Just A Friend

#65

Kim Minhwan scratched his head and showed his phone screen. Because of the cap, Nam Seonwoo couldn’t see well, so he bent down. Kim Minhwan moved closer and held the screen up.

“You see, today was supposed to be the day they announce the sunbae-hoobae pairings. I heard there wasn’t going to be a group drinking party, just contacting each other individually, but just now Youngjae sunbae came into the group chat and…”

Choi Youngjae had suddenly burst into what looked like the class group chat, sent a message saying “Everyone must attend today too” along with a bar address, and then left. It seemed like something even a third-rate drama delinquent wouldn’t do.

Nam Seonwoo suppressed a laugh and pushed the phone away, saying, “You’re not seriously thinking of going?”

“Shouldn’t we go? I mean, it’s a sunbae’s request…”

“He’s not even the class president. Why bother? Those who want to go can go, those who don’t, don’t.”

“That’s true, but… Still! If he’s specifically asking us to meet today, maybe he wants to give us some information about our paired sunbaes…”

Kim Minhwan mumbled, uncharacteristic of his large build. It was frustrating to see him so subservient to that pig, but on the other hand, it was somewhat understandable. Having worn a school uniform just days ago, it was natural for the first sunbae he met in society to seem intimidating.

“Seonwoo-ya…”

Kim Minhwan grabbed his hand, eyes sparkling. Given the situation, it was obvious he was going to ask Seonwoo to come along today. Seonwoo turned his gaze away in refusal, but the determined Kim Minhwan didn’t back down.

“I’ll do really well from now on. You can make me do all the assignments and note-taking. I’ll give you a Minhwan usage ticket.”

“What’s with the aegyo? Let go of this.”

“If you’re uncomfortable at the drinking party, I’ll cover for you like last time. I’ll be your black knight if the sunbaes try to make you drink, okay?”

It was the first time in his life someone had offered to be his black knight, though he had often been one for others. But it wasn’t touching at all. Just then, Kim Minhwan’s phone screen lit up again. The chat that had frozen with Choi Youngjae’s message was now being flooded with “ㅠㅠ”. It seemed the classmates were unsure but ultimately leaning towards attending.

[My friend Minsu: Minhwan-ah. But what about that person who was hospitalized last time?ㅠㅠ]

It wasn’t hard to guess who “that person” referred to and what the classmates were worried about. Nam Seonwoo let out a heavy sigh. These kids were just like Kim Minhwan. They had dreamed so much of university life that they probably wanted to make a good impression on their sunbaes, even if it felt a bit unfair.

“Send me the location.”

“Seonwoo-ya…!”

Having already met Kang Jihan anyway, there was no reason to maintain a quiet department life anymore. It seemed like a good opportunity to put that bastard Choi Youngjae in his place.

“What time did he sa… Oof, hey!”

Kim Minhwan suddenly hugged Seonwoo’s waist and said in an overwhelmed voice,

“Did I ever tell you? I really, really like you.”

He seemed intent on crushing Seonwoo’s waist, not loosening his grip but tightening it further. Seeing him hug so roughly without considering his own build, it was clear he had never been in a relationship.

Nam Seonwoo groaned and twisted his body. In truth, he had gotten somewhat used to Kim Minhwan’s clinginess. Even Park Gyuhyeon had been quite affectionate, so this level of skinship wasn’t shocking. But the situation was a bit different now. It was because of Kang Jihan behind him, who still showed no signs of leaving.

It bothered him. He knew it was a ridiculous thought, but somehow he felt like Kang Jihan was watching them with that same stiff expression from earlier. Even though it shouldn’t matter if he was watching, it still bothered him. It felt like an invisible gaze was really poking at his back.

“Oh, Jihan hyung-nim! You’re still here.”

Kim Minhwan seemed to have finally noticed Kang Jihan’s presence. With his concern resolved, Kim Minhwan smiled warmly again and waved his hand enthusiastically.

“It was really nice to meet you today. How about a drink sometime?”

At this rate, it felt like Kim Minhwan might cause trouble again. Nam Seonwoo quickly drew Kim Minhwan’s attention.

“Food.”

“Huh? Food?”

“Let’s go eat. I’m hungry.”

He had no intention of having lunch with Kim Minhwan, but this was the best option. Overjoyed that Seonwoo had initiated a meal invitation, Kim Minhwan nodded frantically and stood up.

As he dragged Kim Minhwan away, who was rattling off a list of good restaurants, Nam Seonwoo left the lecture hall without looking back once.

* * *

“I thought you didn’t like these kinds of gatherings.”

Nam Seonwoo looked up. It was a classmate who had been sitting next to Choi Youngjae earlier. As their eyes met, she smiled cautiously and continued.

“You don’t join our department group chat, and you always sit separately during major classes…”

“Right, right. It feels like there’s some kind of wall?”

Nam Seonwoo gave an awkward smile. As if they had been waiting for this, other classmates began to chime in one by one.

“I heard you came last time even though you were in the hospital. Minhwan told us. So this time, we were trying to figure out how to cover for you somehow.”

“Instead, we ended up being covered by you. Wow, that was really amazing earlier.”

The classmates looked comfortable, matching the relaxed atmosphere. The tense faces from just tens of minutes ago were nowhere to be seen.

Nam Seonwoo looked at the empty seat across from him, recalling what had just happened.

Choi Youngjae, who had gathered the juniors, was forcing drinks on them as usual today. Claiming that empty glasses killed the mood, he tried to make them drink from the start. Nam Seonwoo deliberately moved to sit across from him. Then, with a social smile, he said he wanted to pour a drink for his sunbae.

These types had a pride in their drinking. They felt superior about their high alcohol tolerance and felt victorious when their drinking partner stumbled out drunk. Especially if the other person was a junior, he knew that useless pride would burn even brighter.

So he deliberately downed his drink in one shot and smiled. When he filled Choi Youngjae’s glass saying, “Let’s have another,” as expected, Youngjae gulped it down in one go as if not to lose. Nam Seonwoo kept increasing the pace, and with each empty glass, Choi Youngjae’s face grew redder.

Nam Seonwoo had a high alcohol tolerance. Quite high, in fact.

He didn’t particularly enjoy drinking, so he didn’t know his exact limit. But in 34 years, he had never been the first to get drunk at a gathering.

When they had emptied about five soju bottles between them, Choi Youngjae’s head hit the table. The red-faced pig couldn’t regain his senses even after several slaps to the cheek, so Nam Seonwoo had Kim Minhwan kick him out. Just as everything was being cleared up, the classmates burst into applause and cheers, pulling Nam Seonwoo to their table.

“That was so satisfying. And he used to mock us for not being able to drink.”

“If he realizes how embarrassing he was, he probably won’t call us out again. I heard that sunbae does this to us because he can’t get along with people from his own year.”

Somehow, he had missed the timing to leave, but at this point, it seemed good to break the ice with his classmates. Thinking back, it was foolish to become estranged from classmates he’d spend years with just to avoid Kang Jihan.

‘I’ve already met him anyway.’

He shouldn’t repeat the mistakes of his past life. He needed to live a life free from Kang Jihan. Nam Seonwoo repeated this to himself as he accepted the glass offered by a classmate.

At that moment, Kim Minhwan, who had returned from dealing with the pig, approached with a grin. The classmates booed as he insisted on squeezing into the seat next to Nam Seonwoo despite many other available spots. But he stubbornly secured the seat next to Nam Seonwoo.

“Hey, Seonwoo-ya. I’ve got something to show you.”

Kim Minhwan, who had promised to be his black knight, already reeked of alcohol. He lowered his voice and giggled.

“This is a secret, but about my Manito… I think it’s Jihan hyung-nim.”

“What?”

“He’s been contacting me since earlier? When I said I was drinking, he told me to drink in moderation. Look at this.”

On the phone screen he suddenly thrust forward, a message from “ModSoCom Jihan hyung-nim” was displayed. Nam Seonwoo immediately pushed the screen away as soon as he saw the text.

“I’m not interested. I don’t really like that person.”

“Huh? Why? He seemed like a cool hyung.”

Suddenly, he remembered that he hadn’t checked the Manito slip he had drawn this morning. Since it seemed Kang Jihan had drawn Kim Minhwan, he just needed to check his own. Nam Seonwoo took the slip out of his pocket, clasped his hands as if in prayer, and took a deep breath.

33.3%. He just needed to avoid that cursed probability.

“Congratulations^ㅇ^ Your Manito is~”

He could almost hear Kim Minhwan’s voice from the paper he slowly unfolded. Just as he lowered his guard and looked down…

“Kang Jihan♥”

“…Fuck, really.”

As he crumpled the slip in his hand with a curse, Kim Minhwan looked around nervously, startled.

“Ah, okay. I won’t talk about that hyung. But Seonwoo, who did you get for your Manito…”

Nam Seonwoo glared at him. He was also annoyed by the heart arbitrarily drawn after the name. Of course, Kim Minhwan had done it without knowing anything, but annoying was annoying. At this point, he was starting to suspect if someone was pulling a hidden camera prank on him. This persistent connection, like gum stuck to a shoe sole, was bewildering.

Misunderstanding the meaning of the sharp gaze, Kim Minhwan asked in a cautious voice.