CHAPTER 2: Island of Pleasure (Part 3)

On Monday morning, a message arrived from Hee-jin.

<Wednesday at 12:30, Pushkin.>

As she ate cereal with milk, Moon-kyeong pondered.

She had 54 hours to somehow find a connection with Kim Seojun.

There were quite a few university students studying abroad in Moscow, but if Hee-jin knew about him, she should be able to gather enough information.

During break time, Moon-kyeong approached Dennis, a fellow student in the same grade.

“Hey, Dennis.”

He was the only one among the members who treated her kindly.

She had received numerous confessions from him since early last year, but she had to turn him down. The reason was very simple.

Because she has no self.

Even the choices in her love life were all determined by Hye-ran.

She knew all too well what Hye-ran had done to her crush in high school, so her dealings with the opposite sex had always been calculated

Dennis, who was stretching, changed his expression at Moon-kyeong’s greeting.

“What’s up, Moon-kyeong? You’re the one starting a conversation with me now?”

“Wanna have lunch together?”

“Today?”

“If you don’t want to, just say so.”

“Let’s eat!”

Moon-kyeong used Dennis, who had a wide network, to find out information about Seojun.

He said that Lee Hee-jin and Kim Seojun were in the same school’s piano department as seniors and juniors. Although Hee-jin was overtly making advances toward Seojun, he said Seojun seemed to have little interest in romantic relationships.

Or, to put it more bluntly, he led a reclusive life to the extent that he didn’t reveal himself much outside of school hours.

From the way he dressed and carried himself, it was speculated that his family was relatively well-off, but there was no information about which family’s son he was.

Even among students in the same department, Seojun seemed to be a somewhat mysterious guy, or something like that.

On Wednesday morning, Moon-kyeong stopped by the café for an early morning coffee.

Kim Seojun’s limited circle didn’t help at all in finding a connecting link. She waited to see if she’d run into him here again, but he didn’t show up until she’d almost emptied her cup of coffee.

In the end, was my attempt to bond with Hee-jin a failure? If I were to be honest with my mom, what kind of punishment would she come up with this time?

She was about to throw dry glares out the window when a man wearing a headset walked into the cafe.

Moon-kyeong swallowed hard. She didn’t take her eyes off him while he ordered coffee.

Even though she had seen him twice before, his face, which didn’t bother her much then, now appeared clearly before her eyes.

His long and deep eyes seemed to have a hint of rebellion somewhere, and they were very profound. His nose was as smooth as a sharp piece of glass, and his lips didn’t interrupt the beautiful proportions of his eyes and nose at all.

His perfectly positioned lips exuded a decadent sexiness just by looking at them quietly.

She seemed to understand why Lee Hee-jin was clinging to Kim Seojun so much.

After placing his order, he confidently walked to the seat he had occupied last time, with his coffee in hand. Perhaps due to his tall stature and long legs, he had a masculine and broad stride.

Glancing at her wristwatch, Moon-kyeong ran a hand over her lips.

Knowing she would be late for practice if she didn’t get up now, she had to make a quick decision.

Without permission, she abruptly sat on the seat opposite Seojun, not at the cafe entrance.

As he sipped his coffee, his eyes turned coldly toward her.

Instead of asking what she was doing, he pulled down his earphones.

“Can I have your time for just 5 minutes?”

Moon-kyeong tightly grasped her right hand, which was placed under the table, with her left hand.

Dealing with a man three years her senior, her touch was awkward, but her gaze was bold and assertive.

As someone who had to endure both the rewards and punishments given by Hye-ran and live with it, her instincts moved faster than her thoughts.

“I’m Seo Moon-kyeong.”

He asked with his eyes, without giving a verbal response. So? So what?

“I see you quite often. Do you come here every Wednesday, by any chance?”

If he just confirmed that, she could tell Hee-jin this rare piece of information. That would be enough connection with him.

However, even after the promised 5 minutes had passed, he remained silent. Watching him quietly drink coffee as if dealing with an invisible person, Moon-kyeong pressed her lips together.

What’s up with this guy? Every time I see him, I feel strangely uncomfortable.

Still, she couldn’t give up. There were still about six hours left until her lunch appointment with Hee-jin.

Moon-kyeong looked into his eyes. Those sharp but strangely gentle eyes. They seemed dangerous, yet somewhere, they looked sad.

The first time they met, she felt oddly uncomfortable with the gaze that resembled her own.

Putting everything on those eyes, she spoke. Since she’s someone insensitive to things like wounds anyway, she won’t be hurt by his rejection either.

“I have a favor to ask, Mr. Kim Seojun.”

When Moon-kyeong revealed that she knew his name, Seojun’s gaze changed slightly. Thinking she’d gotten his attention, she spoke again.

“Could you possibly come to this cafe at the same time next week as well?”

His jaw clenched expressionlessly. He stared at her face as if he were looking at a strange creature, and then said coldly.

“Why would I?”

Moon-kyeong stiffened her spine. Her voice came out soft and delicate.

She might look like a fox, but she knew the advantages of her appearance. She knew that most men liked her face and her smile.

She smiled brightly.

“That’s why I’m asking. Just one more favor, like the kindness you showed me when you lent me your clothes.”

“Do you want to sleep with me that badly?”

Moon-kyeong, who couldn’t finish her sentence, had her cheerful smile quickly stolen by Seojun’s sharp question.

“What?”

“Do you get wet down there when you look at me?”

“…….”

“Do it in moderation and get lost.”

The look in Seojun’s eyes sent a chill down her spine. It wasn’t so much his question, which bordered on mockery, but the way he looked at her that shook her to the core.

What do you think you know about my life? Why do you look at me like that, like you’re looking at a beggar? Who do you think you are?

She glared at him. Pressing her lips that wouldn’t close, she finally opened them again.

“I apologize for the intrusion, I made another mistake. Well then.”

Moon-kyeong’s day, as she left the cafe as if escaping, was a mess.

Her crumpled pride and the two feet that had to move tirelessly like a swan thrown into a wide lake didn’t pose a problem.

She felt no emotion as she casually ate lunch with Lee Hee-jin, broke the news to Hye-ran, and received a phone call from Bora, who was just checking in to see if she had been thinking about anything else lately.

It was the look in Kim Seojun’s eyes that haunted her all day.

He looked at her pitifully like he was saying “Why are you living your life like this?

Because of that gaze, her day fell apart. Because of it, a part of her that wasn’t there kept popping up.