Chapter 18

Lee Jun rolled his eyes, debating whether to say more or remain silent. Fortunately, just as the silence threatened to stretch, he saw the professor enter and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Today should be interesting.”

At Chaeheon’s low voice, Lee Jun subtly glanced at him. Chaeheon, who hadn’t taken out a book, rested his arms on the empty desk and leaned his chin on them.

“You think so too, Senior?”

Chaeheon’s words resonated with an unspoken meaning. No matter how much he might deny it, he wasn’t talking about the class.

“Just in case, I’m asking if it’s okay for us to hang out together?”

“……”

His singular resolve to create an opportunity to avoid Chaeheon again…

“Yes.”

He broke it himself.

Lee Jun’s fingertips brushed over the thick cover. As he felt the embossed title, his gaze dropped.

He pretended not to notice the thick, brick-like brown book and looked forward.

“I don’t know why you’re being so cooperative, but it would be foolish to miss this chance, wouldn’t it?”

In the empty classroom after class, with everyone gone, Chaeheon firmly held Lee Jun’s arm. He had felt good when Lee Jun didn’t refuse the coffee he gave him. He wondered if his Senior was finally going to accept his flirting.

“We had such a good time when we were dating, didn’t we? It was good when we studied together, good when we kissed… And it was really good when we held each other.”

Every time those moments, when they focused only on each other as if they were the only two people in the world, came to mind, an unquenchable thirst parched Chaeheon’s chest.

“You’re thinking the same thing as me, right, Senior?”

That’s why you’re accepting me like this. Chaeheon whispered to Lee Jun, his eyes softly curved in pleasure.

“Want to spend tonight together?”

Chaeheon gently stroked Lee Jun’s hair. He acted as if he was petting a cute cat, but it was Chaeheon himself who wore a languid expression. All the while, unaware that Lee Jun’s temper was slowly boiling.

“You…”

A suppressed voice escaped through Lee Jun’s clenched teeth. Although he had treated Chaeheon with a more lenient attitude than before, Chaeheon’s audacious demeanor, acting as if he had free rein, greatly annoyed him.

“Didn’t you say you still like me?”

Chaeheon tilted his head at Lee Jun’s direct question.

“It seems you don’t even resent me.”

“I was the one who first shook our relationship. If I hadn’t brought up studying abroad, we wouldn’t have broken up.”

Chaeheon readily took the blame, but Lee Jun couldn’t agree. Studying abroad was just a convenient card to play at the time he needed to break up with Chaeheon; it wasn’t the cause. However, since there was no need to explain this to Chaeheon, Lee Jun brought up something else.

“Anyway, considering I was the one who broke up with you first, I didn’t expect you to come back to me.”

Hadn’t he heard it at the club? That even though he wanted to confront him, he found him beautiful when they met again. That’s why he was lingering by his side now, hinting at starting over multiple times.

“Are you finally understanding my feelings now?”

He ignored comments like, “You pretended not to know before.” He wasn’t saying this because he had suddenly realized Chaeheon’s feelings.

“If you’re not going to listen when I tell you to back off, then just act like you used to.”

This was his objective. The current Chaeheon was acting unlike the person he knew. He was willful and didn’t hesitate to use threats if necessary. So, rather than constantly being swayed by him, it was better to tell him to act like the old Chaeheon.

“Used to?”

“Yes, I won’t tolerate this audacious attitude anymore.”

Lee Jun gathered his bag and stood up, turning to look at Chaeheon. He seemed a little better now, but Chaeheon didn’t get up.

“Don’t threaten me or play games like chasing a mouse.”

Lee Jun quickly blurted out everything he had held back. He met Chaeheon’s astonished eyes directly.

“That’s not good. It’s awkward for you…”

Chaeheon’s lips parted blankly, then he burst out laughing.

“Lee Jun Senior.”

Chaeheon, who had stood up, looked at Lee Jun, who had spoken sharply all along but ultimately hadn’t pushed him away.

“I want to be close. Want to get a drink after class today?”

His voice carried a conviction that they could form a truly good relationship again, just like before. Lee Jun crossed his arms and pretended to ponder Chaeheon’s words.

To be tangled up again so naturally after drinking just last weekend… But it was Lee Jun who felt a sense of regret. If Chaeheon had absolutely no connection to Hae Sol, it would be different, but that wasn’t the case, which made it awkward. So, accepting was the right thing to do.

“No.”

It was just that his heart wasn’t in it.

Chaeheon’s eyes twitched, as he had naturally expected acceptance. But Lee Jun seemed to not care what expression he made.

“No?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want to.”

If he didn’t want to, he didn’t want to. He drank last time, and again? That was a definite no.

Lee Jun stared at the table with an expression that was neither a laugh nor a cry. It was wine on the weekend, and now it was soju and beer. He found it absurd, but then Chaeheon’s amused voice flowed from across the table.

“It’s no use regretting it now.”

Lee Jun glared at Chaeheon, who was deliberately being annoying.

“Shut up.”

Despite Chaeheon’s exaggerated shiver, pretending to be scared, Lee Jun ignored him and only looked down at the table. At the suddenly arranged gathering, Lee Jun dazedly rubbed his cheek.

His refusal to drink when asked was purely out of spite. Chaeheon knew this, so he diligently searched for a location on his phone during the next class.

Was it Gyeong-hun? He politely brushed off the junior who approached them to suggest going for a drink, then searched the area and came to a bar with private rooms. It was even so early for drinking, yet the door was open, making him wonder if Chaeheon had even looked into that.

More than anything… the reason he followed Chaeheon was.

‘If I could ask without him noticing…’

He had information he wanted to get from him. Something about Hae Sol, who was practically the reason he broke up with Chaeheon. To do that, he had to maintain a boundary that Chaeheon couldn’t cross while looking for an opportunity.

“Don’t drink too much at once. Tell me when you start to feel tipsy.”

Lee Jun reached out to pick up the soju bottle, but Chaeheon was a little faster. He watched the green soju bottle’s body trapped in Chaeheon’s large hand before looking up.

“I can pour it myself.”

“You’re going to pour your own?”

Chaeheon grinned, lightly shook the soju bottle with a flick of his wrist, then filled Lee Jun’s glass. Chaeheon placed the soju bottle in front of him and picked up another soju bottle to pour for himself.

“This way, we can both tell how much we’re drinking.”

As Lee Jun placed his idle hands on his thighs, the food was served.

Chaeheon raised his glass and offered it to Lee Jun. Lee Jun looked at it, then raised his own glass, gently clinked it against Chaeheon’s, and slowly brought it to his lips. He saw Chaeheon set his glass back down, but Lee Jun still poured the soju into his mouth.

Lee Jun frowned at the bitterness that slid down his throat. It wasn’t unbearable, but it didn’t taste good either. Steam rose from the oden soup they had ordered to eat casually.

Lee Jun looked at it and reached out, but grabbed the soju glass instead of a spoon. Even with the bitter aftertaste, he chose alcohol over food due to the clean feeling. As he drank the soju Chaeheon had already filled, Lee Jun frowned even more than before.

As they exchanged drinks a few times, awkwardness filled the air. He was just fiddling with his soju glass when he felt a gaze on him.

“Your face looks even worse. How much are you working?”

At Chaeheon’s question, Lee Jun spun the soju glass. The swirling transparent liquid overflowed slightly, running down Lee Jun’s finger. Lee Jun stared at it, then sucked his finger.

“I just work as much as I’m paid.”

“You’re still a student.”

“When was I not a student?”

“Don’t be like that…”

Chaeheon, who was about to tell him to take it easy, closed his mouth. Even when they were dating, he had tried to advise and persuade Lee Jun a few times to care for his health, but now, no words would work. Lee Jun would probably tell him not to interfere.

As if he had read Chaeheon’s thoughts, Lee Jun opened his mouth.

“This is my last year. I’m doing this because I don’t want to take another leave of absence.”

“Going to school, working part-time…”

Lee Jun turned his head as if ignoring Chaeheon. Chaeheon was clearly unhappy, but it wasn’t Lee Jun’s concern. He had planned it that way, and although the schedule was a bit demanding, it wasn’t impossible for him to handle.

“What kind of work do you do?”

“I do outsourced work and serving.”

“The serving is on weekends, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then whose clothes were you wearing back then?”

“The owner’s.”

Lee Jun, recalling that incident, let out an exasperated smile. Thinking about how persistently he clung to pheromones, he wondered if “son of a bitch” wasn’t referring to him, but to Chaeheon.