As I walked into the bar in front of the college, I saw several of my classmates already seated.
As soon as Chae-in Jeong saw standing by the entrance, she waved her hand vigorously and called out my na.
“Hey, Lee Han-gyeol! Over here!”
“Am I late? Looks like everyone’s here.”
“You’re just on ti. We went to the karaoke earlier.”
I intended to have so fun but not stay out too late, so I took a seat on the edge.
The only nas I knew were Chae-in Jeong, Seunghoon, and Jaehyun. There were familiar faces, but I couldn’t recall their nas.
“Oh, you’re here? You should’ve co to the karaoke with us.”
“I was eting my girlfriend, so I couldn’t have co anyway.”
Hearing this, Jaehyun looked up at slyly.
“What?! You t your girlfriend first? Then you have to take a penalty drink.”
“Hey, don’t give Lee Han-gyeol too much. If he drinks too much, he won’t co next ti.”
“Right, give him a break. Last ti at the sester-opening party, I thought he was going to die.”
“When you put it like that, it makes hesitate. Fine, let’s share the penalty drink then.”
“Sounds good.”
Thanks to Seunghoon’s intervention, I didn’t have to drink the penalty drink.
The others at the table chatted and drank without any hesitation.
“Do you guys understand our major classes? I had a managent principles class today and didn’t get any of it.”
“Chae-in Jeong, shouldn’t you first ask if anyone actually attended the class?”
“Seunghoon, you should attend classes! What are you going to do during midterms? And you too, Jaehyun.”
“We trust our future selves to handle midterms.”
“What is that supposed to an?!”
The lively atmosphere continued. I sipped my beer, listening to the conversation.
It would be nice if the mood stayed this way…
Whenever I think that, the attention always turns to .
“Lee Han-gyeol focuses so much in class. You should all try to be like him.”
“Yeah, I’ve never seen Lee Han-gyeol ss around during class.”
“Well, there’s not much else to do... might as well listen.”
I just didn’t want to repeat the sa mistakes.
Managing grades from the first year definitely has its advantages, so I put in the effort.
“Lee Han-gyeol is just a bit different.”
“I just think it’s good to have good grades. It doesn’t an much else.”
“I bet Lee Han-gyeol will be at the top of our departnt.”
“That’d be nice. I’d love to get a scholarship.”
“Oh, that’s worth aiming for!”
Everyone laughed and giggled. I laughed awkwardly along, but then soone approached our table.
“Oh, you guys are drinking here?! You should’ve invited us too.”
“Huh?! Senior! Hello!”
“Hello, Ji-Eun unnie!”
She was clearly tipsy, and though I couldn’t rember well, I had seen her at the sester-opening party.
I think she was the class representative of the second years... or was she? My mory was foggy.
“We’re here to celebrate a classmate’s birthday, so we’re all drinking together. Want to join?”
“Sure! Take a seat over here.”
“No, just sing the birthday song with us later. We have a lot of people, so we’ll be moving around tables.”
“Co to our table too!”
“Sure, sure.”
The simple classmate gathering had now turned into a departnt-wide party.
With more people, it would be easier to slip away later.
After that, the deadly drinking gas began again, and once more, I was the target.
“From the sky cos! The rabbit says! One Shot! One Shot! Bunny bunny bunny bunny-!”
“Carrot carrot!”
“Bunny bunny bunny bunny-!”
I have no idea why these guys are so quick with this ga. I’m not even that drunk, but I just can’t keep up with the pace of this one.
“Bang-!”
“Huh?! Lee Han-gyeol! You’re caught! Drink up!”
“Who’s drinking?! Lee Han-gyeol is! Lee Han! Gyeol! One-shot!”
I downed the beer-filled penalty drink in one gulp, and we imdiately transitioned to another drinking ga.
As long as it wasn’t that stupid ‘Bunny Bunny’ ga, I was pretty adept at the rest, so I didn’t have to drink as much.
As the gas continued, I could see more and more people getting drunk.
Just as Seunghoon was about to drink his penalty and start another ga, a few seniors approached our table with their drinks.
“Hey everyone~”
“Jung-Hyuk Hyung? Hello.”
“Hey. Chae-in Jeong, you’re here too?”
“Oh, hello.”
Chae-in Jeong’s usually bright expression darkened a bit. I hadn’t known her for long, but the situation seed pretty clear.
“Mind if we join?”
“Of course not~ Please sit!”
The seniors naturally took seats at our table, and Jung-Hyuk sat next to Chae-in Jeong. She looked a bit uncomfortable, but it wasn’t my place to intervene. She’s twenty; she can handle herself.
At first, the conversation steered towards major classes, and for a mont, it seed like we were having a constructive discussion.
One of the seniors shared tips about the classes, and another offered to provide past exam papers if needed. But that constructive talk didn’t last long.
As we resud the drinking gas, the atmosphere quickly reverted to the initial chaos.
“What drinking gas do you guys know?”
“Us? Bunny Bunny, Sam-Yuk-Gu ga, Babo ga, and others?!”
“Then let’s play Attendance! Attendance ga!”
What the heck is that?
“You’ll learn as we go-! Attendance! Attendance! Attendance!”
“Chae-in Jeong~”
“Yes!”
“Alright~ Chae-in Jeong drinks and we start~”
“What?!”
Most of us, except the seniors, ended up drinking two penalty drinks because of this new ga we had never heard of before. But once we got the hang of it, the ga beca familiar, and we weren’t getting caught as often.
I figured I had drunk enough for the night and started thinking of an exit strategy.
“Does anyone smoke?”
“None of us do, I think~? Ugh... I feel like I’ve drunk too much.”
“Then we’ll go for a smoke break ourselves~”
The seniors left the table, and I saw my chance to leave quietly.
The others were already too drunk to notice if I disappeared.
“I’m going to the bathroom.”
“You better not sneak out!”
“Yeah, Lee Han-gyeol. You’re staying till the end tonight, right?”
“Sure, sure.”
I felt a bit guilty toward Seunghoon and Jaehyun, but it was really late. I grabbed my phone and headed out of the building, planning to go ho.
Just as I stepped outside, I heard familiar voices from between the buildings.
- Did you see? Honestly, Chae-in Jeong is the prettiest among the freshn.
- Yeah. I first saw her at the sester-opening party, she looked kind of innocent.
- She has a pure look, and her chest is quite big up close, too.
- Are you planning to take her to your place tonight?
- She’s drunk, so what can she do?
- You’re such a scumbag.
Why did I have to hear that?
I was about to walk away, thinking it wasn’t my business. I barely knew Chae-in Jeong; we hadn’t even known each other for a month.
There was no reason for to get involved...
“Haa... damn it.”
I turned back. I really hate myself.
****
Eventually, I returned to my seat. The seniors were already back, and as expected, one of them was sitting next to Chae-in Jeong. She was struggling to keep her eyes open, clearly very drunk.
Get a grip. You’re about to spend the night with that scumbag.
“Hey, Chae-in Jeong. You look really drunk. Maybe you should head ho now.”
“Huh...? I-I’m not drunk at all.”
It’s frustrating. She has no idea why I’m staying.
“Sure~ Hang out a bit longer, Chae-in Jeong. Lee Han-gyeol, right? If you’re drunk, just go ho. I’ll make sure Chae-in Jeong gets ho safely.”
To your place, you bastard.
“Ah, I’ve decided to stay till the end tonight.”
“Wow... Lee Han-gyeol, you’re really cool. Here, have a drink.”
“Yeah... Lee Han-gyeol staying till the end... That’s a first.”
Even Jaehyun and Seunghoon, who were too drunk to function, looked up to support at that mont. The camaraderie is strong, I guess.
But the real issue is how to get Chae-in Jeong ho. That senior doesn’t seem like he’ll let her go easily, and she’s in no state to go ho alone.
The best chance would be to sneak her into a taxi when everyone leaves...
What if that chance doesn’t co? I can’t exactly force the issue.
Even if I ntioned what I overheard, I have no evidence or witnesses. I might just be seen as a liar.
If that doesn’t work...
“Ugh... I need to go to the bathroom...”
Chae-in Jeong mumbled as she grabbed her phone. The senior didn’t seem inclined to follow her to the bathroom, thankfully.
He seed reassured by her leaving her bag behind, fiddling with his phone as soon as she left.
He was so focused on Chae-in Jeong that he didn’t even notice leaving the table. I stood silently by the entrance, planning to escort Chae-in Jeong when she returned, but she was taking forever.
If that senior gets up and cos out, it’ll be trouble... I can’t wait by the won’s bathroom either.
After a mont of deliberation, I decided to ask a passing woman to bring her out. But as I stepped outside, I saw Chae-in Jeong sitting on the stairs, leaning her head against the wall.
“Whoa! You scared . What are you doing here?”
“Ugh...”
“This is a ss. Hey, get up. Take a taxi and go ho.”
“Ugh... I want ice cream...”
This girl is seriously frustrating...! If you stay here, that senior is going to co looking for you.
“Haa... I’ll buy you ice cream, so get up.”
“Really...?”
“Yeah. I’ll buy it, just get up and co outside. I can’t help you up.”
“I’m not drunk...! See? I can walk just fine...!”
As soon as she grabbed the railing and struggled outside, I flagged down the nearest taxi.
“Get in.”
“What about the ice cream...?”
“I’ll buy it once you’re in.”
“Yay~”
The mont she got into the backseat and closed her eyes, I quickly asked, “Hey, what’s your address? Tell before you fall asleep.”
“Here~”
Ugh, this is annoying...
“Stop ssing around and just tell .”
“Hehe... this is my house~”
I can’t waste any more ti... If that senior cos out, it’ll be a bigger problem.
“Hey, student. Are we going or not?”
“Oh...! Driver, can you do a favor? Could you drive around for about 30 minutes and then co back to the university gate?”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s just that soone keeps bothering her, and we barely managed to get away. Could you please co back to the university gate in 30 minutes? I’ll leave my card with you.”
“Is this dangerous?”
“No, it’s just that soone might co out looking for her soon. Please, I’m begging you.”
“Hmm... okay.”
“Thank you so much.”
After the taxi left, I went back up the stairs. Just as I was going up, I ran into the senior coming down.
“Oh, you’re Lee Han-gyeol, right? Have you seen Chae-in Jeong?”
“Chae-in Jeong? I think I saw her getting into a taxi while I was smoking. Wasn’t she in the bathroom?”
“Oh... she got in a taxi? Even without her bag?”
“I’m not sure if it was her exactly... it could have been soone else.”
“Thanks for letting know.”
“Sure.”
I lied without hesitation and continued up the stairs.
I need to get to the university gate in about 30 minutes... I’m already scared of telling Eun-ha about this.
--- The End OF The Chapter ---
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