LCL 47

A week ago, I had dinner with Moon Ji-woo. I wondered why he kept prodding me, but he said he just wanted to be friends. I should probably be happy when someone wants to be friends, but honestly, I didn’t have a good impression of him. I even thought he was a bit strange.

Since relationships in college are so fluid, I tried not to worry too much about my uncomfortable feelings towards him. I didn’t think it would be good if Lim Dae-han or Ji-woo himself knew that I was uncomfortable with Ji-woo.

But Ji-woo would often send random messages. The guy must have taken a liking to me, suddenly asking to go to a cafe or have a meal. I hoped my feelings of uneasiness and burden were just a misunderstanding, but… I’m not sure since I haven’t had the chance to meet him after that.

Me: [I’m in class]

Moon Ji-woo: [I’m not working today, want to have dinner?]

Me: [Umm.. I don’t think I can today]

Moon Ji-woo: [Why?]

Me: [I have plans]

Moon Ji-woo: [You never meet up]

It’s not that I never meet up, it’s just that he always asks to meet “suddenly.” I felt a bit uncomfortable, but I couldn’t help it. If he had asked to meet a few days in advance, I could have at least adjusted my schedule.

He always asked: What are you doing now? Let’s go to a cafe. Or come to Sky Park. The weather’s nice, etc… Moon Ji-woo always wanted sudden meetups. He said it was because of his part-time job schedule, but it was challenging for me.

“Rascal. Stop using your phone.”

Lim Dae-han leaned over and whispered against my shoulder. Startled, I flinched and flipped my phone over. At the same time, the presentation started on the screen in front.

I quickly tidied up my desk to watch the presentation materials. Even I felt my actions were a bit awkward. Lim Dae-han leaned his body against me, almost crushing my upper body.

It’s heavy. I twisted my shoulders, trying to shake off Lim Dae-han. If he had truly leaned on me, he wouldn’t have budged, but he wasn’t, so he easily slid to the other side.

Lim Dae-han straightened up and immediately slumped over the desk. He started doodling on the printout. Not even his own, but mine!

[wh0 r u txting]

[the friend from Business Administration?]

[yeah he asked me to eat dinner today]

[im the only 1 4 u lol]

Lim Dae-han wrote cheesy comments without even smiling. A classmate in charge of the presentation started reciting the table of contents. They tried to be natural, having seen it somewhere before, but their voice trembled like a goat’s bleat.

With that precarious voice as background music, I crossed out the word ‘4 u’ with my pen. I was afraid someone might see. Lim Dae-han didn’t care.

He wrote more words in the blank spaces of the printout. It looked like worms wriggling across a white snowfield.

[lets sit 2gether from now on]

[i wanna sit w u]

It was just a seat, but there were many obstacles to overcome for Lim Dae-han and me to sit together. First of all, I had been sitting with my classmate Park In-gong for several months, and the same was true for Lim Dae-han.

What are you going to say to Hyuna sunbae? What am I going to say to Park In-gong? I wrote under Lim Dae-han’s memo. Fairly neat handwriting appeared below Lim Dae-han’s messy scribbles.

[you sit with Hyuna sunbae]

[i can just tell her lol]

[what r u gonna say?]

[just that im gonna sit w u]

[if its hard 2 tell Park In-gong i can tell him]

[but does he make a fuss over stuff like that?]

Lim Dae-han looked genuinely curious. He seemed unaware that many people in the world get worked up over just a seating arrangement. There’s a reason why people in groups feel comfortable with even numbers. He, always at the center of groups, probably wouldn’t understand this sorrowful feeling.

I pursed my lips, resting my chin on my hand. I pressed the pen tip against the paper. Hmm…

I had certainly resolved to keep things distant at the start of the semester, but now that Lim Dae-han is asking to sit together, I’m hesitating. Maybe it’s okay now that some time has passed, and we’ve gotten closer while working on assignments. Honestly, it seems like everyone else is just accepting it now.

They might think our relationship has improved as we’ve been running around doing assignments together. Well, the concept of us being on bad terms or awkward doesn’t fit since Lim Dae-han and I hang out too often.

Hmm. I keep overthinking, and long sighs of “hmm, hmm…” escape me.

Should I…? Should we do that…?

[only if ur ok with it..]

[i can talk to In-gong]

After much hesitation, I finally left an answer. There was no light except for the screen in front. I looked up.

Our eyes met, and Lim Dae-han smiled brightly. I looked at him, then pretended to rest my chin on my hand while covering my mouth. I wanted to focus on the presentation, but it wasn’t easy.

We probably shouldn’t sit together. What if he keeps joking around like this? He was like this in high school too.

I nodded and shook my head a couple of times, then tried to act nonchalant. I touched my forehead and turned my head away.

“…”

I made eye contact with Senior Hyuna. Was it by chance? If not… how long had she been watching?

The senior soon naturally shifted her gaze towards the screen. I too hid my bewilderment and slowly turned my eyes away.

I blinked my eyes quickly several times. Should I not worry about it? Maybe the senior just glanced over without thinking while looking at the screen. I tried to hide the inexplicable uneasiness.

“The weather is hot!”

“It’s really summer now.”

“Haaah…”

Sighs leaked out from here and there. I was no exception to the heat. Being weak to heat originally made it even more challenging.

Though I wasn’t sweating, I wiped my sticky nape with the back of my hand. Early summer sunlight poured through the clear tree leaves.

After class ended, I left the building with my classmates. The first thing I saw was Lim Dae-han and Senior Hyuna.

Lim Dae-han had another liberal arts class right after, so he had tidied up and left early. He said he was taking it with Senior Hyuna.

Before going to the lecture hall, the two were standing in the designated smoking area, perhaps because Senior Hyuna wanted to smoke. The senior lit a cigarette, and Lim Dae-han stood opposite her. Lim Dae-han seemed to be saying something, and the senior was nodding slowly.

I stared at the two for quite a while. Either way, I felt uncomfortable. I chewed on my lips, tormenting them. Then, feeling self-conscious, I turned to look at Park In-gong who was standing with me. Park In-gong was also looking at Senior Hyuna and Lim Dae-han. Feeling my gaze, he met my eyes.

“Hyuna sunbae’s smoking.”

“…”

“I like women who smoke…”

Ah, what nonsense is he about to spout again. I looked him over with cold eyes. Park In-gong smacked his lips, soothing his dry mouth.

“I like it.”

“Don’t say things like that. Why are you talking about your preferences while looking at a senior? It’s rude.”

When I scolded him, Park In-gong rolled his eyes. Can’t I even talk about my preferences? I ignored him, not feeling it was worth responding to his rationalization. Anyway, what should I do until Lim Dae-han’s class ends?

I had nothing to do except go to the library or a cafe. Park In-gong had a class, and I was about to take a big step to ask about schedules, wondering if any classmates had free time…

“Young-hyun.”

Suddenly, an unexpected force wrapped around my shoulder, pulling me in the opposite direction of where I was walking. Unable to resist the pulling force, my body instantly tilted.

Ugh, I tilted but barely managed to steady myself. Startled, I turned my head to find Moon Ji-woo standing there, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. Very close.

“You, you startled me…”

Why is he here…? Before I could calm my surprised heart, Moon Ji-woo asked first.

“Do you have class?”

Not just me, but the classmates around also blinked, looking at Moon Ji-woo. They seemed to be assessing the situation with the appearance of an unfamiliar person. I waved my hand at my classmates, saying I’d see them tomorrow. I didn’t feel the need to introduce them.

I stood still to give them time to move away. Only Moon Ji-woo and I were left. A gust of wind blew. I hoped it would alleviate the heat, but it was so humid that it felt sticky.

“Class just ended. Uh, what are you doing here?”

“I was also coming out after my class ended and saw you. Didn’t you say you had plans? Are you meeting with classmates?”

“No, that’s not it… I was told there’s one more class to attend, so I have a bit of free time.”

For some reason, I muttered words that sounded like excuses. Even though it was obvious that Lim Dae-han was my prior engagement.

“Ah…”

Moon Ji-woo let out a soft exclamation. Even without a subject, he probably knew that the person in question was ‘Lim Dae-han’. He already knew everything anyway, and I didn’t particularly intend to hide anything from Moon Ji-woo, but for some reason, I felt cautious. Maybe because we were in front of the Business School.

“What time does your class end?”

“Since there’s one more… it should end around 5 o’clock.”

“So you have free time until then?”

“Uh… probably.”

“Let’s go to a cafe. We can talk there.”

We continued our conversation without the subject ‘Lim Dae-han’. It was hard to refuse Moon Ji-woo as he naturally led me, suggesting we go to a cafe. I couldn’t be harsh to someone who wanted to be friends.

I’ve never treated Moon Ji-woo particularly well, so why does he like me so much? Still, I don’t think I can take care of him as much as he wants. For one, we’re in different departments, and there are definitely uncomfortable aspects.

“Um… well, okay, if just for a moment.”

“Let’s go. I’ll buy you something tasty.”

Moon Ji-woo grinned and grabbed my wrist, pulling me along. I don’t know why he always offers to buy things, but constantly receiving treats from a friend was uncomfortable. Especially from Moon Ji-woo.

I should pay today. Knowing what kind of relationship he defines as friendship, I had to be extra careful.

As I was being dragged along by Moon Ji-woo, I unconsciously glanced once more at the smoking area. Lim Dae-han, who had been chatting with the senior, was now looking at me.

“Let’s go quickly, Young-hyun.”

Moon Ji-woo pulled me once more. I raised my free hand and waved it towards Lim Dae-han. Lim Dae-han didn’t return the greeting. Instead, he just quietly watched me as I moved away.