Chapter 6
Chapter 6
“Hey, you bastard!”
At first, I didn’t even know who the voice was aimed at.
“How could you just leave me like that? Do you think you can live well after doing this?”
I figured it was just another couple fighting on campus.
“Who… what is that?”
“Looks like she got dumped… totally shameless.”
I could hear the murmurs of passing students.
“Tch… if you’re going to fight, do it outside, not here at school…”
Having eaten, I thought I’d take in some lively youth drama and glanced over.
“Hey! Jung Jin-woo! Don’t just stand there! How long have we been together? And you like that girl?”
In front of the student cafeteria, Oh Se-eun was yelling at me.
“Me?”
I pointed at myself with my finger.
“This… this crazy—”
I almost cursed.
“You’re older… you betrayed me and ran off to another girl?”
“Looks like someone from the business school…”
Hundreds of students had stopped to watch.
Oh Se-eun approached, her steps quick and determined. My eyes practically popped out.
Should I run? This girl was definitely crazy.
“What about my feelings? You won’t take responsibility?”
Gasp!
My whole body froze. Lightning seemed to strike in my head, and my vision went white. The world spun around me, centered on me.
“Good heavens… she’s pregnant and you just dumped her!”
“That man is such a bastard…”
“This guy should be socially destroyed…”
Even amidst this, I could still hear the crowd yelling. When I finally snapped back to reality, Oh Se-eun was already standing in front of me.
“What… what are you doing?”
I was too shocked to even get angry.
Oh Se-eun twirled in front of me and then shouted toward the crowd.
“Everyone, don’t misunderstand! It’s just a joke! I’m messing around with my friend… don’t pay attention.”
The onlookers grumbled and started moving again.
Oh Se-eun looked at me with a triumphant grin.
“So, what do we do, mister? Everyone’s going to hear about us, and I guess we’ll have to eat together from now on…”
“Are you insane?”
“Exactly why did you go off alone before? Come drink coffee with me!”
Crazy. Beautiful and cute as she was, being around her was dangerous. Who knows what kind of trouble could happen? I was looking for a chance to escape.
“If you don’t follow me quickly, next time I’ll shout in the lecture hall.”
“What?”
My mind went completely blank. Campus life? Sweet times with a female student? Instead, it felt like I was about to star in a bizarre, psychopath-driven farce.
“You absolutely cannot joke like that!”
“Okay…”
“A guy doesn’t know it’s a joke, he could be ruined socially in an instant.”
“Okay, I’m sorry…”
Even though she was seven years younger, I had decided to calmly explain things at the café. Surprisingly, she listened well.
“Have you done this before?”
“No…”
“Seems like you’ve practiced this before, though.”
“I saw it in a movie… wanted to try it myself.”
Sigh…
I exhaled deeply, staring at Oh Se-eun. Tall, shapely, glamorous, small-faced, cute, pretty… why would someone like her—
“Then why did you do that to me…?”
“To become friends…”
“No one to eat lunch with?”
“That too.”
Sigh…
I couldn’t help but exhale.
“I don’t mind becoming friends… but not like that! That’s impossible!”
“Why not?”
Really? She asked that?
“I don’t want to be friends with you.”
“You can’t be friends with a psychopath and a narcissist?”
Now she confessed herself. There was only one way forward.
In a split second, the scale tipped.
One side: campus life dominated by a crazy psychopath.
The other side: personal matters spilling into public gossip.
The latter seemed safer.
“I’m a divorced man.”
“Gasp!”
Had I gone too far? Maybe I should have just said I was married.
“I barely have time to take care of myself. I don’t have the luxury to be played by your pranks.”
“……”
How could she look so stunned? She looked like a scene from a thriller movie.
“Why… why did you get divorced…?”
Should I tell her the truth? I’d known her only a few hours. A seven-year-younger girl. Would she believe half-hearted lies?
“Just personality differences…”
“I see…”
Oh Se-eun nodded, thoughtful. Her sparkling eyes dimmed. The romantic campus life was gone, but I could manage even with a crazy psychopath. People instinctively avoid the unlucky anyway.
“You’re pretty, smart, rich… date a guy your age. Me? I’m barely surviving… living in a tiny room…”
She seemed to understand what I meant.
“So at least…”
She nodded as if agreeing.
“You’re alone right now.”
Her gaze sparkled again. The madness threatened to flare up. No!
“I’m married.”
“But you said divorced earlier?”
“Divorce not finalized yet.”
“Fine! I know when it’s a lie.”
“It’s not a lie.”
No use explaining. Oh Se-eun looked determined.
“Thanks for being honest. At least no misunderstandings.”
“Se-eun… just date guys your own age…”
“Fine! Tomorrow, let’s have gukbap. Get up! Time’s up. This is on me.”
She sprang up and paid the bill.
From the next day, Oh Se-eun changed. Surprisingly, no weird rumors spread.
People joked that we were dating, thanks to her prank at the cafeteria. We stuck together like a real couple, but… well.
“Oppa, what do you want to eat today?”
“I feel like gomtang!”
“Me too… what a coincidence.”
I wasn’t sure if it was true or she was just matching me, but our tastes coincided. Eating together became easy. Moreover—
“Here’s the midterm summary for financial statements. Don’t do cost management like me, or you’ll fail. You can borrow my notes.”
Everything was prepared clearly. Compared to my messy, barely understandable notes, her notes were detailed and organized. Thanks to Oh Se-eun, I could follow the third-year courses at Seyeon University’s business school.
After about two months, I learned a lot.
First, Oh Se-eun wasn’t a psychopath or selfish narcissist as I first thought. No matter how much someone hides, they slip somewhere—but she showed warmth and consideration.
Second, many boys liked her. Walking with her drew jealous stares, sometimes even petty confrontations.
Third, as she said, her family was extremely wealthy. She didn’t brag, but hints of luxurious trips and adventures revealed her affluent background. Mediterranean yacht trips, desert tours with a Berber tribal leader as guide—a guide comparable to a king.
One day, when Oh Se-eun was absent from school, I was walking home after writing a report at the library. Passing through a deserted alley—
“Uh, are you Jung Jin-woo?”
A man in a suit approached. Sharp, precise, looking like a lawyer or a corporate aide.
“And…?”
“If it’s okay, someone wants to meet you briefly… may I have a moment of your time?”
“Who?”
“You’ll know when you see. Related to Oh Se-eun.”
I froze. Was this like in the movies? Were there gangsters waiting?
“Alone? To drag me here, you’d need at least four people…”
“Ha… you watch too many dramas. It’s nothing like that.”
When the man said “Oh Se-eun,” I knew it had begun.
“Good. Let’s go.”
He guided me to a car. A luxury Korean sedan awaited.
“Just one question.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
A man in his late 40s or early 50s. Too young to be Oh Se-eun’s father, maybe? He starts with casual small talk—“Thanks for coming. Are you doing okay?”—before asking the real question.
“Do you like Se-eun?”
What to say?
“If you mean romantically… not yet.”
“I see…”
He nodded, as if satisfied.
“Do you know who her father is?”
“No. Not that close—just school friends.”
“People say you’re dating Se-eun…”
“What?”
Was her family talking nonsense?
“We’re not dating. I would never…”
The man spoke gently, but I felt the tension. The mansion in the forest outskirts of Yangpyeong, surrounded by nothing… and several black sedans parked. One wrong move, and who knows?
“Then there’s no need for long talk. If you want to live safely, stay away from Se-eun.”
Of course.
“Because you’re a divorced man. Not even dating, yet hanging around her… how would people see her?”
“That’s for Se-eun to decide. I’d stay away, but she won’t.”
“What?”
His brow twitched. I hadn’t been honest either—I was starting to enjoy being with Oh Se-eun too.
“D-did you… do something to Se-eun? A 28-year-old divorced man messing with a 21-year-old innocent girl?”
“No, no…”
“Hey, Kim, call the others!”
[Drrrrrr…]
The door opened. The men who brought me along and several burly figures rushed in.
“This is a misunderstanding. Nothing happened.”
“Take him out!”
A family matter? They were acting without thinking.
The burly men grabbed my arms.
“Please, hear me out! Nothing happened!”
“Nothing?”
“I swear.”
The man groaned, and the one who brought me in spoke cautiously.
“Sir, what should we do?”
“Out!”
The men let go reluctantly and left.
I had no choice but to speak honestly.
“I like Se-eun.”
“What?”
The man bristled again.
“Not romantically, but as a friend. But I understand your concern. I know my position. I get why a divorced man being around Se-eun would worry you. She clings to me, and I, seeing her sweet and always nearby, am slowly liking her—but I have conscience. Please restrain her.”
The man, who had been called “Chairman,” stared blankly.
I had nothing left to add. She was sweet, considerate, and gorgeous. Anyone would like her.
“Is that so?”
“……”
I just glared at him.
[Ring ring.]
My phone rang. I answered.
[Receiving your call… thought something happened… should we enter your property?]
“No, it’s nothing. You can leave.”
[Understood.]
Hanging up, the man looked surprised at me.
“What kind of person are you? People here?”
“No, it’s my house…”
I lied, but his face went pale.
“Anyway… please restrain Se-eun. She’s a lovely girl. She might really like you if this continues. You don’t need to see her off.”
After the call, the situation seemed reversed.
“O-okay…”
He nodded obediently.
“And next time, meet quietly at a café if you need to talk.”
“Y-yes…”
[Drrrrrr.]
“Sir, Chairman!”
At that moment, Kim the secretary came in.
“Yes, what is it?”
“Outside the mansion, there are people everywhere.”
“People?”
“Should we call the police? Or… more personnel?”
The Chairman’s gaze shifted from Kim to me.
“I’ll be going now.”
I bowed and left.