Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Booze 2
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After dinner, we each killed some time, and the promised hour drew near.
9 PM, in front of the casual pub by the school back gate. That was So-hye's relayed message. For a meetup with two seniors, picking the time and place so arbitrarily. She was definitely no ordinary underclassman.
I threw on whatever clothes seemed fine and stepped out of my room to find Si-eun already dressed and waiting, ready to head out.
A thin boxy tee paired with tight jeans. Even without trying to dress up, there was something captivating about her. The curves that showed clearly even under the loose-fitting top were downright provocative.
She often wore simple clothes at home, so seeing her like this gave me a strange sense of disconnect.
"What're you staring at?"
"Nothing."
I brushed it off, and Si-eun tilted her head before taking the lead and walking ahead.
I followed behind her.
The streets, now transitioned from evening to night, were already dotted with fairly drunk college students. Thanks to that, no one seemed to properly register the sight of me and Si-eun walking together.
Thinking it was a relief, I kept walking when Si-eun quietly spoke up.
"Making a sudden booze appointment like this. Pretty bold growth for you."
Her tone dripped with sarcasm.
"Unfortunately, I haven't grown at all. The booze plan was set by Han So-hye... that underclassman."
"So-hye, huh."
For some reason, she repeated my words.
"She's got such boundless energy."
"Yeah."
Whether in a good way or bad.
Until this group project, So-hye and I were total strangers. I barely remembered the names of my own cohort-mates, let alone underclassmen.
Despite that, she drags me into a group project, then insists on drinks. For an extreme loner like me, it made me wonder if there was some ulterior motive.
Come to think of it, Si-eun was the department student council president.
"Did you know her before the project?"
"No."
Si-eun shook her head.
"We might've crossed paths at department events, but I don't remember ever talking."
"I see."
That made sense. Our department was huge. Even the student council president couldn't know everyone personally. But with So-hye's personality, it wouldn't be surprising if they were already buddies. It was pretty unexpected.
As the back gate came into view, a question I needed to ask suddenly popped into my head.
"You said you're weak with alcohol, right?"
"Yeah."
"How weak exactly?"
"Hmm. I've never drunk much... but I remember getting sent straight back to the dorms as a freshman."
I couldn't get a read on it. As I hummed thoughtfully, Si-eun turned to me and said,
"Probably fine with just one glass. I can pace myself, so don't worry."
"Alright, then."
If she was saying it so confidently, I'd trust her. Si-eun was responsible enough that I didn't need to fuss over her.
"Ah! Senior Hwi-min! Senior Si-eun!"
We arrived at the spot to see So-hye waving her arms wildly.
"Hey."
"Hello!"
Si-eun and So-hye exchanged cheerful greetings. I just raised my palm in lieu of words.
"You two came together."
"We live next door."
"Ahaha, right."
So-hye beamed before saying, "Shall we go?" and heading into the pub. We followed her inside.
The place was a bar where you paired cheap fries with beer. With affordable drinks and sides, it was popular among broke undergrads and even broke-er grad students.
...I'd heard the rumors, but I'd never been here myself. No one to drink with. A truly pathetic story.
We each ordered what we wanted, and soon personal plates of sides and glasses of beer arrived.
"Senior Hwi-min. How about a toast?"
"Do we have to get all formal?"
"Why not? It'd be fun."
"Then, to the group project~"
"Ahaha. That's so old-man, Senior Si-eun."
After some light banter, we scrapped the toast idea.
"Cheers!"
"Cheers."
"Cheers..."
We clinked glasses and took sips.
So-hye took a few gulps with her small mouth and set her glass down. Her tiny frame chugging booze so boldly looked a bit risky. Sure enough, they'd even checked her ID on the way in.
I had about two sips before setting mine down. I didn't hate alcohol or anything, and I wasn't weak to it, but I had no desire to drink heavily.
Meanwhile, Si-eun had barely touched hers; the level hadn't budged.
"Beer really hits the spot."
So-hye giggled as she said it.
"You look like you should be sipping juice. Didn't expect you to handle it so well."
"Hehe. Right?"
She flashed a V-sign with her fingers and shrugged. Her already sky-high energy got a booze buff on top.
Si-eun smiled endearingly at her.
"You hold your liquor well."
"Yeah. I've trained hard."
"Trained?"
"Ahaha. Truth is, I wanted to make as many friends as possible. Nothing brings people together like booze, right? So I joined every drinking session I could."
"I see."
I chimed in, and So-hye nodded vigorously.
"There's that saying, 'wine reveals the truth.' Alcohol loosens inhibitions, and real thoughts come spilling out. You can't get truly close until you bare your honest selves, right, Senior?"
Hmm. Not everyone wants their secrets dragged out. Laying everything bare could make things awkward instead.
It was ironic coming from a friendless guy like me. I just grabbed some fries.
"By the way, I still don't know you seniors that well. Mind if I ask some questions?"
"Sure. Go ahead."
At Si-eun's okay, So-hye leaned in excitedly.
"Then tell me your birthdays, blood types, and hobbies!"
Sounded like she was prepping a wiki page. I let out a hollow chuckle, but Si-eun smiled demurely and answered politely.
"December 3rd. Type A blood. Hobby... cooking?"
She glanced at me as she said it. Don't look here.
"Cooking? You any good, Senior?"
"Eh~ Who knows?"
She looked my way again. I said don't.
To keep So-hye from getting the wrong (actually right) idea, I crammed some innocent fries into my mouth. Soon the conversation baton passed to me.
"What about you, Senior?"
"May 7th, AB, computers."
"Such a short answer..."
Couldn't help it with questions like that. I just smiled silently when Si-eun quietly asked from the side,
"Your birthday's coming up soon?"
"Soon? Well, it's late April, so yeah."
I only got birthday wishes from my parents and that one friend. Nothing special for me. The auto-emails from websites were small comfort.
My throat felt dry from wolfing down fries too fast. I took a swig of beer, and Si-eun smartly lifted her glass too. So-hye had already emptied hers and was grinning ear to ear.
Gulp, gulp. As I swallowed, So-hye said,
"You two are dating, right?"
I nearly spat out my beer. Barely swallowing it down without making a scene, I met So-hye's eyes. She was still just smiling.
Si-eun set her glass down first with a wry smile.
"What're you talking about? We're not."
I followed suit.
"Don't talk nonsense."
"Senior, denying it hard means you're confirming it."
"Really? Uh, well, maybe? Nah..."
"Can't deny it strongly? Guess it's true."
What did she want me to say?
I had no idea why she'd spring this out of nowhere, but it definitely wasn't true. And it never would be.
I drained the rest of my beer and stated firmly,
"That'll never happen."
"Oh?"
"Obviously."
"Why not?"
I glanced at Si-eun, who was pretending to chug her beer.
Turning back to So-hye, I opened my mouth.
"No reason for a pretty girl like her to date a loner like me."
"Ack, cough."
Si-eun, who'd been sipping, choked. Covering her mouth, she coughed repeatedly before fixing me with an incredulous look.
Meanwhile, So-hye looked mildly surprised.
"Senior, saying that right in front of her."
"Eh, whatever. It's objective fact. She's famous around school too."
If everyone says she's pretty, she is. Separate from my own thoughts.
"Hmm~"
So-hye lifted the corner of her mouth slyly.
"See? Booze brings out the truth."
"Not drunk."
"Could you say that sober too?"
"I am sober. Anyway, point is, she and I aren't dating."
As I wrapped it up, Si-eun pouted.
"Don't say stuff like that. It's embarrassing."
"Uh, okay."
Then she downed her whole glass in one go.
Since she was rejecting it, pushing further would be rude. I'd be careful. ...But was chugging like that okay? Well, she'd said she'd handle herself. Better leave it alone.
So-hye, who'd been watching us, expertly flagged down the server.
"Three more beers, please."
"Coming right up~"
Then,
"Shall we keep chatting?"
she said, her face blooming into a full smile.
What to say. For some reason, it felt like I'd fallen right into So-hye's trap.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "See you next time."
So-hye waved with a bright smile. I raised my hand in return.
"Yeah. Take care."
The drinking session ended earlier than expected.
Obviously, we didn't go full blackout drunk. It was Monday, and we had tomorrow ahead.
I could've skipped classes entirely, but I didn't want to stick around getting wasted. Rather head home and code.
I glanced at Si-eun beside me. She stood there silently, expression blank.
Surprisingly, Si-eun had held her liquor well.
Was her 'weak with booze' line a lie? Like top students bragging about bombing exams back in school. Maybe she'd undersold it while being a lightweight pro.
Yeah. That's what I figured.
"Hey."
"What?"
"Carry me."
"Huh?"
...Until Si-eun suddenly dropped that bombshell in the alley after So-hye vanished.