#11. Bachelor Pad
#11. Bachelor Pad
[Describe Constant's New Babylon.]
Oh. It's from the presentation. I think I can roughly write something about this.
[What is Deconstructivism architecture and describe the characteristics of American master Frank Gehry's works based on it.]
Ah... I think I attended the class... Fuck...
Should've checked the presentation.
Having received the exam paper, I was just spinning the innocent ballpoint pen round and round, binggeulbinggeul.
The people next to me were all frantically scribbling on their answer sheets, but I just stared at the clock with anxious eyes, looking dazed.
Han Na-eun... I wonder if she's good at studying?
I could see the back of her, sitting a bit far away.
Since she was scribbling something, it seemed like she'd prepared more than me...
If I'd studied even a little, I'd be wracking my brain trying to remember, like casting a spell, but since I hadn't touched it at all, there was no way I'd remember.
In the end, I was the first to hand in my exam paper and waited for Na-eun outside the lecture hall.
And I started thinking about the crisis that would soon hit me.
The first thought that came to mind was, 'Am I a fucking idiot?'
No matter how much of a clusterfuck that day with Na-eun was.
I felt utterly pathetic about myself from two days ago, who couldn't hold back and just slapped her name in as the heroine.
Actually, it wouldn't be weird if Na-eun saw my novel at any time.
She's a full-fledged illustrator for my drawings.
If she read my novel for better illustration work, as the novel's author, I should be extremely grateful.
And yet, I thought of plastering her name right there? I'm crazy. Fucking crazy.
Haa...
By the way, I said let's read it together, but where the hell does she plan to read such an embarrassing novel?
A cafe or restaurant was absolutely impossible.
Dick this, pussy that.
No matter how much love I have for my work, there's a time and place for everything.
I have no idea what she's really planning.
One by one, students who finished the exam started coming out, and when about half had left, Na-eun walked out of the lecture hall.
"Let's go, Oppa."
"Where to?"
"I'm hungry first. Let's eat."
5 PM.
We sat facing each other at a burger joint in front of the school.
She, munching on her burger with her small mouth, looked just like a hamster.
Not wanting to just eat in silence without any conversation, I tried to bring up something.
"Uh... How'd the exam go?"
"No."
A curt reply, like she didn't even want to talk to me.
Well... She's not sitting here to bond with me right now...
She picked up a french fry and asked me.
"And you, Oppa? You left quick."
The fact that she's asking means she doesn't hate me that much...
"If I could've written all the answers, I wouldn't have left that early."
I gave a wry smile and sucked down some cola.
"But anyway, I don't really have much interest in architecture."
"Why? During that final presentation, your model looked pretty and well-made."
"I have to make that well to graduate."
With that, she said nothing more, just stared out the window while picking at the remaining fries.
"Oppa, if you're done eating, let's go."
My tray was already empty except for trash, so I nodded, got up to clean.
"But Na-eun. Something's been bothering me since earlier."
"What."
"Uh... You said you'd help..."
"Yeah."
"Where will you help?"
I wanted to avoid a public execution by holding a reading session in a public place.
Fortunately, her answer wasn't a public place, but it succeeded in flustering me even more.
"My room."
Pardon?
You're inviting me, who's practically an attempted rapist, into your room?
No matter how I thought about it, it didn't make sense.
Does Na-eun not find me scary? Or was that recent mishap no big deal to her?
I couldn't figure out what her intention was in luring me there.
"What's with that face? You weren't thinking of discussing that perverted freak novel in public, were you?"
Na-eun looked at me with eyes full of pity.
"No, not that, but..."
"It's a waste to pay and rent some other quiet place. Just follow me without complaining."
I knew I had no choice anyway, but suddenly a wave of tension hit me.
26-year-old mosol Lee Min-ho.
There's no way I'd ever been in a girl's room before.
When writing novels, I'd searched 'girl's room' on the internet for descriptions and watched a few vlogs—that was it.
In reality. And not just anyone's, but Han Na-eun's room.
Even after getting on the bus, my heart wouldn't calm down.
Sitting next to me, staring at her phone screen, Na-eun's facial features caught my eye.
...Pretty.
Really pretty.
She looks like she'd never draw erotic illustrations...
Her beauty was more like she'd be the model for them.
Noticing my gaze, Na-eun turned her head slightly toward me.
"Why."
"Nothing. Just wondered what you were looking at."
With an awkward expression, I turned my head away.
"Get off at this stop."
Na-eun pressed the bell and stood up.
The place we got off wasn't far from my house.
But unlike my neighborhood full of motels, this area was mostly neat apartment complexes and officetels.
The place we arrived at was a brand-new officetel that looked pretty pricey at a glance.
...HNE Author-nim. You're loaded.
Actually, I could move if I wanted, but my lease still had time left, so I was just living there without much thought.
Living alone, it wasn't inconvenient. And it was cheap.
After entering the password, we got on the elevator together, and once again, her shampoo scent started wafting strongly, just like the other day.
The subtle orange fragrance began stimulating my sense of smell.
And naturally, memories of that day resurfaced, making me struggle hard to suppress the reaction in my lower body.
You crazy bastard. What if you get hard before even going in?
It's only the 9th floor—why does this time feel so long?
Finally, the elevator stopped, and when Na-eun tapped her card key, there was a drrruk as the lock disengaged.
Gulp.
Mom. Dad. Your son is visiting a girl's place for the first time.
Of course, not through normal means, but your son did it!
It was a bittersweet situation, but my heart was pounding.
Entering through the front door, my eyes were inevitably drawn to the clean solid wood flooring.
Both me and Na-eun are architecture majors.
Like it or not, after eating this department's rice for 4 years, you get a rough estimate of the costs involved.
The lighting, the furniture—everything was clearly hand-picked.
She really put a lot of thought into this... Looks expensive too...
"First, wash your hands and sit on the sofa for a bit."
"Okay."
"I'm gonna change clothes, so don't come into the room."
Hearing her say she'd undress made the reality hit me twice, three times harder.
I'm here. For real. In Han Na-eun's room.
I went to the bathroom, washed my hands, and splashed cold water on my face with a mindset to get my shit together.
Get it together, Lee Min-ho.
It was a cute officetel, but this was tiger's den territory.
If I let my guard down and acted like a thug again, I'd get devoured without a chance.
Alright.
Just do exactly what she says, neatly, and get home safe.
We're in a business relationship. Business.
With that mental armor, what was waiting for me when I came out was...
Dolphin pants, one of the classic items that stimulate men's hearts.
A white spaghetti-strap camisole that barely covered her navel.
Na-eun, with her hair tied up, fully exposing her pristine neckline.
"...Come in."
In her outfit that checked off every male fantasy, I felt my brain short-circuit.
Me, putting it in her mouth...
Snap out of it!
Thinking I might get swept up in lust again, I slapped my cheek hard.
Startled by my action, Na-eun approached me.
"What's wrong? Something happen?"
Through the gap in her camisole, a dizzying valley came into view.
Fuck... If we do a novel reading in this state, I might seriously stay fully erect the whole time in this house.
"No, no. Let's go in."
Na-eun was looking at me like, 'What the fuck is this idiot.'
"You okay, right?"
"Yeah, yeah. Let's just get this over with quick."
I pushed her back toward the bedroom.
Han Na-eun's bedroom.
I wonder how many guys have been in here.
I was determined to just do the job and leave, but my eyes naturally scanned Na-eun's bedroom.
White-toned clean wardrobe and storage.
Light pink duvet cover and pillow.
Cute dolls placed by the bedhead.
"...I didn't call you to sightsee, so come here and sit."
Seeing me looking around, Na-eun pulled out a chair and sat me in front of the computer.
"Han Gyeo-ul Author-nim said he'd entrust the next character to me too, so I thought it'd be good to learn more details about the new character's concept and features. That's why I called you, Oppa."
"But couldn't you just read it yourself?"
"You want me to read this fucking long perverted novel all by myself?"
...Lots of people read it.
Tens of thousands follow live every day.
"Then what do you want me to do?"
"The new chapter that went up today. Read this."
"You want me to do a narration?"
"Narrate it, summarize it, whatever—just tell me the story in a way that's helpful to me."
She opened the internet page and started typing in Novel World's address.
As a hit work, the page header featured the latest cover illustration for [I Imprisoned Her], Nam Ga-yeon's.
Clicking on Nam Ga-yeon's picture brought up...
[Han Na-eun (1)]
...Na-eun's expression began to stiffen.