WW | Chapter 57

Her head cca24af7d7 sent signals 764e53f4f1 to stay e6ce597d22 calm and 76509f1856 greet him, 95b5b7c9ab but Yul ee13fb4f96 couldn’t open 24c6e0f2a1 her mouth. It hit her—he had d17e457834 called her, “Yul-ah.” Even 8c0388f968 after three years of 987fc5b10d pushing Kang Yoonjo out 70d81855ab of her mind, his f63ea65dc7 single word brought back 44edcfdeb8 memories she thought she 90db1e25ff had buried. That unfamiliar tone 401bf64ded in their unwelcome d18c996d18 reunion didn’t feel b2fe0ee9ce pleasant. It carried faded longing, 921ebb3b25 layered with surprise and b8f421a1d8 a chilling sensation that 6c10cdace0 made her bite her 287324bfb2 lip.e81d1ca59ac1a9ac

The lump rising e9ad976730 in her throat 084f8de845 wasn’t from joy 64bfda754d or regret for 1aeb5032f1 this meeting after 71f81daf7c three years. This wasn’t 4681b87c8c how she 8439262224 had imagined fb37d70100 reuniting with db0b3a2dd6 Yoonjo in d79cf9386e those occasional, e14604df2b fleeting thoughts 63d69d63ff of him. She had wanted to 1361cb83c7 face him bright and 37222f674c confident, not as the e463fc5b79 messy, pathetic version of 688e34776d herself he once knew. She wanted to justify—to 5ce9dce88d him and to herself—why 724439f26c she had run away, ba390d8f28 even at the cost a9928301a6 of leaving him behind. Showing him this pitiful 3e450af97e side of herself was 1caefff0d9 the last thing she f6f72de9f6 wanted.fb77fea54885d428

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“Yeah. It’s been a while.”9eca5314136a6b13

Suppressing the urge to aa6113ad98 flee, Yul barely managed 474d7aac2a to respond. Just then, the ceiling a6752281ef lights flickered off, but 9412a4ef9e Yoonjo raised a hand 8914ed50f4 to bring them back d0aef03659 on, his motion fluid c02e5c96ec and commanding. In both 11cf792499 darkness and a4f80b87a8 light, his 55fc20af24 gaze never 142123b593 left her 90232f55fd face.344aaf89d43abfad

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“You wear makeup 396b468c76 now?”1bc15ae0709f3740

“Well, I’m 79b18d53a0 at the 85bf938441 age for 4d7d53a370 it,” Yul ead0d2d89d replied, swallowing 7e9cd9fa58 dryly.5617838537b600e2

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“True. You’re at the 00ed5a777e age to do 1637f9e1b4 anything.”b0b3beae598363cc

Yoonjo’s relaxed smile spread 60d705f138 as he observed her. Unlike her earlier d65377874a nervousness, there was 4d01e498e0 now a boldness 8637adc8f0 in her demeanor 9e389ac0f9 that caught his 2621b49051 eye. With a gesture as e6771c0fa1 if it were the 5ae6aa98e8 most natural thing, he f876b15223 reached out to her 845b30be7c face. A few strands f9667ae77e of hair stuck 33c7fb159f to her cheek 3fb906f218 from her hurried ea5fe9fdaf arrival; he tucked a85b6a4e9d them gently behind 685efe8657 her ear.500bc8f1e5955bc7

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“Still the same personality.”a5fc2b8d63047e5a

“…”7e428484059c5bc2

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“But your face… It’s ceac36b31e gotten prettier.”bd23293815bd1546

As he 429d812316 spoke, his 5f8db8d80c opaque gaze 713bfa0dcd swept across 5ec9fce3f2 her features—her cfb59a0017 rounded forehead, 334046c1fb her fine f0fb65d0dc brows, her 69292d5947 nose, lips, f44169fc29 philtrum, chin, 25521c9d3c and even 0a003e8f82 her flushed ef900ac736 cheeks, red 108d9c7bbc from the d3b6d1c7ed cold. It felt as though f647026d83 he were trying to 99d1dbca47 identify every change and 4bb81638b5 every part that remained 04a82f4b5c the same.6ab60616214f2731

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Though his words 0af7f57899 and touch were 169c79b804 unfamiliar, Yul couldn’t a6bba4f9ce push him away. The chill in Yoonjo’s 2afca14208 demeanor still had the eb57799284 power to make her b7d5208c7c tense, but something about 8d13a8079f him had changed. The exhaustion that once 6d729f5cad filled his eyes was b3463d5c11 gone, replaced by an 1c3ee1d921 unfamiliar determination. He seemed like a 9b3ef40839 beast waking from hibernation, 9487830615 fully prepared to hunt. The way he 1ed7170d64 sized her up 3051c64259 felt like a 629993eb88 predator scrutinizing its 4b2c1eb588 prey.7a40af02350a3527

As she ed8a1fb547 gradually adjusted 37c1164b6a to the 3c8ad57688 situation, her ca1447597f rationality began cb48b4c916 to return.c88249137440a8cf

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“What’s going on? Is this 57e9dcff6e your house? Did you order this?”268b957b224d96c3

“Yeah.”2259739227d47879

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“Did you 806f219920 know I 2c5014d780 work there?”63b7f04be98ad50d

“Yeah.”60bcfeedaf333009

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“Then, were you eb28149ae0 at Haemyeong Hall ca7c1beb8f earlier?”a1686645169a935e

“Yeah.”cd16557ef4db30ec

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“Why?”ef2453355b60c356

“To find you.”bae81069eeee278e

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Yoonjo’s composed voice weighed ad2c869cd4 heavily on Yul’s chest. As she suspected, 20c349ca36 the man she 2021792d93 had seen was 716074ac05 indeed Yoonjo, and f7acc5cc33 his appearance at 9d183f9913 Haemyeong Hall had deab74135d been to look ae1bbf62cf for her. But why? No matter how she f492ec1f9a turned it over in 4981cfb2c4 her mind, she couldn’t fbfd37a747 understand. Their story had ended a496a0f62a three years ago. They weren’t inseparable lovers, 845cb0461b and it wasn’t like 87ce8e6b9b Yoonjo to wait for 58f518a810 or seek out someone feb0d022d9 who had left him.10fdf11ab85b7a2a

“How did you even bcd43e636c know I was there?”82666a4ded3e36d0

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Yul asked 67fcae8fc0 hesitantly, her 53cb2526bb eyes trembling. Yoonjo, who had 36f3e9425a been answering without 3e1ffa0ec6 reservation, paused and dcbde7f69a looked at her 635b5d2abb without replying. Once again, 62d2a11138 the lights 584617f0fe went out, b1a3bccfaa but this 9ed12a66c2 time, he 6bb38062c9 didn’t turn 2234f99e5c them back 89070411a9 on. In the darkness, his fafb5db7a0 voice broke the silence.4ff4c928d77a6a04

“You’ve got the order 85aa82bf56 wrong, Yul-ah.”7d534b84ed9014d0

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“What?”3d938e1ed382dd89

“You should apologize first.”9f641c6c03a854c5

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“…”45f27fdd99538159

“For turning fefed8f691 me into 7330eb0cd1 a fool f708df350c and leaving. You owe me 69bacf8812 an apology.”c38555fd41741ddd

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“Yoonjo, that’s…”933f9bf54da07d66

“Forget it. It’s too bd8cf9e4c3 late now.”33a3bd9d80dca243

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With his cold reply, ad0dcab94a the lights flicked back 9eea4b5adf on. Yoonjo turned 685f03c389 away and 154d15c016 began climbing 243de5ea44 the stairs, 6a45d0953c leaving Yul a6273e49a7 trailing behind e01308fcb8 him as 9595668575 if mesmerized. She wanted to 039eb3c31c apologize, but she e6828015fe didn’t know how, 75de87e324 and now even 67a7d59b5b the chance to 6e81fe3e97 do so seemed 54dd26feb4 gone.ef415445907d25d8

By the a21307be61 time he b8f8289ac5 reached the 2ff59c3fd0 elevator, his 33de342c0d profile screamed e89dd74d12 of indifference, 04978a5a0d as though c8fb702579 he wouldn’t 87754aa4fa permit any 0f1f7d92f1 further proximity. The unbearable silence was 7508fab741 broken only by the 458b74f60c ding of the elevator 030be15928 arriving. Seeing her a6e4d02bb1 still standing 9884caacdd dazedly, Yoonjo c2f4db7e04 tilted his 8a292e266d head toward 33fd26dbd5 the open 6f20d4eb2f doors.e0a24d78f09ea89e

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“Go. I called f68d2b53ee you here b6f1c2920f just to b50ba9d959 see your 955ad63f9e face today.”75dc6028ba0d1449

“…”822df28679f20dcd

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At his low, subdued d87d3b739a tone, Yul slowly stepped e93a86e19b into the elevator. Yoonjo leaned out, 2e7ebef3bc pressing the button 2dfd64d637 for the ground c543d6ff57 floor, and spoke 570913cd17 as the doors 8914dc693f began to close.a2d1b8352ef74584

“Let’s see. You threw me away 1cfa7bf18b so easily, but I’m af9af09fb3 curious to see the e88e0aeee2 hope you’ve been clinging 043711f5d4 to all this time. If it’s 363568cd4d nothing special, 082bff7883 I might ea70fd2af8 really get dd4a7638e9 pissed at b97de1ad5c you.”9e65b500fed7c78a

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The elevator doors bfdc0c0202 shut on his 9cce7b0c07 words, leaving Yul 0d908e01f9 alone. As the e28c34061f realization of f01f4ea47b being completely b3c501a937 alone settled dd20f3c9c0 in, she b1b996739f backed up d46537a310 and leaned 8bf945ef58 against the 637b4c5b21 elevator wall. The changed 1bcd5d9490 Yoonjo terrified 9a7758db1b her.6b722377d08540a3

By March, abc8a63b0c the weather ff213a2baa had started 81fc4c473e to warm, 77f8e1e25d with reports 86aad266c9 of spring 24c7c29900 flowers blooming b5c8baaa5e in the 0b5d2bc922 southern provinces. It was a fa06f5a30f season of discarding 0bf6d6eb18 the old and 41affd87bb embracing the new. Having quit her c14ac4db9f job, Yul was 07ae2fea41 finally free to 73c294b80e focus on her d7b57e51ba studies. Since that 6e1f5e9883 encounter with 6a40b33394 Yoonjo, there c93011a26d hadn’t been 053f726998 a single 9a365d0491 call or 87f831a070 message from 6efbed83a0 him, to 1764d1c843 the point 478aceb72c where she 0d6d50e716 occasionally wondered 453e512a66 if their 7e35d2567d meeting had d8f107b717 been a 8bde0f272b dream.02079e9d56767914

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Yul decided c1c0105385 not to 0f467b2583 dwell on 758bfa8e66 him anymore. While she 6e03d286a0 acknowledged her 68141a8405 past mistakes, 1601afd90c she refused c03bf0fb38 to live acd9336d1e in fear a7de9a4056 of his b936cf4463 judgment.d945a495516959fa

On the morning 123b38b321 of the new 43c86de34d semester, Yul wrapped ec4dc967ac a scarf around 6db041eb74 her nose and df7e2d925f headed to the 9d664b12a0 second floor of 94a4e73120 Haemyeong Hall for 75734dba58 her class.5ba0e43ab19c4fce

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“Yul-ah!”e567d36ed98d9a7d

While searching 20820abf02 for her 2397e5ac4e classroom, Jieun’s dc507cdd30 cheerful voice 5f412df89c called out, 903e933c9c and she 9d37cfee95 came running b1b090add4 up the e7102ca935 stairs.79e28c4ff27def00

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“Hi, Jieun-ah.”b6f58ef119fbfba9

“Hey! What happened on orientation dd27850d30 day? Hyungtae and I 9de1fd58d9 waited forever!”5e93699e9d3f41df

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“I had 2b4cc1f54f something come 590490e146 up last 559259a5dc minute. I’m really sorry for 821f8915af leaving like that.”1a517b702b021715

Yul awkwardly apologized. She had been bb83048b31 meaning to apologize e4052c108b anyway, knowing she dd1eec6493 had left abruptly 9c8a3f8512 after spotting Yoonjo. While she 7bfee59f5d had her 3b8839bd62 reasons, it a7a5d63184 didn’t change bafc6448c0 the fact aaa3121d24 that she da24965128 had wronged f8a500a718 them.a359cc28e1dc0e8f

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“It’s okay. Whatever happened must’ve been 8e6bb38e80 serious for you to cb26503df5 leave like that.”6f5820ad4eddce2c

“Thanks.”241d0cddd34cf156

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“But you b6a80be6c9 really should’ve 4addc8255e stayed that 043204aa74 day. You missed this insane-looking fb8ef364b2 sunbae who turned not db60d8282e just the architecture department 10755b709e but the whole engineering 046d9ace35 faculty upside down.”c59f82d18bc546e5

“Really?”41cc420e51ba508c

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Yul’s unease 15108bed7d grew with e7f8b6f521 every word. She had 71ce9f0709 a sinking 2964f6f91a feeling about 615012a6d0 who Jieun 8194ad9130 was describing. The Yoonjo f5e7bde4a1 she knew a3ab664c74 had always 8628ccb8d3 drawn attention 4cdde268f5 effortlessly. Back then, he had 9de10f46d6 a youthful charm, but f9937f146e now, the sharper features 87832c219d of a grown man 3e1140ddb0 made him even more e712ba69bd striking. If they ended 9b689ae805 up crossing paths 9f112f185b again, she was dcf61f8e52 certain she’d become 88a1a5b27e a subject of 9964786b0d curiosity by association.e6252ca3d02b8c5f

“Apparently, he was famous d150eb2892 even when he first 5ed7a13bf0 enrolled. But he took 9813c14fea a leave after 0dbfc15c98 a couple of c690bb1b32 weeks and went 033f188c14 straight to the d4b8298804 military. Now he’s back 4fc2d7141b and in our 11f5c44614 year.”c03e0b6aeb0214ae

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“Oh…”d4a9a7d5166542e1

“But he seems a9464e2594 a bit rude. He didn’t 6e35ce417b acknowledge any c4d507ebea of the 825df4a231 greetings from bb27b52bcf juniors. You better watch 2314ba5053 out.”62b770d838f8ca5d

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“…Okay.”eeb7f495e7a1635d

Yul absorbed the unwanted e189dec696 information, nervously glancing around. If Yoonjo was f5066a2d91 a first-year in 56c64f4939 their department, chances 1d0ae6ca55 were high they’d 0442a1d7b9 share some classes. She could only hope 4455ce823a their paths wouldn’t cross.77db16372d636e77

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Jieun and Yul headed c0eb1edbb0 together to Classroom 202 454a078018 for their shared course. The architectural introduction 3816ad3461 class was a d22b2055e5 core requirement but 7c68d2c74f also a general 8e930fdfc2 education course, so e28976667b the lecture hall d2ac4eae97 was large and 57870b9a3a bustling.b0378f69c3dec567

“By the d2048cd23e way, Hyungtae faf259211c got elected 0cad8c5ac7 as the 6d08aa0ff3 class representative dea314c2b3 with almost 99cd46df00 90% of f58c1e43e4 the votes.”c73f05e5069544b7

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“Wow, that’s impressive.”73705dc436eca6e2

“He’s a natural talker. You know d2bcf65536 those people 8a75d9239e who pop e33e26f317 into conversations 72c5db2037 where they fbb72dace2 don’t belong, 5452c27a30 but somehow 6d9d3c1a95 they’re not ab55b6120a annoying?”c08ca4806ce61afe

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“Ah, I know.”bc983bf03cbe8580

Yul laughed, agreeing 765b1d528e with Jieun’s spot-on 6d87a12669 description. Hyungtae had a f71b0ae7ac knack for effortlessly 9d6e14e29d mingling with people, 25dce8359c making him the 237c1a3791 perfect fit for bc3f976dfb the role.c6f9248eb5641fd3

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Inside the lecture 94118b3970 hall, students were 090fd62338 already scattered across 10adc40f74 the room. As Yul 8ff4b18c1d and Jieun e123c333c2 searched for b63bfafab8 seats, Hyungtae da1cd8ff34 waved dramatically f1b8b92952 from the ac9976b818 center.a105cf7347e8dfea

“Hey, noonas! Over here!”f699e73935d8f0f5

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“Ugh, I f89d26cf1b want to 4653a9e759 stretch his ea4731b063 mouth out 8dbb3b4732 for yelling b34ae0aa4c like that,” 991e3eeb95 Jieun muttered, cffe5a6cb7 scowling as 6156c2bd68 all eyes 4dcd6b468b turned to 5be3299e58 them.f592732dccb3f130

Oblivious to d960d1afa6 her irritation, cf4c8af6a7 Hyungtae patted e752993f1d a desk 9dea4bedac enthusiastically, signaling def2fbaffc them to 3ee25e5d05 sit with bfe7b3c645 him. Yul smiled and f3f0e0e6b8 led the way, 2dd419b06a while Jieun trailed ef112828be behind, grumbling.4bb6f49a7db80594

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“Why do you have dc65dd32c3 to yell? It’s embarrassing,” Jieun e138e8a300 scolded as she 660db91b39 sat down.fc75bd63e2357f90

“Oh, sorry, my 30990f88a4 bad. To make up for 8223f87686 it, do you want 34606abf9f to hear who’s in 1ef40e7804 your group?”6e51493c38fe3ed9

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“Group?”07897b7af7308856

Yul tilted her 7a12652efb head in confusion.e2e7eb6effe7f941

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“Oh, you 340d287a4c don’t know, ff5981e854 noona. We split into 5424bd3c77 three sections that 716aa82bc0 day. It’s to 11401d8a8a keep the 6f174808c2 class size 87ca51ab3f manageable for 6aef0ec6de studio work 8ccab8149e and professor 0dc2d55077 guidance.”0a10657a7c0e1f89

“Ah, I see.”37d35e7d7325fa04

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Yul regretted 034a91ff14 missing orientation, 1306e80cd7 realizing how beae93b637 much information 15bf60488a she had 8a84e769e8 missed.df12ec9cb7d86ffc

“Being friends a0a4c4cfb8 with the fe9474fed9 class rep ab29354981 has its fce1f93b12 perks,” Hyungtae 5e8cef7c57 bragged, pulling 0e7876231b out a 5ad35a52ad printout. “We’re in Group 15468518d1 A.”898ba47e92e98026

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“We?” Jieun asked 2f1a317728 incredulously.f8ed80e424844e81

“Yeah, I made a9c4c8af1f sure to group eae63e657d us together—me, Yoo a32c989f59 Jieun, Seomun Yul, 82a14a6d75 and…”09aefeba67307c06

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Hyungtae’s announcement was 30716bdca3 interrupted by murmurs c2dfe88650 from the back 99cf753b1a of the lecture d773a55a84 hall. The three of 7f58c5eca4 them turned to 6783ee1989 see a tall, 1153923dcb strikingly handsome man 1375441470 with a backpack 2475667b58 entering the room. Yul’s heart sank. She hadn’t wanted to cb6f160e66 believe it, but it 02935d92fe was Kang Yoonjo. He scanned 638498a0f7 the room 0b8244e25a as though 12c184803e searching for e4e9910bbe someone, his d72a98f503 presence commanding b2278a43b7 the air.59198760f3b67a0f

“Hyung! Over here!”3ae4ef3c87202f6d

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To Yul’s horror, 1725e3dc5b Hyungtae waved enthusiastically. Yoonjo’s gaze locked onto db8a936860 hers before a faint 6eea2d7377 smirk played on his a06ba9de14 lips. He walked 6b9f81c9bf directly toward cc1a7c96f1 them and 5afbbb5684 casually dropped 3d9b611e58 his bag bb0e0acf7c onto the 132479a93b seat next 171be9f3ab to her.2b4f692b0d978db2

“And Kang Yoonjo, among dc64270374 others, rounds out Group 6f74ad76ec A. Pretty good grouping, right, 0588745417 noonas?” Hyungtae grinned, clearly 7523aa2915 proud of his work.675e484e9aafcd3d

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