Although it was sudden, Choi Yiseo coming over was reassuring.
Having an extra pair of hands was immediately helpful, and Choi Yiseo had good stamina.
But more than anything, I was most grateful that Choi Yiseo came to see me in person.
It made me feel gloomy about distancing myself because of Oh Yoon-ji.
Choi Yiseo helped me move the luggage with a refreshing smile.
âStill, itâs nice that you get the whole room to yourself.â
Choi Yiseo entered the room carrying a box of clothes.
âIs that the last one?â
âYeah, this is the last one.â
I was inside organizing, and received the last piece of luggage brought by Choi Yiseo.
âThanks a lot. It got done much faster thanks to you.â
Other rooms were still in the midst of moving, but I was already done.
âItâs partly because you donât have much stuff. In fact, you might need to buy more clothes.â
While hanging up clothes from the box on the hangers, I shrugged.
âWhere would I get the money to buy clothes? I came here because I donât have money.â
ââ¦Thatâs a worry that doesnât even feel a bit urgent.â
Since Choi Yiseo knew about my family, it sounded like mere complaints to her.
âWhat do you want to eat for dinner? Since you helped out today, Iâll treat you.â
The wardrobe organization ended quickly.
Maybe it was because of what Choi Yiseo just said, but I felt like it ended quickly because there werenât many clothes.
Now, I start to unpack the rest of the stuff inside.
âHmm, then can I choose the menu?â
âWe have to play rock-paper-scissors for that.â
âYou never change.â
I remembered the times we used to play rock-paper-scissors to decide the menu whenever we ate together.
Back then, I never imagined that I would have this sort of relationship with Choi Yiseo.
âI guess I canât visit often anymore. The dormitory prohibits outsiders.â
âWhatâs the big deal? Just come over. I heard from Dae-sang hyung that you can just sneak in.â
âAlready picking up bad habits since moving into the dormitory.â
Although she said that, she had a slight smile, indicating she was considering visiting.
âDoes it take long to unpack? Need some help?â
As I was unpacking and organizing my stuff, Choi Yiseo approached, but I waved her away.
âJust rest. Iâll finish this quickly anyway.â
âReally? Thenâ¦â
Choi Yiseo lay down on the bed I was going to use. Although the mattress was new, the blanket and pillow were the ones we used before, so she looked comfortable.
âDonât fall asleep.â
âMmph.â
âDonât talk with your face buried in the pillow.â
âI know, I wonât sleep.â
Choi Yiseo lay with her back turned. While leaving her alone, I continued tidying up the room.
âBut Woojin.â
Choi Yiseo, who had been so quiet that I worried she might have fallen asleep, called my name softly.
âWhat? Want me to pay you?â
Though I said that earlier, I was actually planning to buy something expensive and delicious for Choi Yiseo, who had come to help voluntarily.
âWhere did the condoms I brought the last time go?â
The body that was opening the next box froze.
Feeling the back of my head stinging, I glanced over to see Choi Yiseo, who had turned her face slightly to stare at me intently.
I couldnât tell what emotion there was in her lowered eyes, but it felt like a kind of protest indicating that no excuses would be accepted.
Gulp.
Swallowing hard, my throat bobbed, reflecting my emotions.
âDefinitely.â
I remember throwing it away just in case Oh Yoon-ji showed up.
Since Oh Yoon-ji came in right after Yiseo went out.
Iâm not sure if Choi Yiseo saw Oh Yoon-ji, but she wouldnât like talking about anything related to Oh Yoon-ji.
She might misunderstandâ¦
âThat? Seems like I lost it somewhere.â
Shrugging, I reply as usual and start packing again.
âThat was so natural.â
It was such a brilliant act that Seo Yerin would have clapped and said, âYou have a talent for actingâ.
âWhere is it.â
Why.
How did Choi Yiseo see through my lie.
She gets up from the bed and walks over, crossing her arms and was now blatantly glaring at me.
âKim Woojin lost a condom? I think something like a condom would have a pretty high priority for you while moving.â
Not an incorrect statement.
âHmm? You often have sudden situations. So, I thought you would have brought it without fail.â
That too, is not an incorrect statement.
For example, if Choi Yiseo suddenly said she wanted to do it with me right now, there was a condom ready to be pulled out.
Yes, it was prepared.
But the important thing is that it was a different brand from the one Choi Yiseo had bought.
Choi Yiseo is not a fool, she would obviously suspect if I took out a different brand.
âLetâs stay calm.â
Choi Yiseo staring intently.
As I slowly got up while organizing my things, her gaze followed me upwards.
Here, it was time to use the technique I had learned from my ex-girlfriend.
âYiseo, what should we have for dinner?â
âDo you want to die?â
Itâs not working.
âWho did you use it with? Yerin? Or Arin?â
Even though she was speaking casually, one thing was clear. The moment someoneâs name was mentioned here, it would become quite a big deal.
âThatâs a trap.â
I had experienced it a few times with Oh Yoon-ji.
They tell you itâs okay to talk, but if you do, youâre dead that day.
âI really donât want to talk about anything related to Oh Yoon-ji.â
The atmosphere was good, and I didnât want to bring it down again by talking about Oh Yoon-ji.
I was afraid that Choi Yiseo might subtly try to distance herself from me again.
So.
After coming up with another convincing statement, I placed my hand on her shoulder and answered seriously.
âYiseo, Iâm not dating anyone else yet.â
ââ¦Is that right?â
Choi Yiseo, suddenly serious, nodded with a reluctant expression.
The momentum shifted to me.
Choi Yiseo is an extremely rational and logical person, so I just need to win her over with logic here.
âItâs not right to have sex with someone who isnât your girlfriend.â
âYou bastard, what the hell did you do?â
Choi Yiseo immediately grabs me by the collar and trips me to the ground.
Where did she learn this technique?
Itâs very clean.
âI fought with logical and reasonable statements?!â
I shouted, feeling wronged, but Choi Yiseo sighs in disbelief.
âThatâs because a contradictory person is making logical statements.â
âTsk, Seo Yerin would have been fooled.â
âYouâre underestimating me too much.â
Choi Yiseo lets go of my collar and climbs on top of me. Then, she looks down at me with an unmistakable pout.
âHurry up and tell me. Who did you use it with?â
Do I have to say it in the end?
âI didnât use it with anyone. I just threw it out the window.â
âThrew it?â
âSo, that is-â
At that moment, the voices of three people could be heard from outside.
âSenior! Are you there!â
âSenior! Itâs Chul-soo from the drinking party last time!â
âHey, damn it.â
It was Chul-soo from the English department, along with Young-hee and senior Ju-hee, whom I had seen at the dormitory gathering.
For some reason, senior Ju-hee opened the door and entered as if in a huff.
An awkward situation ensued.
Chul-soo and Young-hee, who saw Choi Yiseo on top of me, wore blank expressions.
âS-sorry!â
âWe truly apologize!â
They blushed and ran away, while senior Ju-hee, with her mouth agape, stared blankly.
âS-sorry.â
Her face reddened, and she stepped back, closing the door.
âWhat do we do about this.â
A sudden situation.
When I looked up at Choi Yiseo, she seemed flustered too, standing frozen without any reaction.
âWell, isnât this a good thing?!â
I had no idea what she meant by it being a good thing, but it was clear that she was panicking.
âWasnât that senior dating Yerin?â
âYeah. Wow⦠Isnât he the class president for the second-years?â
Chul-su and Young-hee were talking in the lounge on the first floor of the dormitory building.
Having attended the same school since elementary school, they had known each other for 15 years and had been dating for 5 years now.
Right now, they could almost be considered a happily married couple as they whispered to each other, reflecting on the shocking scene they had just witnessed.
âIâve heard bad rumors about senior Woo-jin.â
âIsnât it because he has complicated relationships with women? Thatâs why he fought with the seniors, right?â
Min Ju-hee, sitting on the sofa, staring blankly at the ground, didnât even pay attention to the two kids chattering beside her.
âNo way.â
She knew that Choi Yiseo had come.
Originally, she intended to help Kim Woo-jin herself, but when she saw Choi Yiseo helping, she stepped back.
But seeing them not coming out of the room made Min Ju-hee strangely anxious, so she deliberately instructed Chul-soo and Young-hee to go greet Kim Woojin.
âNo way, even Yiseo!â
This was the result.
Not only enjoying with Seo Yerin and Yu Arin, but even with Choi Yiseo, the atmosphere was as such.
Moreover, the dormitory walls were not well soundproofed, so even the word âcondomâ was blatantly audible from outside.
An anxious Min Ju-hee unknowingly opened the door roughly and went inside.
âHoo.â
Min Ju-hee let out a long sigh and bit her lip firmly.
âItâs so unlike me.â
Yes, she had been acting unlike herself recently.
Who is Min Ju-hee.
She is the woman who survived high school with fists and tools, but devoted herself to studying for scholarships in college.
âI must have been possessed by something weird.â
Taking a deep breath, Min Ju-hee calmly closed her eyes.
Her face, which had been flushed with embarrassment until just now, calmed down, and her sharp gaze turned to the kids chattering next to her.
âYou guys, donât spread weird rumors.â
A blatant warning to Chul-soo and Young-hee, who were already exaggerating the gossip.
âY-yes, maâam!â
âOf course, senior!â
The two, seemingly frightened, quickly answered and hurried away from the spot.
Other dormitory students also saw Choi Yiseo moving his stuff, so the rumors were bound to spread.
âThatâs his karma.â
âWhew, thatâs enough.
Letâs not worry about Kim Woojin anymore.â
He was a good junior, and he still is.
He has a bit of playboy tendencies, but it seems the girls are aware of it.
âLetâs not worry about it.â
Resolving to forget about that night, Min Ju-hee shoves her hands deep into her jacket pockets.
âMaybe Iâll go see a movie tomorrow to mend my mood.â
The next day.
Min Ju-hee, who came to a movie theater downtown to watch a film, looks at the two people waiting for the same movie with a sour expression.
They hadnât noticed her yet, so she pulled her hat down a bit more.
âHey, why are you so clueless? You should buy caramel popcorn.â
Grumbling, it was Kim Woojin.
âThatâs nonsense. Salted is the best.â
Her gaze kept drifting to Yu Arin, who was feeding him popcorn in annoyance.
âHey, why is there salt-flavored popcorn? Then why isnât there pepper-flavored popcorn?â
âIf itâs tasty, just eat it all.â
âAs if it would be tasty. Ah, donât force-feed me- um? Wow!â
âHaha, you crazy guy!â
âWow, itâs really tasty?â
âDonât bury your face in the popcorn! Iâll feed you, just open your mouth!â
Listening to the juniorsâ conversation.
Min Ju-heeâs head was throbbing.