The registration correction period has ended. On Wednesday afternoon, Seon Wooyeon found himself in the club room, placing his phone in front of three people. Dohyun, Garam, and Seongyu. Six pairs of eyes were directed at the timetable he was showing.
“Wow…”
“Amazing.”
Simultaneous exclamations burst out. Dohyun raised the corner of his mouth with a charming face. Seongyu, alternating between looking at the phone and Dohyun, spoke in admiration.
“Hyung, did you perform some kind of magic?”
It was truly something that could only be described as magic. The timetable, organized four times a week from Tuesday to Friday, was beyond what he could have imagined before. Lunch breaks were excluded on all four days, and no classes were starting at 9 am except on Fridays. It was different from the last one, which had no breaks, even on holidays.
“The price of a diligent school life.”
Dohyun leaned against the sofa as if it were nothing. His self-assured smile didn’t seem annoying at all. Wooyeon checked the timetable again and recalled what happened two days ago.
That day, as agreed, the two met in the club room and went to see the professor after a strategy meeting. In fact, there was no need for a strategy meeting. Dohyun, who asked about the number of credits he planned to get, when the best time for breaks was, and whether morning classes were okay, immediately stood up.
‘He’s new to our club and he said he really wants to listen to Professor’s lecture.’
He coaxed the professor with his gentle and pleasant voice, sometimes even smoking together. Professors who were only half disarmed by Dohyun’s presence readily opened their classes when he added a few words.
“For some, I asked the professors directly, and for some, I just caught them at the right time. Yoonwoo Hyung helped with some too.”
Of course, not all professors cooperated as they wished. Some professors avoided awkward situations, and some changed the topic to discussions about future studies. However, Dohyun was resolute in his persuasion, even when faced with the slightest opposition from the professors in charge of graduate school matters.
“The professors are surprisingly simple, so if you just show passion, they will accept you. But now, if you don’t attend the classes properly, you should be prepared for bad grades.”
With Dohyun’s ability and the help of the assistant, Wooyeon finally secured a ‘normal timetable.’ Except for the Friday morning class, he was taking no class with Dohyun.
“I’ll help you with that one, so just leave it.”
Understanding English Phonology. It was a three-credit major. It was also a lecture taught by a professor who was so passionate that he gave a full presentation from the first day. If he canceled it, he would have to make up for the credits next semester.
“A lot of students give up because that professor’s class is difficult. You’ll get good grades just by doing the basics.”
Wooyeon believed only in those words and kept the lecture. In reality, there was no alternative lecture to switch it with. It wasn’t just because it was the only lecture he attended with Dohyun.
“You’re really something….”
Garam, who was sitting at a distance, murmured in a subdued voice. Since Wooyeon entered the club room, she had deliberately kept her distance. Judging by how effectively she blocked her pheromones, it was clear that she was conscious because of the previous incident. Well, lucky for Wooyeon, it worked out well for him.
“Thank you so much.”
Wooyeon checked the timetable again and put his phone away. If it weren’t for Dohyun, he might have seriously searched for ‘first-semester withdrawal from university’ by now. If he wouldn’t have been able to withdraw, he would have reluctantly attended school at last.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“I’m glad I could help.”
Although it could be an achievement that others would boast about, Dohyun had never acted arrogant even once. Because it was so teacher-like, Wooyeon suppressed the joy that rose secretly.
“Hyung, will you help me with course registration if I mess up next time?”
“Well, I don’t know… I’ve been hearing too much about going to graduate school this time, so doing it twice might be a bit too much.”
“Hey, just go there once, pretend to be crazy, since the professors love you so much, they’ll agree.”
“What?”
“Sorry.”
They chatted for a while, engaging in a somewhat awkward conversation. Wooyeon was a bit surprised to hear that Seongyu had recently also joined the club. It made sense, considering he had been calling Dohyun, ‘Hyung’ during their drinking sessions. It seemed like he was already part of the group.
“If others find out that you and Wooyeon are taking classes together, they’ll be thrilled.”
“Why me?”
Fortunately, Seongyu’s schedule overlapped with Wooyeon’s for the most part. In reality, most of the first-year classes were pretty much the same, so it was really strange that Wooyeon had taken classes alone until now. Seongyu nodded as if it were obvious.
“Well, you’re kind of mysterious.”
“Me?”
It was a remark that involuntarily furrowed Wooyeon’s brow. Mysterious? That didn’t make any sense. If considering messing up the schedule was deemed mysterious, then maybe it was true.
“You also attended different classes alone, and during orientation, you were in a corner by yourself. Besides, you’re not in the group chat, so you haven’t had a chance to get close to others.”
“…”
Timetable, to speak of it twice, was a painful experience, and during the freshman orientation assembly, it was simply because he didn’t have any friends. Of course, what caught Wooyeon off guard wasn’t those two situations.
“… Are you, by any chance.”
Seongyu looked at Wooyeon with a doubtful expression. The prolonged silence seemed a bit off. He cautiously asked while taking out his phone.
“You didn’t know about the group chat?”
When Wooyeon remained silent, he silently went through his conversation history. Then he promptly invited Wooyeon to the ‘English Department Group Chat.’
“So, you really didn’t know about the chat…”
It was a somewhat bitter realization. Wooyeon felt a slightly melancholic mood as he scanned the list of participants. Some familiar names seemed to be of those with whom he exchanged numbers during drinking sessions.
“So, how did you come to the orientation?”
“Senior Moon Garam told me.”
“Ah…”
An awkward silence ensued. Garam and Dohyun also stayed silent, exchanging glances. It would have been better if it ended there. However, Wooyeon felt truly disheartened at Dohyun’s subsequent words.
“Do you even not know about the department party?”
“…”
It wasn’t like this even when he was ostracized in middle school. At least back then, there was a family newsletter. Could it be that he was isolated without realizing it? When Wooyeon lowered his gaze, Garam, who had been silent, tapped the table with an unknown expression.
“Hey, hey. You should have had him do some student council work. Why did you leave the kid out? You’re going to be the president or something, and you’re not even taking care of him. What were you doing, Haa!”
“Oh, I didn’t join because I don’t like being with a lot of people, thinking so I left, and…”
Seongyu tidied up his hair with a cold face. It seemed that he hadn’t even considered the possibility that Wooyeon didn’t know. A strange mix of apology, confusion, and embarrassment distorted his face.
“…It’s okay. You joined, and that’s enough.”
Wooyeon deliberately responded nonchalantly. If an apology had come, it would have been a bit more pathetic. Fortunately, someone knocked on the club room door at the right time. Smartly, Seongyu stood up like a spring.
“I’ll go get it!”
The visitor turned out to be delivering the tteokbokki they ordered 20 minutes ago. They had gathered in the club room to eat tteokbokki instead of this heavy and awkward talk. But the delicious smell of food replaced the uncomfortable air in the club room.
“This place is really good, not too spicy, and the delivery is fast.”
The table was set skillfully. While Garam took out pickled radish and tteokbokki, Dohyun brought paper cups from the cabinet. Although it seemed like there was a membership application form in there earlier, now it appeared that all sorts of miscellaneous items were stored there.
“Wow, it looks delicious.”
“I’ll have cola, Hyung!”
“I’m fine with water.”
As Wooyeon pulled apart the disposable wooden chopsticks, he observed the tteokbokki. Garam had already poured a cup full of it. Seongyu also took a bite of the tteokbokki, but Wooyeon just blinked his eyes blankly.
“What’s the matter?”
Dohyun, who happened to be pouring water, gently asked. Amid his polite and soft-spoken voice, Wooyeon extracted the thoughts that had been in his mind.
“I haven’t tried it ever before.”
Until he went to the United States, Wooyeon hadn’t even tasted outside food. Meals were always prepared by employees at home, and in middle school, he brought lunch. Although his taste had broadened after studying abroad, there was still a resistance to street food.
Wooyeon knew that his situation wasn’t universal. Among the reasons for being ostracized in middle school, abnormal differences in household environments were also one. What he told Dohyun about not eating cheap food was more of an unintentional spite.
“…What?”
Garam, who was biting into a piece of tteokbokki with a wooden chopstick, opened her eyes wide. Her fierce gaze was enough to make even Seongyu, who was scooping out fish cake and sausage, look surprised.
“Is this your first time eating tteokbokki?”
It was a similar reaction to when he knew Wooyeon didn’t know about the group chat. No, it seemed even more astonishing. It wasn’t until now that Wooyeon realized he had made a mistake.
“Oh no, no! It’s been a while. Tteokbokki isn’t sold much in the U.S.”
It was a reasonably good excuse considering it was made in haste. Garam and Seongyu also nodded with understanding expressions.
“Ah, Wooyeon went to the U.S.? You must be good at English.”
“While attending the English department…”
“Seongyu, there are just two types of people in the English department. One is those who are good at English from the beginning, and the others are those who can’t speak English until graduation. By the way, I’m the latter.”
However, only Dohyun squinted his eyes and stared at Wooyeon.
“Don’t you want to eat, Se…nior?”
“I’ll eat.”
Dohyun, who had been staring at him thoughtfully, smiled faintly. Whatever he was thinking, his expression was full of interest. He took an empty paper cup, filled it with sausages and cheese, and extended it to Wooyeon.
“Just try a little.”
Wooyeon blinked hesitantly. Trying not to show his surprise, he bit his lip, and then a soft voice followed.
“You said you can’t eat spicy food. Try to see if it’s spicy or not.”
Wooyeon didn’t remember saying he couldn’t eat spicy food. In reality, he wasn’t particularly averse to spicy food. However, Dohyun cheekily nodded as if he knew what Wooyeon was thinking.
“…?”
Wooyeon slowly accepted the paper cup. He wasn’t even familiar with the food, and the smell was also unfamiliar. Although it was somewhat audacious, since Dohyun offered it, it seemed fine. Dohyun grinned as Wooyeon hesitated.
“….”
Wooyeon quietly savored the sausage. It tasted both spicy and savory, a flavor he had never experienced before, much like the first time one indulged in a perfectly seasoned hamburger steak. A blush gently adorned Wooyeon’s cheeks as he relished in the unique sensation.
“It’s delicious.”
Thank you for the hard work 😍😍😍😍😍
ur welcomeee <3333
He likes it! Now I want to try hahaha.
I feel like Dohyun is filtring with Woo I’m confused
I’m in love with this man now, I believe in him with closed eyes