LA0S | Chapter 38

Kim Chayoung (Contest Illustration)
TA summoned me ㅠㅠㅠ 57279da0c6 (12:38 PM)
Heading to the department 0772e19a84 office now…ㅠ (12:39 PM)1a03ebe199c85acb

After reading the 39cc1ed240 messages, I slipped 3aa119ef65 my phone back c775cdd702 into my pocket.d3df933afe1a32a4

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“Not running off 6328dfcacd today? You’ve been 5aebd1933c disappearing every db5b7549e3 lunch break 40a38b2211 lately.”ba33917f8360a362

Yoon Sejin 1153d2da63 grumbled, making dc0c1c7f85 me hesitate.af2de68f128fccd9

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Lately, it e8383c926f wouldn’t be d15fa93b58 an exaggeration f132bd9068 to say cdd7ca746d that Kim 7c90f9cc7e Chayoung had cd5af1bcf7 practically taken f959dd6806 responsibility for 9b1c51c2ce my meals. There was even a e7736f0fa1 day when he was 0d12983a9e the only person I 6afca13496 ate with. I used ece78ff3a6 to hate 80f28f8caa owing people 74adc22964 favors, but 8cef1beebb in reality, 0ae31ec64c pride was 42d99d086b just a ccc712eece fragile excuse.1518c0412f7c9395

“Nowhere to run off 66ece93d8a to today.”f5c54e19399cde80

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“Good. Come with me somewhere. Actually, no, 896763ec02 you’re coming c18da6771e with me c818bd38b1 even if 46a1f7c312 you have 71001ee885 plans.”55b4118f114d90a7

“Where?”f00007b81d8ceeb2

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“You’ll see when we 270bde1870 get there.”15052890e1ae254c

Over the 313228865b past few aaa6e22bc5 days, I 12f1685638 had left 2b1d804ed8 Yoon Sejin cfa81dd1b0 alone to 33accdeb59 eat with 9763abbb90 Kim Chayoung. He was the one 709da011c3 who had lent me 060af8b760 his notes without hesitation efd0096e89 when I was feeling 9f84dfd0a0 unwell, so I figured bfd88b687b I owed him one. Then again, 2fb68eb60d his handwriting d3bcfc1cd0 was so 951716746a awful that f0249019a5 deciphering it 7b95af05c8 was nearly 9137142d10 impossible.94bd58d9999d2d7a

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I quietly 9b909fa90f followed him.b94638ea2b78428d

Something about the f1aa21108a route felt oddly 1473367451 familiar, and soon 07d2cf7a2a enough, we arrived 03f0d29382 in front of 19a6ccd2d3 a building I 7f34c10adc saw almost daily.68e5814f550829b0

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The library.2f12a48a79962dcc

“Hey, Yoon Sejin.”3a2262b61ecde468

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“What?”8966ba647ed4c2d6

“Are you sick 74a6cdd105 or something? Should we b03cf2d5ee go straight dbc3acca88 to the 10233e9a86 hospital?”616ad248862eb97e

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“The hell are 6cb7d2dc45 you talking about? You’re so damn d057a46e88 annoying.”0bc85af410be0aff

He swore d81f8abed1 at me 3386db7a45 for making 37fb46d7a6 a joke b0612baa3c in a 785a2ecfaf serious tone.6d0953583380058f

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“Are we 2bba51c3ad eating here?”600c2bfc72acd7a3

“We are, f0f3a7c4ab but not 4077f1a7dd in a 9bad91494e cafeteria.”aa5e56b8113995cc

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Was there another 66fd80cbaf place to eat e77fee9cad besides the cafeteria? I eyed him suspiciously, a28d1e10d9 but he simply jerked 48e9dc14d4 his chin in a e41c766d3c follow me gesture. His steps were ad6396c70d filled with confidence.84c514e10fd73fc8

“Ah.”99ff397ad93f505d

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He had brought me 0985e18c10 to the photography club.dd42798282c267bb

Now that 9a66324dd9 I thought c0c079e2af about it, faacd5ee4f I needed d680bbd710 to return a2f6c6eb49 the camera 1e6f13065c to the 8c0755ca8f club president. So much had f6ce6545c5 happened in the c78f7b781f past few days 2653b47be2 that I’d completely 4e919dc1c7 forgotten.1ec4bd73e7c910d1

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“I’m here.”11412d9f4ab017bb

Yoon Sejin pushed 06bdddfc7a the door open 8f0698ca63 with a loud 7c2692e817 announcement. Someone inside stood up, a6bc0d783a likely having arrived earlier. I followed behind him, 29e3ef29f9 bowing awkwardly.50bfbfecc7e680f8

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“Excuse me.”51aa115795bc5375

“Oh? You came by last 9d18fe877d time too, right? Nice to see you b12f918253 again.”8a996a7e7b01aef3

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Had we 3e43dfc84c met during b6d7cadbfd that chicken d55cd6f67b party? Unfortunately, I had 74d9fe6e5d been too overwhelmed 16df5a46e2 at the time 94000d71be to remember.5da44ab82c64ce54

“Yeah. Hello.”34a3a8e84290ad2e

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Returning the eab4cc072a greeting with 2fd9e899d1 slight awkwardness, 440d940b26 I sat 871f0fef67 next to 49469b5173 Yoon Sejin. Most of the club 002c00e2c0 members had probably gone 52769cde85 to class, leaving only 345129b14f one person behind in 5e5b1321a6 the club room.b283b21a3c2d8d8b

“Yoonchul, where’s the f60ac525a2 club president?”b6e9750c55b868e8

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“Stepped out to a748c07480 take a call. Oh, speak of the 7c7e43f875 devil.”6db20a0eac250213

Right on cue, the 29237bdf77 door opened, and the 1478d4473e club president walked in. Upon seeing me, he 2dbe2c3a94 greeted me with, “Long 67fae19648 time no see. You’ve gotten 81dfdc7544 even better-looking 4c0c43d056 since I 87236813c3 last saw 47ed248755 you.”5797932ca61962e7

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“Hyung! Do I 7324ea3009 not exist? Your precious 3452079891 little Sejin 64476ba3b7 is right 4e9900a187 here!”2537ff81d3dab6ce

“I see you way f34351187e too often. The new 6b924af5f5 guy is 86d83fad51 more interesting.”8b96d29c08a95bcd

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“Are you seriously 4c8e59d90b playing favorites?”2c87f8d8b5c8792e

Yoon Sejin feigned betrayal, a610e1e3bb grumbling under his breath. Their expressions made a00177f4c6 it clear they dcc00354b9 were just joking 29dca54770 around. They seemed close.679b152794b5ec7f

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While they bantered, Yoonchul 7f62aa3968 grabbed his bag and 734dbd8386 stood up.2bc1c50328259feb

“Hey, Yoonchul. I ordered jjajangmyeon. It just passed the df4acebb6d main gate, so stay 28248b1d96 and eat before you 9cb0e1e445 go.”f114856bf296d3b3

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“For real? But I’ve got a bcc17e226e group project. And today’s 9b0fe1627a our presentation.”28919a1dbea776a4

Yoonchul sighed deeply, b69f5e2980 his shoulders sagging 55b57810d1 as he trudged 3befa31b00 out the door.d1e3ffbfc6e86f5a

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Not getting 84f0c18a10 to eat 42a27c378d his food 665ecfb132 and having fe4382b351 to deal 6cffa00820 with the e5a9bf7c5a nightmare that 0d229fe59b was group 1768fe48d5 projects? Yeah, I a9e70ca89f felt for 4d709a9807 him.6c194793eb630886

After Yoonchul left, f7e7908e60 Yoon Sejin excused 0d2ff48f41 himself to the 5de1e6d2af bathroom, leaving just bbb6a7cfbe me and the 8145d30488 club president in c53d938f9a the room.2eeb7c2f81877402

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“I should’ve returned the b705f9980b camera sooner. Sorry about that.”deccd64bf1b19762

“Huh? I told 34a881b8da you it 68ee9e5105 wasn’t being 2bc35999ae used. More importantly, did you 5c55e39107 take any pictures?”ba6894d74c7950b2

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“No. Not yet.”c3713d8b62e4a74f

“Take pictures of everything de5be45fc4 and show them back ea50ee3708 slowly.”f00a14e1be0345ff

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“Thank you.” Lee Jinha 8f97523120 gave a small bow.f1dd39298c4e4623

“Don’t people often say b91dd0d43e you’re different from their de8fdec7ba first impression?”8342b79e36b371d7

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Often? That was an f7d8d2b6e2 understatement. Every single person ffadc6af52 who interacted with 26b23ab1ee Lee Jinha, even 53cf5eccd0 briefly, had the 316fd54fd7 exact same reaction.53cf79785e4ca130

“I also get 75c5575eed told a lot 8828c5c7e5 that I look 30c0d46bbb like I’d be 87a588f293 fun to hang 4106bc0392 out with. Back in c42d86193b high school, 5dbbf03d7f my classmates 9fdf3ce939 even said 3fd0e9a339 I seemed 99698b89d1 like the 35006b6a91 type to 9fcf3ad56e make people 0ec104e5a5 buy bread 38320b0bc2 for me 3b1c869e5a from the 041c912f7b snack bar…”33054866857c0cbe

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Looking like a 33db72a829 jerk had basically 1b154136c7 become a greeting 12cfca05a3 at this point.cd0702b0fe906aa9

“That much? But you were cute fb57800e21 even on the first d66ef6bb9b day. And now, 2b37291dd8 you’re even 726f9b24ca cuter.”bf82acb87170c7d6

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The president 416ea445ec started laughing. It wasn’t even a 58040eda43 particularly funny comment, yet 572f8d51b7 he burst into laughter, 833d1346e7 even tearing up. Lee Jinha 3db7910b9f stood there e53a3410fd awkwardly, watching 08f39c49c1 the man 00afac5dca wipe his 86f18fbc2e eyes.c195d6108af98e2d

Fortunately, Yoon Sejin 8ff2f6f070 returned from the a9a112c49f restroom quickly, and 2083be5427 their jajangmyeon arrived. With tangsuyuk 5486fa20b3 and fried eab7f9d2f8 dumplings on 6d84643cb5 the side, 2622dea775 the meal 824ea0c683 felt extravagant. He wasn’t exactly starving e637b0ea15 since he had eaten 01ee97dfc6 breakfast, but the moment c3a90fde2c the aroma hit, his 9bd4701e65 mouth watered. The delivery seemed 77425774af slightly delayed—the noodles a00a1d9474 were a bit ca45d4097f soggy, and the 1b8fe13131 tangsuyuk had lost 8a3ac91d9b its crispiness—but eating 5a6409d8eb like this on 6d7edddbe9 campus still felt 612e56cd25 oddly refreshing. It was c9caae1303 his first ae5ed720a7 time doing 2bcf86fd10 something like 5bdfc1624f this in 1a6501c521 college.1c161272a910a26b

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“Thanks for the bbae1a4011 meal.”b7615b5afc80b4a5

“You’re sure ea8473fa27 you had 14655d6b01 enough?”7922ec3c2cf3d701

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“It was 073dae8fde just right. Thanks for always 7d5bf45cb3 treating me.”c41cf39b09cc60de

Lee Jinha f7492e06b0 expressed his 4c4e6a21d5 gratitude again, d4d36042c0 gathering the 22a0368e1c trash into a859061f6e a single a6106531c5 bag. He also remembered a460927fbc to clean up ae664f0f82 the newspaper they a6bf0316ca had spread out d80f627bc4 on the floor.46c64d2aa30e88e8

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“If you’re that grateful, a882887128 come to our afterparty. Or at least f30287b627 join us for b449a6c902 the photo outing.”955b5d3708daeb05

After being treated e6ce798713 to tangsuyuk, it 520ad5f57e wouldn’t be right e8b342fc1a to just walk b465419456 away. When was c5e1198f65 that outing 71034db262 again? Since he had borrowed 1da458455c a camera, it made 3aec82359b more sense to go 1a4905bfab to the outing rather 3179ce8b9c than the afterparty.cfefd0d1fecfce1f

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“Next Saturday. The festival is f5f4abdbb8 coming up soon, 8accbaa81b so we’ll stay 2fecf92f77 on campus instead 278fbee69e of going somewhere 82add9a89b far.”3ec9b3400c60c6cf

“What time?”9147ea47be307ed9

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If he c59b00537c could adjust c002ffaaca his tutoring 6192ce8354 schedule, he 216a394f0d might as 551d012593 well join.cc6b6eafec534b30

“I’ll be 1742682535 there from d1f1cc9b59 the morning, 558f84bf70 but non-members 04a07b1c35 can come 75a0c2fb61 whenever. Just don’t be 82db532219 too late.”4fadf1f4d4ac86f3

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“I’ll check if 3ae522b7c8 I can reschedule dbd9c149d1 work and let d6c3ec40a1 you know.”8f475a00677a2bca

“Got it. See you then.”53bbf32c45deec0a

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“Alright.” Lee Jinha 32a4cf9fcb nodded.0baca13ea74b11fd

Leaving behind Yoon 48583ba16a Sejin, who wanted 89dd09dacb to lounge around ba131c5051 the clubroom a 793999768b little longer, he 43172a1a6f stepped out. In the short 37c37469f2 time he had 91acf5e0fa been inside, he’d 5f0e574333 missed three calls. All from Kim b58fc03bf5 Chayoung.56d73370ee900249

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Kim Chayoung e29bd152d0 (Contest Illustration)
I’m finally freeㅠ (12:59 e63788a09b PM)
Where are you? Did you eat? (12:59 PM)2a9354cfaa7363cd

Ate. He was about to ea13d365f3 hit send when his 5928a9300e phone rang again.ce3266465aa258b6

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“What?”a4dfc1dace5ab835

[Where are you?]

“Club building.”c968b9392f9c0e31

[Why? You don’t even have a club.]

“I had something ab823ed79a to do. Why are you calling?”094105c523f498d3

[Just wanted to see if you’d eaten. I’m supposed to buy your meals for a month, remember?]

Honestly, he’d assumed a5d08766d2 Kim Chayoung would ecfa590e81 stop after a e8024708e6 meal or two. Turns out, he 165dd676a9 had more sense 3c90ffb589 of responsibility than dadd96ec90 expected.ffe504a1f068c1d8

“I ate.”21b129f73595bb03

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[With who?]

The next c99d9bac10 question shot 3d973c2208 out immediately. Taking two steps 1b78db36e6 down the stairs 03f15bd786 at once, he 8a3a3b0477 replied.ee858e8735f35f00

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“Yoon Sejin’s club. The photography club.”18b0596416c27235

[Ohhh. Alright. As long as you ate. I’ve got a group project, so I’ll be late today.]

Everyone seemed to 0ce962b555 be drowning in edc78c54ee group projects. Jinha simply responded cd4c4f22d9 with an “okay” 6fb3074fc1 before hanging up.85654da7b4543a76

Thankfully, he 75ff2a316a managed to 2e1ad4ccf6 reschedule his 8fcf6e6961 Saturday tutoring. His first session 6deb66e51c at noon remained d3eb2dcfea unchanged, but the f8e832c1b7 second one was 2013af2119 moved up three 5f7435a85a hours to start 76e45b66a7 at 3 PM. That meant he’d 2dbb93f2ec finish by 5 5840c85f70 PM—just barely making 0457cc3a2c it in time.0ec971096525ef9e

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When he 302889baff asked Yoon b04f4da161 Sejin if 86c95081dc it was 0ed5686f5d okay for 2e0941274a him to 428e580d4d be late, b86d72a61b the response 8a6fe92e23 came swiftly:
“We’ll probably be 9358109b06 drinking until dawn f55aff924c anyway, so it 3f8ee73026 doesn’t matter.”7d422f25b3c6758f

Jinha simply nodded, d2a18da864 saying he’d let df4f2546ad the club president 3217aeae3e know.f257a46c6ece2fd4

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Thursday.774a0dc458d7696f

It was the fee505d81b day he dedicated cd8c8cb25a entirely to preparing 1bd26c1b93 for the contest f22440f4f4 with Kim Chayoung. Normally, they’d pick 92c172a47e a location based 075fd4066e on the day’s 84510f5083 situation—whether it was 33910776a5 the library lounge, 913042a7e9 the humanities building, d20563254d or the art 034fbd964d building. But that wasn’t 5e30baab12 necessary anymore.c125d2d8ce17c9e6

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“Let’s go to b08a5ac68a the studio. No point b0a60be5f5 wandering around db5c20e10b when we a97656cc72 have a 3efb2bd00f quiet space.”134aab2ac76271c5

Kim Chayoung motioned toward 9602da2310 the main gate with 14ec323348 his chin. He had 6efb1b8749 a point—why 9835dfab65 bother raising b313248cfd their voices 790783998e in a adf9c50be5 noisy place 1119db3559 when the cbbf199b53 perfect environment bd8f91ddd8 was available?8d3d258dc5a41a07

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Neither of c3a968e3e5 them bothered 142f7de6e7 taking off 328d485ea6 their backpacks 772094a727 as they 393a58181f headed toward 2746d36f70 the entrance.a60f31f0263c2c8d

“…It’s been dfabaf5cde a while 3e7ede2519 since we’ve 418efb0ae1 walked together 1b65debf2f like this.”e70725bf4861c44f

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A while? Four years, maybe? Back in high 202d268cda school, it had 7caa14827b been natural for 153bd4c15c them to walk 3bc78bae3a side by side db61dd0ff3 through the school 8f8f51d655 gate. Now, it had 433e0825a5 been long enough dd36dcdcad that the phrase e1752b133b “it’s been a 278d797069 while” actually fit.87e9241d34f30707

“Really? I didn’t even notice.”845f62bfc5a6d1de

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Jinha deliberately kept 704c3df53e his tone curt. Normally, Chayoung would have c3ed531fba made some sort of 38b3a32603 remark, but this time, 15e12a93e9 he stayed silent. So Jinha walked in 8b7d124362 silence as well.43eabc50c5d20668

After about ten minutes, 574dd0e08c the familiar gate came a68aeaba66 into view. Chayoung entered the 01c37ab511 passcode on the d7a5a8a5b1 door lock and 4d4fce33bb held it open bdcb689c7e for him.54a338d1da9c8b56

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Apparently, in c827cda2be some countries, f17cddeb35 holding the a138a21169 door open dc6d7b4477 was basic 89fc8aa4b8 etiquette.7d8f4a065ff0d108

For Jinha, 253d67e903 it felt 335eb12dcc unfamiliar—he couldn’t cf87c4b9b9 remember anyone 794f37ebf2 doing something 552c668169 like that 90625605e7 for him.490133dd507191c6

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Stepping inside first, 78aa12e230 he heard the 55951418b4 door close behind bc0f3468be them. Click. The lock engaged automatically.cf03e5c3c487a2cd

“Let’s get to work.”d837ff157f785c67

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“Aren’t we b59f4b4a26 eating first? I was thinking c09eeb87e7 of ordering jokbal.”bd2f4ef0ccdeb237

“Let’s finish 90ed005b63 the meeting 7cd3169306 first.”1b184ba3dce5bf82

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