi had felt awkward and uncomfortable.
It can't go on like this.
Because of her blunt way of speaking and her characteristically indifferent expression, she had always been alone.
Many were drawn to her pretty face and unique aura, but that was as far as it went.
They couldn't overcome the barrier created by her personality and all fell away.
When she was drifting on the periphery, growing used to being alone and feeling lonely, she met Kim Eun-bi.
A person who was the complete opposite of her, someone who didn't just suit the word ‘lovely’ but was the very personification of it.
Her bright personality, which could easily cross any wall, had eventually leaped over Ryujin's own high walls, and they became friends.
A precious friend who had taught her the joy of being with someone.
She didn't want to grow distant from a friend like that.
I can't let myself drift away from my friend over a single guy.
She admitted it.
Kim Do-jin was a man who perfectly hit all her preferences.
The leather jacket she kept tucked away in her closet, saved for a future boyfriend, would look amazing on him.
But she had to give up.
Because he was the first man her one and only friend—a friend who'd never shown interest in guys before—had ever expressed a liking for.
That reason was enough.
It's okay.
There had to be another guy out there somewhere who was her type.
Half the world is men, right?
Consoling herself like this, she organized her thoughts with a breaking heart.
I'll just say something urgent came up and leave right away.
If she left, the two of them could focus more on each other.
If that happened…
“…I won't be alone again, will I?”
She shook her head violently, chasing away the ominous thought that had appeared without warning.
Just because the two of them got together didn't mean she would be left alone.
The number of times she'd see Kim Eun-bi might decrease a little, but… it was fine.
We can't keep meeting this often forever, can we?
It was something she would have to go through eventually.
Graduating, getting a job, dating someone—it was only natural to meet less often.
She shouldn't feel sad or regretful about it.
She struggled to steady her heart, which was rocking violently like a ship on a stormy sea.
Just do it. You can do it.
Repeating it to herself, she lightly tapped her cheeks with both hands and headed back to the room.
The moment she took a small breath and opened the door, both of their gazes fell on her.
She tried to ignore Kim Do-jin's gaze as he stared at her with a wide grin, but the moment she shifted her eyes to Kim Eun-bi…
…she was struck by a shock that made her heart plummet.
Why…?
Kim Eun-bi's gaze, which seemed to ask why she'd come back so soon, looking at her as if she were an intruder, pierced her heart.
Ryujin bit her lower lip to hold back the tears welling in her eyes.
Don't look at me like that.
I came back just to excuse myself, you know.
Do you have any idea what I went through in the restroom to make up my mind…?!
She felt a bitter resentment toward her friend for giving her such a look over a single guy.
“What are you doing? Come on and eat.”
Kim Do-jin gestured to her as she stood there motionless.
It was laughable.
This situation, where her best friend said nothing while the man she was about to give up on was showing her more concern.
“…Right.”
Her mind had changed.
If that's how you're going to be, then I'm not going to hold back anymore.
Excusing herself for her friend's sake, and desperately trying to block her feelings for him.
She vowed to do neither anymore as she walked back to her seat.