Unrequited Love Obsession Diary - Chapter 26

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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 26

 

“Yeon-jae lives here too. Which neighborhood do you live in?”

 

“Near Sinsu Station.”

 

“What? I live there too.”

 

Of course you do.

 

…Since we live in the same apartment complex.

 

“I get off at the Sinsu Station intersection.”

 

“Oh my. Me too.”

 

Yeon-jae tried her best to answer as if she didn’t know. After wracking her brain for a while, Yeon-jae soon changed her mind with a “whatever, I don’t care” attitude. Worrying about it wouldn’t change anything anyway.

 

She would just think about the fact that she was riding the bus home alone with Dohan…

 

‘I can’t help it…’

 

This was serious.

 

What if Dohan, now knowing they lived in the same apartment complex, naturally remembered that incident?

 

No way, surely not.

 

For Dohan, it was likely just another ordinary day that passed by without much significance.

 

‘But what if he does remember?’

 

With that one assumption added, things became rapidly complicated.

 

‘What would Dohan sunbae think of me?’

 

It was impossible to predict. Even if the day came when Dohan learned all these facts, wasn’t this timing too sudden?

 

Yeon-jae wasn’t mentally prepared for this unexpected situation at all.

 

But Dohan seemed completely unaware of Yeon-jae’s inner turmoil.

 

“So is your family home in this neighborhood?”

 

Blood relations, regional connections, school ties. The three major connections of South Korea that ought to be purged.

 

The fact that two of these overlapped naturally brought hearts closer together rapidly, so Dohan asked his question like someone genuinely amazed by this coincidence.

 

“Yes. There are many apartment complexes gathered in that area.”

 

“Have you lived in this neighborhood for long?”

 

“Yes. I’ve lived here quite a long time. Since elementary school…”

 

Yeon-jae tried her best to answer calmly.

 

“That’s similar to me.”

 

“Oh, really?”

 

“Maybe we’ve passed by each other at least once.”

 

“Haha, I suppose so…”

 

This was driving her crazy.

 

Yeon-jae had once again become the most boring person in the world. She was sticking to the trademark conversational style of boring people – making others run out of things to say.

 

When she glanced at her reflection in the bus window, she looked like she was about to cry.

 

The sky that had been painted with sunset colors was now completely black. Yeon-jae was looking at the streetlights that had come on and the flickering neon signs when it happened.

 

“If you don’t mind me asking…”

 

Dohan paused after saying that much.

 

“Can I ask which apartment complex you live in?”

 

* * *

 

Yeon-jae was currently suffering from guilt.

 

“Wow. How can such a coincidence exist?”

 

Guilt from deceiving innocent Dohan sunbae…

 

Goodbye to Shin Yeon-jae of the past who thought she couldn’t act. When push came to shove, lies just flowed out smoothly.

 

A moment ago, Yeon-jae had said:

 

“Jangmi 1 Apartment Complex.”

 

“What? Me too.”

 

“Wow. Really?!”

 

Yeon-jae reacted with exaggerated surprise as if she had just learned this fact for the first time.

 

“Yeah. I moved in when it was first completed and have lived here my whole life.”

 

“Wow… Amazing. So I’ve been living in the same apartment complex as you, sunbae? Wow… This is really incredible.”

 

“I know, right. It’s amazing that we never saw each other coming and going all this time.”

 

Like that, the two of them kept exclaiming “Wow” for a long time as if they were witnessing the strangest coincidence ever.

 

The combination of living in the same neighborhood plus the same apartment complex created an unprecedentedly strong bond between the two.

 

‘Long live the apartment kids of South Korea.’

 

Yeon-jae cheered inwardly.

 

“No wonder your face kept looking familiar. We must have seen each other coming and going.”

 

“That’s right! Wow~ How can such a coincidence exist?”

 

Having that conversation, the two naturally got off at the same bus stop and walked to the same apartment complex together. But only when passing in front of the playground did Yeon-jae’s composure completely disappear.

 

‘Oh no.’

 

For a moment, she even had the illusion that everything around them had gone quiet.

 

Yeon-jae glanced sideways at the swings. The swings, which had been recently repainted because the old paint had peeled off over the years, looked clean as new.

 

Clean enough that it would be hard to recall something like briefly sitting next to an unknown girl in the past.

 

‘Thank goodness.’

 

When she stole a glance at Dohan’s face, she couldn’t read any sign of recognition there either.

 

She had hoped Dohan wouldn’t notice, but now that he really seemed completely oblivious, she felt a brief pang of disappointment.

 

‘Shin Yeon-jae, focus on just one thing. Just one.’

 

Yeon-jae thought to herself like a self-suggestion. And she decided to focus only on the reality of this moment.

 

Only on the fact that she was walking alone with Dohan through the place where she had first come to like him.

 

That made her heart feel much lighter.

 

Like most apartment complexes built around the 2000s that sprouted up like mushrooms after rain, the apartment complex where Yeon-jae and Dohan lived was quite large.

 

Thanks to that, the two walked through the complex for a long time, only deciding to part ways where the paths to their respective buildings diverged.

 

Dohan let Yeon-jae go first and said goodbye simply.

 

“Take care, Yeon-jae. I had fun today.”

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, at the same time, Kang Hyeon-o.

 

He was lying comfortably on his bed, devouring a new manga that had just been delivered yesterday.

 

Even during this, Hyeonoh’s phone kept lighting up frequently due to messages from various friends and notifications from group chats scattered here and there.

 

Ah, how distracting.

 

But Hyeonoh only glanced at it with annoyance and never once touched his phone.

 

…Never once thinking of the simplest solution in the world: just turning off the notifications.

 

Sunbae, sunbae

 

The screen flashed on again.

 

Hyeonoh, who had been casually glancing at his phone screen, saw the saved name “Shin Yeon-jae” and his eyes narrowed.

 

Shin Yeon-jae? That’s unusual.

 

Hyeonoh thought for one second. But it was literally just thinking – he planned to pass on Yeon-jae’s message just like he had done with everyone else’s today. He definitely planned to, but…

 

ㅠㅠ

 

The moment Hyeonoh saw Yeon-jae send emoticons she normally wouldn’t use, he reached for his phone for the first time.

 

??

 

Why are you crying

 

What happened?

 

And he typed his reply with a flustered expression.

 

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

 

Instead of immediately answering the question, Yeonjae just kept repeating ‘ㅠㅠ’.

 

Hyeonoh, who had been unable to leave his bed all day, sat up for the first time today.

 

The manga that had been spread open on his chest slid down smoothly. Soon it fell to the floor with a thud and closed neatly.

 

???

 

What’s going on

 

Hyeonoh, who was starting to worry about Yeon-jae, pulled his jacket that had been hanging on the chair toward himself, ready to get up and go to wherever Yeon-jae was if necessary.

 

I went to Jungdo today and Dohan sunbae asked me out

 

A hollow laugh escaped from Hyeonoh’s mouth.

 

Took the same bus all the way home ㅠㅠㅠ

 

We just broke up ㅠㅠㅠ

 

It’s like a dreamㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

 

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

 

Did you contact me just to report this situation?

 

Thinking of the usual Yeon-jae, he couldn’t believe at all that Yeon-jae would have sent these incoherent messages with no spacing.

 

She’s this urgent just to deliver this one piece of news?

 

Yes ㅠ

 

This was ridiculous.

 

But still, deflated laughter kept leaking from the corners of his mouth.

 

Hyeonoh found it quite admirable that Yeon-jae had voluntarily advanced the relationship. Moreover, it was somewhat amusing how she came flying over to report as soon as something happened.

 

Hyeon-o mindlessly spammed “ㅋ” repeatedly.

 

They say even a dog at a village school can recite poetry after three years, so you’ve grown up

 

ㅠㅠ Thanks to you, senior

 

The conversation exchanged a few more words around that point before eventually cutting off.

 

Hyeonoh stared blankly at the chat room where no more speech bubbles appeared, then entered the edit screen for the name saved as ‘Shin Yeon-jae’ and changed the saved name.

 

To ‘Village School Dog’.

 

Hyeonoh giggled to himself while looking at the new name he had given Yeon-jae.

 

Like someone who had committed some secret and mischievous transgression.

 

However, the laughter quickly subsided.

 

The moment Yeon-jae’s message arrived, Hyeonoh realized he had genuinely ‘worried’ about Yeon-jae, and was greatly shocked by this fact.

 

Worry?

 

He was someone who didn’t even worry much about the wellbeing of his parents living on the other side of the earth.

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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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