BOORH 18

Chapter 18

The one surprised by his reaction was me. It was just too extreme.

Because of that reaction, even though I had intended to speak naturally, my voice came out stiff and awkward.

“Uh… um… I’m getting off at the next stop…”

I couldn’t bring myself to say, ‘Today was fun.’ He didn’t look like he had fun at all.

Hwanseong-nim didn’t even respond to my goodbye. He buried his face deeper into the hand resting under his chin, as if trying to hide his face behind his big palm. Seeing that, I gave a sheepish smile and reached for the stop button.

But whether he had manners or not, the one sitting by the window, Hwanseong-nim, quickly pressed the stop button before I could.

I wasn’t sure what about me in real life disappointed him, but… would things still be awkward the next time we met in the game?

‘I really don’t want that.’

But hey, if Hwanseong-nim doesn’t like me, there’s nothing I can do to force things… Thinking that made me feel a little down. After all, he was the one who made the game fun for me.

Before I knew it, the bus stop where I needed to get off came into view.

“Well, I’m getting off now. Hwanseong-nim, take care…”

But at that moment, I wondered if what I drank earlier was actually alcohol and not water, because the system window with the Dereso design I’d seen at the barbecue restaurant appeared again.

[Lee Hwanseong]
[Status: Embarrassed]

…And it was only visible over Hwanseong-nim.

None of the other passengers on the bus had a window above their heads—only him.

Was I really that drunk… hallucinating system windows?

‘That’s supposed to be embarrassed?’

Hwanseong-nim wasn’t even looking at me—he was staring at the bus window so hard it was like he wanted to shatter it with his eyes. There was nothing about his expression that looked embarrassed.

Baffled, I looked back and forth between him and the status window. But the window was still there, and the “Status: Embarrassed” remained unchanged.

Wait… something had been added.

[Status: Embarrassed because Hae-ah keeps staring]

Huh? What the heck…?

If that was him being embarrassed, what would happen if he got embarrassed a second time?

“Miss! You getting off or what?!”

“Ah! Sorry! Hwanseong-nim, I’ll see you in the game!”

Snapped out of it by the driver’s shout, I hurried off the bus.

Even after getting off, my eyes stayed fixed on Hwanseong-nim through the window. As the bus drove away, he—and the status window—faded into the distance.

“I must really be drunk…”

* * *

Meanwhile, inside the bus after Hae-ah had gotten off, Hwanseong sat hunched over, covering his face with both hands, not caring who was watching. It was a behavior that didn’t match his large frame at all.

An elderly lady sitting behind him spoke up loudly enough for him to hear.

“Tsk, tsk. What’s with young men being so shy these days?”

“I can hear you, ma’am…”

“I meant for you to hear it. Watching you is making me frustrated!”

“We’re… not even like that.”

“Oh please! You’re clearly head over heels for that young lady!”

Then came the sound of her thumping her chest in frustration.

Hwanseong ignored everything she said. Mostly because she was right and he had no retort.

He could feel the heat in his face even with his hands covering it.

It had been like this from the moment they met. Specifically, the moment she started talking about Choi Haneul again—he’d gotten jealous, and without realizing it, found himself getting too close to her. After that, his heart had been racing so hard he couldn’t even make eye contact.

That overwhelming feeling had led to this trainwreck of a situation.

Hwanseong let out a deep sigh.

Even he thought he’d behaved poorly. Ignoring everything she said, acting like she wasn’t even there next to him, and then acting all uncomfortable just because their arms brushed.

But that was only because it was summer, and their bare skin had touched, and he was afraid she’d notice the heat radiating off him.

Still, even someone as good-natured as Hae-ah would understandably be upset by such behavior when she didn’t know the reason behind it.

“This isn’t how today was supposed to go…”

Even during school days, he hadn’t been this awkward. Sure, he might’ve quietly stood behind her in line or sat beside her in the cafeteria, but he’d never let her see his face turn red like this.

Reflected in the bus window was his flushed, blushing face. Ever since the restaurant, Seungho had been smirking and giggling every time their eyes met, clearly enjoying the show.

“This is a disaster.”

With another sigh, Hwanseong got off at some random stop.

In truth, he hadn’t even been supposed to be on the same bus as Hae-ah. He’d needed to take a different one, but he boarded that one just to try talking to her again—and ended up making things even worse.

As he walked along, rubbing his face dry, a message notification dinged on his phone.

He wasn’t really in the mood to check it. It was probably some teasing message from Jung Yuchan or Choi Haneul, rubbing salt in the wound with a bunch of emojis.

But strangely, there was only one alert, not the usual barrage when it was those two. Puzzled, he took his phone out of his pocket.

And then, as if someone had hit pause, he froze in place—his eyes wide.

On the screen, the sender’s name was: Hae-ah.

That alone was shocking, but the content was even more so.

[Hae-ah: Did you get home safely? You seemed a bit off today ㅎㅎ… If you’re okay with it, I’d like to meet up again sometime. You’ve helped me so much in the game—I’d at least like to buy you a meal ㅎㅎ…]

Wondering if it was a dream, Hwanseong lightly pinched his cheek. The dull pain told him it was very real.

Snapping back to his senses, he typed a quick reply:

[Yeah. I’d love that. Please.]

* * *

The only reason I decided I wanted to see Hwanseong-nim again was simple.

That status window…

My alcohol tolerance wasn’t particularly high, but I had had a couple drinks. Still, I wasn’t drunk—and yet, that status window wouldn’t make sense otherwise. So I figured I needed to meet him again sober, and sent the message.

Right then, I got a direct message from Issa via DassoCode.

<Issa: Sunnyah-nim! How was seeing Hwanseong-hyung in real life?>

Huh?

I squinted at the screen. If he meant looks—well, yeah, he was ridiculously good-looking. As for personality… I’d have to actually talk to him to know that.

<Did I do something to make Hwanseong-nim angry or uncomfortable…?>

<Issa: Huh?????>

<Issa: Hwanseong-hyung? Angry at Sunnyah-nim??ㅋㅋㅋ>

<Issa: Even if he had complaints, he’d probably turn them into happiness around you ㅇ_ㅇ;;ㅋㅋ>

<Issa: But why are you asking??>

I was honestly curious what kind of person they thought he was to say things like that. I was just a newbie in the game, and he was someone helping me out.

<Ah, it just seemed like he was avoiding me today and barely said anythingㅎㅎ… If that’s not the case, then that’s a reliefㅎ>

<Issa: Ah…! He’s always been like that…ㅎㅎ!>

<What?>

<Issa: He’s always quiet and a bit cold… even in the game. But with you, he’s like… different.>

Ah. So he’s been forcing himself out of his comfort zone for my sake in the game?

Just then, I got another notification—not from DassoCode, but a text message. It was a reply from Hwanseong-nim.

[Hwanseong-nim: Yeah. I’d love that. Please.]
[Hwanseong-nim: When’s good for you? I’m free tomorrow too.]

Contrary to my expectation that he wouldn’t want to meet again, he replied enthusiastically.

He really seemed like he wanted to meet up.

What’s going on? Was he really just not feeling well today? Or… was he actually embarrassed?

I considered several possibilities, but it didn’t really seem like embarrassment was the reason for his earlier behavior.

Also, what’s with the please? If he’s happy, just say he’s happy.