episode_0027

Yoon Jiwoo’s observation record of a romantic comedy.

In the morning, he greets everyone in the class first when he arrives at school.

Class C was already under his friendly control.

Because of that, it seemed like he often interacted with heroines like Lee Sae-ah and Hong Yeon-seo, while Lee So-yoon and Sung Yoo-rin, who had a bit of a nerd vibe like me, didn’t get along well with Jiwoo in the class.

From my observation for over a month now, it seems unlikely that any significant original events have taken place.

Of course, the original story I knew had already ended a long time ago, so there was no need to pay attention to it anymore.

“Hmm.”

During break time, I pondered while looking at the kids chatting in front.

They definitely got along well.

But there didn’t seem to be any progress beyond that.

Especially Jiwoo. He was the main issue.

From my keen observation, it seemed like Jiwoo clearly had a crush on Lee Sae-ah.

Since they had been together since childhood, he probably developed a protective feeling towards her.

The problem lies with the other kids.

Jiwoo only showed more than friendly interest in Lee Sae-ah, while the others seemed to view him just as a friend.

Lee So-yoon probably had a crush on Jiwoo from middle school, and Hong Yeon-seo probably became close due to their similar personalities.

But I had never seen these two show obvious signs of liking Jiwoo.

…As for Sung Yoo-rin, our relationship with Jiwoo had become a bit strained because of me.

So, the conclusion is.

This is not the romantic comedy I wanted to see!

“Jina, what’s wrong?”

“……Huh?”

“Your expression doesn’t look good.”

Lee So-yoon looked at me and spoke, causing the other kids’ attention to focus on me.

What should I say to explain? After pondering, I spoke.

“Uh…. Oh, right. Since there’s about a month left until midterms, I was thinking of starting to study a bit.”

Lee So-yoon raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing me, but the other kids nodded.

“That’s true. There’s only a month left.”

Lee Sae-ah checked the date and said.

“Ugh. I don’t want to study.”

“Me neither….”

Hong Yeon-seo and Jiwoo made tired expressions and slumped.

“But we can’t afford to fail.”

Sung Yoo-rin scolded them.

As Sung Yoo-rin said, there is a system of failing at Dawn High School.

Even if you fail, you’re not held back, but you have to retake the exam until you pass.

“Then, how about doing this?”

Lee Sae-ah clenched her fist and hit her palm.

“We’ll have a study group.”

“….We used to do that every year.”

I made a skeptical expression.

The study group we had every year since middle school was more of a gathering to eat and have fun than to study.

“This time, we’ll really study!”

Lee Sae-ah seemed to know that too, as she passionately put forth her opinion.

“S-Study. Then, at your houses…?”

Sung Yoo-rin’s eyes became dreamy, and she started giggling.

It seemed like she was imagining something strange.

“Since Jini’s house is empty now, how about studying at Jini’s house?”

“No, who decided that…?”

Surprised by Lee Sae-ah’s suggestion, I opposed it.

Studying at our house would mean having to do a lot of cleaning and other chores.

“What’s wrong with that? Your house is spacious.”

When Jiwoo supported Lee Sae-ah’s idea, the other three also brightened up.

“Then I agree~”

“I’m fine with it too.”

“Heh…. F-Friend’s house….”

“Then with five in favor and one against, it’s decided that we’ll study at Seo Yijin’s house!”

Following a democratic process that disregarded minority opinions, Jiwoo pushed the agenda through.

These troublemakers, even the UN Security Council requires unanimous agreement to pass a resolution.

“Then how about going after school this Friday?”

“I’m fine with that.”

“Me too!”

Excluding me, who was already immersed in despair, the other five were casually deciding on the schedule.

In the end, I could only sigh and nod my head.

“Should we grill some meat for our late-night snack?”

“Do you want to die?”

I almost grabbed Yoon Jiwoo’s collar when she suggested grilling pork belly in the living room.

Do you want to clean up the oil splatters?

* * *

“Underclassman, take a look at this. Our costumes have been ordered.”

After school, the president barged into the club room in front of me, holding out her phone.

I was momentarily shocked and flustered, but quickly calmed down and took the phone.

“When will they arrive?”

“It’s not the usual costume, I ordered a custom-made high-end one, so it will take about a week to arrive!”

Come to think of it, the president seems to have a lot of money like Seong Yurin.

Her appearance is like that of a rich girl, and the amount she spent on me is not a small sum either.

Seeing the price on the order form, I felt a cold sweat running down my back and asked the president.

“The club activity fee must have been exceeded a long time ago. What about the money…?”

“Don’t worry about the money! The cosplay event organizers provided funding for the costume production, and I was able to cover most of it with the activity fee. I paid the remaining amount.”

“How much did you pay? I’ll pay too.”

“Just being accommodating to me as an underclassman is enough!”

Seeing the president’s truly nonchalant expression, I nodded my head.

“If that’s the case, thank you.”

“Don’t worry! We can always resell the costumes as second-hand.”

“Resell?”

“Yes. If we wear the costumes, they might even sell for a higher price!”

Is it really that valuable?

Without a hint of doubt in her opinion, the president smiled broadly, and I scratched my head and headed back to my seat.

Oh, by the way.

“President.”

“Yes, underclassman?”

“On the day of the festival, my friends want to come and watch. Is that okay?”

“Oh my, of course, that’s fine. I was planning to bring someone I know too.”

The president’s acquaintance, huh. I became curious.

“Who is it?”

“Yes, she’s a senior to you. She’s in the second year.”

“I see.”

“I have a picture, would you like to see? She’s very pretty.”

…If she’s pretty, then I’m interested.

As I casually averted my gaze, the president operated her phone and showed me the picture.

The picture reflected on the phone screen was of a girl taking a photo with the president.

“Oh…”

“She’s pretty, right?”

“Uh, yes.”

If the president symbolizes the color black, the girl next to her symbolizes the color white, shining with silver hair and a gentle smile.

The girl, with a shy blush on her fair skin, was smiling modestly, unlike the confident expression of the president.

A perfect harmony of black and white.

“Her name is Yuseol. Just like her name, she’s a pure white beauty, right? I’ll introduce you to her before the cosplay event.”

“Introduce… um, okay.”

Although I didn’t mean it that way, it felt awkward to be introduced to a girl.

…Is she the heroine?

Doubts began to surface from her appearance.

With half suspicion and half curiosity, I couldn’t take my eyes off the girl in the photo, but the president took back her phone.

“Are you staring too intently, underclassman? Are you falling for her?”

“Huh? No, that’s not it.”

“You shouldn’t fall for her!”

“I’m not.”

After that, the president continued to tease me, saying I shouldn’t fall for her.

I really wasn’t looking at her like that.

* * *

Slurp-

The warm miso soup added warmth to my body.

I possessed the lonely gourmet and closed my eyes to savor the taste of the soup.

“What are you doing?”

Oh no, she’s interrupting my gourmet experience.

I opened my eyes slightly to see Hong Yeonseo staring at me with a puzzled expression.

“I’m savoring the taste.”

“You’re so weird….”

Weird? Well, savoring the taste is meant to be enjoyed slowly like this.

It’s not about stuffing yourself like you do!

…I wanted to retort like that, but the image of Yoon Jiwu getting scolded by Hong Yeonseo overlapped in my mind, making me keep my mouth shut.

“Jin sometimes gets lost in his own world.”

My familiar appearance made Lee Saeah and Lee Soyun laugh.

During lunchtime, the four of us were eating without Yoon Jiwu and Sung Yurin.

They were taken away separately because Sung Yurin had something to tell Yoon Jiwu.

I wonder what’s going on. I’m really curious about what event is taking place.

I held the bowl of soybean paste soup and pondered in silence.

In fact, they didn’t have much in common.

Sung Yurin, in a way, became friends with Yoon Jiwu because of me.

Nevertheless, the fact that an event like this was happening indicates that there might be some kind of action trying to return to the original story.

Of course, I can’t know what they’re talking about. Could Sung Yurin have taken Yoon Jiwu to scold him?

“Seo Ijin. Stop thinking so deeply while eating. We’re done eating.”

Once again, Hong Yeonseo interrupted my thoughts and our eyes met.

I glanced down and saw four empty bowls neatly placed in front of Hong Yeonseo.

“You’re fast.”

“I have a high metabolism, that’s why!”

I hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“I just said it’s nice to see you eat well.”

“Oh… really?”

I didn’t want to be proven wrong like Yoon Jiwu, so I added a bit of flattery, which seemed to lighten up Hong Yeonseo’s expression.

People really need to be sensitive.