Chapter 111
This morning, I took out the lens case that had been buried in the corner of my drawer. I had only been keeping it stored, occasionally changing the solution, but I decided to try taking off my glasses, following my mom’s advice. If I was going to practice, this week, when I could finish classes quickly, was perfect.
“Ugh…”
As soon as I put in the hard lenses, my eyeballs screamed, feeling stiff. As I quickly dropped in artificial tears, an unfamiliar face was reflected in the bathroom mirror.
I blankly stared at my face in the mirror. My pupils were definitely larger, but because I couldn’t quite control my eyelids, my expression looked vague and unfocused. Yet when I widened my eyes, I worried the hard lenses might pop right out.
My original plan had been to apply mascara as well. But the lenses alone were uncomfortable enough that I didn’t want to touch my eyes any further. I lowered my lashes and avoided the mirror as much as possible.
Thanks to Song Hyuk-jun’s early heads-up, I was safely assigned a locker for the second semester. But Ryu Eun-seok lost the lottery draw. So once again, I ended up sharing a locker with him. The password remained 0528.
I was taking out my scientific calculator from the locker when my eyes were caught by Ryu Eun-seok’s belongings taking up a corner. It felt like the distance between us had shrunk significantly. The feeling of sharing a personal space was awkward, making various parts of my body itch.
I wondered if Ryu Eun-seok, who had decided to lend me his locker three months ago, had felt a similar emotion.
As I locked the locker door, I felt a gaze flying in from the side. Students standing near the club room door were glancing at me. They were faces I often saw in the business building, but people I had never exchanged a greeting with.
…What is it?
Aside from group projects, I rarely experienced receiving attention. When unexpected stares came my way like this, I felt like I might break out in hives.
I hurriedly left, as if I urgently needed the restroom. My scalp tingled—I couldn’t tell if I was being oversensitive or if someone was actually staring at me.
The strange atmosphere followed me all the way to the Financial Statistics classroom. I set my bag down in my usual seat, and the man right behind me lifted his head and watched my every move. This was different from a reflexive glance at someone’s presence.
It felt just like being Ryu Eun-seok.
But I only had one follower.
Just then, the protagonist who was always receiving attention sent me a message and a photo.
*Ta-da*
Ryu Eun-seok, who had classes in the afternoon, was spending his time productively at the gym. A man in workout clothes was reflected in the mirror that took up one wall. My gaze lingered for a long while on his muscular arms revealed beneath his sleeveless shirt and the corners of his mouth slightly lifting above his phone.
*Work hard.*
But that was about all the reply I sent. I wasn’t generous enough to send praise about how handsome he looked to a man who already knew very well that he was good-looking.
*That’s it?*
Ryu Eun-seok asked again, finding it absurd. I looked down at the blinking message input field and hesitated. What on earth was I supposed to respond with at times like this? If only there were an answer key I could secretly copy and there wasn’t one, so it was frustrating.
What I eventually chose was the safest option—an emoji. I sent a panda emoji with a heart and quickly flipped my phone over. My face flushed at the unfamiliar way of communicating.
But then my desk vibrated. It was because of the sudden buzzing of my phone. Flipping it over to check, I saw a call coming in from Ryu Eun-seok.
Instead of pressing the answer button, I shoved my phone into my bag. If I heard Ryu Eun-seok’s low voice here, I felt like I’d end up spouting some ridiculous nonsense.
I still had no idea how to control the speed of my heart.
After the morning classes ended, I walked down to the parking lot between the business building and the student center. I had promised to go try the new craft burgers with Ryu Eun-seok. Since it was a bit far from school, it should be fine.
“Huh?”
Song Hyuk-jun, coming up the hill, greeted me with his booming voice.
“That’s Sang-hee noona, right?”
The class representative, who had come right up to me, stared intently at my face with wide eyes. I knew why and wanted to take a step back. I’d just wear my glasses starting tomorrow.
“Wow, I saw you from far away and didn’t think it was you. Did you put in lenses?”
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