There was no need to look back. Dohyun effortlessly pushed Garam aside and crossed the room with long strides. In the proximity where their shoulders could touch, a momentary awkwardness flickered, and a gulp marked the beginning of an indistinct sound.
‘Ah, why sit so closely?’
‘Say it after injecting some pheromones.’
The blood flowed rapidly throughout his body. His heart pounded so vigorously that it felt like the sound might be audible. Thump, thump, while Wooyeon’s shoulders twitched with surprise, Dohyun brought a water bottle without looking in his direction.
“You’re the problem with your alcohol issue. Seemingly harassing the freshmen.”
“It’s not harassing. I came here to become friends.”
A glass was placed in front of Wooyeon. Wooyeon stared at the passing fingertips with vacant eyes. Thump. Once again, his shoulders twitched silently. With a sidelong glance, Dohyun, who scrutinized Wooyeon, tapped the glass.
“Drink.”
Whether then or now, it was a calm tone. Even the well-groomed fingernails holding the pen hadn’t changed. The only difference was the shift from informal speech to formal speech.
“Thank you.”
It felt like his insides were twisting. What would have been touched by consideration in the past, now felt entirely unpleasant. Even though Garam’s pheromones were completely blocked thanks to Dohyun, that was not a source of joy either. The teacher’s kindness was truly directed at everyone, as he realized anew, oddly leaving him feeling empty.
“Are you okay?”
Seeing Wooyeon’s expression change, Seongyu cautiously asked. Wooyeon nodded to indicate he was fine and sipped the water, making a gulping sound. The hiccup had stopped since Dohyun handed him the water.
“He’s the one I mentioned.”
Garam pointed at Wooyeon with an even more intoxicated face. Then, she leaned on Dohyun’s shoulder, but Dohyun pushed Garam away as if he was used to it. Garam, without any complaints, just opened her mouth.
“Didn’t I say it correctly?”
Dohyun’s gaze landed on Wooyeon. Wooyeon hoped for a brief moment that he would recognize him. He hadn’t had plastic surgery, and apart from getting taller and slimmer, he hadn’t changed much. Yet, Dohyun didn’t seem to recognize Wooyeon at all. He just casually raised his eyes and asked.
“Can I speak comfortably?”(as to say informally)
It was an artificial smile. At least that’s how Wooyeon felt. He seemed to be smiling beautifully, but for some reason, it felt awkward.
“Yes.”
Memories are beautiful when they remain as memories. The person named Kim Dohyun in Wooyeon’s imagination might have been overly idealized. Maybe that’s why. He was still kind and gentle, but it didn’t make his heart flutter like it used to.
“Do you want to join our club?”
Well, it’s been four years. It wouldn’t be strange for emotions to fade away after three springs passed without him. The fast heartbeat was probably just a surprise at the sudden reunion.
“What’s your name?”
Wooyeon looked at Dohyun with curious eyes. Though it was painful when their eyes met, he pretended not to notice. This relationship, which required him to introduce himself again, felt pointless and pathetic.
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 Seon Wooyeon.”
Dohyun furrowed his brows and pursed his lips. His quivering eyebrows quickly caught Wooyeon’s gaze. Soon, he repeated the name.
“ Seonwoo, Yeon?”
The corners of the eyes twitched. If he answered ‘yes,’ he felt like he would hear the call ‘Yeon-ah.’ But now was the time to straighten out the traces of the past.
“Seon, Wooyeon.”
“Ah, Wooyeon.”
That was it. Any faint interest that had surfaced was quickly erased. Wooyeon once again understood his place. Just a passing existence, which could be momentarily brushed aside when a namesake appeared. To Dohyun, he was nothing more than that.
“Wooyeon, huh.”
Since he immediately turned his gaze, Wooyeon couldn’t see Dohyun’s face when he said that. However, Dohyun’s still sweet voice tinted Wooyeon’s face red. It felt like cheating for a voice to be this nice, honestly.
“What’s ‘Wooyeon’?”
Seongyu, who was exchanging glasses with Garam, asked casually. Dohyun was also pouring soju into a new glass. It seemed like he was planning to sit at this table.
“Because my previous tutoring student had the same name. But he was a foreigner. Sunwoo Yeon.”
“Oh, it’s a real coincidence.”
Without realizing it, he felt excited at the fact that he mentioned himself. Wooyeon pressed his palm against his forehead with his fingernails, trying to calm down the rising lump. But he couldn’t suppress the subsequent greed.
“What kind of student was he?”
Just a bit more, he wanted to hear about himself from Dohyun’s mouth. At least, he wanted to know how Dohyun remembered him. With the same name, it might be natural to be curious. Wooyeon lifted his head, seeking comfort in that thought.
“Well, he was just…”
The protruding Adam’s apple moved up and down. The jawline connecting to the ear was much clearer than four years ago. After a light shrug of his shoulders, Dohyun raised the corner of his mouth casually.
“Not particularly good memories.”
It felt like getting a blow to the back of the head. Someone seemed to be squeezing his stomach and mocking Wooyeon mercilessly. The cold head strongly conveyed the harsh reality.
“I don’t really want to talk about that.”
Perhaps it was memories he didn’t want to recall. It might have been so unpleasant that he made that kind of awkward face. Cutting off contact immediately, changing his number, disappearing completely—maybe it was because he really wanted to distance himself from Wooyeon.
“…Seems like you didn’t hear.”
“Well, it’s not like that.”
I shouldn’t have confessed. He regretted it belatedly. If he hadn’t, the current response might have been somewhat different. If only he had said, ‘He was a good student,’ then maybe it wouldn’t be this heartbreaking.
“Anyway, about the club…”
Wooyeon brushed off Dohyun’s words and downed the beer in front of him. As the chill of the beer seeped in, it somehow made him feel worse. When he made a disgruntled sound, Dohyun refilled his glass with a fresh beer.
“Do you like English novels?”
With a slight nod, eyes closed briefly before opening them. The heat gathering in his eyes wasn’t due to the alcohol. The icy cold beer, making his hands numb, gradually intensified his thirst.
“I like you.”
‘I like you, Teacher.’
On the day Wooyeon couldn’t hold it back and confessed, Dohyun didn’t smile at him. He didn’t pat his head or console him. The awkward statement about going to the military was the entirety of Dohyun’s response.
“Good. I’ll give you the application form later, so fill it out and bring it. Or you can come directly to the club room.”
Well, Wooyeon also understood. A university student wouldn’t find the confession of a sixteen-year-old, who is still wet behind the ears and was small and fat, appealing. Even if it was Wooyeon instead of Dohyun, the reaction would probably have been similar.
“Give me your phone. I’ll type in my number.”
“Oh, my phone…”
Wooyeon hurriedly stood up and rummaged through his pockets. After searching the pants for a while, he eventually pulled out the phone from his hoodie pocket. When he awkwardly handed over the phone without a case, Dohyun made a clicking sound with his tongue.
“It might get scratched.”
The default background appeared on the screen. Wooyeon hadn’t even locked his phone. As Dohyun entered the number with a subtle expression, Wooyeon saved him as ‘Senior Kim Dohyun.’ Dohyun, observing him discreetly, raised an eyebrow.
“Why are you doing that?”
One corner of Dohyun’s eye twitched. It was his left eye with a double eyelid. Tilting his head slightly, he gestured towards the phone.
“How do you know my name?”
“…”
Come to think of it, Wooyeon was the only one who mentioned his name. Trying not to show any signs of embarrassment, Wooyeon found a suitable excuse.
“I heard it from my teaching assistant.”
“Yoonwoo Hyung?”
Fortunately, Dohyun let it pass without saying much. He was probably just curious, and there was no need for unnecessary explanations. Wooyeon put his phone back into the pocket, relieved.
“Hey, little one, give me your number too.”
“Oh, me too.”
Starting with Garam, Seongyu, and even unfamiliar faces, everyone extended their phones. Wooyeon, feeling rushed, entered the numbers one after another. It must have been around four. Garam, with a proud expression, patted Dohyun’s shoulder.
“Hey, let’s go smoke a cigarette.”
“I quit smoking.”
“This guy, seriously.”
Garam gave up persuading and looked around.
“Anyone else smoking?”
At the crisp question, most of the table stood up. Among them was Seongyu, who was calling someone.
“Wooyeon, what about you?”
Wooyeon followed Seongyu and stood up. He didn’t have the confidence to be left behind with just Dohyun and himself alone. The problem was that even though Wooyeon stood up, Dohyun didn’t make room for him.
“Seon—”
Wooyeon halted and moved his Adam’s apple. Habits are terrifying; they don’t completely disappear even after several years. It felt like he was about to call out ‘Teacher’ just like back then.
“Seonbae, could you please move a little?”
After a brief silence, Dohyun shifted to the side. Once enough space was secured, Wooyeon quickly crossed over the chair. His action resembled a rabbit being chased away.
In bars without a smoking area, you had to go outside to smoke. Among the people who each had a cigarette in their mouth, Wooyeon absentmindedly held the cigarette he had borrowed from Seongyu in his hand. Seongyu tried to light the fire, but he shook his head.
“Unni, does that senior from earlier have a girlfriend?”
“He was so handsome; how old is he?”
“About the club? Can I join too?”
Before he knew it, the conversation topic had shifted to Dohyun. Garam, with a look that seemed to say, ‘Is this why this guy didn’t come out?’ patiently answered each question. Wooyeon, who had felt relieved at the mention of having no significant other, was surprised by the fact that he was relieved and snapped the cigarette in his hand.
“Kim Dohyun is nothing without his face. You’ll never meet a military service returnee like him.”
“Oh, he was really nice.”
“I’m nicer.”
Whether he had a significant other or not, what did it have to do with him? Looking at the broken cigarette, Seongyu pulled out a new one for Wooyeon. This time, instead of taking it in his hand, Wooyeon put it to his lips.
“Dohyun Hyung is really cool.”
“…Not really.”
He didn’t want to admit with his own mouth that Dohyun was popular. His already boiling emotions were now completely simmering.
“I don’t like the way he smiles; it seems fake.”
Suddenly, Seongyu’s expression stiffened. His gaze was directed not at Wooyeon but behind him. Sensing an ominous atmosphere, Wooyeon raised his head, and terrifyingly, he felt the familiar pheromones.
‘He’s here.’
He caught Dohyun’s attention in a wrong way.. lol
Oops 😬. Some of us have social anxiety because things like that happen all the time 😄.
Oh god he get on his bad side 😭😭😭😭😭
But i wander what happened between them for dohyun to behave like that, i don’t think it’s because of the confession 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔