Ice Princess (2)
Though I'd indirectly explored women's bodies through all sorts of porn videos and photos like some sleazy perv, Seonghwan actually preferred SNS posts or internet uploads where girls showed off their own figures over blatant video content.
He got more turned on by stuff that felt real—like it could actually exist around him, without that disconnect from reality.
And among those, he often lurked on the Health Gallery, an online forum.
Truth be told, when he first started at Korea University—the same school as his brother, where comparisons were inevitable—he couldn't stand it. He couldn't fix his plain face, but he figured he could at least build his body. So, with a burst of determination that lasted all of three days, he scoured the internet for advice.
That's when he stumbled onto the Health Gallery while clicking through posts. The first few pages were flooded with guys flexing their muscles in dramatic poses, but as he scrolled further, women started popping up.
Girls in sports bras and short leggings, proudly flaunting their figures. Sure, there were a few who seemed genuinely proud of their bulked-up builds, but most of the women's pics screamed, Look at my hot body and praise it!
Seonghwan, having discovered a new world, went on a binge—ditching porn altogether to comb through the gallery, saving every girl pic he found on his computer.
He knew a lot of those bodies were only possible with filters, but full-body shots of such fantasy-level women were a fresh thrill for a solo connoisseur like him.
One day, deep in his Health Gallery addiction, during a free period at the library where he was supposed to be reviewing lecture notes, boredom got the better of him. He pulled out his phone to browse and relieve some stress.
Hmm... Oh. Yeah. Back in the day, I thought boobs were the ultimate, but lately my convictions are shaking. Whoa. That body's insane. Is it the ass after all? Nah—big, pretty boobs and ass, that's the winner.
Lost in his mid-break gallery dive, Seonghwan had tuned out the world around him.
Thud. Something brushed past him. Startled by the presence, he frantically shut off his phone screen and glanced around.
Squawk!
The Ice Princess—as the upperclassmen always whispered about—his classmate Min Yu-ri, was dumping her bag on the seat next to him and pulling out the chair.
His heart pounded.
No way she saw my phone screen, right?
Seonghwan sneaked a sidelong peek at her expression. Just then, as she arranged her textbooks on the table, Min Yu-ri whipped her head around and locked eyes with him.
Gah. Fuck!
He jerked his gaze away, clutching his racing heart, frozen in place. He swore he could feel her staring.
It's fine... yeah, definitely. My phone's an old model with a tiny screen anyway.
He stayed rigid, staring down at his book for what felt like forever.
Gulp. Act natural...
Pretending to check his phone, he casually brought it to his ear.
"Yeah, Yun-su? Oh, I'm at the library, but heading out now. Yeah, sure."
As he packed up to bolt, a tiny voice murmured.
"...What a showoff."
"?"
Seonghwan instinctively turned to Min Yu-ri, but she was just staring at her own book, silent.
Must've misheard. Anyway, time to escape.
He fled the library in a panic.
After that, he avoided the Health Gallery for a while. He was pretty sure Min Yu-ri hadn't seen his screen, but the embarrassment burned too hot to go back right away.
Of course, that didn't last long.
No way—that was the Health Gallery? Fuck, she really saw it? Please say no...
Gu Hanjin and Park Younghan glanced back and forth between Min Yu-ri and Seonghwan, then asked her what was up.
"What'd you say? Pervy stuff? From Seonghwan?"
"Oho, was he watching porn?"
Fuck... my life.
As Seonghwan despaired, Min Yu-ri added,
"Not porn. Just women's workout photos."
"Huh? Workout pics? And that's pervy?"
"............."
But Min Yu-ri clammed up after that, refusing to elaborate.
Now Seonghwan had to explain, but facing the curious stares of his two sunbaes, his mind went blank—no excuse came to mind.
His savior, as always, was Yesul.
"Seonghwan! Your group's not done yet?"
She approached and called out to him.
"Oh, Yesul. Yeah, we're finished. You guys too? Let's head out together."
Seizing the chance, he tried to slip away behind her.
"Sunbaes, we'll get going. We have plans with other friends."
"Oh? Uh... yeah. See you next class."
"Yep, later!"
Once Seonghwan and Yesul bolted from the classroom, Gu Hanjin, still dazed, turned to Park Younghan.
"Dude, the girl who left with Seonghwan—is she his girlfriend? Whoa, she's gorgeous. Didn't peg him for that kinda player."
Park Younghan gave him a baffled look.
"What're you talking about? You don't know her? We saw her a few times last year too. She hung out with Seonghwan back then. I heard she has a boyfriend—Seonghwan's friend—and they were just close while he was in the army."
"Eh? Still not discharged?"
"Nah. From what Seonghwan said, her boyfriend's the same year as us."
"Right, Seonghwan took a year off, yeah?"
Min Yu-ri, eavesdropping on the sunbaes' chatter, glanced at the door Seonghwan had fled through and scoffed.
"Hmph!!"
"How was your group?"
"Eh, better than the first-year stuff. Good year balance: two third-years including me, one second-year, one first-year. Gender split's even too—two guys, two girls. Perfect."
"Nice. Watch out for the guys during group work, though. Yun-su might get jealous."
"Heh, let him. Anyway, your group? Looked like some familiar faces from before."
"Not 'some'—all of them. Apple crew from back in the day. Ugh, awkward 'cause they're sunbaes too. Bad draw."
"That... girl was there too, right? Super pretty one."
Seonghwan sighed, impressed yet again by Yesul's knack for clocking everyone in his group—and remembering faces—on the spot.
"One '23 freshman. Same year as me, but... she's got no manners? Never even properly greeted me."
"Hmm... but she was stunning. The kind of face that'd hook any guy. I was shocked just from a quick glance."
"Face is top-tier, yeah. Some agency even tried scouting her. But her nickname's Ice Princess. I don't like cold or rude types, you know? I'm not shallow enough to fall for a pretty face alone."
"...Heehee."
Yesul, pleased with his answer, sidled up close with a grin.
"Yun-su should be here soon, right? Class is starting."
"He texted earlier that he grabbed seats in the library... but I couldn't reply 'cause of class."
"Ugh... gotta head to my second lecture now."
"What's it?"
"Intro to Public Admin. Major class. Sucks becoming a second-year—gotta take majors, and I barely know anyone in the department."
"Heh, just focus on the lecture. Lunch together?"
"Hmm........"
Seonghwan hesitated inwardly. Like he'd told Lee Hyun, he didn't want to wedge himself between this couple—or draw side-eyes as the third wheel. Plus, with Yun-su always pushing to get closer to Yesul, his presence felt like a cockblock.
"Play it by ear. I'll text later. Heading to class."
"Cool. Text for sure."
Waving goodbye to Yesul, Seonghwan headed to his major lecture hall, Yun-su's words suddenly crossing his mind.
Does Yesul know about the Incheon pool villa thing? If Yun-su mentioned it, she'd have said something to me by now. Radio silence.
What a clueless couple, he thought. Hot guy, hot girl—both top 0.1% brains who aced into Korea University. If it were him, he'd be all over each other and hate any intruders, yet they kept dragging him into their bubble.
Maybe I should make it official with Sunbae Yumi...? Nah. Mincheol-sunbae would beat my ass, and rumors of stealing his girl would trash my college life.
He flashed back to his first day at Korea University—his dad cornering him that morning with threats.
"Korea U's the best in the country, right? Forget just studying—build connections. Got it? That's your real asset later. Be like your brother: earn respect on campus. Don't cause trouble. It'd hurt him too. Understand?"
Translation: Behave, or it'll embarrass your brother.
That brother's the one who got wrecked in the student council election scandal, though.
Seonghwan never snitched. Even if he'd pretended to be nuts and spilled, he'd just look like a petty little brother badmouthing hyung.
Without Dad's not-so-subtle pressure, he never would've repeated a year to get here. Dad had shoved him into Social Sciences like his brother for econ, but Seonghwan saw zero reason to follow that path.
Dad's growing company, heir brother waiting in the wings. Seonghwan knew there'd be no spot for him.
So he'd picked Public Admin to dodge the clash.
Lost in thoughts, he entered the major lecture hall. Students were already chatting, bonding, showing off connections.
Back row, back row. Thank parents for the good eyes.
Wanting to blend in, he claimed a rear seat and quietly opened his book.
A few nearby glanced over, but nothing intense.
Phew. Good. This is how you adapt. Major class—no group work probably.
Thud. A book hit the seat beside him as someone strode up to sit.
Hm...? Huh? Uh? Ack? Gah?!
Black, thick long hair cascading to her chest, skin whiter than snow—a girl was settling in next to him, organizing her bag.
Min Yu-ri?? Fuck, why here?
Stunned, Seonghwan gawked. Feeling his stare, Min Yu-ri turned.
"What? Something to say?"
"............Why're you here?"
"Ha! It's class time."
"Aren't you econ? This is Public Admin major."
He waved his Intro to Public Admin textbook. Min Yu-ri eyed it, then lifted hers and shook it back at him.
"What does this look like?"
".......You changed majors?"
She ignored him, prepping her pens like it was a hassle.
Transfers after freshman year? Our school's strict on that.
Her sudden appearance irked him, but her picking his seat? Worse.
Thanks to you, I'm screwed.
Guys' eyes were already swarming their way. Plenty knew her from the faculty. Min Yu-ri was infamous at Korea University.
Idol-surpassing looks, tall and sleek figure. An aloof aura that kept others at bay. Early freshman days hid it, but summer revealed perky, natural boobs bouncing under thin fabric—no implants.
He hated admitting his first impression sucked, but yeah—everyone agreed: Korea University's top queenka was Min Yu-ri.
Her chatting with him right away drew stares his way. A few guys, familiar with her, fidgeted like they might approach.
One finally did.
"Hey. '23 Min Yu-ri, right? Might not remember, but I'm Yoon Sung-ho, same year. We said hi at orientation last year..."
Seonghwan remembered him. He'd dragged himself to that orientation under Dad's watch, lurking awkwardly.
But this guy didn't recognize him—not snobbery, genuine blank.
"Yeah, I remember."
Her curt, no-eye-contact reply flustered him a bit. He scratched his head but pressed on.
"Heard from sunbaes you're double-majoring—wow, for real? I'd never dare."
Double major?
Seonghwan's confusion about her random appearance cleared up, courtesy of this unexpected source.