Kwon Hee-jung
Running into a fellow student by chance after my afternoon class would've been fine.
But the first thing this guy said the moment he saw me was...
"Don't get too close to her. She's not the kind of person you think she is."
"...?"
He was suddenly telling me not to get close to Han Seorin?
"What exactly do you mean by that? And if we're classmates, why are you taking a freshman class...?"
"I'm retaking it. Anyway, answer me. You spent lunch with Han Seorin two days in a row, didn't you? I heard about it from the others."
"She's our class mentor, isn't she? Besides, I happened to run into her in the hallway two days in a row..."
"What do you mean, 'happened to'? Han Seorin turned down being class president and vice-chair of the department student council, and now she's using her feminine charms on a freshman senior?"
"...?"
What the hell is wrong with this guy?
It was annoying enough that he was giving me unsolicited advice despite this being our first meeting, but now he was casually badmouthing someone who wasn't even here.
"Why are you telling me this?"
I spoke rather stiffly, clearly irritated.
Jung Woojin didn't seem bothered at all.
"You looked like you'd become her prey, so I'm warning you in advance. I learned the hard way that classmates have to help each other survive."
Tap, tap...
Jung Woojin rubbed the back of his neck as though he were my senior rather than my classmate.
His words carried the implication that he'd been through something like this before.
"I still don't understand. Aren't you the one who's mistaken about something?"
"Really? Then answer me one thing. She asked you to get drinks with her too, didn't she?"
"Yeah. At the campus café."
"Didn't she offer to pay first?"
"She felt responsible for her mentee as a mentor, so..."
"She does that with people who aren't her mentees too. Want to hear what happened next? You definitely said it was fine and paid for both of you. Right?"
"No? We each paid for our own drinks."
"See! Han Seorin deliberately offers first so she can pretend to be considerate... Huh? You split the bill?"
"Yeah."
"..."
Jung Woojin immediately short-circuited when faced with an unexpected variable.
If he was going to get shut down that easily, why did he have the nerve to spend all this time badmouthing someone?
"B-But you're the unusual one. Everyone else paid for themselves."
"What do you expect me to do when they volunteered to pay? And what kind of senior accepts free drinks from a junior who's mentoring him?"
"Why are you getting annoyed when I'm trying to warn you because I'm worried about you? Anyway, Han Seorin did ask you to get drinks, right?"
"So what? If she wanted me to let her buy me something, why would she suggest the campus café instead of somewhere better?"
"You've already fallen hard for her, haven't you? You only see things from Han Seorin's side now. Do you even know what 'Engineering Goddess' means?"
"It means the prettiest girl in the engineering department..."
"Normally, girls like that would never be called goddesses, but because they're enjoying an absurd amount of special treatment just for being women, that's what 'Engineering Goddess' means. They're evil women who have never received any attention in their lives, so they take out their resentment through Queen Bee behavior. Surely you understand what I'm saying by now?"
"Can I just attend class? I don't want to end up retaking courses like you."
"Hah!"
Apparently deciding that talking to me was pointless, Jung Woojin grumbled and opened his textbook.
What kind of guy was this?
I didn't know what had happened between him and Han Seorin, but even if there was some history between them, that was their personal business.
Did he really think I'd sit there and listen to that pathetic, long-winded nonsense right in front of a classmate who had only just entered university?
There was no way I should ever become friends with this guy.
Common sense alone told me that someone like Han Seorin couldn't possibly have spent her entire life being ignored and harboring some kind of resentment.
"...?"
Han Seorin. Seorin's resentment.
Just a coincidence, right?
I dragged my exhausted body home.
It wasn't as though I was physically tired. If anything, listening to Jung Woojin's nonsense had simply drained all my patience.
So I opened my bedroom door, thinking I'd just lie down for a while...
Thud...
My bag slipped from my hand without me realizing it.
Sway, sway...
A girl was sprawled facedown on my bed, swinging her calves back and forth.
Her legs were slim yet toned, flowing seamlessly from her thighs.
Her milky-white skin gleamed smoothly under the light.
Below the lifted hem of her dolphin shorts, a teasing glimpse of her lower curves was visible.
Come to think of it, there was even a pleasant fragrance lingering throughout the room.
What the hell was going on?
Had I somehow entered the wrong house?
Or was this one of those classic clichés where a beautiful girl from another world had somehow warped into my room and decided to stay?
"You came home, so why aren't you saying anything?"
Oh, for fuck's sake...
It was Joo Yeonwoo.
The moment he glanced back at me and confirmed who I was, the swelling in my groin subsided with a chill.
"Y-You! What are you doing here? How did you even get in?"
"Through the door."
"Do you think I'm asking because I don't know how people enter through doors? Breaking into someone's house without the owner's permission is a crime!"
"I greeted your mom."
"You should've gotten permission from me, the owner of the room, too!"
"I'm filming a Get Ready With Me."
Clatter, clatter...
As expected, he ignored my critical questions and opened a large makeup pouch, scattering cosmetics across the floor.
So that's what that pleasant fragrance had been coming from.
"Sigh..."
Still, he'd switched into employer mode, so I had no choice but to obediently pick up the camera.
"Today, I'm just getting ready for a quick trip to the convenience store near my house."
Yeonwoo immediately switched into broadcast mode and casually delivered his line.
But why go through a whole Get Ready With Me just to visit a convenience store? Couldn't he just throw on a cap and leave?
But this was another one of Yeonwoo's niche strategies.
He carved out a down-to-earth route that other creators wouldn't bother attempting, all to secure more views.
The fact that tens of thousands of people would actually watch this video and imitate him just to go to a convenience store was honestly depressing.
Tap, tap!
He began his makeup, lightly applying blush.
Apparently planning to spend about three hours at the convenience store, he even took the time to shape his eyebrows and touch up his lips.
"Does this look okay?"
Then, with his usual narcissistic expression, he asked the camera.
His subscribers would probably type things like, 'You're so pretty, unnie!' without having the slightest idea what was going on.
"Does this look okay?"
"Huh? Were you asking me?"
"Who else is here?"
"I thought you were obviously asking the camera... It looks fine."
"I'll have to do it again."
"Do what again? You've already spent this long doing it..."
"You said it was just 'fine.' Then there's no point in uploading the video."
"...?"
And then Yeonwoo really did start swish, swish! pulling out cleansing wipes.
Realizing I had to stop him, I stretched out both arms.
"P-Pretty! You're plenty pretty, so I don't think you need to do it again."
"You're only saying that because you want to finish quickly, aren't you?"
"What do you mean I'm just saying it? You really are fucking gorgeous!"
"Then if you meet me at the convenience store, are you going to ask for my Instagram?"
"I already know your Instagram, so why would I—"
"I'll have to do it again."
"I will! I'll absolutely ask for it!"
"..."
I gave him every answer he wanted.
And yet Yeonwoo still looked thoroughly dissatisfied.
"What else is wrong? I gave you every answer you wanted."
"Have you ever actually asked for someone's Instagram?"
"What are you talking about all of a sudden...? At a convenience store? Who asks for someone's Instagram at a convenience store?"
"So you've done it somewhere other than a convenience store?"
"Do you always go straight to an all-or-nothing argument when things don't go your way? Why are you so extreme?"
"At school? Have people asked for your number?"
"Rather than getting my number, I haven't even received a single private message."
"I don't believe you. Let me see your phone."
"Are you insane? Who are you to look through my phone?"
No matter how much of an employer he was, or even my childhood—no, next-door friend, he had no right to look through my phone.
Yeonwoo knew that too, so he didn't press the matter any further. However...
Glare!
Tremble, tremble...
He silently glared at me as though he wanted to kill me.
His tiny clenched fists trembled nonstop.
This was the moment I had the hardest time enduring.
Because despite the fact that there was absolutely no way it could be true, Yeonwoo kept acting as though he was concerned about my relationships with women.
We went to the convenience store.
I didn't particularly need to buy anything, but we had to maintain the video's continuity.
And yet...
Glance! Glance!
I could feel some disgusting stares repeatedly landing on us.
As expected, everyone was sneaking glances at Yeonwoo's legs through narrowed eyes.
Stare...
One middle-aged man who had come out to buy cigarettes didn't even bother hiding his gaze, staring openly.
I should've known from the moment Yeonwoo decided that dolphin shorts and a padded jacket with slippers were enough because he couldn't be bothered to dress properly.
Unlike me, who had realized the truth too late and stopped looking, those guys would probably never learn it for the rest of their lives.
Slide...
I couldn't stand it anymore, so I moved behind her and blocked their view.
"What are you doing? If you stand that close, my face won't show up."
"I've filmed enough already. According to my calculations, we have more than enough footage."
"..."
The corners of Yeonwoo's lips slowly curled upward.
I hated that too.
Because he knew absolutely nothing, yet somehow it felt as though he knew my true intentions anyway.
Trudge, trudge...
On the way home.
I'd unexpectedly ended up working overtime, but now I could finally relax freely.
"Then, good night."
"..."
I said goodbye in front of my house, but he didn't respond.
Even if this had technically been paid work, couldn't he at least return a simple good-night greeting?
That was just how he was, so I decided not to worry about it.
I went into my room.
And Yeonwoo followed me inside.
"...?"
Something felt wrong.
Hadn't we said goodbye in front of our respective houses?
"Y-You! What are you doing? We finished filming, so why aren't you going home?"
"I ran away from home."
"R-Ran away...? Do you even know what 'running away from home' means? Who runs away from home to the house right next door?"
"I had a fight with Mom. I'm staying here for a while."
Creak!
He opened my closet like it was his own and started looking for a T-shirt to sleep in.
What the hell was he doing?
How could someone claim to have run away from home without bringing a single thing with them?
"You're joking, right? I'll go ask your mom."
"Get out. I'm changing."
"..."
Couldn't he just change in front of me?
As always, he absolutely hated taking his clothes off in front of me.
But that wasn't the problem right now.
Bang, bang, bang!
I immediately went next door and knocked on the door.
"Ma'am? Yeonwoo said he ran away from home. Did you know about this?"
"Really!? Where is he right now?"
"In my room."
"Oh, come on... You scared me! I thought he really had run away. Should I bring you two some snacks?"
"..."
I'd already stocked up on plenty at the convenience store, so it wasn't as though we needed any.
In other words, this wasn't running away from home. He'd simply come over to hang out.
The problem was that I had never invited Yeonwoo over, nor did I want to.
Trudge, trudge...
But if he'd made up his mind to settle into my room, there wasn't much I could do to stop him.
I returned helplessly and opened the door.
"Don't you knock?"
Joo Yeonwoo was lying on my bed, glaring at me from beneath the blanket.
Was I really supposed to knock before entering my own room?
"Yeonwoo? We're friends, so you can come over whenever you want. But at the very least, you should've given me a heads-up..."
"I'm going to sleep."
"Sleep...? Yeonwoo, I'm not the kind of person who gets into bed at nine."
"I'm sleepy... I can't sleep with the light on, so you should sleep too."
"..."
How could someone who had spent all day lounging around at home possibly be sleepy already?
Whatever. I'd put him to sleep first.
Surely he wouldn't complain if I took care of my own business afterward.
"..."
But the moment I thought about lying in the same bed as Yeonwoo, I strangely became thirsty again.
I knew I shouldn't, but before my mind could stop it, my body reacted first.
Pat, pat!
Completely oblivious, Yeonwoo patted the bed, telling me to lie down.
With my eyes squeezed shut as though preparing myself for the worst, I turned off the light and crawled into bed.
Slide...
As expected, the moment I lay down, Joo Yeonwoo rested his head against me.
His soft, fine hair brushed against my neck and ear.
Even though he'd wiped off his makeup, a pleasant fragrance still lingered around his body.
"Um... Yeonwoo? Do you really have to sleep like this?"
"It reminds me of the old days."
"What old days?"
"When my great-uncle passed away and Mom and Dad both went to Daejeon. You and I slept together like this back then too."
"Well, you had school the next day..."
"It's the first time since then that I've slept with you."
"..."
I had merely stated a fact, but suddenly the atmosphere became heavy.
I'd only run over to the house next door and back, yet somehow breathing had become strangely difficult.
We were simply sleeping together as friends for the first time in ages.
We should've spent a while chatting about pleasant memories before eventually falling asleep, neither of us knowing who drifted off first.
And yet my mind was already becoming so clear that I felt as though I'd gotten a full night's sleep.
More importantly, why did he have to bring up that day of all days...?
Bzzzzzt!!
Fortunately, my phone came to the rescue once again.
Since I couldn't feel any vibration against my body, it was probably Yeonwoo's phone...
Rustle!
As expected, Yeonwoo pulled out his phone from beneath the blanket and checked it.
Then his expression, illuminated by the faint glow of the screen, suddenly turned cold.
And then...
Creaaak...
His sharp eyes moved with difficulty, like someone struggling to squeeze the brakes of a bicycle whose cables had gone dry.
Then, in a hollow voice stripped of all intonation, he spoke.
"Who is Han Seorin?"
"..."
Why the hell did you have my phone?