episode_0332

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There’s a word called “chok” (intuition).

It’s usually used in phrases like “having good chok”—that very chok. In other words, gut feeling.

I consider myself to have pretty good intuition.

I’m generally good at distinguishing between people I need and those I don’t…

And I’ve got a knack for sensing when something’s off and cutting it out.

Plus, just the other day, when I saw Hayun with Seo Woojin, I immediately guessed right, didn’t I?

Of course, anyone who isn’t as oblivious as my boyfriend would’ve figured it out too.

Anyway, from my perspective, Seo Woojin wasn’t that bad of a guy.

To put it bluntly, he’s like a serial killer who’s only killed, say, two people…

No. Let’s not go there.

Now that I think about it, that analogy’s a bit off.

What I’m trying to say is this:

It’s an undeniable fact that Seo Woojin is trash for sleeping around with other women,

but at least while I’m keeping an eye on him, he seems to be restraining himself?

Trash, but the kind that can be recycled?

Well, by my standards, as long as he keeps up that vibe, I can barely trust him with Hayun…

“…….”

The problem is another kind of “chok.”

After finishing my shower and returning to my room, I sat at the edge of the bed and blankly lowered my gaze.

There, of course, were my bare white feet and…

legs wrapped in loose sleepwear pants.

Just to add, these were the same legs Seo Woojin had been staring at earlier without a word.

Fidgeting with my toes for no reason, I let out a deep sigh and flopped onto the bed.

It’s true I have preconceptions about Seo Woojin, but I’m not about to judge him just for glancing at a girl’s body.

Hell, even I sneak a peek when a really handsome or well-built guy walks by.

But, how should I put this…

It’s not like Seo Woojin harassed me—he just stared without saying anything.

…But compared to the usual attention I get, his single gaze felt more embarrassing.

Does that make sense?

“Sigh…”

Was I that ashamed of showing my bare legs to a guy I’m not close with?

But the number of guys who stare at me on the street is way higher.

Even earlier, when I was waiting for Seo Woojin at the meeting spot, I had to tune out the stares from people around me.

So was it because a somewhat familiar guy was looking?

But when classmates glance at me or my boyfriend does… …it doesn’t bother me at all.

What’s the issue, then?

The difference between Seo Woojin and other guys.

What exactly is it?

Was it because I dislike him, so even being seen felt humiliating?

Tugging at the messy blanket while staring at the ceiling, I eventually pulled it over my face and let out another small sigh.

“…….”

Tomorrow, I’ll tell Seo Woojin just one thing.

To stop eyeing other people’s bodies like that.

I shouldn’t interfere anymore…

…

…I’ll try my best not to.

“Jiyun, Jiyun! Wanna grab lunch together?”

“I’ll handle it myself.”

“You always go to the student cafeteria anyway, right? Let’s eat together. Come on.”

“Eating with you would probably make me sick, so no.”

“I’m not asking you to eat with just me. Look—cute Sua-chan is here too~ And even though she’s not in our grade, there’s also a cute fox?”

“…That person must be having a hard time too. I’m not interested, so just eat among yourselves.”

“A hard time? Hmm? She doesn’t seem to be struggling at all? More importantly, Sua-chan still gets all shy around me sometimes—it’s super adorable.”

“Listen properly. I wasn’t talking about you.”

“Huh? Then were you talking about Sua-chan?”

“…Ugh, shut up….”

Day 2 of trying to befriend Jiyun.

Was my invitation to hang out too pushy?

Even though I turned my chair around and asked with a bright smile, Jiyun just took out her earphones and plugged them in right in front of me.

Hmm… I knew she didn’t have friends to begin with, but she’s a tough nut to crack.

She even ignored my subtle attempts to get closer.

And outright rejections when I was more direct.

At this point, she must really not want to be friends with me.

I don’t think I’ve done anything that hateful…

…Except for one thing.

But it’s unfair.

That one thing was just your boyfriend leaving a hickey on the back of my neck.

…If you didn’t like it, you should’ve been more careful than me.

Hell, even Sua-chan’s chest is smaller than mine.

Pretty girls? She’s got plenty around her.

“I’ll eat separately, so don’t look for me.”

“What are you gonna eat?”

“…Why would I tell you? Idiot.”

If I were Jiyun, instead of putting up such a cold front, I’d have covered myself in hickeys and come to school, no?

Making eye contact with me, pretending to casually flip her hair to show them off. Mhm.

Her reaction feels kinda childish.

Then again, she was in a school uniform until last year, so maybe it can’t be helped.

I grinned at my two-years-younger classmate.

Anyway, with her walls up this high, I’m worried about what approach to try next.

At this point, I should probably go over the notes I got from Seoyeon last time.

I vaguely remember her saying she likes games… but nothing else comes to mind.

It feels like she’s almost about to give in, so I tried carefully tugging at her worn-out earphone cord—but Jiyun glared at me so fiercely I immediately shrank back.

In the end, as usual, only Sua and I were left. After giving the sweet girl a quick hug, we headed to the student cafeteria together.

I left a KakaoTalk message for the perverted vixen who tried to use me as an excuse to satisfy her urges, telling her to hurry before it’s too late.

…But what’s this?

“…What?”

“…No reason?”

Seoyeon, who’d just arrived.

Her expression.

Her vibe.

Right now, she looks incredibly lewd…

…Could it be?

Did she, like,

go even crazier than I did last night?

“…‘No reason’ my ass. You’re staring at my face like that.”

“Hmm…”

“Did I get something on it…?”

“Hmm…”

“Stop repeating yourself and just ans—”

Behind the cafeteria kiosk, a long line had formed.

Standing there with Sua-chan and Seoyeon, arranged by height, I fully turned my body to stare straight at Seoyeon’s face.

She definitely looks suspicious.

If yesterday she just seemed a bit spaced out, now there’s a hint of restlessness mixed in.

How to describe it… Like a puppy waiting sadly for its owner who left for work.

Less like a seductive vixen and more like something extremely adorable.

Like how I introduced her to Jiyun earlier as a “cute fox,” she’s so cute I just want to tease her.

…If I had to guess what caused this change,

it’s gotta be that.

Just like me the night before last,

sticky,

gasping for breath, drooling from how long it went on,

sweaty sex.

“Can I be honest, then?”

“…No. Don’t. Just imagining what’s about to come out of your mouth, Yozora, is terrifying. …Guess nothing’s on my face, then.”

“Hmm~…”

“…There are people around. Look ahead. We’ll talk when no one’s here.”

If Seoyeon says “when no one’s here,” it’ll probably have to wait until after school.

Not just the cafeteria, but even the student council room likely has people in it.

…But waiting quietly until then? I’m kinda curious about who she did what with yesterday.

There’s a 99.9% chance it was Seo Woojin who fucked her like a dog—but still.

Is that really it?

Seoyeon’s index finger poked at my cheek as I tried to look back, forcing me to face forward again.

At the same time, a familiar voice came from behind her.

“Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”

Thanks to the innocent whisper from Sua-chan, I got to see something amusing.

…Seoyeon’s face turning bright red in embarrassment.

Though Sua-chan is usually shy around people, she seems relatively comfortable with Seoyeon since she’s seen us bickering often.

Enough to ask such an innocent, oblivious question.

“…U-unwell?”

“Yeah. Because of Yozora, I took a quick look, and you seem like you’re burning up…”

“N-no, it’s not that… …Well, I do feel a little feverish… Just a bit…”

“Then maybe you should stop by the infirmary for a bit?”

“…….”

Faced with such a straightforward suggestion, Seoyeon’s lips pressed together.

So even Seoyeon, who’s always prickly with me, can’t say anything back to pure-hearted Sua-chan.

…And at the same time, it confirmed something:

Something did happen between Seo Woojin and Baek Seoyeon.

And what that “something” was? Pretty damn obvious.

Seo Woojin must’ve fucked her brains out all night.

Seoyeon seems unable to forget it.

Obvious to the point of being boring.

Just then, the person ordering ahead stepped aside, freeing up the kiosk.

Before the next person could rush me, I tapped the order buttons, roughly selecting the menus they liked while eavesdropping.

“…It’s not serious, so I’ll probably be fine without going.”

“No. Colds always start off seeming like nothing, then get really bad the next day.”

“R-really…?”

“The teacher probably isn’t in right now… How about stopping by after lunch?”

“…Later. I’ve got something to do then too…”

“I see…”

“By dismissal time… I’ll go.”

“…Wait, I need to stop by the infirmary.”

“The infirmary? Did you get hurt? Or do you need digestive medicine?”

“Just a small scrape from a mistake, but it’ll look ugly if it scars…”

“Got it. I’ll go up first. I’ve got supplementary classes.”

“Okay. Work hard.”

“Yeah.”

He said it’d only take a moment anyway.

Couldn’t we have gone together?

Not that I expected much.

He’s always been like this since we were kids.

A guy who feels oddly dense despite being a year older.

But precisely because he works hard without cutting corners, I naturally grew fond of him over time.

…Occasionally strict in weird ways, that dummy.

Still, being alone with Seo Woojin is better for conversation, so it’s not all bad.

Watching my boyfriend’s back as he climbed the stairs first, I shoved my hands into the pockets of my gym jacket draped over my uniform and walked down the first-floor hallway.

Thanks to the occasional branching paths, I could see the large central hall next to me.

Admiring the main building’s ornate decorations as I walked, I soon arrived at the eerily quiet infirmary.

I think this used to be more of a storage room in the past.

Lost in thought, I slowly turned the doorknob.

By the time I remembered that knocking is proper manners for entering such places, I’d already opened the door completely.

“…….”

But the infirmary was deserted.

Maybe a window was open—the only movement was a white curtain fluttering faintly in the summer breeze. No signs of life.

The only other oddity was the complete absence of the usual medicinal smell.

Instead, following the faint citrus scent, my gaze landed on a diffuser at the edge of the desk.

Too cutesy to have been prepared by Seo Woojin himself.

Does that guy even have such a cute preference? …More likely a gift from Hayun.

Judging by the scent’s strength, the sticks hadn’t been flipped in a while, so I did it for him before walking over to the desk.

Beside it were a few books and a laptop. That’s it.

Makes sense—if he’s a healing-type transcendent, it’d be weird for the infirmary to have medicine.

So, fiddling with what looked like a novel, I leaned back into the chair he usually sat in.

Luckily, it wasn’t some childish prank like a porn book with a swapped cover.

That leaves only the suspicious-looking laptop.

If he’s hiding something shady in there…

Opening it revealed, very predictably, a password screen.

Also very predictably, there was no Post-it with the password lying around.

If I guess wrong, it might leave traces.

Not keen on raising suspicions, I closed the laptop and stood up.

Looking around a bit more, nothing else stood out.

Just a plain infirmary. Nothing more, nothing less.

Since it was still barely lunchtime, Seo Woojin must’ve gone to eat and hadn’t returned yet.

The fact that the door wasn’t locked just shows his lack of caution.

With nothing else to see, I listlessly shifted my gaze and plodded over to sit on the bed.

“…Ah.”

Come to think of it, last time he went out to eat with female teachers. Should’ve called him out then.

I’d prefer if he only hung out with male teachers.

Adding that to my list of complaints, I took off my shoes and lay down comfortably.

The only place in the academy where you can legally lie down and rest.

A timid act of rebellion,

only possible when the teacher’s away.

—Click

About three minutes in.

Hearing someone enter, I hurriedly sat up.

Straightening my skirt, which had gotten messy from lying down, I checked who it was—of course, Seo Woojin.

His slight surprise was obvious, so I spoke first.

“I came to see you, but you weren’t here, so I just lay down for a bit. Is that not allowed?”

“No, no. I was just caught off guard.”

“…….”

I noticed he was holding a white plastic bag.

Catching my gaze, he rustled it open and pulled out something familiar.

An ice cream bar.

A strawberry-flavored one, swirled into a spiral.

“Want one? I bought it to snack on alone. Just enough to fit in the freezer.”

“…No thanks.”

“It’s not some debt thing, just take it.”

“I don’t really like sweets.”

“Huh? Really? Hayun-noona said you do like sweet stuff yesterday. That you always buy apple juice from the snack bar.”

“…….”

Why would Hayun say something so embarrassing—

Pushing that thought aside for now, I stammered out a reply.

“Why’d you talk about that? With Hayun?”

“We were on the phone yesterday, talking about meeting you, and it just came up. She started by asking if I memorize all my friends’ preferences, and things spiraled from there.”

“…Did you tell her? That you learned my preferences from me?”

“Yeah. What was it again? Oh. She got really flustered when I asked if it was true that you fought over hourly rates.”

“…She didn’t say anything to me today…”

“She didn’t?”

Well, not nothing—more like the other girls were too busy grilling Hayun about him to give us time to talk.

Midway through my distracted thoughts, plop—the ice cream he tossed rolled across the bed and landed on my thigh.

…The cold sensation made me shiver, so I grabbed it.

“Toss it back if you don’t want it. I’ll put it in the freezer.”

“…I’ll eat it. As payment for telling you Hayun’s preferences yesterday.”

“That’s all an ice cream is worth to you?”

“Take it or leave it. Don’t nitpick, man.”

“Sure, sure. I’ll ‘take it or leave it.’”

As I fumbled to unwrap it, he chuckled and opened the small fridge by the desk to store the rest.

Watching his back, I took a bite of the ice cream.

Click—after closing the fridge, he sat in his chair and spoke up.

“So, why’d you come?”

“…Huh?”

“To the infirmary. Did you get hurt?”

“…Oh.”

Right, I came to give Seo Woojin a piece of my mind.

Chewing the ice cream, I got up and walked over to him.

“Just a small scrape. And there’s something I wanted to say.”

“Something to say?”

“Yeah, about your attitude… But treat me first. Like I said, it’s nothing serious.”

“Sure, of course.”

The secret? I made the wound on purpose in case someone else was in the infirmary.

Munching the already half-gone ice cream, I took off my gym jacket over my uniform.

A small scrape on the outside of