Chapter 9

Immediately after sending Yoon-woo a kakaotalk asking what he was doing on Saturday, Hye-rim wondered if she was too hasty.

Just today I started talking informally…….

I met Lee Yoon-woo, a fourth grader in elementary school at the same university, took two classes together, and both of us sat next to each other, and continued to do our assignments for a semester, so I was very excited.

Come to think of it, was it too much to follow him to the gym?

I removed my makeup and went bare-faced. What if Yoon-woo thinks that I look ugly?

I was worried about that, but it was so exciting and fun to work out with Yoon-woo.

Even though I was not wearing makeup, I think there’s a possibility that he would have liked me since I’ve a nice body.

Romeo and Juliet killed themselves just after three or five days since they met. They didn’t make a fuss about dying, right?

Hye-rim talked with Yoon-woo for more than three hours today, and it is nearly five hours if you add up the time we spent together in class.

It’s already been 4 days since I took the same class for 2 hours and 30 minutes a day.

Isn’t this much more than Romeo and Juliet spent time together?

Then it won’t be too short a time to ask to drink.

It’s normal to drink with strangers during college.

But it’s a little too soon…… I also thought it would be better for him to meet with Ji-eun.

If Ji-eun and Yoon-woo get closer, can’t I call Yoon-woo whenever we eat together? Such plans were being made by Hye-rim.

Hye-rim, who received a reply from Yoon-woo, sent a text message to Ji-eun asking if she wanted to drink together.

-Is he really Lee Yoon-woo from elementary school? That’s amazing.

-Yes, but you shouldn’t fall in love with him because he looks like Haku, ok?

-Hye-rim.

– What?

-There’s no one like Haku in real life……open your eyes…… Grown-up men have hair on their legs. How can he look like Haku?….

-Oh my… That’s true.

-you–

-You’re gonna come out for a drink anyway, right?

-Of course, let me see what he looks like.

-Then, what should we eat?

-Soju and beer?

-No, what kind of side dish should we eat?

Ji-eun had no interest other than drinking alcohol.

She didn’t care about the food when she had alcohol.

For some reason, senior students always took me when I was a freshman, but it was too shabby and the only menu was stir-fried chicken nuggets, so the girls didn’t like it.

Perhaps because Ji-eun was cute, there were many seniors who bought Ji-eun a drink even though they didn’t have any ulterior motive.

She had a very unusual position in the club: something Cute drinking totem?

Then we’ll just go with the L.G. chicken.

-Yep

-Unnie… Please pay attention…….

-Ok ok,cool.

I sent a kakaotalk to Yoon-woo and he said it was good as he likes LG-Tong Chicken.

There are no Koreans who hate chickens, and LG Tongdak is the best place to have chicken and beer nearby, so it is the most common choice when there is no place to go.

Finally, on Saturday, Hye-rim met Yoon-woo at a chicken restaurant with Ji-eun.

“Hello, senior.”

“Lee Yoon-woo?”

“Yes?”

“Just drop the honorifics. It feels awkward to converse formally while having alcohol.”

“Oh…… yes.”

“Then somaek?”

[ Somaek- a kind of alcohol]

She must be crazy about alcohol. As soon as Yoon-woo talks informally, she asks what to drink the next second.

Hye-rim finished working out a little earlier than Yoon-woo then returned to her room and got dressed, while Ji-eun was wearing a sweatsuit and a cap.

Hye-rim sat next to Ji-eun, whose breath smelled faintly of beer.

‘Is she a drunkard or what?’

If Ji-eun had long straight hair like her, not short hair, her hair might smell like alcohol.

“I’m…… No, I’m not that good at drinking, order something else if that’s ok.”

“Then soju?”

“No, what do you mean by ‘Then soju’? He said he can’t drink well so just order a beer for him.”

“Beers aren’t fun……and drinking only beer makes it difficult for the next day. Also, you get full quickly with beer.”

“Oh, that’s true, too. Yoon-woo has a small appetite so he’ll be full just after drinking beer.”

“I don’t think it’s that bad.”

“Then it’s decided. Boss, a bottle of Soju!”

“Uh…….”

She ordered soju without listening to Yoon-woo, who was embarrassed by her.

Yoon-woo looked cute when he was embarrassed.

I’m sorry Yoon-woo, but I actually wanted to see you drunk.

“Did you watch ‘Inside Out’ by any chance?”

After making a toast, as soon as we exchanged a few words, Ji-eun immediately began to investigate Yoon-woo’s preference.

“Inside Out” is an animated film released earlier this year and is quite a box office hit, so it is not a bad trigger to talk about movies while drinking.

But usually, when you meet a school person for the first time, you talk about which department and what class you take, and when you run out of topics about school life, you move on to another topic, but it’s like she is talking about what she wants to talk about right away.

“No, what is it? A movie?

“Oh, my God, Hye-rim. He said He hasn’t watched ‘Inside Out’.”

Inside Out is a movie that Ji-eun especially likes, so even when she first saw Ji-eun, she inquired hard about how she watched the movie and what parts she liked.

Anime Otaku is like, “Wow! You know that anime!” I can get an unpleasant impression of talking about what she has to say at first. But, Ji-eun always liked to listen to others’ feelings rather than to talk about her feelings, that’s why we got along well.

‘Maybe she’s seen the same movie nine times, so she’s out of things to say.’

“I wish I could see the movie for the first time without knowing the story. I’m so jealous of you. Watch it now. At Least twice.”

“Uh…… Then I’ll download it and watch it.”

“That’s right. You have to watch it. You’ll be so immersed in it.”

‘The movie was fun, Hye-rim also thought it wasn’t that bad.’

Yoon-woo was also embarrassed by Ji-eun’s talkative nature.

“Come to think of it, there’s a rerun of it at a nearby movie theatre.…wait a minute…….”

“Oh? Wait a minute. Senior, that would be too much….”

“Don’t call me senior. I’m your Noona. It’s okay. I’ll buy you tickets. No, I should go, too. I’m going to watch it, too.”

‘Are you drunk after a glass of soju? You sound crazy.’

‘No matter how good she is, she is going to watch the same movie for the 10th time…….’

“Oh, it’s tomorrow. Yoon-woo, you don’t have anything tomorrow, do you?”

“Tomorrow?! I don’t have anything, but wait…….”

“Then we can go see it right after we wake up. Hye-rim will you come, too?”

“Yes, I will.”

Hye-rim has already seen the movie, but that wasn’t the problem.

“Then three…… The reservation is complete. Hehe. Cheers!”

“Huh…….”

Hye-rim thought it was a good thing she called Ji-eun.

I was thinking about what to do to take Yoon-woo on a trip or something naturally, but now I have a chance to watch a movie with him tomorrow.

It wasn’t a natural suggestion, but it wasn’t Hye-rim’s idea either.

Ji-eun, who was excited after booking the movie, diligently named the movies to ask which was his favourite movie such as Monster Inc, Wall-e, Up, but Yoon-woo really didn’t know anything.

He said he didn’t even watch Frozen, so she wondered if he liked animated movies at all, so Hye-rim told some movie titles from the category of regular movies like Memories of Murder, and Yoon-woo hadn’t watched them too.

Then Ji-eun asked him what movie he knew, and he said, “Welcome to Dongmakgol”.

”Oh… that was funny. It was fun, but… Why that out of all the movies …?”

Still, it was good that I didn’t talk about school life when I was with this group.

Ji-eun’s school life is almost all about movies and alcohol, and she didn’t really like her school relationships.

Yoon-woo seemed to be going around alone on campus, so this atmosphere would be better for him.

But why does a guy like Yoon-woo go around alone? Has Yoon-woo been bullied by chimpanzees ever since he was in fourth grade?

Yoon-woo’s cheeks turned red and his eyes relaxed when he drank about a fourth glass of soju.

The alcohol seemed to be working.

In the meantime, Ji-eun goes into a movie again.

“Yoon-woo really doesn’t know Ghibli movies? Nausika, Princess Mononoke, Sen and Chihiro, Kiki: The Witch Delivery Service, Red Pig, Laputa, Howl’s Moving Castle. I’m sure the school showed it to you from time to time.”

“Oh, I think I’ve seen most of it. They are holiday movies after all.”

“Then what did you enjoy the most?”

“Well….Kiki: The Witch’s Delivery Service?”

“Oh, why do you like that? Have a drink, have a drink.”

Ji-eun’s specialty is to propose a toast by saying, “Have a drink” at the end of each line of the conversation.

It’s hard to keep up with all of that because Ji-eun is a heavy drinker.

Everyone was drinking moderately, but Yoon-woo followed whenever Ji-eun picked up her glass.

Hye-rim thought she should stop Yoon-woo from drinking anymore…… but she was curious as to why he likes Kiki.

I wondered if I could get a hint about Yoon-woo’s taste.

But Kiki, of all things……it’s a little minor…You don’t like minors or girls with huge ribbons on their heads, do you?

“Do you just like the process of Kiki being recognized?”- Ji-eun

“What kind of recognition? Does Kiki get recognition?” – Hye-rim

“Kiki’s a witch, but she can’t fly. The world doesn’t even need witches, but Kiki is a little girl who lacks a lot as a witch, and eventually she loses all her strength.”

“Yes, yes, but?”

“But…… But people around Kiki support Kiki until the end. It’s like, Kiki doesn’t have to be a witch, they’re saying it’s ok for her to be just herself.”

“Oh…… that’s true, too. I think I just watched Kiki and the cat that looked cute, it’s nice because everyone watches the same movie differently. Yoon-woo, let’s have a drink.”

“Uh, senior…… No, Noona……I’m having a hard time now…….”

“Huh? It’s only one bottle.”

“Unnie…… let Yoon-woo rest. You didn’t come here to kill Yoon-woo, did you? Yoon-woo, have some water.”

Hye-rim thought.

Maybe Yoon-woo feels sceptical about his existence and lives in a low-spirited state of Kiki, who can’t fly even though she’s a witch.

Is that why he always walks around with a gloomy face like that? Come to think of it, I have never seen Yoon-woo smile since the second semester began.

Yoon-woo, who was unfairly pushed out by chimpanzees.

Kiki was able to fly again thanks to people who acknowledged Kiki as she was, but did Yoon-woo not have someone to tell him that in the last 10 years? Is that why he’s so low-spirited?

If so……someone should’ve let him know that. You too deserve to be loved just the way you are.

“Oh, what’s wrong with him? Why is he so weak at drinking?”

Ji-eun said after buying a bottle of chocolate milk for Yoon-woo, who stumbled with a bottle of soju, and sending him home.

Ji-eun looked like a child, but she was a good senior.

Wherever she went, she kindly took care of her drunken juniors. It’s just a problem to keep on offering to drink until you get drunk.

“He’s a bad drinker, but you’re offering him drinks too fast…Did he even eat any chicken?”

“That’s too bad. I was going to review one more episode of Nausicaa with him.”

“I guess you liked Yoon-woo, though.”

“He is nice. I was going to pay for it from the beginning, but he kept saying that I shouldn’t and he took out a 50,000 won bill.”

“So, what did you do?”

“I slapped him on the back and sent him out.”

It made me laugh to think that Yoon-woo, who looks over 180 cm tall, was beaten on the back by Ji-eun, who is less than 150 cm tall.

Hye-rim didn’t see the scene because she went to the bathroom when they paid for it.

“What about Yoon-woo? He looks like Haku, right?”

“Well, he does look pretty. But it’s not Haku. I can’t give up on that.”

“Well, what about his voice? It’s really pretty, right?”

“I agree. His voice is as sweet as a mudshake. When he said ‘Noona…I’m exhausted…’I thought my ears would melt.”

“Is there anything else you can drink other than alcohol?”

“Uh……Yessss…”….”

“What is it?”

“Non-alcoholic cocktail.”

“That’s alcohol, too.”

“It’s non-alcoholic.”

“…Oh, by the way, Unnie. How much did drinks cost?”

“The first round is on me. Second round, you buy it’s your turn.”

“Huh? Second round?”

“What, you’re not even going to have a second round? Then I’ll get upset?”

“Fine, we should go for a second round.”

In fact, Hye-rim also needs alcohol.

However, I was worried that I might not make it to the movie tomorrow due to a hangover.

“By the way, what time is the movie tomorrow?”

“3:10 p.m. Perfect, right? I’d be sober by that time. It’s good for watching movies and having a drink.”

“You’re drinking again on Sunday night?”

“Just playing the accompaniment.”

“Yoon-woo won’t drink it.… anyway.”

“Oh, you can’t do that. I’m going to listen to Yoon-woo.”

“Then let’s think about something other than alcohol.”

“Something other than alcohol…Is there such a thing?”

“You can go to the cafe.”

“Hey…….”

“What ‘Hey.. ’ All you know is drinking and watching Anime.”

“No! Sometimes I do leaf algae cosmetics too.”

“…….”

Hye-rim and Ji-eun went to the skewer house for the second time. When I decided on the seat, I thought I shouldn’t have let Yoon-woo go until late because it was a bar next to Yoon-woo’s house. ‘Yoon-woo, did you get home safely?’

-Tofu, how was your day?

“I’m dizzy”.

-Did you drink a lot?

“A bottle of soju”

-What? You didn’t drink much?

“I’m having a hard time….”

-How was it? She seems to be interested in you, right?

“I’m telling you she’s not.”

-Why? Everything okay?

“I talked more with the senior who came with her.”

-Did you like her better?

“It’s not like that, she kept talking about the movie.…and then suddenly she wants to watch a movie tomorrow.”

-Just the two of you?

“No, the three of us.”

-That’s a relief, but what movie?

“I don’t remember the name…They told me I should watch that movie.”

-Which one? But you must have gotten a lot closer since they asked you to watch a movie with you.

“No, she just booked our tickets on her own. I guess she really likes movies and alcohol.”

-Did she look like a weirdo?

“I don’t think so.… Oh, that’s right. She paid for the drinks.”

-Did she also like Tofu? What if there’s a lot of girls interested in you? Why did I tell you to go out for a drink? Ughh, I’m so jealous.

“Don’t be ridiculous, give me your account. I’ll give you 50,000 won back.”

-What? That doesn’t make sense? Forget it. I gave it to you to eat something delicious. And what will you do tomorrow if you give it back now?

“Tomorrow?”

-Your senior said she’d show you the movie. Then you have to use the money tomorrow after the movie and treat your senior. Don’t worry about me there’ll be a payment arriving to me for my living next month anyway, so buy them a meal with that.

-If it’s not that……Tofu, are you thinking of going home right after watching the movie?

“What else is there?”

-If you saw the movie, wouldn’t you have coffee or dinner together?

“Aren’t you supposed to do that with close friends?”

-Wouldn’t they be close enough since they called you for a drink?

“Hmm…… I don’t know because I’ve never been close to anyone.”

-The other party will think that’s part of the schedule. What time is the movie?

“I don’t know… They didn’t tell me…… Are you sure they would have a reservation?”

-They’ll call you soon. Tofu, you should go to bed early and sober up.

“If I can’t get up, shouldn’t I not go?”

-Why? You don’t want to go?

“Isn’t the movie theatre full of insiders? If I go to a place like that with two insiders, I’m sure I’ll be left out…Don’t you think I shouldn’t have called her?”

-You’re prejudiced. A movie theatre is a place to watch movies. I also watched the movie with some friends.

“Oh, what movie?”

-Inside out.

“Well… I don’t know. Bunny, why are you talking only on kakaotalk today?”

-I think I have a cold today because I’m a little hoarse.

“Is it because it’s in-between seasons? I don’t like when you get sick, take better care of yourself. Would you like to turn on voice chat and go to bed?”

-Thanks, but you will sleep right away because you are drowsy after drinking, right? I’m alright.

“Yes, make sure you sleep warm, Bunny.”

-Okay, thank you.

“Yoon-woo is so nice. What should I do….?”

As she put her phone in her pocket, Bunny muttered to herself in a small voice.

Yoon-woo’s name, which she confirmed while remitting his account, but Bunny was more happy about Yoon-woo’s vigilance toward her easing rather than checking Yoon-woo’s name.

Yoon-woo, who was trying not to say anything about himself, gave his account number and his name, and now he’s doing something similar to dating counselling.

I don’t think it’s relationship counselling.

Anyway, as it is, if Yoon-woo continues to believe in me more and more, then one day, he will do what I want……

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