COAC 46

The first day of the festival was very sunny and clear. The Korea University festival, which lasted for a total of three days, was quite famous, so many people came to see it. There was an event to vote for the best department and club during the festival period. The winner of the most votes would receive a small cash prize, so the students were fiercely competitive.

“There are a lot of people, even in the morning.”

It was incomparable to the year before last or even last year. The plaza was a vast sea of people, so crowded that there was no room to set foot. The sounds of music blaring haphazardly from each department’s booth and the clamor of boisterous laughter mixed together, making it impossible to think straight.

“They say a famous idol is coming. It seems like quite a few complaints are being posted on the school bulletin board, asking if the tuition money was spent on hiring an idol,” Cha Jinseong answered.

Do Hyeonjun took in the general atmosphere and then headed to the library. Now that midterms were over, he had to start preparing for his assignments in earnest. He couldn’t take up too much of Lee Dojae’s time. He put on his earphones and searched for materials on his laptop.

Knock, knock.

The sound of a knock on the desk pierced through his earphones. When he raised his head to look, a woman with her hair tied up was standing there with an uncertain expression. Her lips twitched, and then she offered a slightly awkward smile. Did she need a seat? He lifted the bag he had propped on the chair next to him and set it on the floor.

“Ah, it’s not that…”

“Yes?”

He took out one earphone and looked up at her again. The woman tapped the back of her hand with her index finger and asked cautiously.

“Is your wound okay?”

Only then did Do Hyeonjun realize who she was. She was the person who had put a bandage on his wound when he got hurt setting up the stage a few days ago. His gaze unconsciously shifted to the bag next to him. Inside was the box of ointment and bandages that Kim Chayeon had tossed to him, still unopened.

“Yes. I’m fine, thanks to you. Thank you.”

“That’s a relief.”

The woman didn’t leave and just fidgeted with her fingers where she stood. It was a clear hesitation, as if she had something more to say.

“Um…”

“Yes.”

“By any chance…”

In the end, it was Do Hyeonjun who couldn’t stand the frustration.

“Is there something you need from me?”

“Today! …Would you like to see the festival with me today? It would be too obvious if I said it was to repay you for the bandage, wouldn’t it?”

She blushed and lowered her gaze. Suddenly, the scene from last year’s festival flashed through Do Hyeonjun’s mind like a panorama.

Seo Jeong, running around frantically at the pub hosted by the Broadcasting and Video department, and Kim Chayeon, who had watched him in silence. Instead of helping with the work, he had kept his seat in the spot with the best view of Seo Jeong.

The department representative, who would mercilessly kick people out if they exceeded the maximum 30-minute stay per bottle of alcohol, left Kim Chayeon alone, who had ordered just one soda and lingered for over three hours.

‘Why am I letting him be? You’re the top student in the department and you don’t know? He’s an advertisement, an advertisement. Do you think companies pay billions for models for no reason? It’s to attract people’s attention. For your information, you’re one of the models, too. Keep it up, Do Hyeonjun.’

The department representative had patted him on the shoulder, offering words of comfort that weren’t really comfort.

When they were finally able to switch shifts, the three of them had wandered around, looking at all the different things.

But this year…

Do Hyeonjun looked at the back of his hand, where only a scratch mark remained, then looked at the woman who was still waiting for an answer.

“Yes. Sounds good.”

Her name was Choi Taerim. She was a freshman in the Crafts department of the College of Fine Arts and was two years younger than him.

“I wanted to get to know you, sunbae, so I once left a drink with my number on it for you. I carried my phone with me even when I went to the bathroom, just in case you called. It was about two weeks ago. Don’t you remember the cat memo?”

Of course, he remembered. It was the day Kim Chayeon had ignored him and walked past.

“I figured I wouldn’t get anywhere at this rate, so I decided to just take action and moved right away,” Choi Taerim said bravely, clenching her fists. Her cheerful personality was strangely reminiscent of Lee Dojae.

The two found a spot at the cafe run by the Crafts department. The concept was to serve customers using teapots and cups all made by the students themselves. While they waited for their iced americanos, Choi Taerim explained various things.

“I think our drinks are ready. I’ll go get them,” said Choi Taerim.

“I’ll go. You can stay seated.”

“No, it’s okay. A friend of mine is working right now, so I’ll go say hi and grab them.”

Choi Taerim vehemently stopped Do Hyeonjun, who was about to get up, and scurried to the counter. A woman who seemed to be her friend handed her a tray with two drinks on it.

“You two came together. Did things finally work out with him?”

“Yoon Seoyoung, don’t be embarrassing and be quiet! It’s not like that yet!”

Her cheeks flushing, Choi Taerim pressed her fingers to her lips, shushing her. It seemed she was trying to quiet her friend, but the surroundings were too quiet. It was to the point where he could understand the content of their conversation without even trying to listen. Do Hyeonjun pretended not to notice and took out his phone.

Unread messages were piled up. The most recent one was from Seo Jeong, asking where he was now. As soon as he read the message, his phone buzzed.

[Kim Chayeon]

He stared intently at the name displayed on the screen.

“What do you mean it’s not like that, when you have a crush on a fellow Alpha? You were making such a fuss about love at first sight and what not.”

A fellow Alpha. Do Hyeonjun unknowingly swallowed a bitter laugh. Lee Dojae, Choi Taerim, and even her friend saw him as an Alpha. When in reality, he himself was imprinted on another Alpha.

He waited for the call to die down and then typed a message.

I have plans today. You two have fun.
4:32 PM

As soon as he sent it, the phone, which had gone silent, started buzzing again. At the same time, Choi Taerim placed the tray on the table. Do Hyeonjun switched his phone to silent and forced a smile.

“I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I heard. Is your secondary gender by any chance…”

“Ah. I’m an Alpha, but a Recessive, so it’s not that noticeable. Does it bother you? I sprayed a ton of scent neutralizer today before trying to talk to you, sunbae-nim. But I know you can’t help physiological repulsion. Especially for a Dominant like you, sunbae-nim, right?” Choi Taerim muttered dejectedly.

Hmm, based on the conversation just now, it seemed she was seriously mistaken about his secondary gender. He could understand her thinking he was an Alpha, but where on earth did Dominant come from? Was he being treated the same because he was often with Kim Chayeon?

“It doesn’t bother me at all. More than that, I’m…”

It was the moment he was about to say he wasn’t an Alpha. He swept his hair off his forehead and casually raised his head, and his eyes met with someone entering the cafe.

“Oh? It’s Hyeonjun. You were here?”

Seo Jeong’s eyes darted busily between Do Hyeonjun and Choi Taerim. Of all the places on this wide campus, and among the countless festival booths, to run into them at a time like this. It was a completely unwelcome coincidence. He spotted Kim Chayeon with Seo Jeong and sighed inwardly. At this rate, there was no point in having gone off on his own.

“We were surprised when you suddenly said you had plans… so that’s what it was. Sorry, we had no idea and were looking for you for nothing.”

Seo Jeong said, his eyes curving into a friendly smile.

“Who.”

Kim Chayeon jutted his chin toward Choi Taerim. It wasn’t a particularly overbearing attitude, but Choi Taerim’s face turned red.

“This is Ms. Choi Taerim. She’s a freshman in the Crafts department.”

“I didn’t ask you to recite the profile of someone I’m seeing for the first time. I’m asking why you’re here.”

He meant for him to explain his relationship with Choi Taerim.

“We just happened to meet. Our schedules matched up, so we decided to check out the festival together.”

He gave a suitable answer mixed with the truth. The reply, which he thought was completely unproblematic, was received differently by the listener, who gave no response.

“So, you’re ditching us and going off on your own?”

Strictly speaking, he was with Choi Taerim, so he wasn’t alone, but he nodded his head in affirmation. Kim Chayeon’s gaze sharpened subtly.

“Chayeon. Let’s leave them be. Have fun.”

Only after Seo Jeong tapped him on the shoulder did Kim Chayeon slowly move. Do Hyeonjun deliberately avoided looking at them and tried to focus on Choi Taerim in front of him. However, Choi Taerim herself had her lips pressed firmly together and her eyes were rolling around, so a proper conversation was only possible much later.

“As expected, the real deal is on another level… The pressure is no joke. Ugh, to exaggerate a little, I felt like I was being crushed.”

As if her throat was parched, Choi Taerim gulped down her drink. She chewed on the still-unmelted ice and shivered.

“What was?”

“That person just now was Kim Chayeon sunbae-nim from the Business Administration department, right? His pheromones. It feels like a huge boulder is pressing down on both my shoulders. A Recessive like me can barely endure it, but you’re fine, sunbae-nim. Is it because you’re a Dominant too, so you can defend against it?”

“Did he release his pheromones just now?”