Chapter 2: An Unwanted Companion

“Should I just drop the class?”

“Let’s take it together, Eunhae sunbae.”

“Kyaak!”

Lost in thought, Eunhae had completely forgotten about the person beside her.

Jung Seunghee’s words startled her so much that she shrieked, drawing the attention of the remaining students in the lecture hall.

Blushing furiously, Eunhae quickly pulled her hat down.

“Did I startle you by speaking so suddenly? My apologies.”

He was a remarkably polite Tosa Inu.

“No, it’s fine. I just get startled easily… But what did you say just now?”

“I suggested we take the class together.”

‘Why me?’

However, Eunhae couldn’t voice her true thoughts. Not only was the Tosa Inu, Jung Seunghee, intimidating, but expressing her will to a human in the real world felt strangely awkward.

Moreover, Jung Seunghee’s imposing physique blocked her path, intensifying the pressure she felt.

Jung Seunghee stood before her, with walls to her side and behind her, and a desk on her other side. She felt like prey cornered in a dead end.

“The class seems… a bit difficult. Perhaps it’s because I just returned from a break.”

Eunhae offered a timid excuse, subtly deflecting rather than directly stating her fear.

“I think it might be better to just drop it this semester and take it next semester… Anyway, I only need to complete six elective credits, so there’s no urgent rush.”

“Taking two electives next semester would be too much. You’ll need to start preparing for employment from the second semester of junior year.”

“That… is true, but…”

“Just take the class with me, Eunhae sunbae. I have a classmate who took this course, so I know the exam trends.”

“That’s… fortunate.”

“Right? I’m also a junior, so I was worried about forming groups. This professor apparently groups upperclassmen together. It would be mutually beneficial if we were in the same group, wouldn’t it, Eunhae sunbae?”

“Huh?”

‘The same group? Group projects with Jung Seunghee too?’

“No, no, that’s…”

“I just checked, and it seems like you and I are the only ones from our department. Let’s do our best together, sunbae.”

“No…”

Jung Seunghee left with a refreshing smile.

Even after the overwhelming Jung Seunghee had departed, Eunhae’s discomfort stubbornly lingered.

After much hesitation, she packed her bag and trudged out of the lecture hall.

‘I should hurry home, wash my feet, and lie down…’

Wooong.

Checking her phone, she saw a message in a group chat she had been forcibly added to.

Unconsciously, Eunhae’s face contorted into a frown beneath the shadow of her hat.

The Physics department had fewer than twenty students per year. Even gathering all enrolled students, the total barely reached fifty.

In such a small community, even an outsider was expected to attend the semester’s opening assembly. This was especially true for the Physics department’s assembly, as professors also attended.

While she could make an excuse to skip, her meddlesome academic advisor would surely seek her out.

Eunhae disliked crowded places, but what she disliked even more was facing people one-on-one.

However, the nuclear physics professor was very fond of students and often called them to his lab.

“Ugh, that’s a definite no.”

She desperately wanted to avoid a one-on-one meeting with her advisor. Trembling with dread, Eunhae headed towards the Natural Sciences building, where the Physics department was located.

Her reluctant footsteps carried her to the front of the lecture hall where the opening assembly was being held.

Quite a few students were already inside, mostly freshmen anticipating university life and sophomores engrossed in their studies.

As before, Eunhae found a secluded spot in the back, pulled her hat low, and sat down.

It was the time when most people were either leaving school or finishing work, so the online world was bustling.

“It would be great if they made a law like that.”

Eunhae grumbled, gazing at her phone.

Before long, upperclassmen also started to arrive. Like Eunhae, they sat sparsely in the back, staring at their smartphones with bored expressions.

Having endured at least four of these opening assemblies every semester, they no longer felt any excitement or anticipation for novelty. Their faces simply conveyed a desire for the assembly to end quickly so they could move on to the after-party.

“Seunghee, you’re here?”

The president of the Physics department’s student council, who was preparing for the assembly, greeted Jung Seunghee as he entered.

True to her role as student council president, she was well-connected and greeted many people. However, it was the first time that attention had been drawn to someone she spoke to.

Jung Seunghee nodded to his classmate and scanned the lecture hall. His eyes met Eunhae’s, who had been unconsciously watching him.

His eyes, not gentle in the slightest, curved into a faint smile.

“Eunhae sunbae made it too?”

This drew all eyes to Eunhae.

“Oh, it really is Park Eunhae? When did you come back?”

An upperclassman, who seemed to have either devoted their entire life to the university or taken root there, recognized Eunhae.

“Park Eunhae? Who was that again?”

“The one who took a leave of absence after sophomore year.”

“Ah…”

The few remaining classmates of Eunhae also noticed her presence.

Eunhae offered an awkward smile and bowed her head politely.

“Hello, sunbae…”

“Did you return this semester?”

“Yes…”

“So, were the family matters handled well?”

The sunbae was indirectly referring to Eunhae’s mother’s passing. Publicly, Eunhae had taken a leave of absence due to the shock of losing her mother.

Few people knew about this, as Eunhae had rarely kept in personal contact with anyone even before that.

This sunbae, having attended the university for a long time, was close not only with the department office staff but also with the professors, so it seemed someone had informed him.

Eunhae gave a bitter smile and nodded.

“Yes…”

Just as the sunbae was about to say something more, a large shadow fell over Eunhae.

It was Jung Seunghee, who had somehow made his way to the very top row.

“Eunhae sunbae, I can sit next to you, right?”

“Uh, huh? No?”

“Thank you.”

Eunhae had inadvertently blurted out her true feelings. However, Jung Seunghee casually ignored her and sat down beside her.

She felt like she was going to explode from the pressure.

Jung Seunghee was already an uncomfortable presence, and now he was drawing unwanted attention to her.

“Why, why are you sitting here? You can go sit with your classmates…”

“They’ll be fine playing among themselves. You’re alone, sunbae.”

“…”

She couldn’t bring herself to say that she also had classmates to chat with. She hadn’t been close with her classmates to begin with, and those she used to greet had already graduated.

“These opening assemblies are such a hassle. Don’t you think so, Eunhae sunbae?”

“They… are.”

‘If it weren’t for this opening assembly, I wouldn’t have run into Jung Seunghee again.’

“Honestly, juniors and seniors manage fine on their own.”

“You’re right…”

“Speaking of which, sunbae, you haven’t bought the textbook for ‘Understanding Eastern Classics’ yet, have you? It feels like a waste to buy new books for an elective.”

“Oh, oh…”

“I have a few classmates who took it. Should I get one for you too, sunbae?”

“No, no.”

“Are you planning to buy a new one?”

“Uh… no.”

“Are you going to drop it?”

Jung Seunghee’s voice still held a hint of amusement. Yet, Eunhae instinctively detected the coldness hidden within it.

The fine hairs on the back of her neck prickled.

Eunhae swallowed hard.

‘Even if I say yes here, nothing major will happen. Probably.’

Her rationality asserted this, but her instincts vehemently urged her not to speak the truth.

And she was a person who usually followed her instincts and gut feelings.

“Oh, no, it’s just… I was thinking about it…”

“You’ll take it with me, right? I was worried about taking the class alone. I think I’ll feel more comfortable if I take it with you, Eunhae sunbae.”

Whether Jung Seunghee felt comfortable or not, it would be a lecture of trials and tribulations for Eunhae.

“And since we’ll be taking classes together from now on, let’s exchange contact information.”

Jung Seunghee naturally took Eunhae’s phone. He called himself, then returned the phone to Eunhae.

Eunhae could only watch in stunned dismay.

“It’s Jung Seunghee. Jung Seunghee, class of XX.”

Eunhae, though reluctantly, saved Jung Seunghee’s contact information.

Jung Seunghee confirmed his name with satisfaction, then typed Eunhae’s name into his smartphone.

Now that Jung Seunghee also had Eunhae’s contact information, even if she dropped the ‘Understanding Eastern Classics’ course, she wouldn’t be able to avoid him.

Eunhae couldn’t understand Jung Seunghee.

She had many reasons to avoid him, one of which was his reputation as a Tosa Inu.

But Jung Seunghee had no reason to do this to Eunhae.

At most, they had only shared a semester together. Even then, as a freshman and a sophomore, their classes hadn’t overlapped.

It was already strange enough that he remembered her face.