episode_0095

“Hanna Yeon, let’s go out and buy something to eat.”

“It’s annoying.”

Sizzle sizzle, sizzle─

Chicken thighs cut into bite-size pieces are submerged in oil.

“Ugh… Making lunchboxes is going to be more of a hassle.”

“You shouldn’t eat it.”

“Who, who doesn’t eat? You’re saying that because you’re worried it’ll be hard for you!”

A rare, lazy weekday morning.

After sending the kids to the academy, I watch Hanna Yeon cook while wearing the Chuchu apron I bought her.

Black training pants, a t-shirt of the same color, and a pure white apron worn for the sports meet.

They combined with Hannah Yeon’s ponytail to create an incredibly homely atmosphere.

Yeah, that’s good.

“Hanna Yeon, are you going to wear that to the contest today?”

“… … .”

Yes, sorry for bothering you.

I was intimidated by Hanna Yeon’s sharp gaze, so I covered my face with the ‘It Was Summer’ book I brought from home.

In fact, Hanna Yeon was disgusted and hated being asked to participate in the Miss East contest.

So I whined, “I don’t want to be labeled a traitor!” and tried to seduce her, saying, “We can go on a trip to a hot spring together,” and even threatened her, saying, “If you don’t go with me, I’ll curse you for the rest of your life.”

I was able to get one answer: ‘Ha… Okay.’

Even if it was called a contest, all we had to do was go out and answer a few questions, and the guild would even provide costumes, so it was safe to say that there wasn’t much we had to worry about. They had already told us the day before, so what could we prepare?

After taking another look at Hannah Yeon in her apron while she was cooking, I ran towards the last chapter of ‘It Was Summer’.

Yesterday was a total mistake.

I bowed my head and apologized to Baek Yu-jin several times, and even promised to read it by tomorrow, but the stone that had settled on my chest still shows no sign of being lifted.

Fortunately, Baek Yu-jin laughed it off and said it was okay, but she still wanted to keep her promise this time, so she kept reading it since last night.

“A forgotten writer is as good as dead.”

Oddly enough, the novel’s two heroines never meet face to face.

Perfectly as a reader and writer.

Readers are passionate fans, but sometimes they mimic the sharp-eyed, harsh critics.

For the writer, it was his only breathing space, his only pleasure after a long period of writing.

Then one summer, the reader is murdered by a stalker who had been chasing him.

The author had no way of knowing that fact, and when news from readers suddenly stopped, only terrible loneliness settled over the author.

And the writer’s feelings change over time.

At first, he was worried and kept sending letters, but when he still did not receive a reply, he became angry at the reader for abandoning him.

But anger without a target only creates emptiness, and the writer loses all motivation to write and begins to chase only the traces of readers.

The only clue given to the author is the address written on the postal mail.

The reader’s family had long since left the village, unable to bear the shock, and the author heard the news of the reader’s death from a nearby neighbor.

At that moment, the writer was left with nothing.

A great sense of loss that suffocates me.

There was no further response from the writer.

The quality of my writing continued to decline day by day, and my writing speed slowed down significantly.

And the writer, buried in indifference, decides to die at the end of summer.

One step, one step into the blue sea.

That was just the story.

“Sigh… .”

I’ll just read it all at night and go to sleep.

It wasn’t a book worth reading in the morning. It was a rare sports day, but I was completely out of energy. It wasn’t that great to begin with.

“Why are you doing that?”

“I saw it raining or not.”

As I closed ‘It Was Summer’ to soothe my heavy heart, my eyes met with Hanna Yeon’s, who was crouching down next to me and looking at me intently.

It’s true that I was definitely depressed, but when I saw Hanna Yeon’s apron, even that disappeared.

“Don’t cry.”

I didn’t think it was necessary to convey my sadness to Hannah Yeon, so I raised the corners of my lips and smiled brightly.

“Let’s go.”

“Ugh… .”

Then, Hanna Yeon messed up my hair with one hand and changed her apron into a black jersey.

In addition, with the round black ball cap on, the new bride had already transformed into a model.

“Sorry I can’t help you pack your lunch.”

I also followed Hanna Yeon, wearing a gray hooded zip-up jacket.

Because I neglected to prepare food because of the book… .

I was carrying an eco-bag containing a lunch box, saying that I should at least bring a packed lunch, but even that was snatched away by Hanna Yeon, who had already put on her sneakers.

“It’s easier for me to do it alone.”

“In times like this, it feels better to pretend to be a little sorry.”

I put on my sneakers and grabbed the eco bag strap again.

But because Hanna Yeon didn’t let go of her grip, we ended up splitting the string between us.

“It’s annoying… .”

With Hanna Yeon’s languid voice, she left the house just like that.

“Again!”

Maybe it was because the sports competition was coming up, but for some reason I felt like I was back in high school.

I wonder if you remember.

The day I ran into Hanna Yeon at the convenience store and had my first proper conversation with her, I got mad at her for being so annoying and started lecturing her.

Just like right now.

“Just try to brush it off by saying it’s annoying.”

Looking back, it’s really amazing.

Because ‘It’s annoying’ back then and ‘It’s annoying’ now sounded like completely different words.

“I won’t let you go even if I tell you.”

‘… Even if I talk about it, nothing will change.’

And the high school freshman girl who had given up on everything so quickly learned to even show this mischievous smile.

“Yeah, I won’t let go, so you let go first.”

“You’re going to go to the guild like this.”

We stopped midway down the villa stairs, looked at each other, and laughed quietly.

I was the first to give up on the eco bag.

Because I couldn’t handle the stares from everyone on the bus.

* * *

“Eck… … .”

On the way to the back door of the guild, I found a face I didn’t want to see.

I wonder if the other person felt the same way.

Oh Hyun-seo, who was waving a red glow stick while guiding incoming vehicles to a temporary parking lot, frowned as soon as she saw me.

But that was only for a moment.

“Wow, we meet often? Are you feeling better today?”

Oh Hyun-seo greeted me in a voice so gentle that I thought I had seen her wrong.

“Huh, huh? Huh, okay… … .”

“Ah, Nayeon said she works as a chef at the guild? That’s cool… .”

Oh Hyun-seo gives Hanna Yeon a refreshing smile while gently placing her shoulder against hers.

Oh Hyun-seo, who looked uncomfortable at first glance at her black pleated skirt and pure white blouse, and even had a beret on her head, was drawing attention from the guild staff, most of whom were dressed in gym clothes.

You’re a parking attendant, so why are you dressed like that?

What on earth are you symbolizing by talking to me and then immediately sticking to Hanna Yeon without even listening to my response?

“Let’s go in. I think it’s a little late?”

He glanced at Oh Hyeon-seo, whose attitude had blatantly changed, and grabbed Hanna Yeon’s wrist.

Are the two on good terms or not?

When you were with me, it seemed like you definitely didn’t think well of Hanna Yeon.

“Isn’t there still some time? The cars keep coming in.”

“Then I have to guide the vehicle. Do we have time to talk?”

With Hanna Yeon between them, Oh Hyeon-seo followed along with everything she said.

There’s something I’ve been dissatisfied with for a while now.

I also feel like I might lose my friend… .

Just looking at Oh Hyun-seo reminds me of what happened in the room and I get goosebumps. It can’t be helped that it’s impossible to tell her to be friendly now.

“… Let’s go.”

“Ah, let’s meet again later! I got permission to watch the sports festival once it starts!”

This time, Hanna Yeon grabbed me first and pulled me in, and Oh Hyeon Seo shouted from behind me in a bright voice.

Either way.

I wondered if my feelings for Oh Hyeon-seo had been twisted, and I unconsciously thought of sarcastic remarks.

No, let’s not do that.

The annoyed expression I saw earlier might have been a misunderstanding, and it’s possible that he had actually become close with Hanna Yeon.

There’s no need to cause a rift between us for no reason.

Still, no answer came out until the end.

We left Oh Hyun-seo’s cries behind and went to find a banner that said, ‘Receptionist Restaurant Union Team.’

“Is Mr. Haru here?”

“Chef, are you here?”

Is the restaurant side Yakuza or something?

Men with white bands around their heads came rushing in and bowing their backs as if shaving.

“Uh, is there anything I can help you with?”

Inside the banner installed in our team space, there were chairs and tables as well as various drinks and snacks.

Even light snacks and fruits prepared at restaurants.

In other tents, all you can see is an icebox.

“No, almost all of it was prepared by the restaurant staff.”

“Then rest comfortably!”

The restaurant staff who surrounded us as if they were escorting us and guided us to plastic chairs soon placed fruit and sports drinks on the table and walked away.

“Hanna Yeon, what did you do to the restaurant people? You just beat them up with violence or something… .”

I, who had unexpectedly been treated with such luxury, sat down on a chair and whispered to Hanna Yeon.

“… I didn’t do it.”

Hanna Yeon looks at me as if to say, “What kind of nonsense are you talking about?”

“But why… .”

“Contest, you have to send out one person at a time.”

“That’s right.”

I found out later that they had to send at least one person from each department, so they had been trying hard to persuade me.

In fact, the Miss Universe contest is the worst thing that can happen – putting people on stage and making them a laughing stock.

Of course, it may not be as evil as I thought… .

“When I said I was going out, you started supporting me.”

Even as Hanna Yeon continued her explanation, the restaurant owner came over, opened a bag of chips in front of us, gave us a thumbs up, and disappeared.

“I decided to do that just for today.”

“Still… isn’t it too serious?”

Certainly, the restaurant industry is overwhelmingly male-dominated, and the average age is higher than other departments.

However, it must have been uncomfortable to just let go of two people from the reception team, so Hanna Yeon’s appearance at that time must have seemed like a savior.

“Anyway, thanks to Hanna Yeon, I’m living a comfortable life too.”

Beep beep beep

As I was eating the star-shaped chocolate cookie that the old man had given me, the noise of the microphone echoed throughout the playground.

“Ah, ah. Dear guild members, today is a truly meaningful day.”

The branch manager, wearing a green gym uniform, stepped onto the step and stood in front of the podium.

The following are the words of instruction from the principal, no, the guild branch manager.

Fortunately, it wasn’t as long as the principal’s.

“Safety first, safety second. Let’s be careful not to get hurt. Okay, all together!”

At the end of the branch manager’s powerful voice, everyone except for a few new recruits raised their hands and shouted.

““Safe, safe, safe!””

What, what is it?

The guild’s first sports competition, which welcomed Hanna Yeon, began like that.