Chapter 14
It was obvious from a distance. Hansol wanted to say something to Noeul. Judging by his expression, it seemed like some kind of apology. Hansol was a good person. He probably thought he had spoken carelessly. But Hansol hadn’t been careless. He was perfectly normal. It was Noeul who had raised her expectations on her own. There was no reason for Hansol to feel sorry for not meeting them. Hansol had no reason to apologize to Noeul.
Before Hansol could speak, Noeul spoke first.
“I’m sorry, teacher.”
Noeul clasped her hands together and bowed deeply.
Hansol’s voice sounded a little surprised.
“Huh?”
“I’m such an idiot. I overreacted for no reason.”
“…….”
“Ugly people sometimes just overreact, you know? Or maybe you don’t know.”
Noeul lifted her head. Hansol looked like he didn’t know what to say.
Noeul bowed her head again.
“No… don’t try to understand. Just kill me.”
“…Why would I kill you?”
Noeul looked up and said,
“So you’re going to let me live?”
Hansol smiled awkwardly.
“Of course.”
Noeul bowed once more, lifting her clasped hands above her head.
“Thank you…!”
Noeul looked up. Hansol looked at her with a slightly uneasy expression.
Hansol might have been a little surprised too. Based on how things looked yesterday, he probably thought Noeul had been deeply hurt. He might have expected her to be very upset or angry. He probably wondered how to resolve it, what to say when they met, and worried it would be awkward.
But seeing Noeul like this, he must have felt both unexpected relief and reassurance. Ah, she’s not as angry as I thought, it’s okay to just move on.
Noeul pointed both hands in one direction, as if escorting Hansol like a VIP.
“Let’s go. I’ll treat you to an 8,000-won fancy coffee instead of some average stuff.”
“What?”
Hansol chuckled.
Noeul laughed too.
She felt a weight lift off her shoulders. It seemed settled. Hansol would probably understand now. He’d think, “She just lost her temper yesterday by mistake. That’s embarrassing. Alright, I’ll let it slide.”
That was enough. From now on, she could keep a comfortable distance from Hansol. Of course, they would still hang out and drink together, happily, even more than before. But she wouldn’t hold excessive expectations like before. Then there would be no problems.
Noeul and Hansol ordered their coffee and waited.
Hansol was silent, either lost in thought or feeling awkward.
Noeul didn’t expect to feel completely at ease with him like before yesterday. Right now, things would inevitably be a bit awkward. But next time, it would be a little better. And the time after that, even better. In time, it would naturally fade, and later they’d laugh, saying, “Hey, remember when you overreacted like crazy?”
“Hansol… but…”
Hansol’s expression looked serious.
“Yesterday… I…”
“Uh-uh. Stop.”
Noeul cut him off.
Hansol blinked, caught off guard.
Noeul frowned.
“I don’t want to hear it.”
“Huh?”
“Let’s not dwell on the past. We should move forward, right?”
“Uh…”
Hansol hesitated, unsure whether to continue.
Tap tap
Someone knocked on the glass from outside the café.
They looked back and saw Hyunsu peering in. Noeul felt relieved that their conversation had been interrupted.
She chuckled and stepped outside.
“Why are you staring in like a pervert?”
“I mean, college students don’t have money to come to a café this expensive.”
Hansol followed Noeul outside.
Hyunsu said,
“Don’t just buy for Hansol, buy me one too.”
“That guy assumes I’ll pay, naturally.”
“Not?”
“Of course.”
Noeul and Hyunsu laughed.
“Too bad. If you were a pretty girl, I would’ve bought it for you too.”
“Ah, too bad… Hey, what are you doing tonight?”
“Why? Nothing.”
“A few of us are gonna drink if we have time.”
“I have plenty of time.”
“Knew it. I’ll get everyone together and send you the time and place.”
“Okay.”
Hyunsu looked at Hansol hesitantly and asked,
“Maybe… tonight…?”
Hansol thought for a moment, glanced at Noeul, and said,
“Yeah. I’ll go too.”
“Oh. Really? Awesome. That’s rare. Lots of people will be coming?”
Hansol chuckled lightly. Noeul felt his smile wasn’t entirely cheerful.
Why did Hansol agree to join? He usually refused any invitation to drink.
Maybe he was trying to ease the awkwardness between them?
No. Who would spend precious evening time just to fix awkwardness with Noeul? There must be some reason, and Noeul didn’t need to know it.
“No, seriously, listen. It’s a masterpiece.”
“Ha… what is it, you nerd?”
“Just listen, damn it.”
“You have to know what it is first, nerd…”
“I told you the title already, damn it…”
“How do you remember Japanese…?”
Byungjun and Hyemi were talking to each other in twisted tongues, one resting their face on their hand, the other leaning back on the chair.
Hyunsu, clearly drunk, asked Noeul,
“Hey, what are they talking about?”
“No idea. For an hour, all they’ve said is nerd this, damn it that.”
Hyunsu laughed.
“Ah, I really need to pee.”
He staggered off toward the bathroom. Noeul tapped his back as he passed by.
She sat quietly for a moment, feeling drained from hours of nonstop talking, joking, and laughing.
“Are you okay?”
At that moment, Hansol sat in front of her.
“Uh, that’s Hyunsu’s seat.”
“So what if I sit here?”
Noeul nodded.
Hansol asked,
“Did you drink a lot?”
“Eh, just a moderate amount. You?”
“About a bottle.”
“Mm.”
Maybe because of the alcohol, Noeul felt more at ease with Hansol than before. If she didn’t expect anything, her emotions wouldn’t fluctuate. She could remain cool. That was better than being a hysterical artist, swinging between excitement and disappointment.
Noeul felt stable and comfortable in her current state.
Hansol said,
“Hey, how can you apologize and just leave like that?”
“…Why?”
“You didn’t even listen to me.”
Noeul remembered cutting him off earlier.
Did Hansol have something he really wanted to say? What could it be?
His expression shook Noeul’s heart—eyes that seemed ready to open up, the way he nodded, his voice…
But the more she thought about it, the less she wanted to listen. If he sincerely apologized, she’d weaken again. She’d think, Hansol is different, Hansol understands me.
Noeul didn’t want that. That thought would only make her unstable.
Right now was perfect. The best thing was leaving yesterday’s feelings buried as a joke. Hansol would forget about today soon, thinking, I tried to apologize, but she wouldn’t listen anyway.
Noeul said with a resentful expression,
“You think I wouldn’t notice you making a fool of me for fun?”
“…It’s not like that.”
“Geez… such a good face, but attitude’s all wrong.”
“……”
At that moment, a boy at a nearby table said,
“What’s with this Beauty and the Beast combo?”
Others glanced at Noeul and Hansol. Pretty Hansol and funny, unattractive Noeul naturally drew attention. Something seemed amusing about it.
Noeul said,
“Seems like I really am the beauty, huh?”
She looked at Hansol. Normally, he would’ve smirked, but now he had an unreadable expression. Noeul wondered what he was thinking but didn’t want to know. She wanted to stay ignorant. She didn’t want to exhaust herself by guessing every little thing.
Noeul wanted everyone, including Hansol, to stay at a superficial, easygoing distance. No hurt, no conflicts, just jokes and laughter. That was far better than misreading emotions or expecting understanding where there wasn’t any. Overbearing expectations only push people apart. That’s why proper distance is necessary.
The group around Noeul and Hansol chattered loudly.
“Now I get why they called her beauty. Didn’t get angry at her face, right?”
“Sleeping Beauty? You idiot, that’s a different story.”
“Oh right… so embarrassing.”
“Idiot. How did you even get into college?”
Laughter erupted.
Noeul said,
“Embarrassment? Just push forward confidently. Tell them it’s a universe crossover. Beauty meets beast, prince, dwarf, all of them.”
“Yeah, the beauty’s always busy.”
Byungjun added,
“See, Hansol? Look at all these guys she’s hanging out with.”
Noeul extended her spoon like a microphone toward Hansol.
“So, what do you think? Is it tough being pretty?”
“……I guess.”
Hansol replied with a serious expression, which puzzled everyone. Noeul felt something was definitely off with him.
The mood seemed tense, so she put down the spoon and said,
“Ah, I guess it’s tough and busy because of someone like me.”
The others teased her playfully, saying, Yeah, stop bothering her.
Noeul observed Hansol. He looked stiff, like he was very tense.
He took a sip of beer, then glanced around anxiously.
Hyemi, noticing his odd behavior, asked softly,
“Are you okay?”
“…Huh?”
Hansol remained silent, then lowered his head.
“…….”
He covered his mouth with his hand. Hyemi, alarmed, placed her hand on his shoulder.
“Hansol…”
“…sniff… sniff… sob…”
Suddenly, Hansol’s shoulders shook, and he began to cry.
Noeul froze, staring at him.
The others whispered, Hansol’s crying… Hansol’s crying… The table grew silent.
“…I… I’m not feeling well…”
Hansol got up.
The group stepped aside, confused, letting him leave.
He walked out.
The others whispered among themselves, wondering what had happened and whether they should follow.
Noeul kept her eyes on the door Hansol had exited.
Someone asked her,
“Hey, do you know why Hansol’s like that?”
“……”
Noeul didn’t answer.
Some of the kids hesitated, fidgeting, unsure whether to follow him. Seeing this, Noeul immediately stood up. She knew she had to be the one to go after him.
“Noeul, where are you going?”
“…I’ll be back soon.”
She muttered to herself and stepped outside.
