DI Ch 8

“Oh, Seung-won! You’re early, aren’t you?

As soon as I arrived at the meeting location, I was greeted with a wide smile by the student representative. I got little goosebumps when a boy my age called me by name. It was awkward because I had never been called nicely by a guy before.

“Why are you here so early?  Sit here. This is the best spot.”

“Ah, thank you.”

I was about to sit down, but someone popped out of nowhere and put an arm around the student representative’s shoulder.

“What. Jin Do-kyung. Are you already in love with your colleague?”

“It’s not like that. Sunbae.”

“What do you mean no. Oh! Is he a first year? Well… You’re kind of handsome. How tall are you? Girls these days don’t like it if you’re too tall.”

I don’t know why you’re smirking at me. Is Seo Seung-won tall? I think this senior is just short. I looked down at the senior and then looked around. Forget it. Has Woo Ji-min come yet?

“… Hey. What are you? Are you ignoring me now?”

“No way! Eyy, Sunbae. Who would ignores the sunbae who is like heaven? But am I not the most handsome among the freshmen? Jin Do-kyung, who is just the right height, has a good face, and the best personality!”

“Ah, Jin Do-kyung, get out of the way. Hey! You come here. Come here!”

“Sunbae, don’t be nice to other juniors besides me!”

The student representative laughed while hugging the senior. People began snooping one by one in response to the loud noise. The student representative secretly waved to me in the midst of the chaos. It seemed to be a signal to run away.

I thought the freshman had called to come early, but looking around, that didn’t seem to be the case. I appreciate your help but why did you contact me? I tilted my head to look at the student representative who was holding the exasperated senior. When the general meeting began in earnest, I was reminded of a scene from the novel. That senior is an extra who becomes a laughingstock as a result of Kang Moo-hyun’s clever moves in a war of nerves with Woo Ji-min.

Oh, there are too many extras I can’t remember. I thought there would be nothing else to remember, but I was troubled because characters or scenes like this would always come to mind. If Woo Ji-min arrives soon, that senior will argue and laugh about everything. Due to Woo Ji-min’s personality, there is no way he can stand still, but Kang Moo-hyun will intervene before he can say anything, and Woo Ji-min will resent the fact that he was helped by Kang Moo-hyun and not anyone else.

It seems to have gotten a little noisy, so I looked around and saw Woo Ji-min walk in. Everyone pretended not to notice, but their gaze was fixed on him. His presence made a lot of noise because he was such a noticeable person. That senior also jumped up from his seat when he saw Woo Ji-min.

So far, it was a little uncomfortable to see Woo Ji-min’s face. It was difficult to pretend not to know about someone else’s future. I drank some water to quench my thirst and quickly covered my mouth. I thought it was water, but it was alcohol. No, who put alcohol in a water glass?

“Oh. As expected of the first year. They pour alcohol into a water glass and drink it with enthusiasm.”

Someone refilled my glass while I was panicking about the late sensation of the alcohol. I stared at the slick liquid and the person, not sure if it was a senior or a classmate, and eventually forced myself to swallow the alcohol that had filled my mouth. No matter how much I didn’t want to drink, I couldn’t say it in front of people.

This was the first time I drank with Seo Seung-won’s body. I don’t even know what my drunkenness is because I don’t remember drinking in the original place… Uh. But why is the alcohol sweet? It’s bitter but why is this good? I brush my hair back and wondered…

“Oh, my.”

“Yes?”

“Oh, nothing. Would you like another drink?”

Raising her head in sudden admiration, she waved her hand and blushed.

“You are Seo Seung-won, right? I’m Joo-eun unnie.”

Said the senior, tucking her long hair behind her ear. Shiny hair glistened in the light.

“Ah, I am Seo Seung-won…”

I quickly filled her glass and said hello before coming to a stop. When did I mention my name? How does she know who I am? I was alert and hesitated at the time, but the game planned by the student council soon started. She grumbled that she was on the student council, stood up, and walked to the front of the stage. Oh, I guess she knows the names of the freshmen because she’s in the student council. Come to think of it, Kang Moo-hyun was like that too. I was embarrassed that I had tensed up for no reason.

I saw Woo Ji-min sitting at the table across from me while playing games with the seniors and colleagues. Next to him was the short male senior. Woo Ji-min’s expression was not very good. Not only that, but other people also seemed uncomfortable. The only one that seemed fine was that senior. On the other hand, the table I sat at was delightful. Everyone was busy laughing and talking.

It seems there is a wall. It’s either him or because it’s another world. The surroundings of the supporting actors are peaceful just by being away from the main character. I went blank while fiddling with the glass, and I got caught up in a timing game and emptied it. I laughed slowly, following the laughter of others. Why do I sense a wall not only with Woo Ji-min but also with these people? It was difficult to play with the feeling of mixing in. Is it because I’m not originally from here? Well, because of that, I couldn’t get along well with Seo Seung-won’s friends.

It occurred to me suddenly. What was Woo Ji-min thinking when he came here? Of course, the story requires a general meeting event for them to bicker, but that’s all there is to it. Why does Woo Ji-min, who has complex feelings about people, attend a noisy general meeting? Besides, aren’t the rumors still going around? Did he come just because he had to meet with Kang Moo-hyun?

What’s with that… This world was really the worst. I emptied my glass because I suddenly had a craving for alcohol at the messy probability. But in the blink of an eye, the glass was filled again. I definitely just drank it. I heard laughter next to me as I stared intently into the spring water that never dried up. The student representative looked like a spring water fairy. Since when have you been by my side I blankly stared at the kind student representative. I’m glad that the student representative is a good person. There are a lot of good people in the world, so the world is fine… 

“Seung-won?”

“…Yes?”

“Your complexion doesn’t look good? Are you sick again?”

At his words, I rubbed my cheek with the palm of my hand. It was a daily occurrence for my face to turn pale at any time. Despite the fact that I was sick, I didn’t have a disease, so I responded with the usual excuse.

“No. I guess I just had an upset stomach.”

“It was already pale, but it got paler. You don’t feel like throwing up? If you don’t want to drink, don’t drink. You don’t have to force yourself to drink.”

I hear the same words I used to hear from Seo Seung-won’s parents and friends here as well. The student representative became agitated and poured some water. He seemed to think that he had offered a drink to a sick child. The guy who was unsure what to do told me to wait a while and then left. I emptied my glass of soju once more as I watched the back of the student representative as he suddenly walked out of the store.

I realized that the more I drank, the lighter my body felt. All of the chronic pain I was experiencing while using Seo Seung-won’s body disappeared. To be honest, having a nosebleed around this time was nothing out of the ordinary, but I wasn’t. My body was as light as if I could fly.

I don’t know what the principle is, but this body has been strange once or twice. It was just nice to feel like I was back to normal after a very long time. I wanted to enjoy this normal body for a long time. As I let out a languidly satisfied sigh, someone at the same table chuckled.

“Does Seung-won feel good? Would you like another drink?”

“Oh. Who’s feeling good? Cheers, then!”

The seniors, who were sitting huddled together with the freshmen approached and laughed. These are people who just needed a chance to make cheers. They are such good people, but why did Woo Ji-min stay so far away? Oh right. People, he said that people were tiring and difficult to deal with.

The bottles of soju and beer were empty in an instant after a few games, and the bottles rolled all the way under the table. Because there were so many people, there was simply not enough alcohol. As soon as we started making and drinking the bombshell liquor, everyone laughed out loud like idiots, then began to sob one by one. And in an instant, the drinking party turned into chaos.

“Sunbae, please stop. You’re very drunk.”

“…Kang Moo-hyun, what do you care?”

Oh, I guess it’s starting now. Everyone began to chatter and turn their heads toward the table. Unlike the others who became interested in what was going on, I didn’t want to see it for some reason, so I got up from my seat and grabbed my bag. I was barely able to get out with each step because of people who were drunk and asked me to come to their table, but I almost bumped into the student representative who was trying to get inside.

The student representative, who was breathing heavily, spoke to me with a slightly embarrassed expression.

“Oh, where are you going? You want to go home?”

“Just. To get some air.”

“Ah….”

The student representative, who was panting like a person who came from a marathon, scratched his head as if he was disappointed. I wondered why he had gone outside without a coat as it was cold outside, so I stepped aside to make it easier for him to go inside. He’ll be warmed up quickly because the store is warm. However, he hesitated in front of the door, as if he had no intention of entering. I was staring at him, unsure what it was, but then he placed a plastic bag in my hand.

“Drink some of this and rest.”

“Uh… Thanks.”

When I received the bag, the student representative looked up at me, smiled, and went inside. I looked inside the bag and it was a digestive and hangover cure drink. As expected of the student representative. He took good care of other people. I’m glad he’s the student representative.