Unrequited Love Obsession Diary - Chapter 57

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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 57

-Can you talk for a moment? I have something to discuss about the presentation materials.

A calm voice came from the other end.

“….”

She had just been thinking about Hyeonoh, but now that she actually heard his voice, she couldn’t bring herself to speak.

After a long silence, Hyeonoh asked.

-What’s wrong? Is it hard to talk? Is something going on?

“Huh? No….”

-But why does your voice sound like that?

“Ah… I’ve been a bit tired lately, I guess.”

-Try fooling someone who can actually be fooled.

“No, it’s just that I didn’t sleep well yesterday….”

-…You really couldn’t pull off a scam anywhere.

“…Is it that obvious?”

-Yeah.

“….”

-Did things not go well with Lee Do-han?

“…Mm. That’s not it.”

-…So things went well then?

“…I guess?”

-Then isn’t that good? Why do you sound like you’re dying?

“Well….”

-Alright. I’ll listen. Tell me.

At that moment, she felt some inexplicable courage. Yeon-jae carefully began to speak.

“Senior, you know. Actually, this might be a serious topic that could be burdensome, but is that okay? People say this kind of thing is like treating someone as an emotional trash can.”

-Everything’s a burden these days. Don’t we all normally whine to each other anyway? What’s going on?

“Hmm. I guess so….”

-Let’s hear it.

“Well….”

* * *

Yeon-jae calmly opened up about what happened today.

About meeting her father for the first time in 7 years, how it was awkward and uncomfortable throughout, and how her feelings were complicated.

Hyeonoh listened quietly.

In the middle of talking, she realized something. At some point, she had been chattering away one-sidedly to Hyeonoh.

“…That’s everything. Well, it’s not like anything particularly big happened. I just felt… bad.”

Feeling embarrassed, Yeon-jae carefully trailed off.

Still, after opening up to someone, her heart felt much lighter. Even though Hyeonoh hadn’t reacted at all yet.

The worry that she might have brought up too deep a topic without warning came belatedly.

But the worry didn’t last long. Because of what Hyeonoh said next.

-That must have felt strange.

It was an unusually mature voice.

Hyeonoh empathized with Yeon-jae’s feelings in just the right amount—neither too much nor too little. Of course, it wasn’t particularly elaborate or extraordinarily thoughtful comfort.

-Are you okay now?

It was rather blunt, if anything.

But at least for Yeon-jae, this one calm word from Hyeonoh was much more comforting than others’ exaggerated concerns.

“Thank you for listening, senior.”

Yeon-jae replied with a voice that had genuinely brightened.

The other end of the phone was quiet for a while. Not even a breath could be heard for a moment.

-Shin Yeon-jae.

Hyeonoh called her name.

“Yes?”

-Want to skip class tomorrow?

“What?!”

Yeon-jae asked back in surprise.

-I’ll properly cheer you up.

* * *

The next day. Just as Hyeonoh predicted, the professor really didn’t take attendance.

“This class is just listening to other people’s presentations anyway. They don’t take attendance that often, right?”

Hyeonoh got up from his seat first, pretending to go to the restroom.

It wasn’t his first time doing this.

Since Hyeonoh was the type to carry around just one pen and torn textbook pages like a rag, he slipped out without any sense of incongruity.

Not long after he left, a message came.

5 minutes later.

Yeon-jae had originally left her bag by the water dispenser in the middle of the corridor like luggage before entering class.

It was a plan based on considerable trust in Korean people’s morality.

Yeon-jae’s palms were sweating from nervousness.

Yeon-jae usually didn’t even go to the restroom during class. She didn’t have the guts to do anything that would stand out while the professor was lecturing in front.

Group project presentations were continuing at the front of the classroom. The student holding the microphone was fumbling through the PPT slides, while the professor just nodded without much reaction.

Yeon-jae glanced at her watch and closed her notebook. At the same time, she pushed her chair back as slowly and quietly as possible.

Even while stepping into the aisle, her gaze remained forward. This was the perfect timing to look like someone going to the restroom.

She paused briefly at the door. The presenter’s voice could be heard.

“…That concludes our presentation.”

Yeon-jae opened the door in sync with those words. The sound of the door opening was almost inaudible, drowned out by the applause.

After quickly grabbing her bag, Yeon-jae didn’t breathe a sigh of relief until she had completely left the Business Building and pulled out her phone.

It came out ㅠ!

In front of the school main gate~

Yeon-jae didn’t look back as she left the campus.

The group presentations probably weren’t over yet.

The moment someone would notice an empty seat was still a little ways off. Maybe they wouldn’t notice at all.

Yeon-jae found herself laughing.

‘Really… is skipping class once something to be this proud of?’

Whether anyone noticed or not, Yeon-jae decided that today, at least, she wouldn’t be a model student.

A car was parked in front of the campus entrance. And Hyeonoh was sitting in the driver’s seat.

Yeon-jae tilted her head.

“What’s with the car?”

Hyeonoh had said he would cheer her up, but she had no idea what that entailed.

She had never even thought about getting in a car and going somewhere.

“Get in.”

Hyeonoh said with a somewhat triumphant voice.

“…Where did you get this?”

“I borrowed it.”

“?!”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“From who?!”

“My grandfather. Don’t worry, I made sure the insurance is covered.”

“…You drive well, right?”

“Hey, I’m someone who learned to drive at 14.”

“…That’s a lie. Is that even possible?!”

“I told you I lived in Canada.”

“Ah. Right.”

“Well. The province I lived in was actually 16, but anyway.”

“…?!”

“It’s all the same thing.”

Yeon-jae carefully climbed into the passenger seat. The luxurious brown-toned leather seats and German logo exuded presence. This was her first time riding in such a high-end car.

“Let’s go for now.”

A few minutes later, Yeon-jae, whose lifetime car experience consisted only of taxis and her mother’s car, had to admit that Hyeonoh drove quite well.

Contrary to her worries, Hyeonoh drove very smoothly.

Since Seoul’s roads were packed tight even during weekday afternoons, the car couldn’t reach proper speed for a while.

But once they left Seoul, the roads quickly emptied, and the car began racing along.

The wind blowing through Hyeonoh’s slightly open window passed by him and reached Yeon-jae’s face.

‘It’s refreshing.’

Yeon-jae finally understood why Hyeonoh had bothered to bring a car.

Watching the world recede in the opposite direction from a moving car certainly provided a feeling of relief.

Enough to temporarily forget completely about yesterday’s meeting with Father.

At that moment, a question suddenly occurred to her.

“But where are we going right now?”

Yeon-jae asked, turning to look at Hyeonoh.

“The beach.”

Those words flowed out casually. As if suggesting they have hamburgers for lunch.

“What?!”

For Yeon-jae, it was a completely unexpected destination, so she was as surprised as when she saw the car Hyeonoh had brought.

“Why are you so surprised?”

“Well… it’s far, and I haven’t been since I was very young.”

“Really? You haven’t been recently?”

“No. I never really felt like wanting to go either…”

“That’s interesting. When I’m troubled, I often go there alone.”

“Oh, really?”

Yeon-jae was surprised in a different way. The fact that Hyeonoh also often became troubled.

He was always relaxed and maintained a playful attitude in everything.

He seemed like someone who didn’t know what worry meant in life. He felt like he was somehow one step removed from ordinary people’s common concerns.

Even so, everyone liked him. A position where he wasn’t swept up by the crowd, but wasn’t pushed out either. He was always in the spot where attention naturally gathered.

In Yeon-jae’s eyes, he seemed like someone playing above everyone else’s heads.

Even when he made self-deprecating jokes, Hyeonoh never seemed vulnerable.

Suddenly, Yeon-jae wondered if she had been making Hyeonoh out to be an overly extraordinary person.

In the end, he was probably just an ordinary person who sought the beach when troubled.

Hyeonoh continued speaking.

“I drive well, don’t I?”

Listening quietly to the question thrown with a grin, Yeon-jae thought once again.

‘See, see. Even now he’s like that.’

Even a question that would easily seem boastful if asked by others was accepted as a literal question when Hyeonoh asked it.

“Yes. I was surprised.”

Yeon-jae answered a beat late.

“In Canada, not having a car is basically like having no legs.”

“But isn’t Vancouver a big city? I thought the infrastructure would be good.”

“The land is vast. If you watch American dramas, LA is also a huge city but everyone drives around. It’s similar. In Canada, you’d have to go to somewhere like Toronto to live without a car.”

“I see.”

“Come visit next time. I’ll show you around. I happen to have a place I’d like to take you to.”

“How would you show me around when you’re here in Korea?”

“Ah, right. Well… then together.”

Hyeonoh cut off his words midway.

“That went a bit too far.”

The atmosphere became slightly awkward in an instant.

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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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