PM CHAPTER 2.2

Thursday afternoon, 30 minutes before Team 2’s meeting.

Han I-rok headed to the student center early, intending to tidy up the unit room. However, the lights were already on. As he approached, he heard a low voice leaking through the slightly open door.

“Ugh, crazy bastard.”

Through the gap in the door, Baek Do-won was visible, clutching his hair in frustration. He gripped a pen tightly, scribbled something down, then aggressively slashed lines through it. He cursed under his breath as he struggled with something.

Piecing together the words he could hear, I-rok realized Do-won was likely working on the assignment he had suggested.

He knew full well that secretly watching someone through a door was socially unacceptable, but for some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to walk in just yet.

Is it because it’s Baek Do-won?

His actions always seemed to stand out….

Suddenly, Do-won shot up from his seat and walked over to the hanger beside a row of cabinets. He reached for a spare ambassador uniform hanging at the far left, held it up, and stood in front of the mirror.

“…It actually looks pretty good on me.”

Before long, he took it off the hanger and attempted to put it on. But his thick hoodie made it difficult to wear over, so without hesitation, he shrugged it off and tossed it aside.

I-rok flinched.

Now in just a white long-sleeve shirt, Do-won slipped on the uniform. He checked himself out in the mirror from every angle, then grinned in satisfaction.

So, he wanted to try on the uniform?

It might sound ridiculous, but there were actually quite a few students who joined the ambassador program just for the uniform. Some wanted the clean-cut image it projected or the prestige of representing the school. Others simply enjoyed the attention that came with wearing it around campus.

Come to think of it, back during the orientation, Do-won had seemed a little envious when he saw I-rok in uniform….

Just then, their eyes met through the door gap.

“What—what the hell!?”

“…You’re here early.”

Maintaining a perfectly neutral expression, I-rok pushed open the door as if he had just arrived.

Do-won hastily undid the uniform’s buttons, muttering, “Shit… how embarrassing….” He cleared his throat—an exaggerated, artificial cough—before speaking again.

“It was just there, so I figured I’d try it on.”

No one had accused him of anything.

“It’s fine to try it on. It’s a spare, after all.”

“…Yeah?”

“I used to wear it, but I outgrew it.”

“Oh.”

At that, Do-won swiftly pulled off the uniform, hung it back up, and aggressively shook out his shoulders and arms. His expression practically screamed, Damn it, you wore this? but I-rok pretended not to notice.

As Do-won slipped his hoodie back on, I-rok picked up the papers left on the table.

I-rok’s eyes landed on the words scrawled across the paper:

“Ah, f*k ~ I can’t do this * I don’t care!! f*~ ㅇ<-<“*

Above and below that, there were various plans hastily drawn up and then aggressively scribbled out with a pen. The writing was still somewhat visible if one looked closely, but before I-rok could even attempt to decipher it, Baek Do-won lunged at him.

“Aagh!”

He snatched the paper away and crumpled it up in one swift motion.

“Why are you looking?!”

“It was just there.”

“…….”

I-rok had simply answered the question, yet Do-won ‘s scrunched-up expression remained unchanged. He tossed the crumpled paper into the trash, then sat back down, shaking his head vigorously as if to clear it. After a moment, he adjusted his disheveled clothes and let out a deep, sigh-like breath.

“So, you’re trying to put together a program. Just have it ready by the end of the semester. There’s plenty of time, so don’t rush.”

I-rok had only half-intended to get under his skin, but Do-won took the bait anyway, muttering, Forget it, I just won’t do it….

For all his talk about wanting to change things, giving up in just one day was unexpected. Apparently, his determination was just as lacking as his focus.

Before long, the rest of Team 2’s student ambassadors arrived. Unlike previous meetings, today’s discussion was surprisingly smooth. The campus tour plan was established within the structured framework and guidelines that the school and Hanul had refined over the past 20 years through trial and error.

—-+++—

– ○Month ○Day Seoul High Campus Tour, Team 2 Schedule –

10:00 AM: Gather at the front gate lawn

School of Medicine → Central Library → Main Building → Peace Memorial Hall → (Forest Path) → Open-Air Theater → College of Arts → (Lake) → Cheongyeong Hall → College of Humanities → Central Plaza → Grand Auditorium

Lunch Break – Confirm catering call (✔)

Program file backup (✔)

Uniform pickup ( )

After checking off the last item on the list, I-rok took one final look around the clubroom. Since he had arrived first, he wanted to ensure nothing was missing or out of place. Once he completed his final check, he let out a quiet, satisfied breath.

Already dressed impeccably in his uniform, he stood up and dusted off his collar. The snug fit of the uniform always helped him maintain a proper posture.

Just as his gaze absentmindedly landed on his old uniform—the one Do-won had briefly tried on and left behind—the clubroom door swung open, and the student ambassadors began filing in one by one.

“Hello, senior.”
“Good morning, sirrr.”

Among those politely bowing toward him was Baek Do-won.

“Welcome.”

Do-won still looked half-asleep, rubbing his eyes as he shuffled inside. With sleep-heavy eyelids, he slumped into a chair and fished around in his pocket before pulling out a milk carton.

His fingers moved sluggishly as he attempted to open the carton, but when the first side wouldn’t tear properly, the paper crumpled and bent. Watching him struggle, I-rok silently shook his head. Without a word, he took his own milk carton and opened it correctly from the opposite side.

He doesn’t even check the basics properly. Can he really handle today’s tour?

A hint of concern crept into his thoughts.

“Hyung, did you not eat breakfast?”

“Huh? Oh. My school’s too far….”

Do-won responded sluggishly to someone’s question before chugging the milk in one go. After draining it completely, he let out a satisfied “Ahh” and wiped his mouth. The cold milk seemed to revive him a little, as his eyes looked sharper now.

“If I’m lucky, it takes an hour and fifteen minutes. But if I miss the subway, I’m screwed.”

“Wow, so a round trip takes at least three hours? You should really consider getting a place closer.”

“Yeah, seriously. I need to find a way to move out.”

Irok’s eyebrow twitched as he listened to Do-won’s voice stand out amidst the general chatter.

So that’s why he was late… But if he lives far, he should just leave earlier.

He quickly pushed aside the thought before it could take root and instead spoke up to gather everyone’s attention.

“Everyone, listen up for a moment.”

The student ambassadors, who had been chatting in small groups, fell silent almost instantly at Irok’s words. Looking impeccable as always, he didn’t even need to clear his throat before smoothly continuing.

“Thanks for gathering early on a weekend morning. In an hour, the students will arrive, and from that moment, your first official duty as student ambassadors begins. I expect you all to do your best. And—”

I-rok picked up the shopping bags at his feet and began handing them out one by one.

“You’ve all worked hard through training and meetings. There’s still plenty left to learn and do, but we’ll pick things up as we go through this experience together.”

“What’s this?”

“Your uniforms and name tags.”

At his answer, everyone eagerly opened their bags. Inside, neatly wrapped in transparent plastic, was the same Hanul student ambassador uniform that I-rok was currently wearing.

“Wow!”

Excited exclamations burst out all around him. Several of them had really been looking forward to wearing the uniform, and their hands eagerly pulled it out to admire it from every angle.

Do-won was no exception. His hands moved quickly, unwrapping the packaging and inspecting the fabric with great interest.

“Cool.”

Do-won muttered to himself. He brought his nose close to see if the uniform had that distinctive new-clothes smell, then ran his hand over the stiff, crisply folded jacket to feel its texture. He also fiddled with the school emblem stitched onto the tip of the white shirt collar, his eyes filled with curiosity.

When he picked up the silver name tag included with the uniform, it gleamed brightly. Korea University Ambassador / Hanul Baek Dowon.

A grin spread across Do-won’s face. Seeing his name engraved on the badge seemed to stir deep emotions within him.

“I thought the uniforms wouldn’t be ready until next week?”

Seongmin, the 19th-term leader, gently spoke to I-rok, who had been silently watching Do-won the entire time.

“Someone looked like they really wanted to wear it.”

The words flowed naturally from I-rok’s lips, as if they hadn’t even passed through his mind first. Do-won hesitated for a moment, then slowly turned his gaze toward him. I-rok met his eyes without looking away and continued speaking.

“I talked to them about it. I thought it’d be good for you to wear the uniform on your first tour. Everything was already made, only the delivery was left, so I just picked it up myself.”

“Gasp. Did you go pick it up this morning?”

“It wasn’t that far.”

With a calm expression, Han Irok slowly shifted his gaze to answer Seongmin, then turned to address everyone.

“Take good care of it so you don’t lose it or damage it. The first set is free, but if you need a replacement, you’ll have to buy it yourself.”

After delivering the firm instructions, he added,

“Once you go through today’s tour, you’ll see that it’s harder than you think. Now that you’re officially ambassadors, there will be even more challenging internal and external events. The harder it gets, the more I hope we support each other and build a sense of unity. One of the reasons I handed out the uniforms early was to strengthen that feeling of belonging. So, don’t give up just because it’s difficult or inconvenient—do your best to see your responsibilities through to the end.”

His clear pronunciation and steady tone made his words sink in easily. Everyone nodded and responded in unison, “Yes!” They all seemed to understand. They had received their uniforms, and there was an air of anticipation for their first assignment. The atmosphere was highly encouraging.

Except for one person.

“I-rok.”

In the middle of I-rok’s speech, Baek Do-won had twisted his expression in an almost comically intense grimace. But now, he was standing there with the kindest smile, speaking in a soft, honeyed voice.

When I-rok lowered his gaze to meet his eyes, Do-won grinned again and held out his tie.

“Could you… help me tie this?”