Just the Two of Us
"Hyung, you're into Heejung-noona, right?"
The second we stepped out for a smoke, Choi Seongyong hit me with the question.
"Heejung?"
"Yeah. You two looked like you were really hitting it off."
So if Heejung and I got together, he figured that meant he'd have a shot with Lee Jieun?
Not a chance, as far as I could tell.
Anyone with eyes could see Jieun was dodging him. Watching him still cling to that fantasy was almost pitiful.
"Come on, I already told you. I'm not looking to date anyone."
"Oh, right. You did say that. Then, hyung—could you put in a good word for me with Jieun? She's got walls up like crazy…"
So he at least knew about the walls.
"Even if I wanted to help, how?"
"Uh… what about drinking games? Like Mountain After Mountain, or the King Game!"
Is this guy serious…
That was his idea of a wingman assist? I half wanted to crack his skull open and see what was rattling around in there.
"Dude, does that even make sense? Dongmin-hyung's here. How are we supposed to pull that off?"
"Ah… yeah, huh…? Then what should I do?"
"Beats me. I've never tried setting anyone up before. Come up with something that isn't weird like the King Game. I'll help you out."
I had zero intention of helping him—not even a speck—but I fed him the line anyway.
Besides, if having someone push for you was all it took to land a girl, the world wouldn't be full of single people.
"Man, what do I do. Tonight's my real shot…"
"Figure it out yourself. I'm heading back in."
I left him standing there, lost in thought, and went back into the shop first.
Before I reached the room, I ran into Dongmin-hyung in the hallway, phone in hand.
"Dongmin-hyung, what are you doing out here?"
"Ah, Minseok. Perfect timing. I think I need to take off early. I already told the girls, but I figured I'd wait so I wouldn't miss you guys on the way out. I covered everything we ordered, so finish what's left and either move somewhere else or just split whatever you add on."
"What? Stay a little longer…"
"Sorry, sorry. Something actually urgent came up. Have fun—hyung's heading out first."
Between the way he'd been waiting for us and the unhurried set of his back as he walked off, he didn't look urgent at all. If anything, he looked relieved.
Fair enough. Drinking with kids ten years younger than him had to be exhausting. He'd already blown through the company dinner money the boss had given him and even set up the gathering Seongyong had wanted. Dongmin-hyung had done more than enough.
Never mind that the night had somehow turned into a setup for me instead of its original purpose.
Thanks, Dongmin-hyung.
I sent the gratitude silently and stepped into the room—only to find the seating had changed. Cha Heejung had claimed the head seat Dongmin-hyung had just vacated, and Lee Jieun was sitting where Seongyong had been, right beside her.
"You still have time for club activities while you're working part-time?"
"We practice during free periods anyway, and performances are on days off, so it's fine~."
Looks like they'd picked up the club conversation Jieun had started earlier.
I slid naturally into my old seat—now the one next to Heejung—and cut in.
"What kind of club?"
"A band club. Band club. Oh! Oppa, did you run into Dongmin-oppa?"
"Yeah. Said something urgent came up and he had to leave. Apparently he already paid for everything we've ordered so far."
Their glasses were already filled with soju. I reached for the bottle to pour my own, but Heejung snatched it up first and poured for me.
"Ah, thanks."
"But Minseok-oppa, where's Choi Seongyong? Why isn't he back?"
"No idea. Bathroom, maybe? Or still talking to Dongmin-hyung outside?"
"We haven't even touched anything because we were waiting for everyone… Hing… when is he getting here."
Jieun was right—there wasn't a single mark on the side dishes. The drinks had been poured and left sitting.
"Just eat. What are you waiting for~. If we run out, we can order more."
How much could it even come to? Ever since I'd gotten the Sex Coin, my wallet had been doing just fine. A tab like this was pocket change.
"Hehe. Should we?"
"Then how about we all cheers first?"
The "all" in Heejung's suggestion did not include Choi Seongyong.
Ahhh~
Drinking soju with a girl on either side—it went down smooth as anything.
We'd just started picking at the snacks when the door opened and Seongyong walked in.
"Huh? Where's Dongmin-hyung?"
"Oh, Dongmin-hyung had to leave early—said he was busy. You didn't catch him?"
His eyes flicked rapidly over the new arrangement. Heejung at the head of the table, me on one side, Jieun on the other.
Naturally, Seongyong made a beeline for the seat next to Jieun.
"So Dongmin-hyung already left…. Must be pretty busy, huh?"
Filler chatter while he tried to sit down like it was the most natural thing in the world. Not a bad approach, honestly.
"Ugh, cigarette smell… Hey, Choi Seongyong, don't come over here. Go sit by oppa on that side."
But Jieun's walls were absolute.
Caught halfway into the seat, he had no choice but to awkwardly stand back up.
"Ah, is it that bad?"
"Yeah. I really hate cigarette smoke."
I filed away Lee Jieun hates cigarette smell—and then something felt off.
Wait. She hates it that much?
Jieun and I worked the same shifts at the chicken shop. I didn't smoke on the clock, sure, but during snack breaks—when the boss handed out free chicken—I always lit up and sat right next to her while we ate.
Of course a non-smoker would dislike the smell. But she'd never once thrown it in my face like this.
Looking at Seongyong as he slunk over beside me with a hangdog expression, I almost felt bad for him. At the same time, I had to wonder what the hell he'd done to earn this level of rejection.
Before the mood could sour any further, I jumped back in.
"Jieun, you said you were in a band club earlier. Are you the vocalist?"
"Ah, yes! I thought I was pretty good, but after hearing oppa today my confidence is completely dead. Hing…"
"Me too, me too! I've never heard anyone sing that well in my life!"
And just like that, we were back on the subject of my singing.
Having the girls hype me up felt great, obviously—but it wasn't great conversation material. Calling me handsome earlier could pass as a joke. Sitting here agreeing that I sang well would just make me sound like I was fishing for compliments.
The best topic right now was…
"Nah, I'm nothing special. More importantly—maybe I should join a club next year too."
Lee Jieun was a current college student; Cha Heejung was a third-time exam taker about to start. University and club talk was guaranteed to interest both of them.
And the blond punk sitting next to me? High school dropout. Middle-school graduate, basically.
"Huh? Oppa, you're a college student?"
"Yeah. On leave right now, but I'm planning to go back next year."
And I was a first-year dropout on hiatus. What a perfectly chosen subject.
"Wait, really? I had no idea. Oppa, which school?"
"Me? Nobel University, right up the road. Have I never mentioned it?"
I hadn't. Honestly, I'd been thinking about quitting for good—what was the point of a degree?—until the Sex Coin showed up and I decided to re-enroll.
Dongmin-hyung probably didn't even know I was a student on leave.
"Whoa! For real, Nobel University?"
I'd said it without thinking, but Heejung reacted like I'd dropped a bomb.
Nobel wasn't exactly a prestigious school. I couldn't figure out why she was so worked up—until Jieun spoke up.
"Huh? Heejung-unnie, didn't you say you got into Nobel University this time too?"
"Mm-hmm! Starting next year, Minseok-oppa is my sunbae!"
So the school Cha Heejung had finally gotten into after three attempts was my university.
My chest ached a little at that.
Three years of studying… just to end up at our school…
Not that Nobel was a bad place. Roughly a second-tier CSAT score. But that was about all it was. Spending three years just to get in felt like… a lot.
"Wow, oppa, you must've been good at studying!"
"What's college like? Wait—oppa, what's your major?"
Questions kept coming—how was campus life, what was the atmosphere like—but I didn't have much worth telling. I'd finished freshman year and gone straight into the military, and even that one year had been a blur of games and a girlfriend. Academic probation both semesters, bailed out by summer and winter sessions. That pretty much said it all.
I couldn't exactly be honest, so I fudged and padded and kept the stories vague. Even that was enough to keep the conversation rolling.
"I'm two years older than the other freshmen—what if they freeze me out?"
"Nah. Back when I was there, we had a guy two years older and everyone got along fine. As long as you don't act like some stuffy old man, you're good."
"She's right. We've got a noona three years older in my department and we all hang out just fine."
The three of us kept chatting warmly while Seongyong, next to me, did nothing but knock back drinks.
At this point I almost wondered why he was still here.
Well… at least he's not causing a scene. Silver linings?
By the time four empty soju bottles stood on the table, our conversation finally ran dry.
And as if he'd been waiting for exactly that moment—
"Want to play a drinking game?"
There it was. He still hadn't given up, even after what I'd told him earlier.
Right—I'd said it wouldn't work because Dongmin-hyung was here.
Either way, the timing wasn't bad. One bottle each, a pleasant buzz settling in, and a natural lull in the talk.
"What kind?"
Heejung took the bait first.
I half expected him to suggest something stupid like the King Game, but he wasn't quite that dumb.
"Hmm, something like Bunny Bunny, or Hunminjeongeum?"
That was fine. I was about to agree when Jieun, glancing at her phone, spoke up first.
"Ah, I'm really sorry, but I think I need to head out. My oppa says he's coming to walk me home."
Coming to pick her up—her actual older brother?
Surely not a boyfriend… right?
Heejung asked the question I couldn't quite get out.
"Your real brother?"
"Yeah. He says he's already here. Unnie, I should go. Oppa, I'll see you later. Seongyong—bye~."
Jieun stood first, and the mood shifted into something awkward. Even Seongyong, who'd just proposed the drinking game, watched her leave and started fumbling for words.
"Uh… I should get going too. Tonight was fun."
It clearly hadn't been fun for him at all. Empty words.
So this was how the night ended? It had felt like something was about to happen, and the disappointment hit hard.
Still, I couldn't exactly suggest a fourth round with just the two of us…
"Well… Heejung, should we call it a night too?"
"What? There's still soju left. Where do you think you're going. Oppa, you don't even look tipsy yet."
Whether she'd read the regret on my face or not, Cha Heejung came through with the perfect suggestion.