Unrequited Love Obsession Diary - Chapter 16

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 16

* * *

The final menu choice was pork belly.

You might wonder why college students are eating meat in broad daylight.

“Ah. I’m hungry. So have you thought about what to eat?”

“No? Yeon-jae, what do you want to eat?”

“I’m fine with anything.”

“You know that people who say ‘anything’ when choosing food are the worst, right?”

“Yeon-jae, pick something expensive. Something expensive.”

“Who’s going to bankrupt whose wallet. Oh, there’s a barbecue restaurant up ahead. Pork belly?”

“Oh. Sounds good. Yeon-jae?”

“Ah! Yes! That’s great!”

…And that’s how it happened.

It was good while they were grilling and eating the meat.

She even learned some valuable new information. That Dohan was good at grilling meat and preferred perilla leaves over lettuce.

The problem was that they had class soon.

The fact that she’d have to go in reeking of meat was subtly bothering her. Even spraying deodorizer wouldn’t solve this level of smell.

Do guys not really care about this kind of thing?

As promised, Hyeonoh paid the bill, and while Hyeonoh was settling up, Dohan and Yeon-jae left the restaurant first.

Once they escaped the barbecue restaurant where the smell of oil was the default setting, as expected, the smell felt even stronger than when they were inside. As if mocking her worries about whether deodorizer would work, no matter how thoroughly she sprayed deodorizer everywhere, a faint smell of oil remained.

This was a disaster. This was practically advertising that she’d eaten pork belly.

Yeon-jae was making a troubled face, pulling up the neck of her t-shirt to check the smell, when it happened.

“Yeon-jae.”

“Yes?!”

Sigh… How was she supposed to fix this habit of jumping in surprise every time senior Dohan called her? She was having that thought when it happened.

Dohan held out the checkered shirt he’d been carrying.

“Why this…?”

“The smell’s bothering you, isn’t it?”

“That’s true, but…”

“Wear this for today. Give it back next time. I kept this under my chair, so it probably doesn’t have any smell on it.”

When Yeon-jae hesitated, Dohan asked.

“Is it a bit burdensome?”

“N-no! That’s absolutely not it…!”

“Then what’s the problem.”

Dohan shrugged his shoulders lightly, then took Yeon-jae’s hand and placed the shirt directly in it.

Yeon-jae, who had received the shirt in a daze, was momentarily stunned. The warmth of Dohan’s fingertips and the unfamiliar weight of the shirt overlapped, giving her a somehow unreal feeling.

Dohan looked at Yeon-jae like that and smiled lazily.

Just then, Hyeonoh emerged from the restaurant, opening the door.

Hyeonoh saw Dohan’s shirt in Yeon-jae’s hands and nodded slightly with a subtly pleased expression.

* * *

Meanwhile, at that moment.

Si-eun, who was crossing campus to get to her liberal arts class, immediately recognized Hyeonoh mixed in with the group and stopped walking.

‘It’s Hyeonoh oppa!’

And she quickly hid behind a building before Hyeonoh could spot her.

She immediately turned on her phone’s front camera to check if her lip color was applied well, then added more tint.

And while she was hiding around the building, watching for a chance to casually greet Hyeonoh.

‘Oh my. Isn’t that person next to him Lee Dohan?’

Campus was surprisingly small, so handsome people inevitably became the subject of rumors. Therefore, Si-eun, who was enthusiastic about school life (except for studying) and well-connected, roughly knew about Dohan’s existence too.

But Si-eun’s taste was single-mindedly devoted to Hyeonoh.

If there were a hundred women, there would be a hundred different tastes.

Si-eun, who had been deeply into rock music even in high school, still disliked stereotypical handsome guys who seemed too polished.

Rather, she preferred men who gave off a free-spirited atmosphere and even looked somewhat delinquent.

But wait a minute.

The group consisted of three people total. A combination of two men and one woman.

Who was that girl sandwiched between Hyeonoh and Dohan?

‘I’ve never seen a combination where one woman was the only girl among those two.’

Si-eun’s eyes narrowed as she strained to identify the woman’s face.

And when she finally fully recognized the woman’s face, Si-eun was startled.

Shin Yeon-jae?!

‘Why is she there?’

Si-eun’s mind raced. She had definitely witnessed a similar scene just a few days ago.

They had clearly said they didn’t know each other well, right? Had that been a lie? She hadn’t even blinked an eye.

‘But how is it that of all people, Shin Yeon-jae knows Hyeonoh oppa?’

Si-eun knew Yeon-jae.

Actually, she didn’t know her well. She was the class vice-representative, so they’d had maybe three or four conversations.

Like asking about membership fee payments, or attendance at mandatory department events. Most of their conversations had been out of necessity.

Among those, she still remembered exactly the response she got when asking about MT fee payment.

I’m not going to MT.

Seeing that reply that came without a single cushioning word, Si-eun had thought.

‘She really is as rude as the rumors say.’

Looking back now, compared to other students who just ignored messages, Yeon-jae was actually much more polite for at least replying that she wasn’t going.

But Si-eun had interpreted that text based on the rumors surrounding Yeon-jae.

That’s right. Yeon-jae had those kinds of rumors. That she was pretty but had an attitude. That she was rude. That she was crazy. That she was cold. That she looked down on people. Even listening casually, there wasn’t a single good thing said about her.

Well, the rumor about her being pretty gradually disappeared after Yeon-jae started wearing thick-rimmed glasses following the freshman welcome party.

Anyway, who was Shin Yeon-jae? Someone who had spent a year without any particular friendship with anyone in the department.

In the Department of Korean Literature, which wasn’t as large as the College of Business, stories about Yeon-jae, who voluntarily positioned herself as an outsider, occasionally came up, and among the girls, there were even stories that she somehow gave off a scary aura.

The rumored Yeon-jae was like a landmine that would explode if stepped on, and Si-eun, who had a good memory, remembered the context that led to such rumors about Yeon-jae.

‘She had a history of arguing with a senior at the freshman welcome party.’

That incident had been quite the topic. It had spread not only within the department but throughout the entire school, causing quite a stir for a while.

For that reason, Yeon-jae had been quite a famous figure beyond her department and throughout the school in the early days of enrollment, but since she herself was indifferent to such gossip, interest quickly died down.

Moreover, since a cracked pot continues to crack, that senior continued to be called the number one person to avoid among freshman girls, so whenever Si-eun heard gossip about that senior, she often thought of Yeon-jae.

‘But how does she know Hyeonoh oppa?!’

Kang Hyeonoh and Shin Yeon-jae.

No matter how much she racked her brains and worried day and night, she couldn’t think of a single plausible connection between the two.

It wasn’t just because Yeon-jae was Yeon-jae.

Kang Hyeonoh was a well-connected person who knew people everywhere, but he was famous for rarely giving any leeway to women who showed interest in him.

He treated all women who weren’t his girlfriend like meaningless decorations on the roadside.

Naturally, he completely cut off even such trivial things as eating alone together or going home together.

‘But why does he always stick together so amicably with Shin Yeon-jae? How close are they? Don’t tell me they’re dating?!’

They had already disappeared from view, and Si-eun stared at the spot where Yeon-jae’s group had vanished for a long time. Then, remembering that Yeon-jae also attended the major class that followed, she made a resolution.

By all means.

I will definitely ask.

At that moment, Si-eun’s mind was filled entirely with thoughts of Yeon-jae rather than Hyeonoh or Dohan.

* * *

That afternoon.

Wow. I’m still single but you already have progress?

All thanks to who…

Whoever it is, they’re really a godsend, right?

Due to the message Hyeonoh sent right after they parted, Yeon-jae walked while constantly moving her fingers.

Senior doesn’t really have much interest in women though…

Me?

Yeah

That’s not true though?

Are you really interested?

Nah lol

lol

While playfully bantering like this, she had arrived at the Humanities Building before she knew it.

In the Major Classroom, people were sitting sparsely as usual, chattering away without even noticing who had entered because they were so close among themselves. There didn’t seem to be any place for Yeon-jae to fit in there.

‘Not that I particularly want to fit in anyway.’

As always, Yeon-jae picked an empty seat and sat down. Not a single person paid any particular attention to Yeon-jae. They just glanced over at the sound of the chair being pulled out, nothing more.

Weren’t they already sophomores? The groups had already been clearly divided between those who were actively engaged in department life and those who lived like the dead.

Yeon-jae wouldn’t be the only ghost living as if present yet absent in the classroom. Yeon-jae planned to finish her university life in this manner going forward as well.

It was just when her thoughts had reached that point.

“Excuse me…”

Someone tapped Yeon-jae on the back. It was a face that had become familiar by now.

Department of Korean Literature sophomore vice-representative, Choi Si-eun.

Last time too, she had called her over with a similar pattern and asked about Hyeonoh. Somehow it seemed like this time would be for the same reason.

“Are you acquainted with Hyeonoh oppa?”

…As expected. A question that didn’t differ by even a particle from last time.

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