episode_0266

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Let’s finish this as quietly as possible so Hayoon doesn’t find out.

If I threaten the health teacher by saying I’ll tell Hayoon what I saw last time, he’ll naturally start keeping his distance slowly.

It wasn’t a meticulously planned scheme, but I figured there wouldn’t be any major openings.

If I suffer just a little, I can create a world where Hayoon doesn’t get hurt.

The only variable is if the health teacher turns out to be shameless enough to completely ignore me… but that’s about it.

Even if that happens and Hayoon ends up with a bad memory, I’ll just have to tell her. There’s no other choice.

A man who dates multiple women at once—there’s no way he’s a good guy.

Just look at Yoo Si-woo from the next class.

…It’s honestly ridiculous.

This isn’t some era where polygamy was rampant—how can someone pull this kind of crap in modern society?

So, during the health room’s least busy hours, I slipped out of class under some excuse and headed straight there.

“…Ugh.”

No way.

The woman next to him was just a sex partner, nothing more.

An answer my “common sense” could never accept just flew out of his mouth.

I hadn’t even considered it.

No way.

He said he’d end things with the others and treat Hayoon right from now on.

An unbelievably shameless answer just spilled out.

I hadn’t even thought of that.

“What’s wrong? Are you sick?”

“My head.”

“Your head? Is it because of midterms?”

“…Something like that.”

I gave a half-hearted (and, looking back, slightly rude) answer to my concerned friend before sighing deeply, flipping open my notebook somewhere.

To anyone watching, I probably just looked like a tired student worn out from studying.

But in reality, the only thing in my head was the health teacher’s shamelessness from earlier.

A man so honest about his urges that he even had a sex partner—how could he claim his feelings for Hayoon were genuine?

It’s obvious. Hayoon’s pretty, so he just wants to sleep with her. That’s why he got close.

So now he doesn’t need his old sex partner anymore.

But what?

A chance?

To earn my approval?

Are you kidding me?

Forget giving him a chance—

Do you really think I’d ever approve of a man like you?

Once I finish tailing him today, I’ll find any excuse to make him break up with Hayoon.

They say a problem shared is a problem halved, but this isn’t something I can just tell anyone.

In the end, left to shoulder it all alone, I sighed as I glanced at Hayoon dozing off at her desk.

“….”

He’s definitely trash.

I’d never want to approve of him.

But if Hayoon is genuinely happy by his side…

Shouldn’t I, as a third party, just stay out of it?

That thought—

coiled up quietly right beside my determination to make them break up.

266

[Seo Woo-jin]

– We decided to go to Hongdae.

– We’ll probably get there around 7.

– I thought about going to the same place we ran into each other last time, but the foot traffic is different, so it’d be hard to follow without getting caught.

Hongdae, huh.

Lying on my bed, I stared at the text on my phone screen.

If I was going to tail them, a crowded place where I could blend in would be ideal—and Hongdae definitely fit the bill.

Unlike Ikseon-dong, with its narrow alleys where I could easily lose them or get too close and risk Hayoon spotting me, Hongdae had just the right balance.

Plenty of foot traffic, decently wide streets.

I don’t know if he thought about it, but it was a good choice.

After replying “Got it,” I dropped my phone on the bed and stretched.

“Hmm…”

Still, 7 p.m. is a bit of an awkward time…

Debating whether to eat before leaving or just grab a triangle kimbap, I knocked on the wall beside my bed.

“Hey. Baek Ji-ho. You there?”

“Yeah. What’s up?”

I raised my voice slightly, and my boyfriend’s muffled reply came from the other side.

It wasn’t anything special—just that his room was on the other side of this wall.

The wall wasn’t thin enough for us to hear everything the other was doing, but it was just right for conversations like this.

Well, we’d been doing this since we were kids, so it was practically habit by now.

“I’m meeting my friends today, so don’t come looking for me. Got it?”

“Uh-huh. Have fun.”

“Need anything?”

“Not really?”

Hearing his answer, I wrapped up the conversation and got out of bed.

Oh, right.

“…”

I grabbed the cap I wore when I didn’t feel like washing my hair before heading to the convenience store.

He didn’t specify which exit to wait at, but I figured it’d be near Exit 9.

How long had I been waiting, slightly apart from the crowd flowing in and out of the station?

Trying not to get in anyone’s way, I leaned against a building when I spotted a familiar face in the distance.

“Ugh… It’s so crowded…”

“It’s always like this.”

“But still…”

…Hayoon, who usually hated being treated like a doll, was dressed in an oddly cute outfit, while the health teacher looked like he hadn’t put much effort into his appearance.

Maybe because I’d cooled off a bit before seeing them again?

Looking at them now, they made a surprisingly good pair.

There’s a reason people say “a perfect match” exists.

If the health teacher hadn’t been a… well, if he hadn’t been like that, I could’ve teased them about it all day.

But of course, beneath that decent exterior was some perverted trash.

Even Baek Ji-ho, oblivious as he is, is a hundred million times better than that garbage.

At least Hayoon had decent taste in men, I thought, pitying her for falling for that waste of space as I followed them.

“The weather’s nice today.”

“The sun’s already set. Can you even feel the weather?”

“It’s cozy. That’s enough.”

First impressions?

Hayoon’s expression was bright.

Like a girl in love—that kind of vibe.

But it was too soon to judge.

Maybe Hayoon was just hopelessly smitten.

I’ll admit the guy’s good-looking, but using that to deceive someone as innocent as Hayoon is unforgivable.

If he doesn’t meet my standards, I’ll take off my cap, march over, and expose the truth to punish him.

Repeating that resolve like some cartoon detective, I trailed them as they chatted, eventually turning into a narrower alley.

Leaving the open, busker-filled streets made me a little nervous.

But I hadn’t been caught yet.

I wasn’t tailing them closely enough to eavesdrop, just keeping a safe distance.

My hair color was a slight concern, but I’d tied it into a ponytail and worn a cap.

I’d debated sunglasses but decided against them—they’d make me look more suspicious anyway.

“…”

How long had I been following them?

Putting a little more distance to stay safe, I watched as the two ducked into a restaurant.

…If he’d planned to come here, a heads-up via text would’ve been nice.

Come to think of it, I’d been here with my boyfriend before.

More accurately, he’d dragged me here after someone recommended it—a barbecue place.

He sometimes annoyed me with his random suggestions, but I remembered the food being decent.

It made my mouth water a little, but… I’d have to resist. What else could I do?

I’d eaten a convenience store kimbap on the way, so while I might be annoyed, I wouldn’t be starving.

Peering through the window to check their movements, I confirmed they’d taken a spot where I could observe them before pulling my cap low and raising my phone to cover my mouth.

Even if Hayoon saw me, she wouldn’t recognize me right away.

And anyone passing by would just think I was texting or taking pictures of the building.

– ……. ….

– …! …. ….

Through the window, I could see their lips moving but couldn’t make out the words.

Hayoon was still smiling brightly.

She always had a puppy-like smile, but even considering that, she was laughing a lot.

A light smile.

A giggle.

And, maybe because she was with a guy, she covered her mouth when she laughed—acting a little more demure.

I didn’t know what they were talking about, but one thing was clear: she was happy.

And I understood why the health teacher had asked for a chance.

But was this really enough to approve of him for Hayoon?

For a moment, I felt like some strict father-in-law before checking my phone again and moving to a new spot.

From one angle, I could see Hayoon clearly; from another, I could see both her and the health teacher.

…It might sound obvious, but the health teacher was smiling nonstop too.

Smiling as he watched Hayoon laugh at whatever he said.

Smiling when she stopped him from eating the meat the server grilled, insisting on taking a picture first.

Smiling as she chewed her food.

Probably smiling at Hayoon saying something like, “It’s delicious.”

Forget whether Hayoon was genuinely happy—

They looked unmistakably like a couple.

If only the health teacher didn’t have that one flaw—the whole “sex partner” thing—it’d be perfect.

The rest of the evening was the same.

On the street, Hayoon grabbed his hand first, swinging it playfully as they walked.

In clothing stores, she dashed around finding outfits she thought would suit him.

At a café, she eagerly tried to feed him snacks.

And finally, in front of a motel he was about to walk past—

“…Should we go in?”

“…”

“It’ll be late.”

“…”

“You don’t mind?”

Hayoon silently tugged his sleeve, stopping him in his tracks.

“…”

By then, I realized my initial assumption had been slightly off.

It didn’t matter how much of a trash person Seo Woo-jin, the health teacher, was.

If Hayoon was this deeply in love, forcing them apart would only make me—

the one trying to help—

the villain.

– I’ll keep an eye on things for now.

– I don’t care about you, but Hayoon seems really happy.

– If I catch you with another girl, I’ll kill you.

– You’ll probably meet in secret anyway, so at least don’t do it in public.

…By now, he’s probably swapping spit with Hayoon.

If they hadn’t gotten a room, they’d be heading to nearby Sinchon or something.

Taking off the stifling cap, I typed out my thoughts and sent the message.

Only after sending it did I wonder—what if Hayoon sees this? But I pushed the thought aside.

Part of me wanted Hayoon to know the health teacher was a womanizer.

But another part didn’t want to be the bad guy ruining the mood now.

Whether she saw it or not didn’t matter.

I tried fixing my hair, flattened from the cap, before giving up with a sigh and heading back toward the station.

I didn’t want to stay here any longer.

I felt… unsettled?

If I were being dramatic, I’d say it was like facing some philosophical dilemma…

But I hate overthinking, so I just knocked my fist against my forehead and walked out onto the main road.

And then—

A familiar face disappeared into the crowd in the distance.

“…Huh.”

Even the student council president comes here to hang out, huh.

From what I’ve heard, he seemed like the type who only cared about studying.

Who’d he come with?

It couldn’t be Yoo Si-woo—he acts like he can’t stand her.

…Well,

must be here with a friend.