Changes in Relationships (4)
In the end, the role I chose was as a child actor in an OTT drama.
Objectively speaking, in terms of screen time, it was the smallest of the three offers. But it was also the one that kept lingering in my mind.
It aligned with my own ambitions, too.
If I screwed it up, it could easily fizzle out into nothing—but that only made me want it more.
The director was someone reliable. More than reliable, actually; his name alone was enough to make anyone nod in recognition.
For a director like that to send a casting offer without even holding auditions, even if it was just for the protagonist's childhood years, wasn't something that happened every day.
The meeting was scheduled right before midterms, but it didn't feel like a huge burden. It wasn't an audition, after all.
It'd probably be similar to the vibe at Nodo Nodo Film Studio when I went for that audition. If anything, that one was just a YouTube channel, so they kept the "audition" label but made it super casual. This time, it'd be a bit more formal.
Anyway, my next project was settled.
This was the library near school, a place I'd frequented back in my first year.
During exam season, it started filling up with students, and sure enough, the crowds had picked up in the last few days.
I was studying alone when I ran into Lee Seol by chance.
More precisely, I glanced up from my book and locked eyes with her—she'd frozen right in front of me, clearly looking for a seat to study.
...Huh.
Lee Seol stood there just as stiffly in front of me.
Ignoring her or averting my eyes felt awkward... And as I was thinking that, she spoke first.
"Hey... can we talk for a sec?"
"...Sure."
And so we stepped out onto the balcony.
She was the one who'd called me out, but once we got there, she hovered by the railing, fidgeting with her fingertips for no reason.
She'd purse her lips, then stop; look up, then down again. It wasn't like her usual self—she was hesitating.
Watching her made it even harder for me to speak up.
How long did we stand like that?
Finally, she opened her mouth in a tiny voice.
"...Sorry."
I could tell it was something she'd wrestled with for ages before saying.
"Last time... I said some really harsh stuff. I didn't mean to go that far."
"Why'd you say it, then?"
"...I don't even know."
"Okay..."
I'd already heard that she'd made up with U Hana, and roughly why it had happened. Intellectually, I got it. I wasn't holding a grudge.
There was no reason not to accept her apology.
Still, what can I say? Things still felt a bit awkward.
We hadn't exactly ended things for good. Sure, she'd acted like we had.
It hadn't been that long since she'd basically ghosted me.
Just a few days, but that gap lingered in this weird, in-between way.
Time would fix it, probably.
I figured standing there longer would just drag out the awkwardness, so I spoke first.
"I'll head back in."
Lee Seol reacted a beat late.
"Oh... yeah."
"Cool."
I nodded once. It felt too stiff, so I tacked on something meaningless.
"Study hard."
"...You too."
I parted ways with Lee Seol awkwardly and returned to the reading room.
Heading to my usual spot, I suddenly spotted a familiar ponytail in the corner of my vision.
Black hair flowing neatly down, tied in a natural half-up style.
Anyone could tell it was Yoon Seo-ha's. Was she studying here too?
As I approached her area, I snuck a glance—to avoid bothering her if she was deep in focus.
Right as I was about to pass by, she looked up, and our eyes met.
Her eyes had a faint lilac tint, and she blinked in surprise. I tipped my cap up a bit and gave an awkward nod.
She clearly hadn't expected it either—her eyes widened slightly as she nodded back faintly, and we passed.
I got back to my seat and dove into studying.
About an hour later, I sensed someone hovering behind me. I paused my pen and turned.
It was Yoon Seo-ha, bag all packed up.
At first, I thought she was just leaving and wanted to say hi since we'd bumped into each other—but no.
She was moving to the seat next to mine.
I glanced past her to where she'd been sitting, and it clicked why she was relocating.
A group of chatty kids had taken spots around her—clearly friends clustering together, not the quiet study type.
They had books open, but they were giggling and whispering.
So she'd tried to move... and spotted the empty seat next to me?
...Why me?
It felt a bit ridiculous, like I was some safe zone. But whatever, I got the situation.
As I processed that, she was already carefully pulling out the chair beside me.
She set down her bag, neatly arranged her books and pencil case on the desk.
I didn't say a word.
After that, we studied like we'd always been there, side by side.
As night deepened, I decided to call it quits.
I stretched my stiff neck, packed up, slung my bag over one shoulder, and stood.
That's when I noticed her—she was packing up too.
The timing was perfect, like she'd synced to me... but nah, Yoon Seo-ha wouldn't stand just because I did.
Probably just time to go. It was pretty late.
Still, pretending not to notice felt off now.
"Heading home?"
She nodded.
So we naturally walked out together in the same direction.
Outside, the night air hit us.
I stifled a yawn as we descended the stairs.
Yoon Seo-ha suddenly veered toward a black sedan parked out front.
Oh... rich kid perks? Parents picking her up?
I had to go a different way from the parking lot, so I turned to say bye.
"See ya."
She pointed at the sedan.
"Wanna ride? I can drop you."
The offer caught me off guard—I blinked, then shook my head.
"Nah, I'm good. Not far."
"Hmm... okay."
"..."
She looked dissatisfied. And that tone? Total reluctant acceptance. No idea how I was reading Yoon Seo-ha's usually stoic face so easily.
But it was clear.
"Alright. See you at school."
She stared at me quietly.
As I turned to go, she spoke again.
"...Coming to the library tomorrow too?"
I half-turned back to her.
"Yeah."
"Got it."
Good, that was her last question.
This time, she turned first.
*
The next day at school. Since Yoon Seo-ha was my desk mate, we crossed paths right away.
But nothing had suddenly changed between us.
Just a word or two.
Right before morning homeroom started, she asked out of the blue,
"You made up with Seol?"
"Huh... how'd you know?"
It hit me late—she was friends with Lee Seol, so of course.
That was the end of our school chat.
Lunchtime rolled around, and I headed to the cafeteria with Seo Jae-hyun and Ji Hyun-su as usual.
My eyes kept drifting to Seo Jae-hyun. After holding back, I finally asked,
"Hate to pry if it's nothing, but..."
He glanced back, walking ahead. His face had been off all morning.
"Something up?"
He looked at me, then gave a bitter smile and shook his head.
That smile didn't suit him—it bugged me more. If he was making that face, it wasn't just a bad mood.
I hesitated on what to say next, but Ji Hyun-su chimed in quietly from the side.
"He said Lee Seol dumped him flat."
"...What? I mean, he's always liked her, so it's not that out of nowhere..."
Seo Jae-hyun had liked her forever; it wasn't shocking.
But Ji Hyun-su shook his head.
"Nah, she drew a hard line. Like, end of story."
"...?"
I reflexively looked at Seo Jae-hyun again.
A hard line—not just rejecting a confession, but cutting ties completely.
...What the hell was going on?
Come to think of it, what happened in the original story around now?
Nothing major, right? This was when relationships were all smooth sailing.
Sports day episode, then midterms coming up. Jang Do-ah was supposed to appear soonish... but she was quiet, probably because of me.
Seo Jae-hyun's mopey profile caught my eye. Couldn't exactly ask a guy looking that down how it went.
Plus, I wasn't fully square with Lee Seol myself yet.
She had been acting weird lately, but blaming it on me didn't fit... The recent drama was U Hana's jealousy, not connected to Seo Jae-hyun.
At least in what I knew.
...So why?
I shut down the deepening spiral.
I'd promised myself a hundred times not to obsess over every little change. The end result wouldn't shift anyway.
My life was busy enough without fixating; I had plenty to focus on.
That was the plan, at least until midterms and the meeting were done. No distractions till then.
I pushed those thoughts aside and eyed Seo Jae-hyun, slumped across from me like a corpse.
"Dude, eat something at least."
He let out a hollow chuckle.
"Not hungry."
"You gotta eat. You gonna survive afternoon classes like this?"
Ji Hyun-su backed me up.
"Skipping makes you look even more pathetic. You're already plenty gloomy."
"That's your pep talk?"
"Not pep—imagine Lee Seol seeing you like this. You trying to win her over with pity?"
"...Wakes me right up."
He muttered reluctantly. For that brief moment, he was back to normal.
That was the best I could do as a friend for now.