Ch.16016. Come to My House.

It seemed like a situation that should have been sufficiently awkward.

[Gasp! Suhyeok! Can’t you make it? Ah, I’m really sorry~ I should have told you earlier…]

Seo-eun’s voice echoed in Suhyeok’s ears.

Certainly, if he had been one of those popular kids with a part-time job on weekends or social plans, it might have been an inconvenient situation.

But this was Suhyeok.

Surprisingly, there was nothing inconvenient about it for him.

And that fact was making his heart ache a little.

It means I’m someone who can be called out anytime without it being a problem, huh?

The fact that this wasn’t wrong made him even sadder.

Haah…

Lying on his bed, he fidgeted with his phone.

The combined first and second-year group chat had so many messages that he had turned off notifications.

The first-years, despite barely knowing each other, were already hanging out in tight-knit groups.

[Ji Sohye, Han Geonu, Park Taejeong are in front of Taesan Pocha now~ Anyone want to join for drinks~ Senpais are also very welcome~]

[Wow. You guys are drinking from Monday? That’s insane!]

[Won’t tomorrow’s me somehow manage tomorrow’s tasks? Hahahahahahaha]

[We’re good to go if you come!]

Suhyeok only lurked, not responding at all.

Of course, a cool senior who kept his distance wouldn’t attend such gatherings.

It wasn’t that he disliked or hated his juniors, but Suhyeok still found such gatherings burdensome.

Haah… Even small drinking sessions like that are hard for me, and now an MT…

Suhyeok thought about searching for information about MTs on a portal site, but remembering how someone suggested playing games at their first drinking session, he convulsed as if sitting in an electric chair.

The internet really couldn’t be trusted.

He considered asking Seo-eun but feared rumors might spread if he asked such things. Instead, he decided to message Juyeon, who seemed similar to him but definitely had MT experience.

Fellow loners understand each other’s circumstances.

His hesitant thumb moved slowly across the keyboard.

[Hey.]

Hmm… this sounds like I’m stopping a random stranger on the street.

[What are you doing?]

Is this something only close friends would say?

[Juyeon.]

After going back and forth, Suhyeok decided to simply call her name and pressed send.

He told himself to close his eyes and not worry until a reply came.

But the yellow notification bar that disappeared as soon as he sent the message was enough to make him anxious.

No reply… is coming…

It felt like a huge rock had landed on his head.

Though he didn’t think there had been any major incidents, Suhyeok slowly reviewed his past interactions with Juyeon.

He couldn’t think of anything that would have soured their relationship, except maybe…

Could she still be conscious about Seo-eun noona touching her chest? Surely not?

No, but that wasn’t even me touching her, would she really…?

Having already sent the message, he couldn’t delete it.

With no way out, all he could do was wait.

[Yes?]

A short, concise answer.

Relieved that he wasn’t being ignored, Suhyeok’s mood improved as he moved his thumb again.

[How was last year’s MT?]

[MT?]

[Ah. I heard we’re going this weekend, so I was wondering what the atmosphere was like last year.]

Juyeon was holding her phone tightly with her small hands.

She found Suhyeok’s message puzzling.

If he wanted to ask about the MT, wasn’t he looking in completely the wrong place?

Wouldn’t Seo-eun unnie or Hana be much better at answering this…?

[It was fun.]

It actually was fun.

Of course, Juyeon had her share of embarrassing moments too.

Even now, just thinking about those memories…

As her embarrassing actions came to mind, Juyeon kicked her blanket forcefully with her feet.

[Um… is there anything I should prepare or avoid doing?]

Suhyeok’s attitude somehow resembled her own from last year.

Feeling a sense of kinship, Juyeon thought she might help him just a little.

[…Don’t bring board games.]

[Board games?]

Juyeon didn’t reply anymore.

Did something urgent come up that prevented her from responding?

The yellow bar didn’t disappear again.

But why would she tell him not to bring board games to an MT?

Do people actually bring such things?

Suhyeok failed to realize that Juyeon’s advice came from personal experience.

* * *

Week 2 of losing precious free time to lessons.

Hana was diligently reviewing the guitar techniques she would teach Suhyeok today.

“For examples… should I use this and this…?”

Honestly, she felt he would learn quickly no matter what she brought.

Just watching him play the backing for “Standing Luxury” during practice made him seem like a guitar superhuman.

How could he play such clean backing at first attempt?

The fact that he seemed no different from her, who had practiced dozens of such songs, gave Hana a sense of deprivation.

While it wasn’t wrong to say he had talent, Hana knew nothing about the amount of practice Suhyeok put in.

Even a gracefully swimming swan is frantically paddling beneath the surface.

Alone in his studio apartment, Suhyeok practiced like a tireless robot.

Rather than a guitar prodigy, he would be more accurately described as a prodigy of effort.

Not wanting to teach incorrectly, Hana had quickly reviewed videos from other experts before leaning back in her chair and yawning.

“Ahh…”

The only remaining task was those movie CDs.

She had considered taking them to a multi-room to watch together, but that seemed like a waste.

After all, why leave her perfectly good high-definition monitor at home to pay money to watch elsewhere?

The real issue was having Suhyeok, a “man,” enter her home.

Of course, she knew he was as harmless as a herbivore, but the fact itself bothered her.

The solution was simple.

Just invite other people too.

She had already gotten Seo-eun’s agreement.

Hana didn’t mind watching the same movie again.

Rather, she felt it was beneficial to watch those expensive purchases more than once.

Dressed in black jeans with her department jacket over them, Hana put on a baseball cap.

Her look gave off senior-year vibes.

There was no reason to dress up elaborately when she was just going to teach guitar and leave.

Though Hana considered herself plain, her beauty couldn’t be hidden by such casual attire.

Arriving at the community center and stepping out of the elevator, she spotted Suhyeok entering the door code in the distance.

“Lee Suhyeok!”

Suhyeok turned his head at Hana’s call.

“Hi.”

“Did you just arrive?”

“Yeah.”

Suhyeok was wearing the same gray hoodie as yesterday.

Though she had dressed casually herself, Hana was concerned and casually asked him:

“That outfit. You don’t just wear that one, right?”

Come to think of it, he seemed to have worn it about three days last week too.

“Huh? Why? Does it look weird?”

There was nothing weird about it.

What could possibly be controversial about a plain gray hoodie?

“No. Just… you wear it often.”

“I have three identical ones.”

Suhyeok answered casually, even proudly, with a bright smile.

He was simply happy that Hana could learn guitar.

Meanwhile, Hana’s eyebrows began to dance freely as she struggled to control her expression.

“Why… would you buy three…?”

“Well, it’s comfortable… looks neutral… and… um… it was cheap?”

In fact, he had bought them during a discount event offering three for 100,000 won.

That’s just 33,000 won each!

Isn’t that a good deal?

“Uh…”

Momentarily speechless, Hana just watched Suhyeok’s back as he took his guitar out of the gig bag.

Really… somehow…

Why is he like this…?

I can’t just leave him be…?

To Hana’s eyes, there was nothing wrong with Suhyeok’s physique.

He’s not that tall, but his proportions are good.

His build is slim, and his limbs are long.

His face is actually decent if he didn’t wear his hair like that, so why on earth does he dress like that?

Noticing her intense gaze, Suhyeok plugged the cable into his guitar and gave an awkward smile.

“…Do I look strange?”

Yes. You look strange.

Why do you dress like that?

“No, no. Anyway, I brought something a bit more complex than last week’s rhythm practice, okay?”

Though tempted to say something, Hana decided they weren’t close enough yet for such comments and turned the page of the textbook.

Just wait until we get a little closer.

Then I’ll just tell him, “Throw that hoodie away!”

Or maybe not. Would he get upset and quit if I said that?

Hana thought both Juyeon and Suhyeok were like fragile glass.

“Okay. Should I try playing this?”

“Yeah. But focus on keeping your right hand moving with ghost picking during rest sections. And be careful not to make noise when muting.”

Hana enthusiastically shared her knowledge while Suhyeok diligently followed along, struggling but trying hard.

Though he was stumbling, just being there was incredibly enjoyable for him.

Being able to properly learn the guitar he loved so much in a band setting.

For him, this was the fulfillment of a fantasy he had cherished for a very long time.

“Wow… this is so confusing…”

“Rhythm guitar is like that. The basics are super easy, but it gets crazy complicated when you advance.”

The last example was a riff that Hana wouldn’t have been able to demonstrate in front of Suhyeok without practicing separately.

“Oh, right. Lee Suhyeok.”

Hana tried to casually bring up the topic of movies.

“Yeah?”

“Do you have anything planned after practice tomorrow?”

“No.”

It would be more unusual to have plans after practice ended at 7 PM.

“Really? Then.”

As she leaned forward slightly, Hana’s golden hair flowed down from her shoulders under her baseball cap.

“Come to my place.”

Suhyeok’s ears turned bright red at Hana’s direct approach.