The Textbook of a Lover - Chapter 51

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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51.
Kyung-jun’s eyes wavered, unable to find purchase.
“There you go again with your nonsense!”
“Kyung-jun, Do-ah still loves you. Think about it. She devoted seven years to you—how could that feeling vanish overnight?”
“If she still loves me, why is she meeting that bastard Yun Cha Kyung?”
“That’s just a Contract Relationship.”
Kyung-jun looked up at Na Hee, dazed. It was unbelievable, yet a sweet temptation he wanted to believe.
Na Hee straightened her posture as if she’d seized the upper hand.
“It’s true. Do-ah’s real love was you, but Yun Cha Kyung—he’s just a contract.”
“I can’t believe your words.”
“Of course you can’t take just my word for it. But don’t worry. Tonight I’ll expose that those two are fake lovers right in front of everyone.”
She rose from her seat and looked down at Kyung-jun.
“I’ll prove it to you. Just trust me. Once.”
Na Hee’s lips curled slowly upward in the darkness.
* * *
Cha Kyung stood at the railing of the Pension 3rd Floor Balcony, resting his forearm against it, his head bowed.
“I don’t know what to say.”
Cha Kyung hadn’t told Do-ah about Kyung-jun’s Scam because those seven years had been profoundly deep and heavy time for her.
He’d thought that learning her wholehearted love had sprung from a lowlife’s deception would surely wound her deeply.
But his sudden decision to reveal everything was because it was painfully obvious that he would use it as leverage to manipulate Do-ah going forward.
“Yet she lumps my Contract Relationship in the same category as that garbage’s seven-year scam?”
Do-ah’s voice, reproaching him for making her a fool, echoed in his mind.
Of course he understood the shock and hurt she must have felt in that moment, but had none of that registered—the fact that he’d been anxious on her behalf all this time?
Do-ah’s face flashed before his eyes, her large eyes glistening with tears that seemed ready to spill at any moment.
He hadn’t wanted her to cry.
A low sigh escaped Cha Kyung’s lips.
“I’m not entirely blameless either.”
Did he really have to tell her like that?
Shouldn’t he have broken the news more carefully?
Hadn’t his own anger at Kyung-jun taken priority in that moment?
His resentment toward Do-ah had somehow transformed into recrimination of himself.
“I should probably stay away for a while.”
Given the circumstances, she might find it uncomfortable to face him. Cha Kyung wanted to give her at least some peace. He thought it best to maintain distance until things settled.
With that thought, he closed the balcony door.
Below, the lights of the Pension complex dotting the mountainside were going out one by one.
* * *
“Hey, Do-ah, you awake? That bed was so good I passed out the second I lay down last night.”
Su-jin, who’d shared the room with her yesterday, stretched and sat up on the bed.
“I thought a cheap Pension would have a crappy bed, but what a windfall! And we owe it all to your boyfriend… Do-ah?”
“Hmm, did you sleep well?”
“Why do your eyes look like that? Your eyelids are all puffy like mosquito bites. And what’s with the dark circles! Don’t tell me you didn’t sleep last night?”
“Yeah. I’m usually not great sleeping in unfamiliar places.”
It was a lie. She could fall asleep anywhere the moment her head touched a pillow—that was one of her greatest strengths.
“Ugh, we’ve got another mountain climb today. What are you going to do?”
Right, what had she been thinking?
‘I shouldn’t have gotten angry at Cha Kyung.’
By the time Do-ah returned to the Pension last night, she’d realized she’d vented her frustrations on someone who didn’t deserve it.
Cha Kyung had done nothing wrong. Kyung-jun was the one who’d deceived her, and falling for it was her own foolishness.
Cha Kyung had simply stumbled upon Kyung-jun’s deception and, considerate as he was, had kept quiet about it—but when it became clear that Kyung-jun would continue to exploit it, he’d come clean.
He’d even proposed the Contract Relationship instead of demanding huge damages, and in doing so, he’d supported her revenge as well.
Yet she’d treated it exactly like Kyung-jun’s scam.
Do-ah slammed her forehead onto the table in front of her.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you? Did a ghost possess you during the night hike?”
Su-jin asked in alarm, but instead of answering, Do-ah jumped up from where she’d been sitting.
“An apology will do. When I see him, I’ll tell him straight that I was wrong.”
Do-ah steeled herself with that resolve once more.
* * *
When Do-ah came down to the Pension 1st Floor Dining Hall for breakfast, her eyes went wide.
The dining hall, which had been ordinary yesterday, had been transformed into something resembling a buffet.
“Wow. Look at the size of that cutlassfish.”
“For breakfast, nothing beats smoked salmon sandwiches!”
“Oh my god, LA ribs.”
It wasn’t a Mountaineering Club outing meal but a high-end hotel breakfast buffet relocated wholesale.
“Do-ah, I’m going to eat well.”
“Me too. Tell your boyfriend I’m grateful.”
Su-jin, her plate heaping with croissants, stepped beside Do-ah and spoke.
“A catering company came by at dawn. Your boyfriend called them, apparently. How do you even meet a guy like that? What’s your secret?”
He must have been quite angry with her.
Yet even so, he’d thought of all these people’s breakfast.
As Do-ah stood hesitantly with her plate, commotion broke out near the entrance to the dining hall.
Turning her gaze, she saw Cha Kyung entering the dining hall.
In a black short-sleeved shirt and a matching windbreaker, he looked unrealistically pristine, untouched by any fatigue from the itinerary.
‘I need to apologize. Now.’
Do-ah set down her plate and carefully approached Cha Kyung.
“…….”
“…….”
Their eyes met directly. The moment Do-ah, her lip caught between her teeth, began to part her mouth to speak—
“Um, Cha Kyung…”
Whoosh.
Cha Kyung brushed past Do-ah.
Did he not hear my voice?
That was certainly possible. The dining hall was loud, and she’d spoken quietly.
But their eyes had definitely met, and yet he passed by without any acknowledgment—
‘Oh no. He’s really angry with me.’
The edges of Do-ah’s fingernails dug into her palms.
And rightfully so. If I were him, I’d be angry too if someone insulted my sincerity and consideration.
But what should I do?
I have to apologize.
Having been ignored once, Do-ah now found herself afraid to stand before Cha Kyung again.
* * *
After breakfast, it was time to resume the mountain hike, yet Do-ah still hadn’t managed to apologize.
“Let’s head out! Today’s course is shorter than yesterday, so don’t feel pressured. However, there are some steep sections.”
At the organizer Seong Chul’s voice, people began tightening their hiking boots and shouldering their backpacks.
‘Right. I’ll find the right moment to apologize while we’re climbing. If I naturally hand him some water and start talking, it should work.’
With that plan, Do-ah scanned the group for Cha Kyung’s location.
She spotted him easily thanks to his head rising a full head above the others.
But there was one problem.
“Director, where did you go yesterday during the night hike? You left me behind and I was so hurt.”
It was Na Hee. She puffed out her cheeks and stayed glued to Cha Kyung’s side, chattering away continuously.
‘That takes some serious nerve.’
Do-ah thought to herself.
Everyone in the Mountaineering Club could see Na Hee brazenly hanging on Cha Kyung.
There was endless gossip about why she was acting this way when he clearly had a girlfriend, but Na Hee seemed unbothered.
Do-ah kept stealing glances at the two of them, waiting for an opening, but Na Hee didn’t leave Cha Kyung’s side for even a few seconds.
She clung to him like a barnacle on a cliff.
* * *
After the hike, Cha Kyung emerged from the shower.
He was heading to the final event of the day at the Pension Grand Hall—the recreation activity.
“Why did I come all the way here?”
Cha Kyung despised group bonding activities, which was why he’d banned company outings and kept workshops to a minimum.
The only reason he’d come to this alumni Mountaineering Club outing was Do-ah. He’d wanted to spend more time with her.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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