Ch.12012. The Secret I Cannot Tell.

Friday wasn’t a particularly special day for Suhyeok.

While others made a fuss about the weekend arriving, when they didn’t have to go to school or work.

For him, it was just another passing day, since he neither had any special plans nor was the type to drink himself to death.

That was until he joined Spirit.

“Ugh…! I don’t want to go…!”

Sitting in front of his computer, he clutched his bangs as if trying to tear them out.

[Behavioral Economics Case Study]

The searching abilities of inexperienced college students were all pretty much the same.

After casually selecting a presentation topic, Suhyeok scraped a few links and pasted them into his notepad.

Besides himself, there were three other group members, so wouldn’t at least one of them bring something decent?

It was a complacent thought, but that’s generally how college students were.

When he listened to college senior mentors who visited his high school, he thought he would change somehow when he became an adult.

Suhyeok still harbored deep doubts about whether he had grown significantly as a person since he was 19.

He didn’t want to see Kim Nayoung’s face.

And being there with Park Juyeon was even more burdensome.

For a moment, he was almost consumed by the urge to drop the class entirely rather than attend, but he barely managed to get up and pack his bag.

Arriving at the lecture hall, leaving his gloominess behind.

Since the professor instructed everyone to sit with their groups, Suhyeok looked around, searching for traces of his teammates.

Juho… doesn’t seem to be here.

No sign of Kim Nayoung either.

Juyeon is…

Normally, scanning where most people gathered would be the standard approach.

But this time, his search target was someone like himself.

Which meant…

Suhyeok’s gaze fixed on the most secluded seat at the back.

Sure enough.

He spotted Juyeon, hunched over, making her already small frame appear even smaller.

Finding someone similar to yourself in this harsh world can be a great comfort.

Slowly approaching, Suhyeok grabbed the edge of the chair next to her.

With a scraping sound, he pulled out the chair.

Juyeon gradually raised her head to look up at him.

“…Oh.”

Juyeon let out a short exclamation upon seeing Suhyeok.

Their gazes met in mid-air.

“Hello.”

Suhyeok greeted her awkwardly.

“…Hello.”

When they first met, she had immediately buried her face on the desk.

Now, Juyeon returned his greeting with a somewhat prim voice.

It seemed they had grown a little closer.

Just a little.

Of course, the conversation didn’t continue after that.

‘Should I speak first again…? But wouldn’t initiating conversation twice in a row seem too bothersome? I wouldn’t like it if I were her…’

Suhyeok pondered while.

‘Ah… I wanted to eat a cream puff… If I take it out now, I should share it, right? We’re in the same club too. But if other group members arrive later, I’d have to give them some too… That means if I bought five, I’d only get to eat two… I don’t like that…’

Juyeon debated whether to summon the courage to eat her cream puff.

Their brief deliberations came to an end.

Juyeon fumbled inside her eco bag and pulled out a bag containing bread.

With her dainty fingers, she minimized the rustling sound as much as possible and quickly took out a cream puff, extending it toward Suhyeok.

“Huh?”

A fluffy cream puff suddenly appeared before Suhyeok, who had been wondering when things would stop being awkward with Juyeon.

When Suhyeok turned his head, Juyeon slightly lowered her head and delivered her request.

“Q-quickly eat this now.”

Suhyeok’s pupils began to tremble.

What was this?

What did this mean?

Was this part of the process to be recognized as a band member?

Having already heard so many strange things from Choegang, Suhyeok wasn’t particularly surprised by this challenge.

“…Do you not like it?”

When the bread in her hand remained motionless, Juyeon slightly raised her head to examine Suhyeok’s expression.

Seeing Suhyeok’s unexpectedly solemn face, Juyeon felt her heart shrinking.

It was clear.

Suhyeok didn’t like cream puffs.

And she had just offered him one!

But for a loner, taking back something once offered was also an enormous ordeal.

As Juyeon was trying to devise a scenario to turn her hand around and put the cream puff in her own mouth, she felt her head spinning.

Ugh… I should have just eaten it after class.

Why did I take it out?

Park Juyeon, you idiot.

Just as she was regretting her moment of courage.

“…Thank you.”

Suhyeok’s fingers brushed against the back of Juyeon’s hand as he took the bread and brought it to his mouth.

His eyes reflected determination.

He swallowed the cream puff almost without chewing, as if participating in a speed-eating contest.

Although Suhyeok did his best to eat quickly as Juyeon had requested, for some reason, she didn’t look particularly pleased.

‘I knew it! He doesn’t like it but ate it anyway!’

Throughout the lecture, Juyeon couldn’t shake off her feeling of guilt.

* * *

Contrary to Suhyeok’s worries, the lecture proceeded rather smoothly.

Nayoung didn’t create any awkward situations like last time, and the materials that Juho, the team leader, had brought received good evaluations from the professor, so they decided to proceed with those.

Just when he thought he could safely escape the lecture hall.

Indeed, the saying “don’t let your guard down until the very end” exists for a reason.

“Suhyeok.”

Nayoung approached him as he was zipping up his bag after class.

“Yes…?”

“We’re meeting up later today.”

“We?”

“Oh, don’t be like that~ The Purple Storm people, you know.”

Suhyeok felt a chill run down his spine at her overly friendly manner.

Since when had they been close enough to casually meet up like this?

“Yeah.”

“Let’s have dinner together.”

He didn’t want to go.

And he had plenty of legitimate reasons not to.

“I have a club meeting this evening.”

A polite refusal.

Nayoung’s gaze naturally turned toward Juyeon, who was supposedly in the same club.

“Really? Juyeon?”

Juyeon, who had been contemplating what to do with her remaining cream puffs, flinched at the sound of her name.

“Uh… huh?”

“Is there a club meeting today?”

There was no practice scheduled, but it was the day for their regular social gathering where they met and hung out.

Juyeon’s gaze shifted toward Suhyeok.

He looked somewhat troubled.

Juyeon slowly nodded her head up and down.

“Yes. At 6 o’clock later.”

“Ah… I see… Well, can’t be helped then. Suhyeok, I’ll contact you! Let’s meet another time!”

Nayoung flashed a smile, turned around, and headed out.

Juyeon silently watched from behind as Suhyeok slightly bit his lip.

Were they on bad terms?

And why did Suhyeok join Purple Storm in the first place?

The band club’s social gathering…

Juyeon knew of its existence but had no idea what they actually did there.

She was curious, but she wasn’t the type to readily ask questions to others.

Besides, hadn’t she already forced him to eat a cream puff he didn’t like today?

Reaffirming her resolve not to overstep, she pushed back her chair and stood up.

I’ll put the remaining cream puffs in the refrigerator…!

“Juyeon.”

Suhyeok softly called her name.

“Y-yes…?”

Why are so many people calling my name today?

This is why I hate team projects.

I just wanted to quietly attend class and leave quietly!

“I’m curious about something.”

“Yes.”

“At the social gathering… what do you do?”

Although he had successfully fended off Nayoung, Suhyeok was also worried about today’s social gathering.

He had heard it described as everyone gathering and having fun together, but what exactly did that entail?

If necessary, he was willing to prepare in advance by watching videos again today.

Suhyeok believed that Juyeon would surely provide him with tailored guidance that would suit him perfectly.

“Umm… about the social gathering…”

While this might not be a difficult topic for other members, it was quite painful for Juyeon.

After all, the origin of the social gathering was entirely rooted in her.

When Seoeun had asked, “Who wants to hang out after practice today?” and the participation rate was 0%, the social gathering was born.

In other words, the true identity of the social gathering was the “Prevent Park Juyeon from Being Ostracized Club”!

“So…”

For anyone else it might have been fine, but trying to say it herself made Juyeon feel suicidal.

Her face began to turn bright red.

Eventually, seeing Juyeon’s expression that looked like she might burst into tears, Suhyeok became extremely flustered.

Why… why… are you about to cry!

“No! It’s okay! You don’t have to tell me!”

If his question was causing someone pain, he was the kind of person who could set aside his curiosity.

“Thank you…”

The remaining students leaving the lecture hall eyed the two, wondering if they might be developing feelings for each other.