Chapter 7 Part 1

Without responding, Gihyun flung the door open. Just as he did, he saw Hyekyung coming up the stairs. Upon seeing Gihyun, Hyekyung’s face scrunched up in disgust.

“This bastard, why are you here again?”

Gihyun smirked at her comment. He chose a response that he knew would irritate her the most.

“Why do you think a man would come to a woman’s apartment? Don’t you know because you haven’t experienced it yet?”

“Gihyun!”

Ignoring Minjoo who had followed him out, he brushed past Hyekyung and ran down the stairs. As soon as he stepped outside, the cold night air clung to him. He had stormed out in a fit of spite, but now he had nowhere to go.

Eventually, he returned to his dormitory after a long absence. His room, filled only with a hard bed and a desk, was silent. He tried to wash up and go to sleep. He realized he didn’t even have his toothbrush; it was left at Minjoo’s. His pajamas were there too.

Frustrated, he flopped onto the bed.

Despite his exhaustion from the hangover, sleep eluded him. He remembered the blanket Minjoo used to cover him with, carrying her scent, which would quickly lull him to sleep.

Thinking of Minjoo stirred his temper again. He felt as if Hyekyung had stolen Minjoo from him. He was even feeling jealous of a woman, not just a man. Realizing this, he couldn’t stand how petty he felt.

“Did you spend the night out?”

His face was still rough even though he had slept. Won-jun brought it up as a provocation. Gihyun didn’t say out loud that his current state was because he hadn’t slept at Minjoo’s. He just scowled as he walked along the road, annoyed by both his fatigue and the bright sunlight.

“Where’s Cha Minjoo?”

“Why?”

“You’re always together. It’s odd she’s not with you.”

Since Gihyun practically lived in Minjoo’s apartment, they often went to school together in the mornings. It seemed that Won-jun had been paying attention to this, which made Gihyun feel odd. He wasn’t even claiming to like Minjoo, but just asking about her presence irritated him. Gihyun snapped at Won-jun sharply.

“Why? You interested?”

“No, just… Hey, give me back the 30,000 won you borrowed last time.”

“I don’t have cash.”

“Man, you’re always broke.”

“I’ll give it to you. Wait.”

“When?”

“I’ll borrow it if I have to.”

“You don’t have anyone to borrow from.”

“I do.”

“Who?”

“From Cha Minjoo, okay?”

Gihyun wanted to get to the classroom quickly. As he entered the building, he could escape the sunlight, hoping his mood would improve. However, Won-jun started talking again.

“Do you have money for dates?”

“What date? With who?”

“You need money to go on dates with your girlfriend.”

“I don’t have a girlfriend.”

Won-jun’s mouth dropped open. He probed further, as if to confirm.

“No? Aren’t you dating Cha Minjoo?”

“Yeah.”

“I thought you were dating since you’re always together. She doesn’t seem your type though. You don’t really match.”

Irritation bubbled up as he climbed the stairs. Gihyun suppressed his anger tightly, unnoticed by Won-jun, who unwittingly stoked it further.

“Then, Park Gihyun, let go of her leg.”

“What leg?”

“Cha Minjoo. Introduce me.”

Gihyun stared at Won-jun. Even if you looked at him favorably, you couldn’t call him handsome, but he was tall enough to match Gihyun in height. His only commendable traits were his height and his down-to-earth personality. Gihyun imagined Won-jun holding Minjoo’s hand. In his mind, the two walked across the campus and embraced. He imagined Won-jun burying his face in Minjoo’s chest. The thought of Won-jun’s hand slowly sliding over Minjoo’s skin turned his irritation into raging anger.

“Cha Minjoo has high standards.”

He implied that someone like Won-jun wouldn’t stand a chance with her. Leaving a sheepish Won-jun behind, Gihyun walked down the hallway to the classroom.

[“Gihyun.”]

[“Have you eaten?”]

Minjoo’s message popped up. He could feel her watching his mood even through the text. He wanted to ignore it. Yet, Won-jun’s words echoed in his ears. Gihyun tapped on his phone’s keyboard.

“No.”

He was content to use Cha Minjoo for his own convenience.

“Let’s eat together.”

He needed to provide enough bait so that even if another guy showed interest, she could reject him. That was all it took for Cha Minjoo to come smiling towards him, as usual.

Sure enough, Minjoo also ran towards Gihyun with a smile that day.

***

“Kang Yoon-jung came to school today.”

“Hey, you just saw her? She was really pretty.”

“I’m not really into that type.”

“Kang Yoon-jung probably isn’t into your type either.”

“Ah, f*ck, shut up.”

It was spring. The male students who were keen on the new students were talking about someone else. Gihyun knew about it because everyone around was talking.

Kang Yoon-jung had been called the goddess of the engineering department since she enrolled. She transferred from another school and talked informally with older seniors, and treated the younger classmates like juniors.

So, she was popular, and there were many scandals about her. There were rumors of her being caught kissing at school, switching from dating a senior who had passed the civil service exam to the son of a hospital director, and even rumors of two-timing with a lawyer who got into a big law firm. There were also talks that she had been caught kissing a lecturer in the classroom and took a year off right after her freshman year. The truth was unknown. Gihyun let these rumors go in one ear and out the other.

Gihyun was sitting in the academic building waiting for Minjoo, who was his bread and butter. A woman he didn’t know sat opposite him.

“Are you Park Gihyun?”

He recognized Kang Yoon-jung, the subject of the rumors, immediately, even though he had never seen her before. Unknowingly, Gihyun scrutinized Yoon-jung. Pale eyes, thin and long hair, fair skin, slender arms and legs. She was undeniably a striking beauty.

Above all, she resembled Gihyun’s mother. Even her voice was similar. Curiosity and an inexplicable sense of guilt welled up inside him.

“Let’s eat together.”

Her tone suggested that refusal wasn’t even a consideration. Just then, the cellphone on the table rang—it was Minjoo calling. Gihyun glanced at Yoon-jung in front of him and then pocketed his phone.

“Let’s go.”

He had a prior engagement with Minjoo but did not refuse. Minjoo was someone he could always eat with another time. As a minimum courtesy, he left a message for Minjoo.

“I got asked to eat by someone I know. Let’s eat later.”

He didn’t wait for a reply. Gihyun pocketed his phone and promptly forgot about it.

Yoon-jung led them to a Western-style restaurant near the school. Before he knew it, Gihyun found himself seated opposite Yoon-jung, listening as she ordered everything from appetizers to dessert and wine, and then she smiled.

“Thanks, I’ll enjoy it.”

Though he often got treated to meals, in front of Yoon-jung, he couldn’t bring himself to say he wouldn’t pay. Yoon-jung’s smile reminded him of his mother’s smile, which he had always longed to see when he was young.

“There seem to be many guys who would buy you meals.”

“So?”

“Since there are many guys who like you, go eat with them.”

He tried to act pricey, but Yoon-jung just chuckled—a laugh that seemed to hover over the top of Gihyun’s head.

Broke jerk. It almost seemed like she was saying that with her eyes. Gihyun looked at her displeased, but instead of responding directly, Yoon-jung changed the subject.

“You were eating with a girl yesterday?”

Yoon-jung threw out the question. Gihyun recalled the previous day. He had eaten with Minjoo at the academic building. It was strange to him that Yoon-jung, a popular figure, had been observing him.

“What’s your relationship with that girl?”

“…We know each other.”

“She seems to like you.”

“So?”

“If she likes you, why don’t you like her?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“It’s the same thing. Just because those guys like me doesn’t mean I have to eat with them, right?”

“Why eat with me, then?”

“Because I want to.”

“…Are you two-timing?”

“Park Gihyun, you look trendy but your mindset is old. Does eating together mean we’re dating?”

Before he knew it, Gihyun had been silenced by Yoon-jung. He had nothing to say. He brought up something he had heard in passing.

“I heard you were dating Senior Lee Chang-seok.”

“He probably thinks that.”

Yoon-jung tossed her hair back and laughed.

“He just needs a woman to carry around like a trophy. Something to show off to others.”

What Gihyun learned from her words was that Yoon-jung spoke without restraint. Yoon-jung crossed her arms and scanned him from head to toe.

“I’m the same.”

“……”

“I also need a man like a trophy. Someone who is easy to show off, someone who makes my life comfortable.”

“……”

“Park Gihyun, you have a good face, a good body, and good academic credentials. But you don’t have money.”

Gihyun looked down at his clothes. Others might say he looked good in anything, but Yoon-jung’s eyes seemed to mock him as if he were wearing something cheap.

“Fate is fair. It doesn’t give everything to anyone.”

A senseless sense of inadequacy and inferiority gently scratched at Gihyun. Memories of not being recognized by his father resurfaced. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to express anger at a face that resembled his mother’s. Moreover, Yoon-jung suddenly pulled a small bag of medicine out of her bag, popped a pill into her mouth, and swallowed it. The pill looked similar to the medicine his mother used to take, which made him even more concerned.

“I can tolerate ugliness, but I can’t tolerate being poor.”

“……”

“What a pity. Why don’t you have money? Park Gihyun would be perfect if he just had money.”

Yoon-jung murmured regretfully. Despite the crushing blow to his pride, it stirred his determination.

If only he had money, as if everything would then fall into place.

***

Even after that, Yoon-jung would randomly show up and ask to eat together. Their meals consisted of pointless conversations. Yoon-jung spoke whatever she wanted as if talking to a close friend, and Gihyun simply listened to her stories. He was invariably left to pay for the meals. Their relationship had naturally formed and solidified in this manner.

“My head hurts.”

The message came while Gihyun was in the middle of a lecture. It was from an unknown number. He could have ignored it, but something felt off, so he replied.

“Who is this?”

“Yoon-jung.”

“How did you get my number?”

“Buy me some medicine.”

1. She cut off the conversation abruptly. They weren’t dating, nor was he her servant. Under normal circumstances, he should have ignored such a demand. However, he remembered his mother, who had jumped from the rooftop because she hadn’t taken her medication. His mother, who had kept her long hair because his father liked it that way.