Chaos at the Family Restaurant: 'Are Those Two Even Hitting It Off?'
Seol-ah quietly pondered as she watched the two of them. They were treating her like she wasn't even there, both glued to their phones, tapping away at the screens. Isn't this totally like they've slipped into their own little world? Her heart started pounding at the scene straight out of a drama.
Seol-ah subtly turned her head to observe Sung-hoon. She scrutinized his eyes and mouth intently, but there wasn't a hint of that sweet, flirty vibe. He was just tapping at his screen as casually as he would in the classroom. Seol-ah, confident in her observational skills, couldn't detect even the first letter of "something" from him.
But against that... Seol-ah turned her head the other way. This time, she closely examined Ha-yoon's face.
"...Library stuff...?" A small voice leaked from her lips. The word "library" hung in Ha-yoon's mouth and reached Seol-ah's ears. Seol-ah immediately rummaged through her memories. Given her habit of wandering around, she recalled that the library today had been piled high with books.
Did she get called by the librarian to help carry them? Seol-ah's deduction was close to the truth. Unfortunately, she had no idea the librarian teacher was actually hospitalized.
In the meantime, the groups were nearly complete. The career guidance teacher gathered the remaining students, finalized the groups, and spoke up.
"We'll wrap up the first semester with just one performance assessment."
Everyone's attention turned to the teacher. It was a subject that wasn't all that important anyway. One performance task sounded like a bargain.
Naturally drawing the students' gazes, the teacher continued.
"It's simple. Research a working professional around you and present it in a PPT or something."
The students sighed in relief. It was just a career interview, something most had done at least once in middle school. They figured interviewing someone from their parents' company would do the trick. But as they relaxed with that naive assumption, the teacher flashed a friendly smile.
"One condition! Exclude family and relatives."
"......"
"......"
"That's it!"
The teacher had just skyrocketed the assignment's difficulty.
"Order up! Where should I set these?"
"Oh, this one over here by Ha-yoon, and this by me!"
After school ended, the three headed to a nearby family restaurant. The reason was straightforward: Seol-ah had dragged them there to tackle the suddenly tougher career assignment from the teacher.
It was something like that—they'd been roped in. Then, invoking the saying that even the wonders of Mount Geumgang fade after a meal, Seol-ah had gone ahead and ordered food on her own.
"This is so good!"
"Ha-yoon, gimme a bite of yours."
"Fine, but you share some of yours too, Seol-ah."
The two exchanged bites. Sung-hoon watched Seol-ah with a mix of exasperation.
"So... are we actually gonna have this meeting or what?"
"Huh? Oh yeah, that too."
Seol-ah said it while munching on the portion Ha-yoon had scooped for her. From the sound of it, she'd totally forgotten amid her eating frenzy. Sung-hoon gave her an incredulous look, and Seol-ah pointed at him.
"You think I'm a pig, right?"
"...No. I just thought you eat well."
"Same difference! And why are you scarfing it down so fast?!"
Seol-ah grumbled. As she'd pointed out, Sung-hoon's plate was already empty. Ha-yoon eyed the cleared dish with regret.
"Looked tasty... too late now."
"Right? We always share when we come here!"
"You should've said so earlier. I would've shared too."
Sung-hoon wiped his mouth with a napkin. It was such a solid point that Seol-ah could only fidget, at a loss for words.
......
"Ah..."
Ha-yoon suddenly let out a sound. Sung-hoon turned to see sauce splattered on her uniform. If left like that, it might not come out.
"Hang on, you two chat. I'll be right back."
Ha-yoon dabbed at the sauce with a napkin and stood up. She headed straight to the bathroom, leaving Seol-ah and Sung-hoon alone. And Seol-ah immediately made her move.
"Sung-hoon."
"Yeah?"
"What do you think of Ha-yoon?"
Seol-ah asked playfully, fishing. With her perfect romance radar, she was sure she'd get a bite. But Sung-hoon replied nonchalantly.
"Friend."
"...Lame."
"What answer were you hoping for?"
"Like, 'I like her' or 'we're kinda hitting it off.' Something fun."
Seol-ah swallowed her last bite with a bored expression. Seeing that, Sung-hoon looked exasperated.
"Well, do you have someone?"
"...Is this flirting?"
Seol-ah's eyes sparkled. Sung-hoon leaned in casually.
"Yeah."
"......"
Seol-ah was speechless. She'd expected an instant denial, not a straight fastball like that. She studied his face intently. Is he serious? Cautiously, she asked.
"...For real?"
"Kidding. No need to freeze up."
"Thought so."
Seol-ah and Sung-hoon looked at each other and laughed. At the same time, Seol-ah recalled why Sung-hoon had become so famous.
He just dives right in like that.
Seol-ah eyed him closely. Over 180cm tall, sharp nose, handsome features all around. He was good-looking. Ten out of ten would agree. Not the typical pretty-boy flower boy vibe, though. If anything... he had that intimidating, hard-to-approach aura.
Early in the semester, some girls had taken interest.
-'Hey, isn't that guy hot?'
-'Should I make a move?'
Those attempts fizzled out after a month. A few girls who'd shown interest approached him, only to turn away after a brief chat. Curious, Seol-ah had asked them about it.
-'He's easy to talk to...'
-'Yeah, but kinda weird vibe?'
-'Like, sometimes he hits you with something you never saw coming?'
Their stories matched. He was easy to converse with, but every now and then, he'd throw a packed fastball straight to your core. When the girls got flustered and tongue-tied, he'd smoothly change the subject. At first, they thought he was doing it on purpose—like he enjoyed people's reactions, given how varied people are.
A few tried again.
-'He's such a natural!'
-'Sung-hoon has no clue he's doing it.'
-'Like... after that, you can't stop thinking about what he said.'
In the end, they concluded it was just his innate nature. And today, Seol-ah finally got what they meant by "diving in."
This is the feeling—
"What? Something on my face?"
"......Hic!"
Another one. The sudden remark made Seol-ah hiccup. She got why the girls suspected intent. He steps right into your innermost thoughts at the most disarming moment, like he predicted it. Oblivious to her thoughts, Sung-hoon chuckled lightly and poured her some water.
"That's what you get for eating too fast. Drink this; should stop it."
"Th-thanks."
"No biggie."
Seol-ah drank the water Sung-hoon poured. When's Ha-yoon coming back? she wondered absently. Sure enough, her hiccups stopped quickly, just as he'd said. At the same time, Ha-yoon returned, victorious from her battle with the stain, plopping down with a triumphant look. Sung-hoon glanced at her.
"Win?"
"Obviously. Piece of cake."
"Figured you'd lose, looking at you."
"Hey, I'm more capable than you think."
Ha-yoon said, showing off the black band on her wrist. True to her word about it being a fashion choice lately, the design was pretty nice.
"I'm used to it by now."
Was there a deeper meaning in those words, or was it Seol-ah's imagination? Naturally, Seol-ah's gaze shifted to Sung-hoon's wrist.
"Huh?"
And Seol-ah couldn't stop the dumb sound escaping her lips. They matched. Sung-hoon was wearing the exact same black wristband.
??????
Seol-ah's brain short-circuited. By her radar, they weren't even close to "something," yet here they were with what looked like couple's items. She'd only seen this in dramas or romance novels.
Are they dating behind my back?
At the same time, yesterday's memory resurfaced.
Then why was Ha-yoon chasing after Geon-woo?
By Seol-ah's data on Ha-yoon so far, she'd had way more overlap with Geon-woo than Sung-hoon. So why the matching bands? Seol-ah spiraled into confusion.
Ha-yoon and Sung-hoon secretly dating → Then why chase Geon-woo all this time?
Ha-yoon likes Geon-woo → Then why the couple bands now?
The two facts clashed. Beginning, middle, end—nothing connected, no matter how she twisted it.
"Seol-ah, you okay? Eyes glazing over?"
"Tired? Post-meal slump maybe."
"M-maybe?"
Ha-yoon reached out worriedly. Seol-ah's eyes naturally caught Ha-yoon's wristband again.
Labels are usually on the inside, right?
Curiosity flooded her. She had to figure out their relationship now. Casually, Seol-ah's hand moved toward Ha-yoon's wristband.
—Whoosh.
Ha-yoon yanked her hand back lightning-fast. Like she was terrified of exposing a secret. After that, the three parted ways. But even on the walk home, Seol-ah's mind was a total mess, far from sorted.
What the heck is going on!!!
Seol-ah ruffled her hair. No matter how she racked her brain, no label fit their relationship. But one thing was crystal clear.
I'm gonna figure out what you two are.
Seol-ah's detective spirit had been ignited. All without touching a single thing about that crucial career performance assessment.