Chapter 88: Under the Radiance, a Fractured Rhythm

But Han Gyu-tae’s reaction was strange. Normally, he would be fooling around and shouting about Park Sung-jin being a traitor, but instead, he hesitated, his mouth twitching as he dragged his feet. What was wrong with him now? Watching Gyu-tae act so serious was even more baffling than Sung-jin’s sudden diet. Scratching his cheek awkwardly, he muttered,

“Well, the thing is… I don’t think I can eat lunch with you starting today either.”

“Why?”

“Uh, something came up…”

Gyu-tae’s voice trailed off. Seeing him avoid my gaze, it was clear he didn’t have a very good excuse. Then, even Sung-jin joined in, scanning my face with an anxious expression. It seemed leaving me behind to go off into their own separate worlds was weighing heavily on their consciences.

“Are… are you okay?”

“No, I mean, of course I’m fine.”

I mean, it was just lunch. It wasn’t like I was a middle schooler who would feel completely alienated in class if I had to eat alone. I was a university student; what was the big deal about grabbing lunch by myself? Their acting like they’d committed some sort of crime by looking at me so guiltily was actually more embarrassing. Did I still look like a toddler who couldn’t eat a meal alone to them?

“I really don’t care. I used to eat alone all the time when you guys weren’t around anyway.”

“No, we know that, but the timing is just bad. It feels like we’re abandoning you all at once.”

“Since when did you care so much about that? Especially you, Han Gyu-tae—you’ve never been that sensitive before. Why are you walking on eggshells around me?”

“Oh, no. If you’re fine eating alone, then it’s cool.”

Gyu-tae’s face brightened instantly. Seeing his expression clear up the second I declared I was fine eating alone made it absolutely certain that this jerk was hiding something. Should I pry it out of him, or let it go? I stared intently at Gyu-tae, who was completely incapable of hiding his thoughts, before deciding against it. Even without knowing his secret, I already had way too much on my mind.

Specifically, the team project with Na Eun-hyeok directly after this class.

I glanced down into my bag. The gift I brought to give Eun-hyeok today was a set of cookies from an artisanal bakery. There were two of the exact same kind. At first, I had only prepared one for him, but because he always insisted on us eating together every single time, I found myself buying one for myself and one for him before I knew it. Every time he accepted my gift with that pure, bright smile, my own rigid, awkward attitude seemed to soften just a little bit. Eun-hyeok’s smile possessed that kind of power.

After saying goodbye to Gyu-tae and Sung-jin when class ended, I headed toward our meeting spot. Today, we were meeting at the Business School Lounge. Eun-hyeok said he had a Business School class right before this.

Descending the central spiral staircase, I glanced down. Through the massive glass windows, the sunlight streamed in like a halo around Eun-hyeok, who sat at a table looking through a textbook. A white shirt and black trousers. It was a very simple outfit, perhaps because he had a presentation today, but the simplicity only made the impact greater. I could see people walking by slowing down their pace just to get a look at him. I was just stepping down to the next stair when—

“Excuse me.”

A clear, ringing female voice came from behind me.

Because the Business School Lounge was closer to a hallway than an actual enclosed lounge, it wasn’t completely silent, but it wasn’t noisy either. Since the third period had just started and most students had already gone into their classrooms, the woman’s voice echoed elegantly through the hall despite not being very loud.

She must be calling someone else. Just as I thought that, a slender finger tapped my back.

“Excuse me. Are you busy?”

“Ah, me?”

Startled, I turned around. A woman with long, straight hair was standing one step above me. Her black hair had no bangs; half of it fell over her left chest, while the other half was tucked behind her shoulder. She was wearing a light pink blouse and a sky-blue tweed skirt. Looking incredibly fragile and delicate, she gave me a bright smile.

“What is it?”

“I really like your style. Could I get your number?”

My number?

My brain couldn’t process the words immediately. As I blinked awkwardly, the woman puckered her cheek slightly and smiled as if she were a bit embarrassed.

“Was that too direct? I’m sorry. It’s my first time asking for someone’s number. I’m not really the type to beat around the bush. Do you happen to have a girlfriend already? If you do, it’s fine.”

“Ah, no. It’s not that, but…”

“Oh, you don’t have a girlfriend? Then could you put your number in here?”

She very smoothly held out her phone. Overwhelmed by her sheer momentum, I found myself typing my number in awkwardly. A thought flashed through my mind—Why am I doing this right now?—but by the time I snapped out of it, my phone number was already in her hands.

“Thank you. I’ll text you.”

Before I could say anything else, she gave a cool shrug and headed back up the stairs. Filled with a wave of delayed regret, I bowed my head awkwardly and finished walking down. It felt like a few people had looked over during the interaction, but they seemed to lose interest quickly because no one was watching by the time I reached the bottom. For someone like me who hated drawing attention, it was a relief. I walked over to the spot right below the landing, where Eun-hyeok sat bathed in the light. He was still staring silently at his textbook with that sculpted face.

“I’m here.”

I had resolved with absolute certainty today to greet him gently and warmly with an “Eun-hyeok-ah, hello,” but I failed yet again. I announced my arrival in my usual awkward, stiff tone.

But today, he wasn’t acting like himself. Normally, the exact second he noticed my presence, he would turn his head, but despite my greeting, he kept his head lowered for a moment. Had I done something wrong? While a sudden wave of anxiety washed over me, he read another line or two of his textbook before finally looking up. Fortunately, he smiled just like always, as refreshing as a cool spring breeze.

“You’re here?”

“Yeah.”

Though his reaction was a fraction of a second slower than usual, I figured he was just exhausted and hyper-focused on studying with exams coming up. The staircase incident from a moment ago was still nagging at me, but I didn’t let it show. Moving with practiced familiarity, I pulled the two cookies out of my bag. I placed one in front of Eun-hyeok and one in front of myself.

“It’s a cookie. I bought it near my house.”

“You always seem to know where the best food places are, Un-ha.”

“Yeah, well… I like eating.”

His gentle voice sounded just like normal, so the tension completely left my body. I leaned halfway back into the opposite chair. Just then, Eun-hyeok’s eyes locked straight onto me. Catching his gaze entirely unprepared as I looked up, I let out a small, involuntary hiccup. His eyes were a color somewhere between deep brown and pitch black. When the light hit them, a mysterious golden glint appeared, making them look almost tangible. There was an intense strength in his gaze—it made my heart thump wildly, like a prey animal locking eyes with a predator. Growing completely self-conscious, I asked like a broken machine,

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Hmm?”

At that, Eun-hyeok tilted his head. His reaction made it seem like he genuinely hadn’t realized he was staring. Leaning back slightly, he tilted his head again, and then, as if nothing had happened, that perfect public relations mask of a smile returned to his lips.

“It’s nothing.”

Leaving it at that, Eun-hyeok went right back to his usual self and pulled a folder of printouts from his bag. My eyes remained awkwardly fixed on his mouth. I had a distinct feeling that something was off, but I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was. Did I do something wrong? Was he angry at me? Even though I knew the chances were low, my derailed thoughts began to spiral and freeze up completely. I quietly swallowed a sigh.

Buzz.

Right at that moment, my phone vibrated. Both my eyes and Eun-hyeok’s instantly flew to my phone resting on the table. A text message appeared on the lock screen from an unknown number.

[I’m the person who got your number earlier. My name is Jeong So-ye, and I’m a freshman…]

The lock screen didn’t show much of the message. The screen glowed for a brief second before quietly going dark again. As I turned my head away awkwardly, Eun-hyeok’s gaze was still rigidly pinned to my dark phone screen.

“…”

“…Um.”

“Yeah. Shall we get started?”

The moment my voice cut through the silence, Eun-hyeok looked up completely normally, as if snapping out of a trance. Had I just imagined it? While he was definitely a bit slow to respond today, there didn’t seem to be anything else wrong with him. I shook my head internally and let out a small sigh. Thinking about it now, I was being ridiculous.

It was only because I liked him so much that I was overanalyzing his every single move. Attributing deep meaning to his completely accidental, ordinary actions was just a classic case of self-absorption. Rather than my actions having some massive effect on him, it was far more likely that he just wasn’t feeling well today.

Ah… wait, could he be sick?

Looking at him with that possibility in mind, it actually seemed plausible. His smile looked a little stiffer than usual, and his cheeks seemed a bit flushed. It could easily just be my imagination, but I couldn’t stop worrying about it.

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