Playing With Two Juniors Still Makes Me an Assa
“Wow, for real—whoa.”
Kim Hayun crossed her arms, looking back and forth between me and Chae Songha with an expression that screamed she was utterly floored.
“No way, Songha! How could you do this to me?!”
At first, I couldn’t make sense of her reaction. What’s going on? Why is she so mad? She was acting like a girlfriend who’d just caught her boyfriend cheating—completely over the top. That’s what I was thinking.
But then she kept going.
“When I asked you to hang out, you ditched me with some lame workout excuse!”
Hearing the rest of it, I could see why she’d jump to that conclusion. Or rather, why she’d feel hurt and misunderstand the situation.
“You were actually out having fun with someone else?”
From Kim Hayun’s perspective, it probably looked like Chae Songha had blown her off with a fake excuse just to grab dinner with me. That was the problem—none of it was true.
“And with this Alpha Male sunbae, no less?!”
“……”
But why the hell was I the Alpha Male sunbae? Seriously. If I’d actually spent the last year and a half walking around with a girl on each arm, maybe I wouldn’t feel so wronged.
Instead, I’d been stuck staring at nothing but scruffy guys the whole time, and only recently started talking to a few girls. Being called an Alpha Male or whatever felt incredibly unfair.
Still, there was something more important right now.
Clearing up Kim Hayun’s massive misunderstanding.
Well… it’s not like it’s a complete misunderstanding.
“Explain yourself right now—no, apologize! Songha!!”
“……”
This clearly wasn’t the first time. Chae Songha, the person being yelled at, simply rested her chin on her hand with the world’s most bored expression and stared off into the distance.
Which meant if I didn’t want every customer and even the staff behind the counter staring at us… I had no choice but to step in and explain.
For the sake of my own dignity, too.
“Hey.”
I cut into Kim Hayun’s interrogation of Chae Songha and slipped in quietly. Her head snapped toward me—whoosh. The wavy brown hair that fell past her shoulders fluttered slightly.
“I think there’s been a misunderstanding. We just happened to run into each other.”
I put special emphasis on the word happened.
Kim Hayun’s eyes narrowed into slits.
“You just… happened to meet?”
“Yeah. You know the gym right in front of here? That’s where we met.”
I jerked my thumb over my shoulder. Just like I said, if you walked five minutes from here you’d reach the gym I go to.
“I was already there working out when she walked in.”
I glanced at Chae Songha and added one more thing.
“By the way, did you used to go to that gym too? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you there.”
I already knew she’d only registered today, but I pretended not to for the sake of a solid explanation.
Chae Songha blinked slowly, then shook her head from side to side.
“No. I used to go somewhere else. I switched to that one today.”
“Oh, that explains it.”
I nodded along. Then I snuck a quick look in Kim Hayun’s direction.
When I’d spoken, she’d looked half-convinced but still skeptical. But after hearing Chae Songha…
“…Huh. For real?”
She seemed to believe her. Her eyes went wide as she glanced between the two of us.
Time to drive the point home.
“She switched for no reason. If she hadn’t, she wouldn’t have run into that weird sunbae earlier.”
“Well… that’s true, I guess. Even if it wasn’t today, something like that would’ve happened eventually. Honestly, it was better that it happened while Sunwoo sunbae was there.”
Chae Songha, who had straightened her posture at some point, lowered her head slightly at my casual remark.
“Thank you for helping me earlier.”
A very polite thank-you. I hadn’t said it to get thanked again, and I had no intention of acting smug about it. But for Kim Hayun’s benefit, I deliberately exaggerated my response.
“Would’ve been a disaster if I hadn’t been there, right?”
“Yes. Thanks to you, it worked out. I’ll definitely return the favor someday, Sunwoo sunbae.”
“Come on, you don’t have to go that far. Buying me this meal is more than enough.”
“Still.”
Chae Songha answered with such dead-serious sincerity that it didn’t feel like we were putting on an act. For a second I even wondered, Is she actually acting? But if even I felt that way, it was probably a good thing. There was no way Kim Hayun would suspect anything.
“……Um.”
That was when Kim Hayun, who had been watching us nervously, spoke up again.
“Did something happen to Songha…?”
She asked the question very carefully.
Okay. She’s bought it.
Feeling confident, I slowly opened my mouth to explain exactly how Chae Songha and I had ended up here.
“Ah, it’s nothing serious, really.”
“……I-I’m so sorry!”
Thud. Kim Hayun bowed so deeply her forehead nearly touched the table. After hearing the whole story, she seemed to realize she’d jumped to conclusions and felt terrible about it.
“I had no idea you helped our Songha, sunbae…! Ugh…”
Right after, she lifted her head a little and let out a small groan. She kept fidgeting with her hands, twisting them together while sneaking glances at us. It was kind of cute—didn’t match her slightly delinquent vibe at all.
Well.
I figured this was enough. After all, she’d been mad at Chae Songha, not at me.
“Shouldn’t you be apologizing to her instead of me?”
Her, obviously meaning Chae Songha.
“……!”
Kim Hayun flinched, then slowly scooted closer to Chae Songha, who was sitting beside her with a blank face.
“…S-Songha. I’m sorry for misunderstanding! Will you forgive me…?”
“No.”
“?!”
Kim Hayun’s eyes widened in shock. Chae Songha, completely unfazed, took another bite of her half-eaten sandwich. Then, while chewing, she added one more thing.
“Apologize to Sunwoo sunbae, not me.”
Chae Songha’s gaze shifted to me. Then Kim Hayun’s eyes rolled over to me as well.
“I-I’m sorry…”
Hmm.
If I told her to apologize to Chae Songha again, we’d be stuck in an infinite loop. It might be funny, but she looked genuinely distressed, so I just nodded.
“Good. Next time, listen to the whole story before you blow up.”
“……Yes.”
Kim Hayun answered in a tiny, shrinking voice. With the face of someone who knew she’d messed up, she wriggled over and clung tightly to Chae Songha’s side.
“……Ahem. But Songha, I wasn’t really angry, okay? I was just surprised.”
Surprised, huh.
“Is it really that surprising?”
It sounded like both an excuse and the truth, so I asked out of genuine curiosity.
“Friends can hang out with other people sometimes.”
Okay, we weren’t exactly “hanging out”—we just ate dinner together. But the point seemed to get across. Kim Hayun, still glued to the expressionless Chae Songha’s side, grumbled.
“Of course I was surprised. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen our Songha with a guy.”
“Hey.”
Chae Songha nudged Kim Hayun with her elbow as if to say shut up. But Kim Hayun ignored the warning and spoke even louder, like she had to get it out.
“No, think about it. A girl who spent all of middle and high school just training and never even dated anyone—and then I see her alone with a sunbae she only met today. How could I not be shocked—ah, ow!”
“……Will you be quiet?”
Chae Songha pinched Kim Hayun’s side. Kim Hayun flailed like a fish on a hook and let out a shriek.
“……”
Never even dated because she was too busy training? That was the most surprising thing I’d heard all day. She clearly hated dressing up, but she was naturally so pretty I figured she must’ve been popular with the guys.
That explains it.
Earlier she’d asked me what people usually do on dates. I thought she was testing me, but she was genuinely curious. She’d never done it herself.
“—Ow! Ow! Okay, okay, I got it—stop—aaaagh!”
Kim Hayun screamed loud enough to shake the whole sandwich shop. Customers and the staff behind the counter started staring at us again.
I got so embarrassed I considered pretending I wasn’t with them, but since we were sitting face-to-face it was pointless. I cleared my throat and tried to stop them.
“People are looking. Can you knock it off…?”
Only then did Chae Songha let go. Kim Hayun, who had literally been attacked in the ribs, gasped for breath, then scurried around to the other side of the table and plopped down right next to me, as if fleeing from Chae Songha.
“Sunbae, what do guys think when they see a girl with a body like that?”
“……”
What was this? Was she badmouthing her friend… or rather, doing it right in front of her? I had no idea how to answer, so I stayed quiet.
Chae Songha, who had been about to take another bite of her sandwich, shot Kim Hayun a sharp glare.
“It looks gross, right? Wouldn’t you rather have someone soft and feminine like me instead of all that muscle?”
At those words, my eyes unconsciously drifted downward. Well… it was true that compared to Chae Songha, Kim Hayun looked a lot more feminine.
Chae Songha had a visibly firm, athletic build, while Kim Hayun had smooth, sleek lines without an ounce of fat. Her waist looked so slim you could probably wrap your hands around it completely.
“……”
What the hell kind of thought was that? I forcefully erased the image from my mind and cleared my throat.
“I don’t know… isn’t that just a matter of personal taste?”
“Ugh, what do you mean personal taste? You have to give a straight answer.”
“No, it really is personal taste. Everyone’s different.”
“Then what’s your type, Sunwoo sunbae?”
Suddenly Chae Songha jumped straight to the point.
…She’s really asking that?
The moment I froze at the unexpected question, Kim Hayun clapped her hands like she approved and turned her whole body toward me.
“Yeah, answer based on your own standards, sunbae.”
Two girls I’d only met today were asking about my taste in women. I’d never experienced anything like this before. Internally flustered, I thought it over.
A firm athletic build or a soft feminine one—which did I prefer?
“I like both.”
Obviously, the honest answer was both.
At my completely sincere reply, Chae Songha’s expression turned strange. Kim Hayun looked momentarily surprised, then the corners of her mouth slowly lifted.
“As expected of Alpha Male sunbae. One girl isn’t enough for you, huh?”
“What do you mean, not enough? I just answered honestly because you asked…”
“Whoa, and he even openly admits he needs to keep at least two irons in the fire!”
“……”
Her skill at cornering people was truly impressive. When I stared at her in disbelief, Kim Hayun—completely unlike the sulky girl from moments ago—beamed at me with a bright smile.
How should I put it… it might’ve been my imagination, but the way she looked up at me reminded me exactly of the expression my nephew had given me when I bought him that transforming robot with eleven modes.
It felt strangely ominous.
I was rubbing my arms because of the weird chill when Kim Hayun suddenly spoke again.
“Oh, right, sunbae. You said you work part-time at a convenience store earlier.”
“Yeah, I did.”
“Where is it?”
It was the same question I’d dodged before by saying it was private. The fact that she was asking for the exact location again felt a little suspicious. But maybe it was because she was staring at me so directly and openly.
“If you go straight that way, there’s a really big convenience store.”
“The one that sells lottery tickets? The one that always has two part-timers?”
“Yeah. You know it? That’s where I work.”
I don’t know why, but the words just slipped out.
“Hehe, I see.”
“……But why do you want to know?”
A question that came a little too late. But Kim Hayun didn’t answer. She just nodded leisurely.
“Got it. See you later, sunbae!”
“……”
What the hell. Why do I feel so uneasy…?