Ch.191Episode 38. Someone to Rely On (2)

Following Bin-yoon’s suggestion that weekdays were better for calmly observing animals, we scheduled our outing on a day when I had no lectures.

“Hello, Instructor! I see you’re wearing a hat again today?”

Bin-yoon greeted me energetically as she strode over. As she noted, I was wearing my hat pulled low, dressed casually in a t-shirt and slacks.

In contrast, Bin-yoon wore a cardigan with a pleated skirt. It was a style that suited her impression perfectly.

“Can’t be helped. If I get caught on a date alone with you, my face might end up on the front page news.”

I had no intention of denying that I was seeing several students, but I didn’t particularly want to be caught up in a scandal.

In fact, rumors that I had already been involved with multiple students were quietly spreading throughout the Academy.

What was it they said? That I was living up to my looks?

“H-hmm… Are you openly calling this a date now?”

“Isn’t it a date? If not, then never mind.”

Only fools hesitate when they already know the other person is interested. If you don’t intend to be clear about it, you might as well make them feel that way.

“Are you going to wear a hat every time we date?”

“Can’t be helped, can it? If I want to go without a hat… we’d need to be somewhere private, just the two of us.”

“Well… that’s true. But Instructor, you stand out even with a hat on.”

“What? Really?”

“Yes. You have a different presence than others, even from a distance. People won’t fail to recognize you just because you’ve pulled your hat down.”

Does that mean I need to disguise myself?

Should I learn cosplay techniques from Gu Yeonhwa?

While I was seriously contemplating this, Bin-yoon grinned and slapped me on the back.

“Let’s go. Stop thinking about strange things.”

“It’s not a strange concern.”

“Your expression looks silly, so it must be a strange concern.”

“Is that an appropriate thing to say to your instructor?”

“You’re not my instructor right now, are you?”

“What?”

“You said it yourself. That this is a date.”

There was a relaxed composure in Bin-yoon as she spoke with a giggle. She seemed somewhat different from when we dated before the new year.

“Then that means we’re not just in an instructor-student relationship, right?”

For a moment, I blanked out and found myself staring at Bin-yoon.

She really got me there. Coming at me with logic, huh?

That’s fine by me. The more she acts this way, the easier it is for me to approach her.

Perhaps Bin-yoon had already made up her mind a while ago.

Still, I’ll have to get her back for this later.

“B-but no funny business! Understood?”

“What counts as funny business?”

“Unnecessarily holding hands. Creating strange atmospheres for no reason. Things like that.”

The more she spoke, the redder her face became.

By the time her cheeks were flushed enough to be almost indistinguishable from her pink hair, she glanced at me nervously and walked ahead.

“Well then, let’s go.”

I walked alongside her as she headed toward the parking lot.

“…What happens if I create that kind of atmosphere?”

“W-what happens? Nothing happens!”

“Really?”

I’ll have to check that when the time comes. I’m curious to see how she’ll react when I actually create that atmosphere.

Whether she’ll pretend to be unfazed like now, or be too embarrassed to know what to do—I’m looking forward to it.

“By the way, you managed to pick a good day. Did you have a free period?”

“After failing course registration last time, I was determined not to let it happen again.”

“But now you’re the only one in my class this semester.”

Bin-yoon, who had missed registering for required major courses last semester except for the mandatory ones, ended up being the only one from the special class taking my course this semester.

“That’s right. That’s how we were able to match our schedules.”

“You planned it well, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t exactly plan this far ahead.”

Bin-yoon glanced at me and snorted softly. One way or another, she’s clearly conscious of me.

“By the way, now that I have you all to myself, I wonder if my seniors or the other girls will be jealous.”

“Hmm. I don’t think they will.”

“…You’re underestimating female jealousy, aren’t you, Instructor?”

Her gaze was sharp as she looked up at me with her index finger raised. Somehow, I felt like I was about to be scolded.

“They say when a woman is jealous, frost falls even in the heat of summer, right?”

“Isn’t that about ‘harboring resentment,’ not jealousy?”

“Jealousy falls under the category of resentment.”

“…I see.”

“If you’ve been playing around with multiple women, you’d better watch your behavior. Otherwise, you might get stabbed in the back.”

“That sounds scary.”

“I don’t mean literally stabbed. I mean you never know what kind of tricks they might pull.”

Coming from the knowledgeable and logical Bin-yoon, it really did make me feel like I should be careful.

“Alright. I’ll behave. But how do you know so much about this?”

“…My mother was like that. After my father left.”

So it was from experience…

Kim So-yang, that woman is truly messed up.

“Anyway, I don’t want to be the target of other women’s jealousy, and I don’t want to fight. So if anything happens, you take responsibility. Understood?”

“I understand.”

That was my intention from the beginning. If I wasn’t prepared for that, I wouldn’t have gotten involved with multiple women in the first place.

“Good. It’s a promise. Now, let’s go.”

Her steps seemed strangely lighter. I watched her striding ahead, gave a wry smile, and followed after her.

* * *

Seoul Grand Park Zoo in Gwacheon.

It was a bit of a distance from the Academy, so it took some time to get there, but being a weekday afternoon, it was quite uncrowded.

Thanks to Bin-yoon’s advance booking, we were able to get our tickets right away and enter.

While looking at the pamphlet, Bin-yoon suddenly turned to me and asked:

“Have you been here before?”

“Hmm. I think I came when I was young.”

It was when I was young in that other world, but it wasn’t a lie.

“There’s a set route, but depending on how we go, we might miss some animals. So if there’s any animal you really want to see, let me know in advance.”

She handed me the pamphlet. I took it and said:

“Can’t we see everything?”

“It’s possible, but it would take a lot of time. Of course, there are buses and trains that can save time, but…”

She put her hand to her mouth and pondered. I handed the pamphlet back to Bin-yoon. She looked up at me.

“Have you decided?”

“The animals you want to see are the ones I want to see.”

“What?”

“You suggested coming to this zoo because there are animals you want to see, right?”

“Well… that’s true, but…”

“Then we should see what you want to see. I’ve been here several times already.”

“If you came when you were young, you must have forgotten most of it.”

“Then we can come again next time to see all the animals.”

“Next time… Hmm~ Already asking for another date. Not bad. I suppose you treat everyone else this way too?”

Her expression and voice didn’t match. Her voice sounded excited, but her expression was crumpling.

“I don’t think that’s the case…”

“…Anyway, that’s how it is. Alright. From now on, Instructor, you’ll follow my escort.”

Pure excitement filled Bin-yoon’s eyes as she finished deliberating. She couldn’t hide her excitement at the thought of seeing the animals.

“We’ll be walking quite a bit today. Is that okay?”

“Yes, that’s fine.”

I wore sneakers today so I could walk comfortably.

“Great. Let’s go!”

And so we officially began our exploration of the zoo.

Right after entering, we could see various animals like zebras, flamingos, and giraffes. People were already taking pictures all around.

“Instructor, take lots of animal photos!”

“Huh? Sure.”

I took out my phone and started photographing the colorful animals, then glanced at Bin-yoon.

“So cute!”

She couldn’t take her eyes off the animals. I stepped back slightly and took a photo of Bin-yoon’s profile. Hearing the camera sound, she turned to look at me.

“…Huh? I told you to take pictures of the animals, so why are you taking pictures of me?”

She scrutinized me with suspicious eyes.

“Because you’re cute.”

“What?”

“Let’s go. We have many animals to see, right?”

“Ah, yes…”

She looked dazed. She seemed shy. Her bright red ears were visible through her pink hair as she lowered her head.

Even if she denies it, her feelings are so obvious.

Afterward, we saw meerkats, hippos, chimpanzees, and orangutans. We were on our way to see the tigers, even though the animal Bin-yoon actually wanted to see was the otter.

“Yoon-i.”

“…Yes?”

“You’re not very used to having your picture taken, are you?”

We had stopped at a nearby ice cream shop for a break. I said this after ordering cone ice creams.

The first photo I took of her was very natural and her face looked pretty, but after that, she seemed somewhat stiff.

Her smile was awkward and her poses were strange. It felt like she was unnecessarily conscious of the camera.

“How often would I have my picture taken while being cooped up in a lab!”

Her voice grew higher, as if embarrassed by my comment.

“D-delete the weird ones!”

“Why? They’re all pretty.”

“Ugh! D-don’t say things like that! Give me your phone! I’ll select the good ones to keep…”

I chuckled seeing her lips twitch. It seemed she did like being called pretty. I displayed the gallery on my screen and handed it to Bin-yoon.

Bin-yoon cutely furrowed her eyebrows and began clicking through the phone a few times.

Then suddenly her expression changed. I could see her face souring in a different way.

“…”

“Hmm? What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing.”

Bin-yoon had an unmistakably displeased look.

While I was wondering about her reaction, she handed the phone back. Only after receiving it did I understand why Bin-yoon was upset.

None other than messages from other girls had come in. Especially from Yu Ari.

I regretted carelessly giving her my phone.

Anyone would feel bad if they saw messages from other romantic interests while on a date.

Even though she knew I was seeing multiple women, having it directly shown to her was a different matter.

Hmm. How should I smooth this over…