Chapter 4: The Invisible Destiny

“What was the student council president’s number again…?”

Leaning against the wall, she searched for the student council president’s number on her phone. While she could have asked a close acquaintance, Eunhae had no such classmates.

“Eunhae sunbae, here. Drink this first, and then have this sports drink too.”

Jung Seunghee, who had returned without her noticing, held out two bottles of drinks.

“Th-thank you.”

“Drink up.”

“……”

She had only taken them, intending not to drink, but he seemed determined to watch her until she did.

Ultimately, Eunhae had to finish an entire bottle of the unpleasant hangover remedy.

“They say if you drink a sports drink, you’ll sober up faster.”

“I’m… I’m full.”

Having downed five 500ml glasses of beer, it was understandable that she felt bloated.

“Then you can drink it when you get home. I’ll call a taxi for you.”

“No, I can’t. Taxis are too expensive.”

Taking a taxi under the Seoul sky felt preposterous. She was perfectly lucid and preferred to take the subway, which was more fitting for her budget.

“I’ll pay for the taxi fare.”

“You? Why would you?”

“Let’s just say it’s the responsibility of a junior who couldn’t stop their senior from getting drunk right beside them.”

“No, I told you, I’m not drunk!”

“Ah, yes. Of course. Can you walk to the main road over there? Or should I just call it here?”

“No, no, I’ll just take the subway home.”

“If you take the subway, sunbae, I’ll have to ride with you all the way until you’re safely inside your house.”

“……”

“That would be uncomfortable for you too, wouldn’t it?”

“……”

“If you’re worried about the taxi fare, I’ll pay for it. And I’ve already called one. You just need to wait in front of the convenience store.”

“Th-thank you…”

She had heard that continuously refusing kindness was impolite. Eunhae reluctantly got into the taxi.

Jung Seunghee took a picture of the taxi’s license plate and then spoke to the driver.

“Please drive carefully. Thank you.”

As the door closed and the taxi started to move, the driver spoke in a pleased voice.

“Your boyfriend is very considerate, isn’t he?”

“He’s not… he’s not my boyfriend!”

“Oh, he’s not? Well, he’s so handsome and kind, you should just accept him.”

“It’s not like that…”

Eunhae truly felt wronged.

****

The next morning, Eunhae felt even more wronged.

The freedom she had felt last night was a lie, as the world was once again covered in ‘destiny’.

‘It was a good thing I brought my hat, just in case…’

She pulled her hat low and buried her face in her phone.

On the internet, people’s faces were not visible. This meant that their destinies were also not visible.

That was why Eunhae found the online world comfortable.

‘What on earth happened yesterday?’

Her hands scrolled up and down aimlessly, but what Eunhae saw were not the smudged black letters on a white background.

Clearly, yesterday, no one’s destiny was visible.

The taxi driver’s destiny, nor the security guard’s destiny she encountered in front of her apartment, was visible.

She couldn’t see the future of the woman who shared the elevator with her at all.

‘It was definitely like that… So why can I see it again today?’

After waking up, the world had returned to normal.

What could have been different?

‘I sometimes drink alcohol usually, too.’

After turning twenty, Eunhae had learned to drink from her father, and occasionally drank with him. It wasn’t as if drinking with a stranger was the cause; during her freshman year, she had been dragged to many drinking gatherings. It had never been like this then.

‘Could it be… him?’

Jung Seunghee.

Jung Seunghee, whose destiny was invisible.

Could drinking with Jung Seunghee have been the cause?

Would her ability to see destinies disappear again if she drank with Jung Seunghee?

“Hmm…”

Eunhae groaned, biting her lip.

She wanted to experiment to see if that was the real cause, but how could she suggest drinking with him?

‘How to ask a junior to drink…’

Thinking by herself yielded no answers. She searched online.

All she found were negative articles, from columns against drinking culture to bosses who encouraged drinking being labeled as ‘꼰대’ (꼰대 – an older person who is condescending and stuck in their ways).

Eunhae’s face fell.

To be a 꼰대, or to live like this.

…Perhaps it was better to be a 꼰대?

To be 꼰대 or not to be. That is the question.

Her steps towards the quantum physics lecture hall were quite resolute.

“Eunhae sunbae, are you feeling better?”

Eunhae looked up at Jung Seunghee with a dumbfounded expression.

“You look like you never expected to see me here.”

“…This was a required major course!”

“Yes. A mandatory course for third-years.”

“…!”

Of all people, he was also a third-year. This meant they were bound to run into each other in all their required major courses.

“Did you drink the sports drink when you got home?”

“Oh? Oh…”

Since the sports drink was tasty, she had finished it all.

Jung Seunghee sat down next to Eunhae as if it were the most natural thing. A faint smile touched his lips as he noticed her instinctively flinch.

“…Oh, right. I’ll send you the taxi fare via messenger.”

“You don’t have to.”

“B-but I rode it, so I should send it.”

Eunhae sent the taxi fare, crying tears of blood internally.

“Are your pants okay?”

“They’re jeans, so after washing them, it doesn’t show at all. Don’t worry.”

“Th-that’s a relief… Thank you for yesterday. You told the student council president I left, right?”

“Yes. You seemed quite flustered, sunbae.”

‘If I say, ‘Thank you, so let’s drink together,’ here, I’ll just become a 꼰대, won’t I?’

Eunhae didn’t know how her peers interacted so naturally. She stared blankly at Jung Seunghee’s desk, but no good ideas came to mind.

Just then, Jung Seunghee tapped the back of her hand with his finger.

Startled, Eunhae looked at Jung Seunghee.

“The professor is here.”

Eunhae instinctively turned her gaze to the professor.

“…Again.”

“Pardon?”

“This time, too…”

Eunhae blinked, scanning the lecture hall.

“Only faces are visible…”

Until now, she had never been able to properly see people’s faces. Even a fleeting glance would make their destiny faintly visible.

If she focused on seeing someone’s face or features more clearly, their destiny would become even more vivid.

That was why she had always avoided looking at people’s faces. She shunned people and hid in her own space.

‘What on earth is happening?’

‘This time, I didn’t even drink alcohol.’

“Eunhae sunbae, are you okay? Your face has turned pale.”

“Oh? Oh, no. It’s nothing.”

Eunhae cupped her cheeks with both hands.

She must have had a bewildered expression. Jung Seunghee must have seen it all.

Jung Seunghee’s gaze made the back of her hand tingle.

‘What’s the same as last time? It’s definitely because of Jung Seunghee.’

Even after class ended, Jung Seunghee didn’t immediately stand up.

“Eunhae sunbae, what classes are you taking this semester?”

“M-me? I’m just taking whatever I want, I guess…”

“I was wondering if I had any more classes with you.”

‘Why would you wonder about that?’

…She wanted to ask, but asking felt like falling into a trap somehow. She had that intuition.

Eunhae stammered her reply. Jung Seunghee smiled brightly after hearing her answer.

“All but one of my classes overlap with yours. That’s great.”

“What’s great?”

“It wouldn’t be fun if I told you everything.”

With just that, Jung Seunghee stood up.

“I’ll see you tomorrow in the Understanding Eastern Classics class.”

“Oh, oh… Goodbye.”

Left alone, Eunhae felt a strange sense of unease.

“Ah, so I’ll be meeting him in all but one class?”

Her face became crestfallen. Elective classes aside, the remaining ones were major courses, making them difficult to drop.

“No, why is he doing this to me…?”

Eunhae mumbled to herself, pouting.

She had a reason to avoid Jung Seunghee.

Jung Seunghee’s destiny was invisible.

Eunhae could see everyone’s destiny, except for her very immediate family. However, Jung Seunghee was different. Even before it started appearing and disappearing like now, his destiny had been invisible since the first time she met him.

She hadn’t studied shamanism or folklore separately. But Eunhae, who had lived her entire life with spiritual abilities, had an intuition.

People who were different from others had different reasons for being so. It could be auspicious or ominous. The one thing that was certain was that one should not approach them lightly.

There had to be a reason why Jung Seunghee’s destiny was invisible. As long as she didn’t know what it was, Eunhae had no choice but to be wary of him.

In any case, after Jung Seunghee disappeared, she felt much more at ease. A moment of leisure had arrived, allowing her to savor the time free from destinies.