Na-eun's Graduation Lunch and Heart-Pounding Resolve
Na-eun had finally finished her graduation ceremony as an adult. She'd returned after handing in her gown and cap at school.
"Now let's go eat something delicious!"
"Yeah, let's go get whatever our daughter wants to eat."
"Seonwoo, come with us too. We'll treat you like our firstborn."
"Ahaha…."
Seung-min had some urgent business come up this morning and couldn't make it to Na-eun's graduation. It felt like they were inviting me to lunch as a stand-in.
"Uh… I'm fine. I've seen Na-eun's face, congratulated her, and even given her flowers."
Na-eun shot me a glare and shook her head at that.
"Oppa might be okay with it, but I'm not. Eat with us!"
"Yeah, and wherever we're going, one more mouth won't cost much anyway."
"Do you have any plans after this?"
I shook my head at the question. My only plan after was heading home to crash and sleep the day away.
Satisfied with my headshake, Na-eun flashed a pleased smile and naturally hooked her arm around mine, squeezing tight.
"Oppa, let's go!"
"Uh… yeah, okay…."
In the end, I had no choice but to join Na-eun's family for lunch.
Not that it was really a chore—deep down, I was looking forward to it a little.
Looking forward to having lunch with Na-eun's family…
More precisely, looking forward to having lunch with Na-eun.
The place Na-eun's parents took us was in our neighborhood, but it was one I'd never seen before.
"Ooh…."
"Dad, how'd you know about this place?"
"Heard it just opened recently, and the food's supposed to be great."
"Welcome~"
A cheerful voice rang out from the kitchen in the back.
Na-eun's family and I headed to a table for four and checked the menu on the kiosk to see what they had.
Udon, donburi, tonkatsu… In short, it was a Japanese restaurant.
"Oh, Japanese food."
"Looks tasty…!"
"Sure does. Good find, honey."
"Haha, everyone pick what you want."
I played it safe and ordered the basic sirloin tonkatsu.
"Playing it safe" might not be the right way to put it. Sure, it was on the cheaper side, but regardless, I always think you should try the staple menu item at any new place.
The basics let you gauge a restaurant's true skill and flavor. Call me a purist.
"Seonwoo, sirloin tonkatsu okay for you?"
"Yes, that'll be plenty."
Honestly, it might even be a bit much. A regular tonkatsu plate isn't huge for me, but this looked oversized.
Still, I'd polish it off. After all, someone else was paying today. When you're treated, you eat every bite politely.
Na-eun hemmed and hawed before settling on udon—spicy udon, which looked plenty appetizing.
But it might be a tad light for her. If needed, I'd share some of my tonkatsu.
For reference, Na-eun's parents got filet tonkatsu and karaage donburi, respectively.
The guys went for tonkatsu, while the ladies each picked a single serving of what they wanted.
Payment done via kiosk, and soon the sizzle of frying started up from the kitchen.
As the sound hit, Na-eun's parents bowed their heads to me in thanks.
"Thank you, Teacher Seonwoo."
"Huh? Suddenly…?"
"I know it's sudden, but we've been meaning to say it properly. Thanks to you looking after our Na-eun so well, she got into a great university."
I shook my head immediately.
"No, not at all. Na-eun was hardworking from the start. All I did was teach her a few tricks and simple study hacks to boost her scores a bit."
"No, if she'd studied alone, she might've burned out midway or collapsed at some point. Your wife and I were always busy and couldn't look after her properly—you stepped in for that."
Was it really like that? I thought they were overrating me.
But I couldn't just bluntly share that opinion with the man thanking me so sincerely.
So I simply nodded and accepted their gratitude.
"…Yes, thank you too. For trusting me."
In turn, I expressed my own thanks.
For entrusting their daughter to me, someone with little tutoring experience.
A warm exchange of mutual gratitude—and soon, our food arrived all at once.
One look, and I knew: this place was the real deal.
Perfectly fried tonkatsu and karaage that screamed delicious, udon with an incredible aroma.
Yeah, worth coming back to. Seriously.
I said my pre-meal grace—"I'll dig in~"—and grabbed about three pieces of tonkatsu.
Then I put them on a side plate and handed it to Na-eun next to me.
"Na-eun, have some of this too."
"Oppa, that's…"
"Just udon might get boring. Doesn't look like it'll fill you up."
"…You don't have to."
She said that, but snatched it right up.
Maybe feeling bad about just taking, she grabbed a small bowl and started scooping some udon into it.
"Oppa, you have some of this too."
"…I'm really gonna eat it."
"Yes, eat it. I can't just take without giving back."
A perfectly reasonable grumble—I nodded and dug into tonkatsu and udon.
The udon from Na-eun was delicious. Incredibly so.
Way better than regular udon. Was the restaurant that good, or did it taste better because she gave it to me? Hard to say.
…Either way, it didn't matter. What counted was that Na-eun had shared her food with me.
After eating, I told my parents,
"Mom, Dad. I'm gonna hang out with Seonwoo oppa today."
"With Seonwoo? Sure, have fun."
"Don't come back too late~ Got it~?"
"Yes…!"
I nodded big and remembered the bouquet Seonwoo oppa had given me, then added,
"Mom, Dad. Make sure to bring the bouquet from the car home…! I'm gonna decorate my room with it!"
"Got it~"
Beaming at Dad's reply, I sidled right up to Seonwoo oppa as naturally as could be.
"Oppa, let's hang out today too."
"Uh… that okay?"
"You don't wanna hang out with me?"
I gave him a slightly petty pseudo-threat, and he averted his gaze lightly, offering an excuse that wasn't quite one.
"No, it's just… I wondered if you needed to hang with friends or something."
What a silly question. Friends matter, but they were graduating too—they'd be with family.
So no reason or need to hang with them now.
"I'd rather hang with you than friends. I like that more."
Seonwoo oppa scratched his cheek awkwardly, then gently patted my head.
"Okay, let's hang out."
That rough, big hand stroking me felt so good.
But even more, my heart started pounding wildly.
Soon. So soon.
A little more time, a bit better mood…
Then I'd confess to Seonwoo oppa.
Tell him the words in my heart.
Nothing stood between us anymore.
Same university, I'm an adult now, and while I hadn't fully confirmed his feelings, I could sense he liked me too.
Above all, no other girl was by his side but me.
Now was the perfect moment. The prime chance to claim the spot next to Seonwoo oppa.
I vowed it to myself over and over.
Confess. Enter his heart. Over and over.
With that resolve, I started having fun with Seonwoo oppa.
There weren't many great spots nearby anyway, so we didn't go anywhere new.
But even the familiar places felt so special and happy with him.
Hoping that happiness would grow, I never left his side. Not for a second.
Not once did Seonwoo oppa act annoyed—instead, he matched my pace, laughing along or stroking my hair, heart-fluttering gestures that made it impossible not to fall for him.